Sengoku 8 3/2/09 Re-Cap

Sengoku - Eighth Battle: Featherweight Grand Prix 2nd Round

May 2, 2009
Yoyogi National Stadium, Tokyo

Sengoku is back for their third effort this year. The last show was the first round of the Featherweight Grand Prix. Here is a look at the brackets for the 2nd round:

Hatsu Hioki vs. Ronnie Mann
Michihiro Omigawa vs. Nam Phan
Masanori Kanehara vs. Chang Sung Jung
Marlon Sandro vs. Nick Denis

Lightweight Fight- Akihiko Mouri (6-6-1) vs. Maximo Blanco (2-1-1)

Mouri is a decorated amateur wrestler and a veteran of DEEP, Pancrase and the K-1 Hero promotion. Blanco was a All-Japan freestyle wrestling champion in High School and college. Apparently Blanco looks up to Eddie Alvarez and his backflips.

R1- Blanco got a quick take down in the first thirty seconds of the fight. Mouri caught Blanco with an arm bar but Blanco quickly rolled out of it and regaining top position. Blanco is bleeding from the nose early. Blanco dropped Akihiko with a good punch and then jumped on top in side control but couldn’t finish. Blanco hit a spinning back kick and then nailed Akihiko with a right hand and then a soccer style kick to the head. The kick was illegal based on Sengoku rules because Akihiko was down. Big mistake by Blanco because Akihiko was finished after that right hand.

Winner: Akihiko Mouri by Disqualification (Illegal Kick) R1

Light Heavyweight Fight- Travis Wiuff (54-12) vs. Stanislav Nedkov (5-0)

Nedkov is wearing an “I Love Jesus” T-shirt as he comes to the ring. He is a BJJ black belt, a solid wrestler and is undefeated. 4 of his 5 fights have ended in the first round. Wiuff is 9-1 in his last 10 fights. He fought 16 times in 2003 and 20 of his fights have gone the distance (he is 18-2 in those fights).

R1- Stanislav hits a couple of low blows early and we are in rest mode for the first several minutes of the fight. A red card is issued to Nedkov and that means that means Nedkov gets a point deduction. Nedkov hits another low blow on Wiuff. Pretty much a worthless first round due to three low blows. Nedkov gets another red card so he’s down two points (if he gets one more than he’s automatically disqualified).

R2- Wiuff got a good slam/take down to start the round. They stood back up at the three minute mark and Nedkov nailed Wiuff with a big punch but Wiuff took it well and stayed on his feet. Wiuff grabbed a guillotine but Nedkov slipped out. Wiuff takes this round and is probably up 20-16 due to the loss of points for Nedkov. Nedkov has to finish this fight in Round Three if he wants to win.

R3- Nedkov landed a good punch and jumped on top and landed some Ground and Pound on Wiuff and is destroying him in the ropes and the ref stops the fight and Nedkov kisses the referee. Really impressive come back by Nedkov after a rough first two rounds and he remains undefeated at 6-0.

Winner: Stanislav Nedkov by TKO (Strikes) R3

Welterweight Fight- Michael Costa (9-4) vs. Makoto Takimoto (4-5)

Costa’s last fight was a loss to Nick Thompson on 6/8/08 by submission. Takimoto is also coming off of a loss as his last fight was a loss to Frank Trigg on 8/24/08. Takimoto has fought a high level of competition in his brief career as he also has losses to Gegard Mousasi and Kiyoshi Tamura. This is Takimoto’s first fight at Welterweight since dropping down from Middleweight.

R1- Costa went for a high kick and a high knee early but got taken down by Takimoto. Costa was able to grab a guillotine on the ground but he was eventually able to get out of the submission. Takimoto grabbed an arm bar attempt but Costa blocked the submission. Takimoto instead grabbed a heel hook and got a submission. Pretty good fight although it didn’t last long.

Winner: Makoto Takimoto by Submission (Heel Hook) R1 3:31

Featherweight Grand Prix Second Round Tournament Fight- Nick Denis (7-0) vs. Marlon Sandro (13-0)

Denis defeated Seiya Kawahara in the first round of the tournament by TKO. Denis is the KOTC Bantamweight Canadian Champion. Denis showed some really good striking skills in his first round victory. Sandro is also undefeated and is the Featherweight King of Pancrase. He defeated Matt Jaggers by submission as he finished Jaggers with an arm triangle in the second round of the fight.

R1- Sandro dropped Denis with a punch and jumped on top and just destroyed him with punches. Very unexpected finish as Sandro was supposed to be the ground guy. Tremendous showing by Sandro and if he wasn’t in the Top 10 of Featherweights in the world then I would say that he is now.

