Chris2K Posted January 8, 2015 Author Share Posted January 8, 2015 THE WEEK IN MMA Week 4 of March 2001 We're coming off the latest BCF show which was a very good show considering nobody knew anybody on most of the card. The lack of star power seems to have really hurt the promotion this time as UK Broadcasting Digital are no longer interested in running new shows on their network once their current deal expires. The poor ratings, combined with the financial scandal the BCF went through at the tail end of 2000, means that the internet channel will not broadcast any further shows after Best of British 6 in May. The show still has a contract with SportTube so it will likely still run in some form, but this is a huge blow to the BCF as their bad 2001 manages to get worse. We had a couple of retirements following a large American independent show on Friday, Lee Bould called it quits following a defeat to Slade Cregg, he finished up with an 18-12 record but never fought for a top promotion. Nigel Malley also retired from MMA after being tapped out by the young phenom Bill Brown, the former pro boxer started his MMA career quite late and took most of his 23 wins by knock out. A crazy story from Japan, 30 year old Bantamweight Junko Yamada was arrested this past week following a brawl in a karaoke club. Yamada, not currently under contract with an organisation, is thought to have become angry when another girl came over to her boyfriend and tried to kiss him, probably not wise to do that to a karate specialist as Yamada struck her several times and bloodied the victim up quite badly. Yamada was taken into custody and released on bail, however she will not be taking any fights until this situation is resolved. Xtreme Cage Combat are taking a step in the right direction, they have signed a new television deal with National Pride TV which will open up a huge new audience for their shows. Considering this news comes in the same week as BCF losing one of their television suppliers I think this firmly cements XCC as the #5 company in the world ahead of their British rivals. In an update to last week's story on Nathan Chambers it seems the highly ranked Welterweight has joined the American Cage Fighters camp after rage quitting Team Desire last week. A similar story has emerged from Brazil, #3 Welterweight Manuel Silva has left Brazilian Estrela Academy after a falling out with #15 Welterweight Claudio Palacios, sources suggest it was more due to jealousy on Palacios' part due to the success of Silva in recent years. It's a shame that they're in different companies otherwise this could be built up into a nice grudge match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2K Posted January 8, 2015 Author Share Posted January 8, 2015 http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/CurtKitson.gifhttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/TikhonDiev.gif It's the second PPV from British Cage Fighting this year and this show is headlined by a fight that will have massive repercussions for the BCF. The main event will be the last fight in the BCF for the BCF Light Heavyweight champion Curt Kitson before he moves on to ALPHA-1, it falls upon the shoulders of Tikhon Diev to dethrone Kitson and in doing so prevent the Light Heavyweight title from being vacated when Kitson departs. As usual there will be a number of debuts on the show, Lefter Oktay and Kenneth Toadspew are both champions in another organisation, whilst Francesco Marazzina and Graeme Spark will have the first ever Featherweight (145lbs) bout in BCF history. ------------------------- There will be two preliminary fights before the PPV card begins and one of the debutants will be in the first match of the night, Australian Kenneth Toadspew (13-2) makes his BCF debut against Robert Darrell (14-5) in a Welterweight contest. Toadspew is a judoka who has utilised his skills from judo to become one of the toughest grapplers in the world at Welterweight, his ability to control opponents is sensational both on the feet and on the ground. His tactics are very frustrating for his opponents who often tire themselves out trying to get free only to remain trapped, unfortunately this can also be quite frustrating for the fans who are left without much action to watch with Toadspew shutting his opponent down. It's a good thing for Toadspew that he has these grappling skills as his striking is really poor and will need to be worked on. Toadspew is currently the Welterweight champion of another organisation and has been for nearly two years. Robert Darrell is a competent kick boxer who trains and teaches at the London Kick Boxing camp, his style is to strike quickly and often, he throws punches at a very high volume which lends itself well to both accumulating points with the judges and gaining fans who want to see people stand and trade. His grappling is his weak point and despite his speed he struggles to stop opponents getting hold of him. There is also his suspect chin which has got progressively weaker over the years. Ranking & Betting Toadspew #5 - Darrell #11 Toadspew -870 - Darrell +690 ------------------------- In the Middleweight division we will see Andrew Rush (18-8) take on Wayne McKellen (7-3). Andrew Rush is a talented kick boxer with decent power, speed and technique, his kicks in particular have been known to do significant damage to opponents. Unfortunately for Rush he has atrocious grappling skills and considering how long he has been in the sport and how long he has trained at Harry Milne's Bulldog Gym it's almost impossible to believe he's as bad as he is. The gameplan for Rush is always simple, strike first and get out, if someone grapples you then... panic? Rush was able to get enough traction for a title shot in 1997 but lost to Davis Spyrou by unanimous decision. Wayne McKellan is another kick boxer who competed at age group world championships during his teenage years, he eventually made the switch to MMA and it's his kick boxing that makes up most, if not all, of his MMA game. His striking is quick and crisp but his grappling and ground game are almost non-existant, he was given the benefit of the doubt for a while as young fighter making the transition to MMA but now he really has no excuse for not picking up some kind of technique to defend himself against wrestlers. McKellan managed to get a title shot against Davis Spyrou in 1998 but was outclassed by the champion and defeated in just 41 seconds. Ranking & Betting Rush #7 - McKellen #16 Rush -630 - McKellen +500 ------------------------- The first fight on the main card will be a Light Heavyweight division match between Conor Houghton (7-7) and Lenny McFadden (12-1). Conor Houghton is a tall brawler from Antrim in Northern Ireland who realistically lacks the skills to compete with anyone in the BCF, his striking is mediocre at best and he possesses little in the way of ground skills or defensive grappling. What keeps Houghton around is his heart and his willingness to put on entertaining fights regardless of the result, he himself probably knows he is frequently over-matched but goes out there to put on a show for the fans and he always has a puncher's chance of a huge upset. Lenny McFadden has become one of the rising stars of British MMA, after starting as young rookie he has improved year after year and amassed an impressive twelve fight winning streak on the way. That earned him a title shot against Curt Kitson which the champion won with a unanimous decision, however McFadden never looked out-classed and gave Kitson a real challenge. Perhaps what gives McFadden an advantage is his wrestling background, something that British fighters rarely have, which gives him the chance to out-grapple most of his opponents, he also has some real power in his hands which opponents need to be cautios of. Ranking & Betting Houghton #22 - McFadden #6 (#24 World) Houghton +950 - McFadden -1200 ------------------------- The next fight will be between Francesco Marazzina (21-8) and Graeme Spark (7-1) in what is both the first ever Featherweight division fight in BCF history but also a quarter final in the tournament to decide the first BCF Featherweight champion. Francesco Marazzina was one of Italy's first MMA fighters but has found his career limited in opportunities due to the lack of Featherweight fighters in the early days, now with two European companies having 145 fighters he has the chance to shine, but it may be difficult at 35 years of age. Coming from a judo background Marazzina is much happier in a clinch or on the ground than on the feet, he has very good takedowns and a dangerous submission game from both top and bottom positions. His striking his medicore but he is good at