First fight is Campbell Vs Mima at Bantamweight
Round 1 - Both men are pacing the rail as Ref Brian Miner sets the action.
Mima takes the center straight off. Campbell is working angles before either throws a strike. A brief exchange leads to a Mima initiated takedown. Mima stays in control throughout the round keeping Campbell on his back and against the cage. Campbell employs the butterfly guard well through this episode and eventually finds his way up to the feet. Darren's hands are lightening quick delivering stiff jabs. Johnny has some ferocious kicks. Darren picks Johnny up and slams him down hard on his back. As the bell ends the round we see Campbell fighting off a RNC.
Round 2 - Mima sends a headkick up stairs and a moment later he shoots in for another takedown. He's working Johnny over moving to Cupcake's back. He's locked on the back with a boy triangle. Mima's corner is telling him to establish position by maitaining the hooks in. Johnny reverses the position and Mima is now pulling guard as Campbell looks for a spot to plant a heavy hand. Mima gets some separation and is on his feet. Johnny falls for the feint and covers up top giving Mima yet another takedown. Johnny reverses the position and ends the round on top.
Round 3 - Johnny has to come out to win this fight. He's behind two rounds to none. The action resumes and Johnny still looks fresh and relaxed. Not really showing any damage. Mima is the smaller fighter, but is also looking really fresh despite having rag dolled Campbell for ten minutes. The men come to the center of the cage and Mima is on the hunt. He takes the shot and slams Campbell to the mat, hard. Between the hollers from Campbell's die hard fans and Darren's corner the arena is eerily quiet. The shutters are snapping shut on the apron while Darren and Johnny roll on the floor. Johhny wearing Mima like a backpack for the duration of the round. The feeling is that Mima will sink the RNC any moment. At the last second Mima stands up and returns to the center of the cage allowing Campbell to stand just long enough for the bell to sound.
My score is 8-10, 9-10, 7-10 Mima. Mima wins by Unanimous Dec.
Fight two is Matt Secor Vs Chip Moraza-Pollard at Welterweight
Round 1 - Chip is loose and staying just outside Secors range. Matt throws a high kick while Chip looks for the opening. The first minute passes by with little action. The ref prompts them to make better use of the time. Neither fighter in a hurry. The Surgeon wants his shots to be felt. He gets a few peppering jabs inside Secors defenses, but it costs him dearly as Matt gets in a takedown and advances to mount. Big John Johnston can be heard on the far side of the cage giving Chip encouragement and instructions. Secor is able to keep the postion and the pressure until the ten second mark. They end the round on their feet.
Round 2 - Chip is covering a bit more ground and being aggressive. This will go a long ways with the judges. He's landed a few combinations that end with hard outside leg kicks. Secor is starting to back peddle. On the fourth or fifth of these exchanges Matt shoots in and secures the takedown. He passes to mount pretty easily and Chip finds himself against the cage and with few options. The ref stands both men up after a two minute period where little has been happening despite Matt having mount. Chip's right eye is closing up due to Secor's strikes. The round ends and neither man looks close to quitting.
Round 3 - Chip comes out pumping jabs, Secor is throwing garbage to distract him. The Surgeon looks for another leg kick and finds it, but Secor is ready to steal the round with a takedown. He mounts and proceeds to pressure Chip with everything but the kitchen sink. Secor scores big points with the crowd by body slamming Chip a number of times before posturing up and throwing wild elbows at the final bell.
I see this one three rounds to Secor none to Morza-Pollard even with the flat ground game by Secor. Chip is a tough dude and took some physical damage during this challenging fight. Secor wins Unanimous Dec.
Fight three is Saul Almeida Vs Chris Foster at Featherweight
Round 1 -Saul and Chris are in the cage with Dan Mergliatta. Big Dan turns them loose at the bell. Saul meets Chris in the center with a few switched stances and a kick. Chris tries to avoid the takedown and gets pressured up against the cage where Saul finds his grip and takes Foster down. The Spider is on top in Foster's gueard at the halfway mark in the round. Dan stands the fighters up. Foster makes the most of the opportunity and goes up top with strikes and then drops down for the body shots. Saul gets the takedown for a second time and pressures Foster to the cage again. Again Dan stands them up after a time of inactivity, Chris shows more of the hands he's got and is able to work some shots to the ribs of Almeida before the round ends.