Winner: Marlon Sandro by KO (punches) R1 0:19

Featherweight Grand Prix Second Round Tournament Fight- Masanori Kanehara (12-5-5) vs. Chan Sung Jung (6-0)

Jung is undefeated and beat Shintaro Ishiwatari in a fun fight in the first round of this tournament. Jung has won 4 of his last 5 fights in the 1st round. Kanehara won a unanimous decision over Jong Man Kim in his first round fight. Both of these fighters are considered “dark horses” in this tournament.

R1- Kanehara got the first take down of the fight a little over a minute into the round but it ends with the fighters being stood back up after several minutes. Kanehara got another take down with about a minute left in the round but Jung got it back to their feet and then Kanehara forced him through the ropes. Pretty even first round with Kanehara getting two take downs. Jung started to come on at the end of the round but I’ve got Kanehara up 10-9.

R2- Both guys swing wildly at each other during the opening stages of this round and it ends in a Kanehara take down. Jung tried to get an arm bar and looked like he got it but Kanehara slipped out and re-took his guard. Kanehara clamped in a heel hook at then end of the round but Jung held out until the bell. This was another close round with Kanehara dominating control of the ring and both guys almost finishing with a submission. I think Kanehara won this round with his last second submission attempt to go up 20-18 although it’s very close to 19-19.

R3- Jung slipped early and Kanehara took his guard. Jung landed a good knee about half way through the round and then got in a couple of more knees on Kanehara. Jung takes Kanehara’s guard and gets some Ground and Pound in the last minute of the round. Good fight and it was very close. I’ve got Kanehara taking Round One and Jung taking Round Three with both being pretty clear cut winners of those rounds. Round Two is up for grabs, I barely gave it to Kanehara. I could see a split decision here. I think if you were judging on the entire fight as a whole I would give it to Jung but round by round I give it to Kanehara.

Judges score the fight: 30-29 Kanehara, 30-29 Kanehara and 29-28 Kanehara.

Winner: Masanori Kanehara by Decision (Unanimous)

Light Heavyweight Fight- Xlexandre Riberio (1-0) vs. Kei Yamamiya (34-23-9)

Kei has fought 43 fights that have gone the distance and is 21-11-9 in those fights. He has defeated Chris Lytle, Nate Marquardt, Chael Sonnen and Denis Kang and has losses to Guy Mezger, Bas Rutten, Paulo Filho and Akihiro Gono (twice). He is a wrestler and a kick boxer. Riberio is a bjj fighter who has multiple world jiu jitsu championships but only 1 pro MMA fight.

R1- Riberio got a good take down about half way through the round. Riberio took full mount and got in some Ground and Pound. Kei gave up his back and Riberio worked for an arm bar attempt but could not end it before the round ended. Good showing in the first round by Riberio.

R2- Kei did a good job in the first half of this round avoiding a take down and Riberio seemed to tire towards the end of the round. Kei went for a flying knee but he got caught and got taken down with about half a minute left in the round and by the time Kei got mount the bell rang.

R3- Kei moved in and hit Riberio but Riberio countered punch with a strong right hand and knocked Kei out.

Good showing by Riberio. He needs to work on his cardio and if he does that then he will be tough.

Winner: Xlenandre Riberio by KO R2

They show a Ring of Honor commercial featuring Ric Flair during a break in between matches.

Lightweight Fight- Leonardo Santos (6-2) vs. Kazunori Yokota (8-2-3)

Yokota is a former Lightweight Champion from the DEEP promotion. His last fight was a loss to current Sengoku Lightweight Champion Satoru Kitaoka by unanimous decision. Santos is on a 5 fight win streak. Bas says he’s the brother of Wagnney Fabiano (current WEC and former IFL fighter). Both guys are looking for a title fight, so the winner of this fight could be in line for a fight against Kitaoka- especially if it’s Santos.

R1- Santos got a take down about a minute into the fight. Santos had his back but Yokota was able to spin through and take Santos’ guard. Yokota was able to get some decent Ground and Pound in at the end of the round to take the round.

R2- Santos went for a flying knee early and got taken down. With three minutes gone from the round Santos is able to escape and mount Yokota but Yokota rolls him back over. Nobody is really doing much damage in this round. Yokota takes this rather uneventful round to go up 20-18.

R3- Santos got a take down about 3 minutes into the round. Santos tried to take his back but got flipped over and Yokota took his guard. Another lackluster round. I’ve got it Yokota 29-28. Neither guy really looked like they did anything to try and finish this fight. Definitely a disappointing fight and neither guy comes out looking like they are championship contender caliber.

Judges score cards say: 30-28 Yokota, 29-28 Santos, and 30-29 Yokota.

Winner: Kazunori Yokota by Decision (Split)

Featherweight Grand Prix Second Round Tournament Fight- Michihiro Omigawa (5-7-1) vs. Nam Phan (15-5)

In the first round Omigawa defeated L.C. Davis by unanimous decision. Phan defeated Hideki Kadowaki via first round TKO in the first round.