shutting down opponents' striking games. Graeme Spark is a young English fighter getting his first opportunity at a big promotion, he's being thrown into the deep end by earning a shot in this tournament and is certainly the outside going in. Spark comes from a wrestling background which is rare for a British figher, he likes to control his opponents with grappling and has a strong submission game should he take the fight to the ground, he has also trained well in striking to make sure he can hold his own when the fight is standing. Spark has never faced anyone of any real calibre so this is the biggest test of his young career by a big margin. Ranking & Betting Marazzina #6 (#21 World) - Spark (#14) Marazzina -490 - Spark +390 ------------------------- In a Welterweight division fight we will see Mikey Wallace (8-1) take on Iain Fussell (7-2) in an all-England match. Mikey Wallace has experience as a pro kick boxer and brings some good striking skills to the cage, he has shown that he has knockout power and has earned himself a BCF Welterweight title shot recently after going 8-0 in the early part of his career. His title shot against Will Kane ended in a unanimous decision defeat but Wallace accredited himself well, however Kane is a fellow striker, a grappler may have caused Wallace far more problems. Wallace is getting better at his grappling but it is still a weak point that can be targeted, if he does get that sorted out he could well be a threat to anybody. Iain Fussell is a versatile fighter from Newcastle who has a very well-rounded game, he has good striking technique and power, a good grappling base, yet his strongest asset is his jiu-jitsu skill which makes him very dangerous if the fight goes to the ground. He entered the BCF in 1998 as a youngster with a 6-0 record and a sense of hype about him, unfortunately he has struggled with the step up in competition and has lost twice in fights that people expected him to win. At 26 years old he has the time to work out whatever flaws are in his game and there is still a sense that he will be a title contender one day. Ranking & Betting Wallace #13 - Fussell #19 Wallace +230 - Fussell -290 ------------------------- One of the top Heavyweights in the world makes his BCF debut as Lefter Oktay (15-0) enters the cage to fight Percy Catcher (11-3). Lefter Oktay has run rampant in Europe with some of the most well-rounded skills seen since Oktay's fellow Turk Hassan Fezzik was emerging as a dominant figure, a man that Oktay trains with on a regular basis at Mantas Andreyev's camp. Oktay mixes some powerful striking with his strongest suit of wrestling and a very good ground game, he also has the physical strength to make all of this even more of a potent combination. Add into that exceptional reflexes and some very impressive cardio and you have the makings of a man who is very hard to beat and only getting better. Oktay is currently the Heavyweight champion of another organisation after handing Aleksander Ivanov his first defeat with a brutal right hand. Percy Catcher is probably exactly what you'd expect from a British Heavyweight, his big punching power is his main weapon and if his fists connect he will do some damage, he can also withstand a lot of punishment which he has needed through some of the stand-up wars of his career. Catcher does lack grappling skills and is in all sorts of trouble if he gets put on his back, but he was still able to earn a Heavyweight title shot against Rav Kapur in 2000. It didn't end well, Kapur gave him a beating for the first two rounds before finishing Catcher off in the third. Ranking & Betting Oktay #2 (#7 World) - Catcher #8 Oktay -990 - Catcher +790 ------------------------- The co-Main Event will be a Middleweight division fight which could provide us with a new top contender for the Middleweight title, Rob Baines (31-11) will go up against the undefeated Snuffy Fontana (7-0). Rob Baines is a very well known figure to British MMA fans, predominantly from his fighting but also due to running the Rob Baines Fight Team in his hometown of Norwich which is beginning to produce some strong young fighters. Baines' strength very much lies in his ground game which may well be the best in the country, he has even earned the nickname of "The Sandman" due to the number of opponents he has put to sleep with his favourite move, the Rear Naked Choke. Baines has never really had the ambition to further his career more than the BCF, if he did want to the first thing he would need to do is improve his stand-up which is the glaring weakness in his game. Snuffy Fontana is one of the UK's brightest prospects and is one of the new breed of MMA fighters who has trained in all areas from the beginning, as a result he has a very well-rounded game and rarely finds himself in a problematic situation. Fontana has been working very hard on his grappling as he, like many others, sees that area as a weakness for most British fighters and Fontana is young enough to learn how to exploit that. Fontana joined the BCF in 2000 and won his debut against Piers Jeeler in emphatic fashion. Ranking & Betting Baines #3 - Fontana #19 Baines -420 - Fontana +330 ------------------------- And in the main event of the evening the BCF Light Heavyweight title will be on the line when Curt Kitson (13-0) takes on Tikhon Diev (9-0) in a match that will be Kitson's last defence of the title regardless of the outcome. Curt Kitson may well be the best fighter to have ever come out of the United Kingdom having built a reputation in the last four years as being very versatile, incredibly tough, and almost impossible to defeat. Kitson comes from an amateur boxing background but has also played judo since an early age, it means that he is very dangerous with his hands and perhaps more dangerous if the fight goes to a clinch or to the ground. His chin appears to be made of a substance harder than diamons as evidenced in his two wars with George Laurent in 1998 when Kitson won the Light Heavyweight title, since being crowned champion he has fought off all competition and done so without looking to be in much danger at any point. Kitson will be leaving the BCF after this fight to join Japanese giants ALPHA-1, the man tasked with ending Kitson's title reign inside the cage will be Tikhon Diev, a powerful wrestler from Russia. Despite coming from, living, and training in Russia, Diev has made the BCF his home for his entire professional career during which time he has been able to win nine times without tasting defeat. Diev's main gameplan is to use his wrestling to get his opponents to the ground before pounding them with hard strikes, it may be quite a one-dimensional plan but it has worked so far, it also helps overcome his major weakness which is his poor striking. It's surprising that a man as strong as Diev isn't able to get much power behind his punches showing that technique is just as necessary in order to be a proficient striker. If Diev wins this fight he will be the new champion, if he loses then the title will be held in abeyance upon Kitson's departure waiting for a fight to decide the new champion. Ranking & Betting Kitson #1 (#13 World) - Diev #13 Kitson -610 - Diev +480 ------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OFFICIAL BCF: KITSON vs. DIEV CARD BCF Light Heavyweight Title http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/scotland.png Curt Kitson (13-0) © vs. Tikhon Diev (9-0) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/ru.png Middleweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Rob Baines (31-11) vs. Snuffy Fontana (7-0) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Heavyweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/tr.png Lefter Oktay (15-0) vs. Percy Catcher (11-3) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Welterweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Mikey Wallace (8-1) vs. Iain Fussell (7-2) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Featherweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/it.png Francesco Marazzina (21-8) vs. Graeme Spark (7-1) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Light Heavyweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/northernireland.jpg Conor Houghton (7-7) vs. Lenny McFadden (12-1) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/scotland.png Middleweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Andrew Rush (18-8) vs. Wayne McKellan (7-3) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Welterweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/au.png Kenneth Toadspew (13-2) vs. Robert Darrell (14-5) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Predictions (and feedback) welcome! 