Round 2 - Foster is landing his hands at will. His head movement keeping Almeida guessing. The first minute of the round ticks off and Saul has Chris pressured against the cage where he is able to take the game to the mat. Saul loses almost two minutes inside Foster's guard and I expect Dan will stand them up. As soon as I type that it happens. Almeida wants none of the stand up and after eating more crisp shots to his body and face he is looking for the takedown. It isn't long before he gets another. At the ten second mark Chris explodes to his feet and takes Almeida for a big ride up and an even quicker ride back down to the mat. This gets the crowd fired up.
Round 3 - Both men come out swinging. Almeida connects with an uppercut and Foster counters with body punches and heavy shots to the head. Almeida is leaning into every punch and Foster looks for the KO punch. Saul takes the shot and gets it. They are back on the mat. Chris is content to control Almaida's posture and is able to get to Saul's back in a brief scramble. With two minutes in the round left to go Saul reverses the postion. Chris wasn't able to do any damage while he had the back. A minute left in the round and Foster's name is echoing through the theater as his fans try to will him to victory. Big Dan stands them up for what he hopes is his final time with twenty seconds to fight. Chris works fervently to end the round with his dominant striking. The bell sounds and neither man looks like they are sure who won.
I see this one going to Almeida based on his control over Foster on the ground and his ability to take Foster down at will, but I also think that Chris was the more aggressive fighter landing meaning full strikes in abundance. A boring fight with hints of how great Foster could be in the right situation. Almeida wins via Split Dec.
Fight Four is Islam Mamedov Vs Leon Davis at Lightweight
Round 1 -The crowd goes wild for Leon as his name is announced. The veteran Russian fighter across from him sports a 10 win 1 loss record. Ref Brian Miner calls the action to start and the men square off and touch gloves. Leon is doing all the work while Islam sits back and watches unaffected until he sees the opportunity to take control. He takes Leon down and works the back actively searching to secure a second hook. Leon bursts and is able to turn over with a brief threat for the Guillotine. With less than a minute left Leon is feeling all the pressure being applied to him with the precision possessed by the master technician. With Islam permenantly fixed upon his back and a barrage of strikes raining down on him at every turn Leon shells up and quits. Big Dan stops the fight with 25seconds left.
Islam Mamedov wins by TKO in the first.
Fight Five is Ozzy Dugulubgov Vs Lucas Montoya at Lightweight
Round 1 - Ozzy comes out the aggressor whipping Lucas with kicks. Lucas is looking a bit stiff midway through the first. Ozzy shoots in and gets the takedown. Lucas is maintaining the guard, but little of it is threatening. Ref Kevin calls for the action to pick up. Ozzy obliges with a blistering flurry of strikes. He gets tangled up in Montoya's legs. A triangle is attempted. The ref calls time and the fight is called off as Montoya is checked by the ringside physician. The replay shows that Montoya sustained an injury. Montoya looks like he is in incredible pain. Best of luck to him in the future.
Dugulubgov wins via ref stoppage due to injury. Officially a TKO in the first.
Fight Six is Steve Mocco Vs Juliano "Banana" Coutinho at Heavyweight
Round 1 -Banana is the clear home town favorite. He comes out with Loco Lobo and Daniel Gracie. The crowd is going wild. Steve is here with Glover Texiera and Mike Brown out of ATT Coconut Creek. This is going to be a great fight. Both men look ready to kill and Big Dan is going to see that they do that in a truly professional fashion. The action begins with both men feeling out the other with some circling and looking for the angles. Steve is landing punches and rocks Banana with a solid right hook just over the left ear. Juliano doesn't seem to be able to find his distance or timing and two minutes thirty seconds remain of the first round. Steve is looking comfortable, picking his spots, and connecting with that right hand again. Steve gets Banana to the ground and forces him to give up his back. Once this happens the shots accumulate, Banana covers up, and Big Dan is forced to rescue the heavyweight from further concussive damage.
Steve Mocco takes the W via TKO in the first.
Fight Seven is Pheonix Jones Vs Emmanuel Walo at 175lb catchweight
Round 1 - Pheonix Jones comes out in his super hero protective gear. Kids everywhere will want the Pheonix chest plate this coming Christmas. lol... Walo is all business as the precession into the cage ends and both men are squarely in place within it's links. Ref Brian Miner draws the assignment. Jones walks down Walo in the opening seconds of the round. Walo finds Jones' chin with a right hand and gets the takedown off of it. Jone is up quickly, but Walo isn't giving up. A brief exchange and a Jones kick to the body gets caught leading to another Walo takedown. Jones finds his way to his feet again. Again Walo eats a kick to get the takedown. The lay and pray has begun and we are at the minute mark in the round. Jones is playing guard and Walo is not looking to pass. Ref Brian stands them up. Walo is content to play a slow stall game from top. We've seen this already tonight in the Almeida/Foster match.