R1- Omigawa got a quick takedown but Phan used a heel hook to take Omigawa’s guard. Phan got caught in a guillotine and ate some knees. Omigawa pulled guard with the guillotine but Phan got out of the move. Omigawa got another take down with one minute left in the round after some fairly even stand up. Omigawa got Phan up against the ropes and threw a ton of punches at him and then got him on the ground and just pounded him and the ref put a stop to the fight. Shocking upset!

Winner: Michihiro Omigawa by TKO (punches) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix Second Round Tournament Fight- Hatsu Hioki (18-3-2) vs. Ronnie Mann (17-1-1)

In the first round Ronnie Mann defeated Tetsuya Yamada by Unanimous Decision. Hatsu Hioki defeated Chris Manuel with a Triangle Choke in the first round of his first round fight. Hioki is the favorite to take this tournament.

R1- Hioki has a large height advantage in this fight. Hioki got a take down after one minute of fighting. Hioki got a mount about half way through the round and locked in a triangle choke and threw hammer fists at Mann and the ref stepped in and stopped the fight. Another great showing by Hioki.

Winner: Hatsu Hioki by Submission (Triangle Choke) R1 3:09

Sengoku 7 Re-Cap

World Victory Road: Sengoku 7
Yoyogi National Gymnasium
Tokyo, Japan

Sengoku is back for their second effort this year. The first show of the year had Jorge Santiago winning the Middleweight Title, Satoru Kitaoka beating Takanori Gomi for the Lightweight Title, King Mo, and former Elite XC Heavyweights Dave Herman and Antonio Silva. This show features King Mo and the first round of the Featherweight Tournament. This should be interesting as DREAM started their Featherweight tournament on their last show so it will be interesting to compare and contrast the two divisions as they progress in their respective tournaments. Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten are our HDNet TV announcers.

The fighters featured at the beginning of the telecast are Hatsu Hioki, L.C. Davis, Nam Phan, and Marlon Sandro. So those are the four guys to watch on tonight’s show. James Thompson and Mo Lawal will also fight tonight, but not against each other.

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Nick Denis (6-0) vs. Seiya Kawahara (6-1)

Denis is the King of the Cage Canadian Bantamweight Champion. All of his fights have been won by KO or Submission with 5 Kos. Kawahara has finished 5 of his 6 wins by KO or Submission with 4 Kos so it looks like we are going to see someone finished in this fight. Kawahara is the 2nd youngest fighter in this tournament at 21 years of age. Denis has a degree in BioChemistry.

R1- Denis hit a high kick early that knocked Kawahara down and followed with some knees. Denis knocked him down again with n exchange later in the round and followed it up as some Ground and Pound and as the ref was moving to stop the fight Kawahara’s corner threw in the towel. Good start to the tournament and while both guys looked green, Denis showed some good striking and remains undefeated.

Winner: Nick Denis by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Ronnie Mann (16-1-1) vs. Tetsuya Yamada (3-0)

Mann’s only loss was by unanimous decision by in July of 2007. He was 3-0 in 2008. Yamada is the youngest participant in this tournament. He is only 18 and actually just finished high school at the beginning of this month. All 3 of his victories have come in the 1st round. Yamada has a 4” height advantage in this fight.

R1- Mann is the aggressor early in the fight but Yamada rushes in and gets a take down but Mann is able to sweep him over and get on top. Mann gets a body triangle on Yamada as he takes his back and looks for a submission. Mann gets rolled back over but he’s in full mount. Yamada slips out the back and grabs a heel hook but doesn’t seem to have it clamped in too well and gives it up and instead ends up in the rubber guard that Mann breaks. Very active fight on the ground so far as Yamada goes for a triangle but is denied. Yamada went for a jumping knee bar and ended up with a toe hold but couldn’t hold it and Mann stood up. Really good fight so far that is somewhat even. Mann has be in control of the fight more but Yamada is really fighting for submissions.

R2- Mann spends the first part of this round on top in a dominant position but hasn’t really done any damage. Yamada is actively trying to keep this fight on the ground even if he’s in guard. Mann gets a slam near the end of the round. Mann was more decisive in this round as he’s winning the fight so far.

R3- Yamada hit a good head kick early but Mann fought it off and got a take down. Yamada rolled him over and looked for subs but Mann fought through it. Mann hit a good body shot and then got Yamada down again. Yamada has definitely slowed down in this round but he did hit a good kick before Mann took him down again. Mann grabs a toe hold and Yamada tries to counter with a knee bar but Mann releases the move. Yamada jumps on top to end the fight. I’ve got Mann winning this fight.

Winner: Ronnie Mann by Decision (Unanimous)

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Chan Sung Jung (2-0) vs. Shintaro Ishiwatari (6-1-3)

Jung’s last fight was a 17 second knockout victory. Ishiwatari’s only loss came in his pro debut in 2006.