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Paatero Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Kitson by decision. Fontana by decision. Oktay by decision. Fussell by submission. Spark by KO. McFadden by KO. Rush by KO. Toadspew by submission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2K Posted January 13, 2015 Author Share Posted January 13, 2015 http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/BCF.jpg BCF: KITSON vs. DIEV SATURDAY - WEEK 4 OF MARCH 2001 ------------------------------------ Preliminary Fight #1 Welterweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/KennethToadspew.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/RobertDarrell.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/au.png Kenneth Toadspew (13-2) vs. Robert Darrell (14-5) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Michael Ephron Judges: Jimmy Drever, Steven Renshaw, Bobby Serocke http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg There are a lot of people worried about how this fight might go, having a three round bore fest doesn't start the show off on a very good foot. Toadspew, who isn't mentioned as a SIGMA champion at any point, moves in to clinch almost before the touch of gloves is over and Darrell isn't able to avoid him, Toadspew quickly uses his strength to push Darrell back against the cage and uses some dirty boxing to do some damage. We get a minute's worth of the two fighters just landing short strikes against the cage, Toadspew keeps control of the clinch throughout and does the most damage, but the lack of action is eventually enough to make the referee step in and separate them. With the fight now back in the centre of the cage Darrell has a chance to actually do something, that chance lasts about five seconds before Toadspew has clinched with him again and very soon Toadspew has complete control of the grapple again. This time Toadspew opts to utilise his judo and an inside leg trip successfully takes Darrell to the ground, Darrell pulls half guard and manages to keep Toadspew under control for a little while. Toadspew takes some time to plan his next move and lands a few right hands in the process to keep Darrell under control, Toadspew eventually makes his move and gets from half guard straight through in to full mount. Toadspew only has a minute left in the round to do make this dominant position count and he quickly tries to isolate an arm to go for an armbar, it takes a while but eventually he gets the submission fully applied and hyper-extends Darrell's arm to force the tap out! Darrell only had five seconds left in the round to survive but I'd guess you lose track of time when your arm is being destroyed. Winner: Kenneth Toadspew (14-2) via Submission (Armbar) in 4:55 of Round 1 Fight Rating: Decent http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Kenneth Toadspew 41 Strikes Landed (38 Punches, 3 Ground Strikes) 1 Takedowns Attempted (100%) 1 Ground Pass Attempted (100%) 1 Submission Attempted (100%) Robert Darrell 12 Strikes Landed (12 Punches) 0 Takedowns Attempted ------------------------------------ Preliminary Fight #2 Middleweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/AndrewRush.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/WayneMcKellen.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Andrew Rush (18-8) vs. Wayne McKellen (7-3) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Michael Ephron Judges: Bobby Serocke, Jimmy Drever, Steven Renshaw http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg Rush has always been a good kick boxer so I'd expect him to be the far better striker in this fight, he starts well with a combination of jabs and a right hand but does take a kick to the body from McKellen in the process. Rush moves forward and gets caught by a jab from McKellen, that doesn't prevent him from scoring with some more jabs and a leg kick. Rush continues to walk through McKellen's jab as if it were nothing but this time he misses with a big right, Rush keeps just pressing forward and on the next exchange he connects with a left hand and a hard right head kick. The kick really seems to hurt McKellen as he looks to be on rubbery legs, he manages to get away from Rush for a while but eventually Rush catches him with a right hand that puts him down! Rush begins pounding away with punches on the ground and looks to be doing some damage, however for some reason Rush decides to give up his position and stands up even though a finish looked likely. The reason becomes a little clearer as when they're both stood up Rush looks to be quite tired, he decides to take the fight into a clinch to catch his breath which is certainly not something we normally see from the kick boxer. Rush takes things a step further by trying to take McKellen down, however McKellen is able to remain standing and takes control of the grapple, it doesn't take long for McKellen to get free and the fighters are back circling each other again. With a minute left in the round Rush moves in for another clinch, this time he immediately looks for the takedown and McKellen isn't able to react quickly enough to stop it. Rush ends up taking McKellen's back as a result of the takedown and decides to chance his arm at a rear naked choke, surprisingly Rush manages to get it applied and McKellen is in a lot of trouble, Rush manages to flatten McKellen out and gets the submission! I don't think anyone predicted Rush winning by submission, we've also now had two finishes in a row inside the last ten seconds of the first round. Winner: Andrew Rush (19-8) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 4:51 of Round 1 Fight Rating: Good http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Timothy Latchkey 17 Strikes Landed (2 Power Punches, 8 Punches, 1 Power Kick, 1 Kick, 5 Ground Strikes) 3 Takedowns Attempted (33%) 1 Submission Attempted (100%) Wayne McKellen 4 Strikes Landed (3 Punches, 1 Kick) 0 Takedowns Attempted ------------------------------------ Main Fight #1 Light Heavyweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/ConorHoughton.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/LennyMcFadden.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/northernireland.jpg Conor Houghton (7-7) vs. Lenny McFadden (12-1) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/scotland.png Referee: Michael Ephron Judges: Bobby Serocke, Archibald Cohen, Steven Renshaw http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg McFadden is a betting favourite here the likes of which are normally reserved for SIGMA champions fighting BCF youngsters. McFadden starts with a jab and a right hook, he then avoids a jab from Houghton and scores with another jab/hook combination right away. A couple of strike exchanges go nowhere with neither fighter landing any decent shots, McFadden does eventually move forward to score with a jab and then a hard right cross. Houghton is looking very out-of-place with his brawling style getting picked apart by McFadden's better technique, McFadden also has more power as a straight right hand lands hard. McFadden scores with a jab and a right hook before continuing his momentum with a left and a right hook to the body, Houghton is at least showing how good his chin is as some of these shots would knock down most other men. McFadden continues his onslaught with a jab and another vicious right hook, a few moments later McFadden lands a hard right cross and follows that with a jab and a right hook to the body. Another hard right hook lands for McFadden whilst Houghton throws a jab and a big right which both miss their target, and there is just enough time for McFadden to score with another jab and a big right hand before the round ends. It was completely one-sided from start to finish but I doubt these judges will score the round anything other than 10-9 as Houghton wasn't knocked down at any point. http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round2.jpg I'm not entirely sure it's safe for Houghton to be still fighting, it's at the point of being self-inflicted torture. It takes nearly a minute for the fighters to do anything in the second round, I'm not sure if McFadden is tired or Houghton is just moving well, eventually McFadden scores with a jab and a right cross before avoiding a right hook from Houghton. A strike exchange sees nothing landed but McFadden does manage to hit another jab/right hook combination shortly afterwards, after that we get over a minute where both fighters are willing to throw strikes but can't land a significant shot. McFadden continues to be in complete control and scores with a two jab, right straight combination, the Scotsman continues to move forwards and scores with another two jabs and a stiff right hook, the hook looks like it hurts Houghton as he stumbles back, he tries to get up but gets thumped by a big right from McFadden that knocks him down! Houghton is obviously hurt badly and McFadden makes things worse by dropping some incredibly powerful shots to the head, Houghton is just getting absolutely obliterated by McFadden's ground and pound and the referee steps in to stop the fight before any more damage can be done! A very impressive performance from McFadden who looked like a beast throughout. Winner: Lenny McFadden (13-1) via TKO (Strikes) in 3:59 of Round 2 Fight Rating: Good http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Conor Houghton 3 Strikes Landed (3 Punches) 0 Takedowns Attempted Lenny McFadden 41 Strikes Landed (13 Power Punches, 23 Punches, 5 Power Ground Strike) 0 Takedowns Attempted ------------------------------------ Main Card Fight #2 Featherweight Tournament Quarter Final http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FrancescoMarazzina.