Round 2 - Pheonix is again the aggressor at the start of the round starting with a wicked leg kick followed with some heavy hands. Walo eats the barrage and they continue to stand for another minute. Walo again executes the takedown. Pheonix's corner is calling for him to move back to the cage. Jones gets back to his feet. His active style is impressive, but Walo is just a master at the takedown and once again drops his man to the mat. Walo is never pressing with intensity throughout these moments. Again the ref is standing them up. With ten seconds left in the round Jones swings hard and wild. Walo clears out and the bell rings.
Round 3 - Jones comes out like the two rounds before and presses the action. He dives in for the takedown of his own. Walo defends. There exchanging standup and Walo takes him down again. Jones is still fresh enough to get up within a few seconds. They play a dangerous game of cat and mouse for the rest of the round. Every standup has Jones chipping away at Walo, but anytime Walo wants the takedown it is there. At one point Pheonix sinks a deep guillotine choke, but can't get to the hip and finish it. Walo get's through the round and possibly takes the win.
Emmanuel Walo gets the Unanimous Dec. from the judges.
Fight Eight is Nick Newell Vs Joe Condon at Lightweight
Round 1 - Nick enters the room and everyone erupts in cheers, woops, and hollers. The energy in the room is electric. Condon is looking far to serious on his side of the cage. Newell on the brain will do that to a man. Nick is light on his feet feeding off the energy. This is his house. The round begins and both men touch gloves. Nick takes two kicks to the outside lead leg. Condon is backing up now. Nick has him thinking about the takedown. Newell is moving in and out with ease. Jesse Camp leads the crowd in a chant of "Nick Newell". Nick is taking wild swings that if they connected would take off Condon's head. However, these punches are seen a mile away. Nick pushes the pace the entire round. His shin buries itself into Condons mid section more than once. Nick gets in on a takedown. A big single leg. He picks up Condon with seconds left on the clock and drops his man through the mat. With Nick on his back Condon looks to keep the submissions at bay as the bell rings.
Round 2 - Nick is moving well. He lands a low leg kick, Condon is trying to counter with his own kicks. Newell shakes his head with each attempt. Newell rushes in for a takedown and isn't able to finish. Condon pressures Newell up against the cage, but Nick's wizzer is deep. So deep in fact that he tosses Condon onto his back for a crowd pleasing slam. Nick is hunting for subs from the North South position. Both men return to the feet. Condon looks for his own takedown, but Nick defends expertly. With ten seconds left Newell times a single leg takedown perfectly and ends the round on top.
Round 3 - Nick comes out with a leg kick and Condon returns in kind. Newell catches the kick and holds on for a second to long. He eats a punch before letting go. Condon and Newell take turns hunting submissions on the ground over the next three minutes. Newell hooks up a guillotine, but Condon defends. Condon looks for the RNC, but Nick keeps calm and is able to get to his feet. Nick sinks in another Guillotine with seconds left in the round. Condon is giving the thumbs up and the time runs down. The bell rings and Condon jumps up with hands in the air signifying his triumph.
lol. What fight did this guy watch? He survived and that really sums it up. Newell pressured from bell to bell, had the wrestling in the bag, and kept Condon moving where he wanted.
The Judges see it a Unanimous Dec 27-28 for Newell
Fight Nine is David Branch Vs Jesse McElligott at Heavyweight
Round 1 - Jesse is a last minute replacement. Originally slated to face Steve Skrzat he was scrubbed from the card earlier last week. Branch's original opponent was injured and with only hours notice Jesse got the call. We applaud him. Big Dan will keep the chaos controlled as only he can. the round begins with Jesse pumping the jabs. Branch shows his flexibility immediately with head kicks from both sides. Branch pressures his man into the cage. There is a takedown and Branch is on top in McElligott's half guard. Jesse gets full guard while Branch is pushing them across the cage into Jesse's own corner. McElligott is remaining calm on his back. Looks like he's looking for an armbar or a triangle. Branch is constantly punishing the ribs with heavy punches. Jesse lasts the round.
Round 2 -Jesse comes out in the South paw stance. Pumping that jab. Branch takes control of the angles and sends Jesse first one way than the other. A series of head kicks finds the mark and Jesse begins to falter. Branch pressures him against the cage and lands heavy hands. A few knees soften Jesse up even further and Branch comes in to drag the man to the ground. McElligott looks for a guillotine, but Branch is out of danger on the far side. I think he is looking for the Von Flue Choke. Sure enough as soon as he passes into mount you can see that Jesse is no longer concious.
Big Dan stops the fight in the second round due to submission. Von Flue Choke.