R1- These guys are standing up at the beginning of the fight and throwing leather. Jung hitting a good combo and landed a good left that floored Ishiwatari as he was backing into the corner. Jung landed side control and got some brief Ground and Pound in before Ishiwatari got back to his feet with half a round left. Ishiwatari connected on a high kick but Jung fought it off. Both guys are really throwing at one another. Jung came in with a combo and then took Ishiwatari’s back and locked in a Rear Naked Choke and won the fight. Really fun fight.

Winner: Chan Sung Jung by Rear Naked Choke R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Masanori Kanehara (11-5-5) vs. Jong Man Kim (3-5-3)

Kim is winless in his last 5 fights (0-3-2) so my guess is that he will not be the favorite to win this one. Expert analysis by Bas Rutten on his record “That’s not that good” (I kid because I actually really like Bas as a color commentator). However, he does hold a victory over one of the favorites in this tournament (Hatsu Hioki). Kanehara has finished 10 of his 11 wins by KO or Submission). Kim is a wrestler and BJJ fighter. Kanehara is a jiu jitsu fighter.

R1- The jiu jitsu guys stay on their feet with the fight being pretty even until Kanehara gets in a couple of shots that floors Kim with about a minute left in the round. Kim’s face looks like he has some bruises after the first round.

R2- Kanehara gets a take down and tried to get a submission with an arm triangle but Kim broke free. After two rounds Kanehara is winning this fight. Kim is going to need to finish to get the win in this one.

R3- Final round was pretty even with Kanehara getting a take down in the final minute. I’ve got Kanehara winning this fight.

Winner: Masanori Kanehara by Decision (Unanimous)

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Matt Jaggers (9-4) vs. Marlon Sandro (12-0)

Marlon Sandro is the Featherweight King of Pancrase. He trains with Thales Leites, Jose Aldo and Wagnney Fabiano. He has only finished 5 of his 12 fights but is undefeated. Jaggers has a wrestling background. According to the odds-makers Sandro is a 5.5 to 1 favorite and is the biggest favorite of any of the tournament fights tonight. Sandro is a Muay Thai and BJJ fighter.

R1- Sandro got a take down about 30 seconds into the fight. Jaggers got up swinging. Sandro got another take down about half way through the round. Jaggers is able to roll Sandro over but Sandro rolls him back over. Sandro gets some punches in but then Jaggers flips him back over. Slight edge to Sandro in the first round for the take downs but hasn’t really done any damage.

R2- Sandro nipped Jaggers in the mid-section with a spinning back kick and then got another take down. Sandro looks like he’s working for an arm triangle and Jaggers gets to his feet but Sandro finishes him off with the arm triangle.

Winner: Marlon Sandro by Submission (Arm Triangle) R2

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- L.C. Davis (13-1) vs. Michihiro Omigawa (4-7-2)

L.C. Davis has only 1 professional loss which was to WEC fighter Wagnney Fabiano in an IFL fight. Davis is a 4 to 1 favorite in this fight and has won 4 straight fights. Omigawa is 0-3-1 in his last four fights. He has a Judo background.

R1- Omigawa got Davis to the ground about a minute and a half into the fight and then laid on top of him doing nothing for a while. Omigawa mounts at the two minute mark but hasn’t done any damage yet. LC gives up his back trying to get out but Omigawa is just hugging him at the point. Omigawa is doing a good job with the wrestling but not much in terms of finishing the fight. Omigawa did grab an arm bar near the end of the round but Davis was able to hold on until the bell. Omigawa definitely up after one round.

R2- Omigawa once again is able to get Davis to the ground after about a minute and a half of stand-up that Davis was winning but not decisively. Davis is able to get up fairly quickly this time. This round was even so Omigawa has the advantage going into the final round. A strong round by either guy here could take this fight.

R3- Omigawa gets a takedown at the one minute mark of the round and seems content to lay on Davis until the bell rings in four minutes. Omigawa gets a guillotine but can’t finish with the submission. This was definitely my least favorite of the Featherweights so far. Omigawa gets the upset as he controlled the fight in unspectacular fashion.

30-28, 30-28 and 30-27 in favor of Omigawa on the score cards.

Winner: Michihiro Omigawa by Decision (Unanimous)

Heavyweight Fight- Jim York (9-2) vs. James Thompson (14-9)

York has finished all of his 9 victories but he’s only fought twice in the last 31 months. Thompson is 2-7 in his last 9 fights. Thompson has a 4” height advantage and a 7 lb advantage.

R1- Thompson charges in and misses. This is a slugfest early! York grabbed a standing guillotine but couldn’t finish with it. Pretty even stand up with Thompson starting to pull away but he got caught and floored and the ref stopped the fight.