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/GraemeSpark.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/it.png Francesco Marazzina (21-8) vs. Graeme Spark (7-1) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Michael Ephron Judges: Bobby Serocke, Archibald Cohen, Don Dill http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightRecap.jpg This is the first match in the tournament to decide the first BCF Featherweight champion, these sort of tournaments don't usually end well with alternates almost always needed to come in to keep the schedule intact. The first round of this one was an all striking affair with Spark the definite aggressor, he was also far quicker and more accurate as Marazzina was just too slow off the mark during the exchanges and wasn't able to land most of his strikes. Spark never really had much power behind his punches but was still able to land 11 strikes during the first round compared to Marazzina's five. The second round was more of the same as Spark showed no signs of getting tired, he was able to land quite a few combinations throughout the round whilst Marazzina continued to struggle to keep up with the pace being set by the Englishman. Spark tried to throw a few more power punches in this round but wasn't able to land most of them, even so the punches he did land were enough to take the round as he landed 17 punches during the round, Marazzina did much better than the first round with 13 strikes but none of them had much power behind them. The final round was shaping up to have much less action than the previous two as both fighters were beginning to tire, Spark was again landing the most strikes but with two minutes left in the round he landed by far the best shot of the fight, a right uppercut which sent Marazzina to the ground. Spark had the opportunity to go for the victory and started landing some punches on the ground, but fatigue got the better of him and soon Marazzina was able to contain the situation and get Speak back to half guard. In the end it went to the judges for a decision and it was a fairly simple one, Graeme Spark got a 30-27 score from all three to advance to the semi finals of the tournament. Result: Graeme Spark (8-1) via Unanimous Decision Fight Rating: Good http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Francesco Marazzina 21 Strikes Landed (21 Punches) 0 Takedowns Attempted Graeme Spark 49 Strikes Landed (7 Power Punches, 27 Punches, 4 Power Ground Strikes, 11 Ground Strikes) 0 Takedowns Attempted 1 Ground Pass Attempted (100%) ------------------------------------ Main Card Fight #3 Welterweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/MikeyWallace.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/IainFussell.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Mikey Wallace (8-1) vs. Iain Fussell (7-2) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Warren Munro Judges: Jimmy Drever, Steven Renshaw, Bobby Serocke http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg Wallace is the fighter who moves in first and connects with a jab, avoids a counter left from Fussell, but then misses with a big left of his own. On the next exchange Fussell connects with a jab before blocking a one-two combination from Wallace, however Wallace follows that with a jab/left hand combination which does connect before getting out of range of a jab and a hook from Fussell. Wallace moves in and gets caught by a left hand from Fussell, however Wallace just ignores that and scores with a combination of jabs and a body kick. Wallace is the more accomplished striker but Fussell is holding his own, a jab and body kick from Wallace lands but Fussell connects with a few jabs before getting out of range of a head kick from Wallace, Fussell continues to work the jab more than anything else but he pays for it when Wallace is close enough to land a hard body kick. Wallace is the fighter making the first move each time and Fussell is able to counter with a left hand, Wallace then lands two quick jabs but can't find a home for a more powerful left hand. Wallace moves forward again in the final minute of the round and this time avoids getting caught by Fussell's counter punch, Wallace lands a jab and a hard left hook however he finds himself close enough to Fussell for a clinch to be initiated. Fussell has control of the grapple and lands a few punches on the inside, however time runs out before Fussell can do anything from that position. Both fighters landed a lot of punches during the round but Wallace's probably had more power behind them. http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round2.jpg Wallace moves in to strike to start the second round but gets caught again by two counter lefts from Fussell, that doesn't stop Wallace from landing a jab and a straight left and he follows that up with a hard leg kick. Wallace connects with another jab and a leg kick in the next exchange, before scoring with another jab and leg kick combination shortly afterwards. I wouldn't be surprised if Wallace's corner have told him to target the leg of Fussell and it seems to be paying off as Fussell is starting to limp. Fussell manages to land two more left hands as Wallace moves in again but that doesn't stop Wallace from hitting another leg kick, the two then trade left hands before Fussell hits another two lefts and Wallace lands a right hand followed by another leg kick. It's an exciting round as both fighters are willing to stand and throw strikes with each other, on their next exchange Wallace avoids a jab and scores with a hook to the ribs, Wallace then lands a right/left combination which is powerful enough to make Fussell decide that it's time to take the fight into the clinch. Wallace cannot prevent Fussell from grappling with him and it is not long before Fussell is able to push Wallace back against the cage, from there Fussell controls Wallace for a bit and lands some nice right hands to the side of the head, but it's all to set up a takedown which Fussell manages to successfully complete with an outside leg trip. Fussell manages to get into side control from the takedown and soon moves through into the mount, however time runs out before he can use that position to do any damage. I think that takedown will be enough for Fussell to take the round despite the advantage Wallace had striking. http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round3.jpg The third round starts with Wallace landing a jab and another leg kick, Fussell's corner were working on his right leg during the break but it's obvious that he is hurting from the damage those kicks have caused. Fussell times an approach perfectly to take the fight into another clinch, it worked well for Fussell in the second round and it works again here to get Wallace trapped against the cage. Fussell smothers Wallace for a while before connecting with a quick elbow strike, however his gameplan is always to take Wallace down and some more good judo skill sees Fussell execute an outside leg trip to get Wallace down and Fussell into side control. Fussell doesn't try to move into mount this time, instead he lands a few punches to the body before trying to apply an arm triangle. Wallace isn't able to defend against it and Fussell gets the hold positioned, Fussell then jumps to the other side to lock it in tightly and Wallace is forced to tap out! It was a really good fight although I can't help wondering why Fussell didn't take it to the ground much sooner than the tail end of the second round. Winner: Iain Fussell (8-2) via Submission (Arm Triangle) in 2:46 of Round 3 Fight Rating: Fantastic http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Mikey Wallace 41 Strikes Landed (2 Power Punches, 29 Punches, 10 Kicks) 0 Takedowns Attempted Iain Fussell 25 Strikes Landed (24 Punches, 1 Elbow) 2 Takedowns Attempted (100%) 1 Ground Pass Attempted (100%) 1 Submission Attempted (100%) ------------------------------------ Main Card Fight #4 Heavyweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/LefterOktay.