With UFC 180 and Bellator 131 taking the majority of the spotlight this past Saturday night, MMA enthusiasts sort of forgot to pay attention to the stacked WSOF 15, which took place at USF Sundome in Tampa, Fla.
The main event saw David Branch successfully defend his 185-pound title against former UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, stopping the Japanese veteran in the fourth round with punches.
“Thunder” had the grappling advantage, yet the Renzo Gracie-trained combatant kept finding a home for his right hand. After three close rounds, Branch drilled his opponent with a solid right hand, dropping the challenger and continued to pounce on him until being awarded the stoppage victory. See the GIF after the jump.
With UFC 180 and Bellator 131 taking the majority of the spotlight this past Saturday night, MMA enthusiasts sort of forgot to pay attention to the stacked WSOF 15, which took place at USF Sundome in Tampa, Fla.
The main event saw David Branch successfully defend his 185-pound title against former UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, stopping the Japanese veteran in the fourth round with punches.
“Thunder” had the grappling advantage, yet the Renzo Gracie-trained combatant kept finding a home for his right hand. After three close rounds, Branch drilled his opponent with a solid right hand, dropping the challenger and continued to pounce on him until being awarded the stoppage victory (GIF via Zombie Prophet).
Melvin Guillard, the A-list fighter competing in the B-list league, ruined his chances at securing a world title after failing to make weight prior to his bout alongside Justin Gaethje, but none of that truly mattered. The reigning lightweight champion got the better of his foe during the course of three rounds, winning the contest by split decision. It was a back and forth affair (mostly won by the undefeated slugger), contested mostly on the feet, and lived up to the billing. It’s a shame it was marred by Guillard failing to make weight yet again, taking a bit of the muster away from the bout.
Also on the card, Jessica Aguilar, arguably the best women’s strawweight fighter in the world, took care of business by beating Kalindra Faria and defended her title for the second time and earned her 10th consecutive victory. Credit Faria for going for broke early and trying to make it a dogfight against “Jag,” however, after winning the first round, the hopeful challenger was not match for the American Top Team standout.
To be fair, nobody in their right mind would have picked WSOF over the top two MMA promotions on Saturday evening, seeing how all three had fairly big events on the same night. But, Ray Sefo and the gang loaded the card with familiar names and backed the event with star power, delivering a pretty good night of fights from the Sunshine State. It’s a shame nobody watched it, yet you can pretty much access anything these days and spend your Sunday afternoon catching up. It’s kind of worth the squeeze.
WSOF 15 Main Card Results
David Branch def. Yushin Okami via TKO (punches) at 3:39 of R4
Justin Gaethje def. Melvin Guillard via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Jessica Aguilar def. Kalindra Faria via unanimous decision (49-45 x3)
Jorge Patino def. Eric Reynolds via unanimous decision (30-27×2, 29-28)
Under Card Results
Maurice Salmon def. Javier Torres via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 5:00 of R1
Andrew Hutchinson def. Troy Gerhart via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Ryan Keenan def. Jose Andres Cortes via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:16 of R3
Tony Way def. Fred Moncaio via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:03 of R3
Hector Ochoa def.. Robert Reed via split decision (28-29, 29-28×2)
Reggie Pena def. Joe Johnson via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:15 of R1
Matt Frevola def. Josh Zuckerman via submission (armbar) at 2:50 of R1
Guillard was given two hours to lose the additional weight, but since a belt was on the line, he’d have to hit 155 on the button…which wasn’t going to happen. Instead, Guillard agreed to a 50% fine of his purse (!!) and the fight will proceed as a non-title bout. Fun fact: Melvin Guillard also missed weight for one of his UFC bouts, coming in at 157.5 pounds before getting knocked out by Donald Cerrone at UFC 150.
Everybody else made weight for the “Branch vs. Okami” WSOF event, which goes down tomorrow at the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida, and features three two title fights, including one involving a lady who’s now getting sued. Related question: Is “World Series of Fighting” the most hilariously ironic promotion name in MMA history?
Guillard was given two hours to lose the additional weight, but since a belt was on the line, he’d have to hit 155 on the button…which wasn’t going to happen. Instead, Guillard agreed to a 50% fine of his purse (!!) and the fight will proceed as a non-title bout. Fun fact: Melvin Guillard also missed weight for one of his UFC bouts, coming in at 157.5 pounds before getting knocked out by Donald Cerrone at UFC 150.