Winner: Jim York by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Nam Phan (14-5) vs. Hideki Kadowaki (13-8-2)

Nam Phan is a guy who has fought for Strikeforce in the past and recently lost a close split decision to Billy Evangelista in a Lightweight fight at the June 2008 show (I actually had the fight scored a draw with a 10-8 round to Evangelista and two 10-9 rounds to Phan). He trains with Caol Uno. Phan is a 3 to 1 favorite to win this fight but has lost 3 of his last 5 fights. Kadowaki is a former Shooto Lightweight Champion. He has defeated Bao Quach, Akitoshi Tamura (twice) and Rumina Sato and has losses to Kid Yamamoto, Hatsu Hioki and Takeshi Inoue.

R1- Lots of stand up early in this fight. Phan caught him with a right hand that floored him and the ref stopped the fight. Fun fight and good finish by Phan.

Winner: Nam Phan by TKO (Strikes) R1

Featherweight Grand Prix First Round Tournament Fight- Hatsu Hioki (17-3-2) vs. Chris Manuel (6-0-2)

Hatsu Hioki has beat Mark Hominick twice and Jeff Curran once. He is undefeated outside of Shooto (5-0 in those fights). Hioki was 4-0-1 in 2008. He’s ranked as Inside MMA’s #8 Featherweight. Hioki is a 3.5 to 1 favorite. Manuel fights out of American Top Team and is a BJJ Black Belt.

R1- Hioki gets a quick take down. Hioki gets takes his back and attempts an arm bar but Manuel escapes. Hioki gets him down again. Hioki is looking really strong on the mat. Hioki now getting some Ground and Pound. Hioki went for an arm bar and settled for a triangle choke and hit some Ground and Pound. Hioki gets the win, he was by far the best looking fighter tonight in the tournament.

Winner: Hatsu Hioki by Submission (Triangle Choke) R1

Light Heavyweight Fight- Muhammed Lawal (3-0) vs. Ryo Kawamura (9-3-2)

Lawal comes to the ring with some dancing Japanese girls with a cape and crown. Ryo is the King of Pancrase Light Heavyweight Champion. Lawal is a 5 to 1 favorite.

R1- King Mo gets a quick take down early but Ryo gets back up. Lawal hits some strikes and gets Ryo down again. Lawal is dominating early and getting in strikes up against the ropes on Ryo. Lawal is just manhandling Ryo and continues to take him down time after time. Borderline 10-8 round for Lawal.

R2- Lawal gets a yellow card in this round as he hit Ryo with two eye pokes in the early going. Lawal hit a good jumping knee. Lawal took Ryo’s back and got him to the ground. Lawal is getting take downs at will in this fight. I’ve got Lawal up 20-17 so far going into the third round.

R3- Lawal begins this round by smothering Ryo again. Once King Mo learns some submissions he’s going to be a very dangerous fighter. Mo drops Ryo on the back of his neck and hits some good Ground and Pound in the last minute of the fight. Ryo is basically just trying to hold on to get a decision but then finally fights back and gets taken down by Mo as the bell rings. Dominate win by Lawal, he just didn’t finish him. Ryo looks pretty jacked up after the fight and King Mo looks fresh.

30-24, 20-27 and 30-27 on the score cards.

Winner: Mohammed Lawal by Decision (Unanimous)

This was a pretty good show. I liked it more than the DREAM Featherweight Grand Prix first round show. Next round match-ups look like this in the Sengoku Featherweight Tournament:

Hatsu Hioki vs Ronnie Mann
Michihiro Omigawa vs Nam Phan
Masanori Kanehara vs Chang Sung Jung
Marlon Sandro vs Nick Denis

Strikeforce 6/27 "Melendez vs. Thomson" Show Re-Cap/Thoughts

Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson

From HP Pavillion in San Jose, California

Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten are the announcers for the show. Ron Kruck is also at the show and is their backstage reporter. Jimmy Lennon Jr is the ring announcer (he does the Elite XC shows also).

Featherweight Fight- Bryan Caraway (8-2) vs. Alvin Cacdac (7-3)

Carraway has won six in a row and has won all his fights by submission. Cacdac is from San Jose so he's a hometown guy for this fight.

R1- Caraway immediately gets a take down, passes the guard and then takes Alvin's back. Alvin taps about a minute and a half in. Total dominance by Caraway in the opener.

Winner: Bryan Caraway by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R1 1:39

Lightweight Fight- Bobby Stack (4-1) vs. Jose Palacios (3-0)

Both of these guys are from California. Palacios trains with Strikeforce Middleweight Champ Cung Le. This is considered an "undercard" fight so it's only 3 minute rounds. I think they are just showing this because the first fight ended so quickly as they went right to this fight after the first fight ended.

R1- Stack is the agressor early with Palacios counter punching and kicking. Palacios seems to be getting in some shots but Stack gets a take down. Close round with Palacios probably taking it with the take down and controlling the cage. Stack landed 17 strikes in Round 1 and Palacios 16. Palacios landed 53% to Stack's 44%.