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/PercyCatcher.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/tr.png Lefter Oktay (15-0) vs. Percy Catcher (11-3) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Michael Ephron Judges: Archibald Cohen, Steven Renshaw, Bobby Serocke http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightRecap.jpg This is Oktay's BCF debut and just like Lermontov and Toadspew before him he isn't carrying his SIGMA title to the cage. BCF seem to be operating a "don't mention the war" philosophy. The first round was surprisingly close to begin with as Oktay didn't come out with any sort of urgency, Catcher looked a little nervous to be in there but was still willing to trade strikes when needed. Oktay hit the first good combination and that seemed to spur him into action, he started peppering Catcher with quick strikes and some decent leg kicks, Catcher wasn't being left behind though and scored with some good punches of his own during the exchanges. Oktay landed the best strike of the round with a vicious body kick but in terms of strike quantity there were only 16 landed during the round, 9 to Oktay and 7 to Catcher. The second round saw Oktay step it up a bit and his kicks began to become the major factor in the fight, he mixed it up well with several to both the body and the lead leg of Catcher and it was no surprise that Catcher was left limping halfway through the round. The damage to Catcher's perhaps affected his striking as his accuracy was nowhere to be found during the round despite his best efforts to throw as often as Oktay. The Turkish fighter had a few more leg kicks in waiting for Catcher and by the end of the round Catcher was really struggling to move after 6 kicks to the leg in that one round alone. Catcher knew he needed a finish in the final round but another two leg kicks to start the final round made life even more difficult for him, Oktay then started targeting the body of Catcher with more hard kicks to make things even more miserable for the Englishman. There was a sense that Oktay was just toying with Catcher in the final round until he landed a massive right cross with two minutes left in the fight, that sent Catcher crashing to the mat and Oktay moved in to land some nasty punches to the head of his fallen opponent. Oktay continued looking for the finish but switched to trying to secure an armbar from the mount instead of punching him, that tactic ended up not being particularly helpful as Catcher easily defended the submission by stacking Okay up leaving Catcher on top in side control when the fight ended. The judges scored it 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 to Lefter Oktay, Archibald Cohen being the judge who gave Catcher the first round. Winner: Lefter Oktay (16-0) via Unanimous Decision Fight Rating: Great http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Lefter Oktay 53 Strikes Landed (2 Power Punches, 28 Punches, 1 Power Kick, 12 Kicks, 3 Power Ground Strikes, 5 Ground Strikes) 0 Takedowns Attempted 1 Ground Pass Attempted (100%) 1 Submission Attempted (0%) Percy Catcher 22 Strikes Landed (1 Power Punch, 21 Punches) 0 Takedowns Attempted ------------------------------------ Co-Main Event Middleweight Division http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/RobBaines.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/SnuffyFontana.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Rob Baines (31-11) vs. Snuffy Fontana (7-0) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/england.png Referee: Lee Tynan Judges: Steven Renshaw, Bobby Serocke, Jimmy Drever http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg Baines seems to have amassed a decent following, partly due to his fighting but also probably due to his training camp becoming so strong. It takes a whole ten seconds for Baines to shoot in for his first takedown but Fontana seems to be expecting it, he gets away from the takedown itself but Baines keeps a hold of one leg and ends up dragging Fontana up against the cage instead. Baines gets the underhooks secured and lifts Fontana up with a Greco-Roman slam to get the fight to the ground in just over thirty seconds, it's superb grappling from Baines especially considering it was no secret that he was going to try and do this. Baines is left inside Fontana's guard but within seconds he has improved his position to half guard, from there Baines just moves straight into side control making Fontana look like he's not even trying to stop him. Baines starts working for an arm triangle but Fontana does a good job of blocking him, he can't quite force Baines into a less attacking position though. Baines is relentless in going for this arm triangle but Fontana continues to fight him off, all Fontana needs to do is continue keeping Baines at bay for the next two minutes and he'll be OK. That is a lot easier said than done as Baines goes for the arm triangle yet again, this time he gets the angles right and he secures the hold, after another adjustment Baines locks it in tightly with enough leverage to make Fontana tap out! An absolutely dominating performance from Baines who won the fight without throwing a single punch. Winner: Rob Baines (32-11) via Submission (Arm Triangle) in 3:30 of Round 1 Fight Rating: Great http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Rob Baines 0 Strikes Thrown 2 Takedowns Attempted (50%) 2 Ground Passes Attempted (100%) 3 Submissions Attempted (33%) Snuffy Fontana 0 Strikes Thrown 0 Takedowns Attempted 2 Sweeps Attempted (0%) ------------------------------------ Main Event BCF Light Heavyweight Title http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/CurtKitson-1.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/vs.jpghttp://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/TikhonDiev-1.jpg http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/scotland.png Curt Kitson (13-0) vs. Tikhon Diev (9-0) http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/ru.png Referee: Lee Tynan Judges: Steven Renshaw, Bobby Serocke, Archibald Cohen http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF/Round1.jpg This is a big fight for the BCF as their management will no doubt be cheering on Diev to beat their departing champion, the crowd either don't know or don't care about Kitson leaving as they're fully behind the Scottish fighter. Kitson immediately moves forward to strike with Diev which is smart considering that striking is Diev's big weakness, Diev manages a jab but Kitson scores with a hard straight right hand, the champion then hits a jab and a crunching right hook before another brief exchange of strikes results in nothing. Diev hits another jab but that seems to be the only thing he can think of, Kitson responds with two jabs to set up a big right hand which only just misses. Diev takes advantage of their proximity to take the fight into a clinch, he then secures the underhooks and sweeps the legs of Kitson to take him down. I think that caught everyone by surprise but maybe it proves that sambo is better than judo. Diev lands in side control so he has the platform to do some damage, however Kitson is smart enough to get one leg trapped to get half guard which limits Diev's attacking options. We enter a stalemate where Diev is too busy trying to keep Kitson controlled to be able to do anything offensively, and in the end it results in the fighters being stood up which is surprising after only a minute on the ground. Back on their feet Kitson greets Diev with a jab and a perfect straight right hand, Diev on the other hand wants to get back to some grappling but this time Kitson is able to see him coming in time and moves away from the takedown attempt. Diev moves in again but this time he runs straight into a big right hand from Kitson which lands square on Diev's jaw, Diev goes down and he's knocked out cold! What a brutal way to end Kitson's BCF career as he will leave both undefeated and as the champion, it's also the third fight tonight to end inside the last ten seconds of the first round. Winner, and still BCF Light Heavyweight Champion (for now): Curt Kitson (14-0) via Knock Out (Punch) in 4:58 of Round 1 Fight Rating: Great After the fight Kitson was given the opportunity to say a few words... "Thanks. Thanks everyone. This is um... this is my last fight with BCF, as you