Everybody else made weight for the “Branch vs. Okami” WSOF event, which goes down tomorrow at the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida, and features three two title fights, including one involving a lady who’s now getting sued. Related question: Is “World Series of Fighting” the most hilariously ironic promotion name in MMA history?
Forget Ortiz vs. Bonnar. Forget Werdum vs. Hunt (lol jk). Justin Gaethje vs. Melvin Guillard is going down at WSOF 15 this weekend with the lightweight championship on the line and promises to be the most knock-down, drag-out, didyouseethatbro barnburner of them all. Both fighters have become well known for their relentless aggression and knockout power, and both have promised to put a serious hurtin’ on the other, so what else do you need to get excited for this fight, you buncha nerds?
“How about a few of their recent fight videos accompanied by some base-level insight and a noncommittal prediction, Danga?”
Well, YOU FUCKIN’ GOT IT. Here…we…GO!
The Challenger
(Sorry for the quality, but the original got pulled. GEE I WONDER WHY.)
Look, you already know who Melvin Guillard is, how he fights, which one-hit wonder he fashioned his look after, etc. Gaethje vs. Guillard is one of those rare matchups where the challenger is actually more of a household name than the champion — like Weidman vs. Belfort or Martinez vs. Zimmer. This fact has not been lost on Guillard, who recently told MMAMania that he is “an A-list fighter, fighting in the B-league” and that Gaethje is “nowhere near his level.”
While it’s evident that humility (and submission defense) cannot be found among Guillard’s many great qualities, a few things that *can* be found among them are a lightning fast jab, a murderous left hook, and at the risk of sounding racist, explosive athleticism. Simply put, when Guillard is having an on night, it’s his ability to get off first that usually leads him to victory. He may be in perpetual search of the highlight reel KO, but Guillard is also a tactician when it comes to how he mixes up his combinations with body shots and leg kicks. Guillard also has great head movement and takedown defense, and it’s his confidence in said takedown defense that allows him to throw from the clinch with reckless abandon, where he has overwhelmed many a fighter with the pure volume of strikes he is willing to throw.
After the jump: Watch Justin Gaethje KTFO some dudes.
(Photo via World Series of Fighting.)
Forget Ortiz vs. Bonnar. Forget Werdum vs. Hunt (lol jk). Justin Gaethje vs. Melvin Guillard is going down at WSOF 15 this weekend with the lightweight championship on the line and promises to be the most knock-down, drag-out, didyouseethatbro barnburner of them all. Both fighters have become well known for their relentless aggression and knockout power, and both have promised to put a serious hurtin’ on the other, so what else do you need to get excited for this fight, you buncha nerds?
“How about a few of their recent fight videos accompanied by some base-level insight and a noncommittal prediction, Danga?”
Well, YOU FUCKIN’ GOT IT. Here…we…GO!
The Challenger
(Sorry for the quality, but the original got pulled. GEE I WONDER WHY.)
Look, you already know who Melvin Guillard is, how he fights, which one-hit wonder he fashioned his look after, etc. Gaethje vs. Guillard is one of those rare matchups where the challenger is actually more of a household name than the champion — like Weidman vs. Belfort or Martinez vs. Zimmer. This fact has not been lost on Guillard, who recently told MMAMania that he is “an A-list fighter, fighting in the B-league” and that Gaethje is “nowhere near his level.”
While it’s evident that humility (and submission defense) cannot be found among Guillard’s many great qualities, a few things that *can* be found among them are a lightning fast jab, a murderous left hook, and at the risk of sounding racist, explosive athleticism. Simply put, when Guillard is having an on night, it’s his ability to get off first that usually leads him to victory. He may be in perpetual search of the highlight reel KO, but Guillard is also a tactician when it comes to how he mixes up his combinations with body shots and leg kicks. Guillard also has great head movement and takedown defense, and it’s his confidence in said takedown defense that allows him to throw from the clinch with reckless abandon, where he has overwhelmed many a fighter with the pure volume of strikes he is willing to throw.