R2- Palacios starts off with a couple of strikes and then gets taken down again. Stack controls for the majority of the round and just misses an arm bar at the end of the round and then Palacios got on top for the last 20 seconds. I'm thinking it's Stack 20-18 right now.

R3- Stack gets a slam about 30 seconds into the round and has Palacios's back but gives it up and takes full mount. Stack getting in some shots in full mount. Palacios reverses but gets taken down again and Stack is in Palacios's guard. This one ends with Stack on top. I've got Stack 30-27 in this fight as he dominated cage control, got more strikes in and dominated the take downs.

For the fight Stack landed 36 strikes at a percentage of 53% and Palacios landed 27 at a percentage of 39%. Stack had 4 take downs to 0 and both guys had 1 submission attempt. Would have liked to have seen this one go 5 minute rounds instead of 3 minute rounds. Ken Shamrock is in Bobby Stack's corner.

All three judges scored the fight 29-28 in favor of Stack.

Winner: Bobby Stack by Decision (Unanimous)

Joe Riggs was denied his fight license by the California State Athletic Commission. They interview him and he said that he had 2 medications that he had a prescription for that were "banned" substances.

Bantamweight Fight- Anthony Figueroa (4-2) vs. Chris Cariaso (6-1)

Figueroa has been on the Strikeforce NBC show and he won impressively in one round in that fight. Cariaso holds a victory over Figueroa by Unanimous Decision on 6/22/07. Figueroa is from San Jose. Cariaso is from San Fransisco. This one is 5 minute rounds. Figueroa trains with Cung Le.

R1- Cariaso gets a take down about 45 seconds into the fight and hits some good Ground and Pound and is actively trying to improve his position. Cariaso gets full mount. Figueroa gets out of it and gets to his feet but gets taken down in short order. Figueroa gets to his feet and lands a knee. Cariaso wins this round 10-9. Cariaso landed 12 strikes at 63% and Figueroa landed only 2 at 14%.

R2- Cariaso gets another take down early in this round. Cariaso just dominating this round and getting some Ground and Pound and then taking Figueroa's back. Cariaso gets the win with a Rear Naked Choke. Cariaso looked really good in this fight as he just dominated.

Winner: Chris Cariaso by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R2 4:34

Middleweight Fight- Jeremiah Metcalf (8-4) vs. Raymond Daniels (0-0)

This is announced as a "special attraction." Daniels was 16-0 in kickboxing and 18-0 in the World Combat League and this is his pro MMA debut. Metclaf has won 4 of his last 5 and has won his last 3 fights. This is scheduled for 3 3-minute rounds.

R1- Metcalf shoots in quickly and clinches. Metcalf eventually takes him down but briefly got caught in a guillotine. Metcalf dominates the first round and hits some good Ground and Pound at the end of the round. First round goes to Metcalf.

R2- Metcalf sticks Daniels with a punch right at the beginning of the round and muscles him down again. Metcalf looked like he was going for a triangle choke and spun over and took Daniels back and choked him out. Metcalf just dominate here. Not the debut Daniels was looking for as he didn't even throw a kick.

Winner: Jeremiah Metcalf by Submission (Rear Nake Choke) R2 0:59

Women's Fight (147 lbs)- Elena Maxwell (2-2) vs. Miesha Tate (1-1)

Maxwell was featured in a fight against Gina Carano that was shown on the NBC Strikeforce show and took Gina to the limit but lost by decision in a fight that was scored 29-28 by all three judges (this fight was in 2006). Tate has a loss to Kaitlin Young, who also lost to Gina Carano on the debut Elite XC CBS show. Based on those two fights I'm going to go with Maxwell to win this one. This fight has 3 minute rounds.

R1- Tate gets an early take down. Tate gets full mount. Maxwell flips her over but Tate tries an arm bar (but can't extend it) and Maxwell grabs a head scissors at the same time. Tate finally gets the arm bar but Maxwell survives due to being saved by the bell. Tate wins this round. It looked to me like Maxwell tapped but the ref didn't see it. Oh well.

R2- Tate gets a quick take down to start Round 2. Tate gets full mount again. Tate getting in some Ground and Pound. Maxwell grabs Tate with her legs and puts her in another head scissors. Tate gets out and has side control. Tate takes this round as well and is up 20-18 on my score card. Tate has landed 18 strikes to Maxwell's 3 so far.

R3- Maxwell gets Tate's back with about a minute left. Maxwell takes this round but I give the fight to Tate 29-28. And all of the judges score the fight 29-28 in favor of Tate.