may have heard I'm heading out east after tonight to fight for ALPHA-1. It's been my dream to compete in one of the top organisations in the world and I want to represent British MMA to show just why we're one of the best countries in the world at this sport. As I'm leaving I'd better give this back... (Kitson hands the Light Heavyweight title to BCF President Chris Dewing) and I'd just like to say thank you to everyone, to the BCF for giving me the chance to take part in this organisation, and to the fans who have supported me here and will hopefully continue to support me in Japan. Thanks everyone, and I'll be seeing you again I'm sure!" Kitson got a decent round of applause afterwards but most people seemed a little confused at what was going on due to a pretty poor public address system. http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/BCF2/FightMetrics.jpg Curt Kitson 14 Strikes Landed (5 Power Punches, 9 Punches) 0 Takedowns Attempted Tikhon Diev 12 Strikes Landed (3 Punches, 9 Ground Punches) 2 Takedowns Attempted (50%) ------------------------------------ Statistics Attendance: 492 Critical Rating: 81% Commercial Rating: 39%(!) Awards ($500 Each) Fight Of The Night: Iain Fussell vs. Mikey Wallace KO Of The Night: Lenny McFadden Submission Of The Night: Rob Baines FINANCES Income Gate: $43,296 Sponsorship: $7,654 Pay Per View Revenue: $640,000 Merchandise: $2,903 Total: $693,853 Expenditure Fighter Pay: $48,318 (Highest: Curt Kitson $14,250) Drug Testing: $19,200 Production: $91,171 Total: $158,689 Profit: $535,164 Popularity UK - http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c98/chris_kotw/Flags/gb.png = 35.6% (+1.4%) ------------------------------------ Post Show Meeting Jerome "Tim" McCallum - BCF Owner Chris Dewing - BCF C.E.O. "Evening Tim." "Hi Chris, come on in." "How are you?" "I'm doing very well young Christopher, very well indeed. This was a great night for everyone involved with it." "Really? Even with Curt winning and the title being vacated?" "Even with that it worked out very nicely, we got about 32,000 buys on PPV which is way more than UK Choice were expecting, that's roughly $640,000 so we've made a huge profit for the night! That's one of our biggest shows ever and I can't help feeling that the whole Curt situation was behind it." "Well that is good news, it means we've probably doubled the money we started the year with! And you said I didn't know what I was doing!" "Well I did say that when I was angry and you know that's not true, but don't rest up here, we can't guarantee this kind of success on every show so make sure we keep around this level as much as possible." "I'll try my best. Are we agreed on what we're going to do with the Light Heavyweight title?" "I think so, if you've got two fighters in mind we'll have them face off for the vacant title just like we did when Keane and Kapur went to GAMMA." "Well I was thinking Daniel Hornsby and Lenny McFadden, both are well known and both have had impressive wins this year. They've had title opportunities before but were both beaten by Kitson, in many ways whoever wins the title has certainly done enough to earn it." "OK, try and get that booked as quickly as possible, it might not be easy as I guess McFadden needs some time to recover and have a new training camp." "I'm hoping to get it sorted for our first show on Euro Cable Sport 1, it makes sense to try and kick off our new show with a bang." "Sounds like a plan. Right, let's get going with this show. I always enjoy our little breakdowns." "OK, let's go. First was Kenneth Toadspew defeating Robert Darrell, and I know what you're going to say..." "Yeah, why is another SIGMA guy beating one of our established guys so easily?" "We can't look at them as SIGMA guys though, they're our guys now as well. Granted a lot of them are SIGMA champions still but if our plan to constantly be a step ahead of SIGMA continues then they may never fight for them again. I thought Toadspew looked good here, perhaps he was trying to prove a point after I put him on the prelims in case his fight was boring." "Well he looked alright here, didn't really get a chance to see if he's any good standing but that's thanks to his strong grappling. I take it there's no thoughts of a champion v champion match any time soon?" "Not at all, we'll need some time to get Toadspew more popular here first. Next was Andrew Rush and Wayne McKellen in the most surprising result of the night, not because of the winner but because the kick boxer ended up with a submission win." "That's one way of looking at it, there's also the fact that Rush got tired in less than three minutes. I think he was lucky to be honest, a better fighter than McKellen would have probably taken him apart." "Well that is true and I was surprised at how quickly he tired out, I'll mention to him that he needs to work on his cardio. Next fight was my personal favourite performance of the night, Lenny McFadden obliterating Conor Houghton for an entire fight. I know Houghton isn't much of a fighter but McFadden looked sensational which is why I think he deserves that title shot." "McFadden did look very good, his striking in particular seems to have advanced a lot, I don't disagree with him getting a chance at the title but my favourite performance was from someone else. I'll tell you who when we get there." "OK then... the first Featherweight fight was up next when Graeme Spark beat Francesco Marazzina to become our first semi-finalist in the Featherweight title tournament. This was a bit of an upset as Marazzina is far more experienced, but Spark got the job done with some impressive striking and at least it means we'll have one Englishman in the semi finals." "I'm still not sure about these smaller guys and I'm not sure the crowd are buying into them either, it was a decent fight don't get me wrong I just feel there's a much smaller chance of a knock out with the Featherweights. Still, another title gives us something to market to the fans I suppose. When are the other quarter finals scheduled for?" "Well it's not for a while, I wanted to get this one sorted out while both fighters were free but the other three matches are likely to be on that first Euro Cable Sport 1 show in June. It's going to be tough to get the new champion crowned by the end of the year but you never know." "This is why we don't normally run tournaments, I can understand that a new weight class deserves a proper first champion but I think a 4 person tournament might have worked out better." "Maybe you're right, but now we've had this first fight we're stuck with it. The next match won Fight of the Night and it was a deserving award, Mikey Wallace and Iain Fussell had a really entertaining battle which could have gone either way had the judges got involved, however Fussell eventually realised he was a much stronger grappler and made Wallace tap out." "Yeah this was really good, I couldn't work out why Fussell was just letting Wallace have it all his own way in a striking battle and not getting his wrestling involved. Once he did it was pretty much a walk in the park for him but the first 2 rounds were a lot of fun." "Next was Lefter Oktay, the SIGMA Heavyweight champion, and although he didn't get the finish he pretty much beat the stuffing out of Percy Catcher for three rounds." "Yeah, another SIGMA guy coming over here and not fighting at the level I was expecting. He came in with this reputation of being a brutal competitor and instead he just kicked Catcher's leg a lot and never really looked like getting a finish until the last few minutes. It makes me wonder if they're actually as good as it's said they are." "I think there's a lot of caution from all the SIGMA guys, they're coming in to a new promotion where they're not known by the majority of the fans so they're in a bit of a tough situation, they're expected to win but they don't really gain anything from the win, whereas if they lose they lose the fight and their reputation." "Well I think we need to start thinking about keeping the SIGMA or European fighters separate from the original BCF ones. That way we can get the best European fighters some popularity without sacrificing our homegrown talent to do so." "This all sounds a bit like what we discussed last time, it's not SIGMA vs. BCF, they're all under the BCF umbrella now. I understand where you're coming from and I will try to book more British fighters against each other but there will be times when a European fighter needs to make an impact against a recognisable name. I guess the same could be said for someone like Rob Baines against Snuffy Fontana, on paper it looked much closer than it was in reality as Baines just blitzed through him