Tag: RiccoRodriguez

Seth Petruzelli Knocks Out Ricco Rodriguez

Filed under: Bellator, NewsFormer UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez was on a 12-fight winning streak and appeared to be on the way back, if not to a title than at least to respectability. But Seth Petruzelli put a stop to any talk that Rodriguez…

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Former UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez was on a 12-fight winning streak and appeared to be on the way back, if not to a title than at least to respectability. But Seth Petruzelli put a stop to any talk that Rodriguez is back.

Petruzelli brutally knocked Rodriguez out in the first round of their Bellator fight on Saturday night: Petruzelli landed a spinning kick to the head to knock Rodriguez off balance, and then when Rodriguez recovered and charged forward with his hands down, Petruzelli leveled him with a big right hand to the chin. With Rodriguez on his back, Petruzelli whaled on him with a double hammerfist, and then the referee stepped in to stop the fight.

The official time of the technical knockout victory was 4 minutes, 21 seconds of the first round. For Rodriguez, the loss was the first time he’s been finished since losing to Tim Sylvia at UFC 41.

For Petruzelli, this was his most significant win since knocking out Kimbo Slice in 2008, in a nationally televised fight that led to the downfall of the old EliteXC promotion. Now Petruzelli says he wants to help build Bellator as an up-and-coming promotion.

“I’m so happy,” Petruzelli said afterward. “That light heavyweight belt for Bellator has my name written all over it, and I’m coming for it.”

 

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Konrad vs. Buentello, Rodriguez vs. Petruzelli Added to Bellator 48

Filed under: Bellator, NewsBellator has lined up two heavyweight matchups, Cole Konrad vs. Paul Buentello and Ricco Rodriguez vs. Seth Petruzelli, for Bellator 48 on Aug. 20 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

Bellator 48 will be the third a…

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Bellator has lined up two heavyweight matchups, Cole Konrad vs. Paul Buentello and Ricco Rodriguez vs. Seth Petruzelli, for Bellator 48 on Aug. 20 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

Bellator 48 will be the third and final 2011 Summer Series events and is expected to feature the finals of the featherweight tournament which kicked off this past Saturday.


The Konrad vs. Buentello non-title fight was originally announced for Bellator 42 in April, but Buentello would later withdraw due to a back injury. Konrad, who won all seven of his fights in 2010 en route to becoming the Bellator heavyweight champion, will be fighting for the first time this year.

Rodriguez and Petruzelli will both be making their Bellator debuts. Although Bellator is billing this as a heavyweight bout, the agreed upon catchweight is 230 pounds,
according to Petruzelli. Petruzelli was released from the UFC after his loss at UFC 122 last November and scored a TKO this year at WEF 46 in April. Never fighting for the same promotion in a row, Rodriguez has won his last 11 fights.

 

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Ricco Rodriguez Booked for Resisting Arrest

Filed under: NewsFormer UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez was arrested this past Sunday near in Arizona on charges of assault and resisting arrest, according to police records.

In an incident first reported by MyFoxPhoenix, Rodriguez allegedly …

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Former UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez was arrested this past Sunday near in Arizona on charges of assault and resisting arrest, according to police records.

In an incident first reported by MyFoxPhoenix, Rodriguez allegedly assaulted a taxi cab driver after refusing to pay more than $20 for a $70 fare in Ahwatukee, south of Phoenix. When the police were called to the scene, police said it took three officers to control Rodriguez.

“It’s our policy to handcuff behind — that did not occur. He was struggling with the officers, flailing his arms … one of the officers was pushed against the wall, and we believe at that point he sustained a minor injury or cut to his elbow,” Sgt. Steve Martos said in the MyFoxPhoenix report.

Rodriguez (46-11) is currently riding an 11-fight win streak fighting in local circuits around the world. In February, he defeated James McSweeney via unanimous decision at BAMMA 5: Daley vs. Shirai in Manchester, England. During that time, he was rumored to join Bellator, but that never came to fruition, and unable to earn a return trip to the UFC, set his goal instead on 50 career wins.

Rodriguez once held the UFC heavyweight title by defeating Randy Couture at UFC 39 in September 2002.

 

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