Winner: Miesha Tate by Decision (Unanimous)

Light Heavyweight Title Fight: Bobby Southworth © (8-5) vs. Anthony Ruiz (20-10)

Bobby Southworth is the guy from TUF Season 1 that made the unlikeable Chris Leben into a sympathetic character. This is a re-match from a fight that Southworth lost due to a cut. Ruiz has won his last 6 fights. Cung Le joins the announcers to call this fight.

R1- Southworth gets the first take down. Bobby takes his back about one and a half minutes into the fight. Bobby never really seemed to do much damage and then Ruiz flipped him over and is in Bobby's guard. Bobby stands up the fight and then gets a take down with a little over a minute left in the round. Bobby grabbed an arm bar but didn't extend it and Ruiz got out but Bobby grabbed another submission. Bobby looked pretty good in Round One and i've got him up 10-9 on my scorecard after the first.

R2- Ruiz gets an early take down in Round two but Bobby stands up and then gets a take down of his own. Ruiz rolls him over and gets into Bobby's guard. They are basically trading take downs in this round with either guy seeming to do much damage. This was a close round, could have gone either way. I would give it to Ruiz. So i've got 19-19.

So far through 2 Rounds we've got Southworth with 20 strikes landed and hitting at 50% and we've got Ruiz with 17 strikes landed at 52%. Southworth has 3 take downs and 2 submission attempts and Ruiz is only credited with 1 take down.

R3- Ruiz gets the take down early in Round 3. Bobby answers with another take down. This is a very flat fight. Pretty much just guys taking each other down and not really doing much else. Southworth gets full mount and Ruiz gives up his back and then reverses Bobby. Ruiz grabs a guillotine and pulls guard on Southworth but Southworth gets out and is in Ruiz's guard. Not much action in this round. It probably goes to Southworth. I've got Southworth 29-28. This is any body's fight right now.

R4- They actually do some stand up in this round after some mat work. Southworth grabs a kimura on Ruiz but can't finish him. This round goes to Southworth also. This is a very tedious fight. I've got Southworth 39-37 after 4 rounds.

R5- They start this round doing stand up and Southworth goes in and takes him down and rides him to victory. I've got Southworth 49-46 in this fight. Not a fun fight to watch.

Final Stats were Southworth landing 49 strikes for 44% with 10 take downs and submission attempts. Ruiz finished with 38 strikes landed at 49% and 3 take downs.

The judges scores were 48-47, 49-46 and 50-45 in favor of Southworth. Southworth got a small round of boos at the announcement.

Winner: Bobby Southworth by Decision (Unanimous) and still champion.

Lightweight Special Attraction Fight- Nam Phan (14-4) vs. Billy Evangelista (6-0)

Nam Phan was on one of the Strikeforce NBC's featured in a decision loss to Josh Thomson.

R1- The do some brief stand up and then clinch against the cage. Billy takes him down and has him against the cage and is getting some good Ground and Pound in on Phan. Evangelista is getting in some real good punches on Phan toward the end of this round. He is just dominating this round. This might have even been an 10-8 round if you believe in such a thing. Just a dominate performance from Billy. Evangelista landed 55 strikes in Round 1 to Phan's 7.

R2- They start out Round 2 with some stand up and Phan lands a couple of shots that send Billy falling back into the cage. Billy shoots but Phan stops him and they clinch against the cage. They do some more stand up and Phan knocks out Billy's mouth piece. Billy shoots with 2 minutes left and gets a take down. Phan gets up without sustaining any damage but Billy takes him down again. Billy looks like he's cut on the side of the head. Phan took this round. Billy tried to steal it at the end but didn't do enough damage. This round goes Phan 10-9. Right now it's either 19-19 or 19-18 in favor of Evangelista depending on how the first round was scored. This fight is still any body's to win. In Round 2 Phan landed 31 strikes to Bily's 22.

R3- Phan hits some nice shots to start the round and again backs Billy into the cage. Billy comes off the cage and goes for a take down but Phan defends and they clinch. Phan knocks Billy's mouth piece out again in this round. Billy finally muscles a take down with 2 minutes left. Phan was winning this round until now. The ref stands the fighters up due to inactivity. Phan winning the stand up game again at the end of the round. Phan takes this round 10-9. I've got Billy with round one 10-8 and Phan with round two and three 10-9. I've got it 28-28- a draw. The announcers are saying they think Billy took Round One and Round Three. It looked to me like Phan dominated Round Three. Billy got a take down but didn't do anything with it. Round 3 showed Nam getting 32 strikes to Billy's 23. Overall, Billy landed 100 strikes (over half of these in the first round) and Nam landed 70 strikes (landed 63 in the last two round). Billy controlled the ground with 4 take downs but really didn't do any damage on the ground except for Round One. 78 of Billy's strikes were done on the ground, only 11 of Phan's were.