with his grappling, neither fighter threw a single strike." "Baines was my favourite performer of the night, the way he just controlled Fontana using his grappling and actively sought out the finish is exactly what I want to see from our fighters. What's the Middleweight title situation looking like?" "Well Davis Spyrou has beaten Baines before but I think it would be foolish to ignore the wave of momentum that Baines is on at the moment so if I can get them ready to fight at the same time then I'll make Spyrou vs. Baines II the next title match." "That works for me, Spyrou has beaten most of the division but Baines came closest to beating him, and after this performance I reckon Baines would probably win the re-match." "Right, I'll start working on putting that together. Main event we've already discussed a bit but it's a real shame to be losing a talent as good as Curt Kitson. To be fair to Diev he was able to put Kitson on his back for a little bit but Kitson shut down his attacking options on the ground, and Kitson's striking was looking fantastic. How well do you reckon he'll do in ALPHA-1?" "He should be alright, I doubt they'll throw him in the deep end right away and he should be able to take care of their veteran Light Heavyweights, when it gets to the Jin Katou's and Zvonimir Asanovic's of the world then he might be in for a rude awakening." "True, but at least if he does win some big fights it will help put British MMA on the map, even if they're not working for us their success will filter through to more interest in MMA over here." "Well I'd still rather they were fighting for us, but what can you do. Just try and keep hold of our other homegrown stars if we can. Anyway, three weeks 'til the next show right? Make sure everything's set and I'll see you there." "OK Tim, bye." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2K Posted January 17, 2015 Author Share Posted January 17, 2015 <p></p><div style="text-align:center;"><p><strong>THE WEEK IN MMA</strong></p><p><strong> Week 1 of April 2001</strong></p><p> </p><p> ALPHA-1 ran their latest PPV event and it can only be described as a massive success for the Japanese company, despite losing one of their top matches to injury they still put on the most commercially successful show of the year so far. It helped that the #1 Light Heavyweight in the world was on the card, Jin Katou defended his ALPHA-1 Light Heavyweight title by submitting Zvonimir Asanovic in the fourth round, top judoka Heikichi Shimizu remained undefeated by defeating the ranked Fumiaki Hayashi, and "Fujizilla" Gyokushi Fujimoto defeated Hiro Arai by decision. Other winners on the main card were Ryosei Sakamoto and Kojuro Kudo, whilst Kafu Bunya, Xie Ming, Datuk Ong Ka Ting and Hyun-Shik Lim were all victorious on the preliminary card. The show made over $2.5 million in PPV revenue alone so it's safe to say they're in pretty good financial shape.</p><p> </p><p> The BCF Light Heavyweight title has been officially vacated after Curt Kitson defended the title on BCF's latest PPV, the Scotsman left the promotion immediately after the show to move to ALPHA-1 leaving BCF without both a champion and their biggest drawing fighter. As yet we've not heard on the BCF's plans for crowning a new Light Heavyweight champion, however past instances, such as Jake Keane and Rav Kapur going to GAMMA, saw the BCF have one match between two top contenders to crown a new champion instead of a tournament.</p><p> </p><p> Speaking of the BCF, aside from Kitson, they have re-signed every other fighter whose contract was coming up after recent shows, Rob Baines, Mikey Wallace, Robert Darrell, Lenny McFadden, Andrew Rush, Conor Houghton, Percy Catcher, Davis Spyrou and Gordon Idle have all signed extensions. There was one cut however, Murray O'Hare had his contract terminated in a surprising move, the Northern Irishman was on a losing streak but he has an entertaining style which fans liked.</p><p> </p><p> ------------------</p><p> </p><p> <strong>THE WEEK IN MMA</strong></p><p><strong> Week 2 of April 2001</strong></p><p> </p><p> In the absence of any shows this week the biggest news was that ALPHA-1 confirmed the signing of Aleksei Chekhov to their company with the Russian starting immediately. Chekhov is considered one of the best fighters in Europe and a very exciting fighter to watch, and he leaves both SIGMA and BCF behind to start the Japanese chapter of his career. It is somewhat surprising that ALPHA-1 have targeted Chekhov for their Light Heavyweight division but not SIGMA Light Heavyweight champion Niko Soldo.</p><p> </p><p> The BCF have responded to losing Chekhov by signing Emil Karlsson, Oleg Tariverdiev and Markku Mikkola to non-exclusive deals. None of the fighters have any popularity in the UK and are all still contracted to SIGMA so it will be interesting </p><p> </p><p> The FLB have signed a new television deal with Televisao 2, the television broadcaster has clearance in both South America and Central America so the Brazilian company will be able to target a much larger number of fans than before. It is the first television FLB have had and considering that 2001 has seen nothing but superstars departing FLB for bigger companies this should hopefully give them a chance to make some new stars with the fighters they have left.</p><p> </p><p> A few fighters have extended their deals with ALPHA-1 after their recent show, Gyokusho Fujimoto, Fumiaki Hayashi and Kojuro Kudo will be with the Japanese promotion for a while longer. They have also made a new signing who is not quite as important as Aleksei Chekhov, Kotaro Hosokawa, who has never fought in MMA before, has been snapped up to the biggest company in the world based on his kick boxing prowess alone, he is a former Japanese kick boxing champion though which may give their Super Heavyweight division the star it needs.</p><p> </p><p> ------------------------</p><p> </p><p> E-MAIL CORRESPONDANCE</p><p> </p><p> Hi Chris,</p><p> </p><p> I went up to Scotland for the local show they were running, I wouldn't normally go that far but there were quite a few young fighters making their MMA debuts who I wanted to have a look at. Instead of just a fight recap I thought I'd give some brief details on them as well.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Marc White - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> First fight here, won in just 1:13 by knock out. White is a former Muay Thai fighter but there's no record of him being much of a name. He's 24 years old now so he's starting a little late, I'm not sure he's going to amount to much as he doesn't have much cross-training and his major skill isn't that good either.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Jeff Cuthill - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Another debut here, got the unanimous decision win but didn't look good at all. Comes from a boxing background but didn't seem to have much threat in his striking game, he did at least try to grapple and nearly got a rear naked choke but couldn't get it. He's 20 so he's got time to develop into a good fighter, I just don't think he will.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Tony Austin - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Debutant and another decision winner but it was a very underwhelming performance and a boring fight. Austin is a catch wrestler but never really got very far with it, he does have some average striking skills as well but doesn't have the power to threaten anyone. The one thing he does have is time, he's only 18 years old even though he looks twice that age.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Nelson Esch - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> "The Bird Man" is a strange nickname but the 21 year old won his debut here with some impressive striking, you'd expect that as he comes from a kick boxing background and I didn't really get to see if he had much grappling skill. Esch is another youngster at 21 so again he has time to train up his weaknesses.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Larry Azaria - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Things really weren't looking that hot at this point, Azaria is another fighter who has a kick boxing base and probably little else to fall back on. He scored a knockdown in each round here but had to wait until the third attempt to finish the fight in the final round, he's 22 but I don't see much promise in him.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Wayne Swick - 199 pounds</strong></p><p> </p><p> For some reason this was a catchweight bout at 199lbs so I'm not sure if Swick is a Middleweight or a Light Heavy. Either way this was the most impressive performance so far, Swick is a judoka but it was his striking that looked crisp and powerful here, he needed just half a round to finish his opponent off. Definitely one to keep an eye on.