Finally, let’s talk about Melvin’s ground-n-pound for a second. Melvin Guillard packs some of the most furious, ill-intentioned hammerfists in the game — see his absolutely brutal KO of Mac Danzig at UFC on FOX 8 above. Remember those punches Ryan Shultz finished Chris Horodecki with in the 2007 IFL World Grand Prix finals? Guillard throws *everything* like that. Simply put, there’s a few reasons why Guillard holds a UFC record 8 finishes by KO/TKO, and chief among them is his aggression when he has you hurt.
His most recent win over Gesias Cavalcante in his WSOF debut was a classic example of this. The evidence of his move to America Top Team was heard in every thudding kick to the body he landed that night, and while the final sequence of the fight resulted in what many would call an early stoppage, there was no denying that Guillard was eating Cavalcante alive that night.
Still, it’s inconsistency that has plagued “The Young Assassin’s” career, and the reason he finds himself fighting in the so-called “B-League” today. There is perhaps no fighter in MMA that looks greater in victory and worse in defeat than Guillard, who went 2-5 1 NC in his last 8 UFC appearances. When it’s not simple overconfidence has led to his undoing (see his fight with Joe Lauzon), it’s usually some other mental deficiency that has. His final UFC fight against Michael Johnson saw Guillard uncharacteristically tentative and unwilling to engage as the fight progressed, resulting in perhaps one of the most underwhelming performances of his career. Likewise, his losses to Cowboy Cerrone and Jim Miller came following split-second mental errors.
With nearly 50 professional bouts to his credit at just 31 years of age, Guillard brings an almost unprecedented amount of experience into his title fight at WSOF 11. But then, it’s never really been Guillard’s lack of know-how that’s cost him a fight, but rather his inability to apply what he’s learned to the fight itself. Let’s hope his time with ATT has curbed some, but not all, of his brawlerish tendencies.
The Champ
At 12-0, Justin Gaethje is already being heralded by some as “the best lightweight in the world.” Despite this, he is apparently not significant enough a fighter to warrant a Wikipedia page (one in English, anyway).
But it’s styles that make fights, not Wikipedia pages, and Justin Gaethje possesses a style that can be best described as “Melvin Guillard-esque.”
With 10 KO/TKO finishes in those 12 contests including 5 in the first round, Gaethje is a straight up assassin, whose wrestling background allows him to not only dictate where the fight goes, but when and how it goes there. (Spoiler: It usually stays in the feet and ends with a fury of uppercuts). He’s been rightfully compared to an early Chuck Liddell in his ability to stop the takedown and punish anyone who dares attempt one on the way out, and like Guillard, Gaethje is perhaps most dangerous from the clinch.
Just check out the manner in which he dispatched Richard Patishnock at WSOF 8 to win the lightweight title, if you don’t believe me. Gaethje only fights at one speed, and although his aggressiveness often leaves him open for the counter (sound familiar?), it is his solid chin and dynamic striking arsenal that leaves him the last man standing.
That, and his speed.
At 25 years old, Gaethje may very well be the first guy Guillard has faced that might actually be faster than him. Notice how Gaethje is able to bait Patishnock with the threat of the knee (3:15 in the video above ), then land both that knee and a follow-up right hook before Patishnock can even scramble to his feet. From there, Gaethje keeps Patinshock perpetually off-balance with a beautiful series of uppercuts followed by standing elbows until the ref is forced to step in.
Gaethje’s previous fight against Dan Lauzon was no different. The Arizona native rocked Lauzon early and often with body shots, knees, and even a spinning elbow in tight quarters while bringing Lauzon’s momentum to a complete stop with leg kicks from distance. But perhaps most impressive was the final sequence of the fight, wherein Gaethje was able to both drop Lauzon with a right hook and finish him off with a right uppercut while Lauzon was falling to the mat. If it’s Gaethje’s speed isn’t impressive enough, his accuracy sure as Hell is.
Noncommittal prediction: Believe it or not, my stance on how this fight goes is eerily similar to Gaethje’s prediction, which was that ”[Guillard’s] either going to get really lucky and knock me out or I’m going to beat the (expletive) out of him and make him look really bad.” If Gaethje overcommits on a punch early and leaves his chin exposed, Guillard will put him away. Guillard can put anyone away. That said, I don’t see it happening against someone of Gaethje’s caliber. The WSOF champ will retain his title by outworking Guillard on the feet, mixing up the occasional takedown, and cutting the UFC vets legs out from beneath him with leg kicks en route to a second round TKO. Thoughts?