And the judges scorecard shows a split decision. Phan 29-28, Billy 29-28 and the third judge scores the fight 29-28 in favor of Billy Evangelista. Billy is the hometown guy (he's from Fresno) and the crowd booed when he was announced as the winner. Both announcers felt that Billy won and the decision was just.

Winner: Billy Evangelista by Decision (Split)


Strikeforce Lightweight Title Fight: Gilbert Melendez © (14-1) vs. Josh Thomson (14-2)

These guys trained together for two years. Gilbert refers to himself in the third person during the pre-fight promos. Thomson hasn't lost in 2 years and has won his last 6 fights. His 2 losses are to Yves Edwards and Clay Guida. Melendez's best wins are over Kawajiri and Guida. Five of his last Six fights have been decision and his only lost came on New Years Eve of last year.

R1- Melendez is the aggressor early as he backs Thomson off with jabs. Thomson hits a couple of knees and then gets a take down. Thomson doesn't do much with his take down and Melendez spins out of it and take Thomson's guard. They get to their feet and square off but no one really gets the better. This was a close round, I think Thomson took it as he controlled the majority of the round but didn't dominate. Thomson 10-9. Melendez landed only 8 strikes in the first round (at a clip of 27%) and Thomson landed 15 (at a clip of 83%).

R2- Melendez again starts the round by being the aggressor and jabbing. Both guys landing shots. Lots of action early on in Round Two. Thomson hit a nice front kick and then some knees and kicks. Thomson is winning this round and Gilbert seems to be tiring. Thomson hit a big knee. Thomson with a nice spinning back kick with about a minute left. Thomson really looking good. Thomson gets a take down right at the buzzer. Thomson is definitely winning this fight. He's up 20-18 in my book and is solidly in control. Melendez is going to have to take him down and wear him out in Round 3 to get back in this one. Thomson landed 11 kicks in the round and after two rounds Thomson has hit on 45 strikes (at a clip of 67%) and Melendez has hit on 23 strikes (hitting only 26%). Thomson has 2 take downs to Melendez's 0.

R3- Melendez starts the round by pushing forward again and backing off Thomson with jabs but Thomson does a great job hitting kicks to back off Melendez and then unleashes on him with a combo and Melendez looks to be in trouble. Thomson just all over Melendez as he hit about 6 or 7 strikes in about 10 to 15 seconds on Melendez. Melendez comes back quickly and gets in a punch of two and then attempts a take down but gets stopped. Melendez seems to bet getting stronger as this round goes on but Thomson continues to hit strikes. Melendez hits a couple of combos and the mix it up with about a minute left in the round and Thomson answers with some good strikes. Thomson goes for a take down and finally gets it but doesn't have great position. Thomson almost got his back but Melendez escaped. Really good round. This was the closest round and I think Thomson took it again so I've got him up 30-27 but this round was the closest and Thomson looked visibly winded at the end of the round. In the Third Round Thomson hit 32 strikes to Gilbert's 15. Thomson has landed 35 kicks in the first 3 rounds.

R4- Melendez opens up with a good combo in the corner to start the round. Thomson answers with a big side kick. Thomson doing a good job keeping Melendez at bay with kicks. Thomson hits a big knee with 1:30 left in the round. Thomson shots in for a take down and gets it with one minute left in the round and has side control. Thomson takes Melendez's back but Thomson gets out and they sprawl and again Thomson takes his back. Thomson gets a choke with about 25 seconds left and Melendez breaks it with about 10 seconds left and holds on. Thomson took this round and he is up 40-36. Thomson and Melendez exchange respect at the end of the round. At this point Thomson has landed 107 strikes to 52 for Melendez and has 5 take downs and 1 submission attempt to 0 for Melendez. Melendez needs a knock out or submission in Round 5 to keep his title.

R5- Towards the end of the round both guys open it up and are going at each other with some really good exchanges. The first half of the round was kind of blah but they had a big explosion for about a minut and it ends with a close round. I think Thomson won every round in this fight and takes the fight 50-45. Great showing by Thomson, he did everything but finish Melendez. I thought this was a good fight. Way better than anything else on this show but not at the level of Faber/Pulver from earlier in June.

Thomson landed 131 strikes and around 70 kicks. Melendez only landed 66 strikes and hit at a percentage of 24% (while Thomson hit on 68% of his strikes). Thomson had 6 take downs and 1 submission attempt to 0 for Melendez.

Judges score the fight 50-45 in favor of Thomson.

Winner and new champion: Josh Thomson by Decision (Unanimous)

Overall, this was a pretty decent show with a really good Main Event. The show ended on an good note with the final two fights. A lot of the fights were strictly fought on the ground and that gets tedious after seeing it match after match. I'm more of a fan of a little stand up and a little ground so I enjoyed the last two fights a lot more as all the fights before the final two were almost exclusively fought on the ground. I definitely recommend checking out the Thomson/Melendez fight. The rest of the show is skippable but watch the Main Event.