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Nimrod Wickhammersley - Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> I've seen "The Tall Guy" before and wasn't impressed the first time, nor was I this time. He was by far the better striker in this fight and his long reach certainly helps, but his lack of power stopped him from getting a finish. He can learn to cover that weakness but as far as natural power goes, you can't teach that.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Theodore Sims - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Another debutant but another fighter with very little to offer, he got himself a decision win here but didn't impress anyone in the process. He comes from a kung fu background which is odd for an Irishman, but to be honest if you'd told me he'd never done martial arts before I would have believed you. Strong recommendation to avoid.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Leon Barnes - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Barnes calls himself "Unstoppable" so he believes in himself I guess. He looked fairly decent here by winning by submission in only 79 seconds, he used his grappling to get the fight to the ground very quickly and showed some good ground skills to get an arm triangle applied. Another one worth keeping tabs on.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Louis Stallings - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> We started moving on to more promising talents now, Stallings is a 20 year old from Cardiff who has good hands from boxing training but has also put the work in to be fairly well-rounded. He knocked his opponent out here in the second round so he's got some power, I think he's got something about him but I'd hold fire for the time being until he's more experienced.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Todd Ambriz - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Another one with some promise, Ambriz is a former kick boxer but he's got his grappling up to a fairly decent level and wants to work harder on it. He annihilated his opponent here with some powerful punches to knock him down and some just as powerful strikes on the ground to finish it in just over 3 minutes. Another 20 year old with the potential to be pretty good.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Barry York - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> A former amateur boxer turned MMA competitor, York has been training hard to get himself ready for his debut and it showed. It took him just 112 seconds to finish off his opponent, admittedly we didn't get to see his grappling but his hands were fast and powerful. He's only 19 and he's already quite good, expect to hear more about him.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Tyler Dooey - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Dooey is a kick boxer and little else, he was put quite high on the card due to local support more than anything and he at least got a finish. Dooey needs to work on other aspects of his game other than striking, but maybe you'll consider hiring him because his surname sounds so much like yours?</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Boone Serrano - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Serrano doesn't sound like a Scottish name to me. He's another kick boxer and probably the best striker we've seen tonight, but again he needs to start working on the other areas of MMA. He didn't need to use any grappling here, he just beat his opponent senseless in under 3 minutes and won by TKO. These kick boxers should really think about going to somewhere like Rob Baines' camp, it would be a huge help to them.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Laurent Pendergarst - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Pendergarst is an interesting individual, slightly older than most of them at 24, he comes from a submission grappling background meaning he has good skills on his feet and on the ground. His striking game needs a bit of work but he's realised that himself and has been training hard. Here he won by submission with an armbar in quick time.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Ricky Cool - Middleweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> This is the guy people came to see. Richard McLeish is his real name but he prefers to be called Ricky Cool, it may sounds strange but he seems to want to have a gimmick, he's one of Scotland's best ever jiu-jitsu players and has been training his striking to be very good as well. He knocked out his opponent here without even going to the ground just to prove he didn't need to. I wouldn't normally say this about a 1-0 guy but I think we should sign him up ASAP, he could very well be the next Curt Kitson.</p><p> </p><p> <strong>Anthony Riggs - Light Heavyweight</strong></p><p> </p><p> Riggs is quite old to be starting his MMA career at 28, but that can be forgiven as he's spent most of his years representing Great Britain at Taekwondo. He showed what a powerful striker he is here, first by knocking his opponent down with a head kick and then by smashing his face in on the ground. I would sign Riggs too, he seems to not only have the skills but he's a fairly well known figure from his Taekwondo days as well.</p><p> </p><p> ----------------------------------------</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> <strong>THE WEEK IN MMA</strong></p><p><strong> Week 3 of April 2001</strong></p><p> </p><p> The big show of the week was on Friday with GAMMA Battle Lines 4 headlined by Lawrence Herringbone putting the GAMMA Light Heavyweight title on the line against Marlon John, plus a whole load of other recognisable names were on the card as well. Herringbone scraped through with a split decision that wasn't wildly appreciated by the fans who thought John had done enough to win the title. Elsewhere on the main card Linfield Ballard scored a TKO win over Ricky Heath, Stuart Strange got a decision win over JJ Reid, Bruce Steven defeated Truck Gleeson with an armbar and Darin Blood scored a surprise win by decision against David Allen. On the prelims there were wins for the debuting Elgar, Yevgeni Sipatov, Petey Mack, Tony McCall and Benny Danare.</p><p> </p><p> Xtreme Cage Combat also ran on Friday, and why they chose the same day as a GAMMA TV show I'll never know. The Main Event crowned a new XCC Lightweight champion as Sammy Newton defeated Avery Gleason to win the vacant title, it was a unanimous decision but it was a very close fight. Elsewhere Sammy Gaffigan knocked out Rafael Tavares, #1 Bantamweight Willy Bassett defeated Dominic Ash, and Anthony Ray Shenkman knocked out James Busfield. The show itself blew away anything that BCF or SIGMA have done this year and they could well be the #3 promotion in the world very soon.</p><p> </p><p> The BCF have signed two new fighters following a local show in the UK which gave them a chance to showcase themselves in their MMA debuts, first is Middleweight Ricky McLeish who goes by the name "Ricky Cool" for his MMA career, he's Scotland's best ever jiu-jitsu competitor which may not say much, but he looks like he could be pretty good. They've also signed an Olympian, Anthony Riggs represented Great Britain at the 2000 games in taekwondo and has now put that on hold to fight in MMA. His Olympic credentials make him a bigger name than most of the BCF roster.</p><p> </p><p> ALPHA-1 have signed veteran Indonesian fighter Muhammad Hamzah for some reason, he's a on a four fight winning streak but he has a terrible striking game. This news has not set the world on fire.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p></div><p></p><p></p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paatero Posted January 18, 2015 Share Posted January 18, 2015 I like the way you're paying attention to your local scene. I'm into "Ricky Cool" now, I'm looking forward to seeing him debut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2K Posted January 19, 2015 Author Share Posted January 19, 2015 The game world is what makes me love WMMA so much and with the increase in attention to independent shows I thought it was worth showing them some love. The only problem is that there are soooo many generated fighters coming in that there are going to be a lot of names that people won't recognise. Guess it's my job to bring them to life . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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