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Great main card of fights tonight. Apparently the "sky is the limit" for Junie despite not landing a single strike, I was worried Griffin/dos Anjos was on its way to turning into another Javi Vazquez/Alberto Crane but Griffin was able to gut out a potential early leg injury to beat a lesser opponent, Baders fight went to formula, and Kampmann/Condit was great stuff, I thought the whole fight was going to look like the third round, but Condit really impressed me in what was pretty much a draw. But now....
Ah, welcome back old friend, how have you been Ultimate Fighter? Needlessly Nationalistic? Oh, that's good. Pardon me? Why should we care about hastily thrown together teams in an individual sport? That's an excellent question Ultimate Fighter.
While it's no South Central Sabres vs. Toronto Dragons I still find the made up UK vs. US rivalry for this season to be pretty dumb. I didn't think they'd play up the country vs. country fervor too much but these Sex Pistol themed promos are doing just that. Oh well, at least I can fast forward past that stuff and just watch the fights. Sorry, what's that Ultimate Fighter? I have to watch every minute of the whole season and write about it, flag waving and all? I'll do my best I guess, hopefully it can be as much dopey fun as Bully Beatdown.
Quick Bully Beatdown tangent paragraph: A big point of Bully Beatdown should be that being a bad ass isn't about being yoked and intimidating, it should be about actually knowing how to fight. The Ultimate Fighter has done a great job of this where guys who can actually fight destroy the Marlon Sims' and Junie Browning types year after year. That's why picking fight worker/Ninja trash talker Tony Bonello, Pro Football washout Michael Westbrook, and Monster Mask wearer/Malaipet elbow eater/Miletich hope restorer Thomas Denny are such terrible choices. Bully Beatdown should be more about guys like Jake Shields. Shields is someone bully victims could aspire to be with lots of hard work....even though they can't...Shields is way more naturally talented than those other guys even though he doesn't look like a prototypical fighter. In conclusion that's why Season Two of Bully Beatdown needs Shinya Aoki.
Show recap--
The season kicks off with Dana White in the UK visiting the Wolfslair Academy home to Paul Kelly, TUF coach Michael Bisping, and famously Quinton Jackson since leaving Juanito Ibarra. Both White and Bisping reiterate how popular the UFC has become recently, Dana then greets the fighters telling them that the 16 that have gathered will be pared down to eight before heading to Vegas. Both Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson are on hand since the UK fights took place before their fight determined who would coach Team USA. This season will be contested at Lightweight (155 lbs.) and Welterweight (170 lbs.)
The first fight of the season is between the Wolfslairs own Gary Kelly, who is Paul's brother...and I don't have to say much more about him since he's facing one of the favorites of this season Andre Winner. Winner is a member of Nottinghams Team Rough House which also features Dan Hardy and Jim Wallhead the latter of whom should be in the UFC some time soon. All three of whom were regularly featured on what is secretly the UK's best promotion Cage Warriors.
UK Lightweight Fight #1
Gary Kelly (2-1) vs. Andre Winner (9-2-1)
Winner counters a left with a straight right early and looks much more fluid than Kelly. Hard body kick from Winner as the two clinch up. Winner digs for underhooks as Kelly strikes in the clinch. The two trade knees then each lands a nice inline elbow. The two continue to trade knees with Kellys back to the cage. Winner is focusing on landing short punches to the body while Kelly is throwing inline elbows and looking to grab neck control. Kelly throws another inline elbow, Winner is able to swim with the elbow and use Kellys momentum to pull his head down and land a knee from the plumb right on the button. A few follow up punches and it's all over and 1:47 of round one. Winner looked really good, his problem has been trouble finishing tougher opponents like Bendy Casimir which has led to razor thin decisions, but against guys like Kelly he usually rolls.
Bisping is upset his teammate went down hard, Kelly doesn't remember what happens at all and has to ask Winner what he hit him with. Bisping dealing with his best fighter taking out his friend could be an ok storyline. Henderson jokes that they'll need to use lots of subtitles this season....which they have been, do people really struggle to understand guys like Big Nog and Bisping when they speak English?
UK Lightweight Fight #2
James Bryan (3-1) vs. Jeff Lawson (12-2)
The prefight talk places this as veteran versus young up and comer. I admit to never having seen Bryan fight but Lawson has great jitz for the solid European level fighter he is. With the way the UFC has only been keeping a fighter or two from each successive season I don't see him sticking around unless he wins the show, unlike Winner.
Marc Goddard is the ref for this bout, he's a very good UK ref and is a decent fighter in his own right.
Bryan checks a Lawson leg kick to open, Lawson steps in off of it a pulls off kind of a sloppy Harai Goshi hip throw to land on top in Bryans guard. Lawson postures up tall and throws some strikes, when Bryan realizes he needs to control Lawsons upper body Lawson uses that as an opportunity to pass to half guard. Lawson slides right through to side. Bryan does a good jump of shrimping and spinning to get Lawson back to half guard. Lawson is much better than Bryan and Bryan again can only seem to concern himself with either posture or positioning one at a time rather than both. Bryan lets go of Lawson again to try and stop Lawsons legs from passing but in doing so Lawson is able to posture up tall, press down on Bryans head, slide his leg through the guard, isolate an arm and lock in a reverse triangle. Lawson quickly gives up on the reverse triangle which is very hard to finish to look for the straight armbar. Lawson quickly turns Bryan over and finishes the fight quickly with the straight armbar at 1:45 of round one.
Lawson looked very good but Bryan had very limited ground skills. Although to be fair Lawson has run a train on the ground of tough European competition like Vaclav Pribyl in a similar fashion.
UK Welterweight Fight #1
Che Mills (6-1) vs. James Wilks (5-2)
A battle of two champs here, Mills was the British WW Champ of Cage Rage which got him a fair amount of exposure in the UK, Wilks was born and raised in England but has spent his entire MMA career training and fighting in California out of Erik Paulsons gym and was the WW champ of Gladiator Challenge. A surprising early matchup as both these guys look to be better than most of the other UK welterweights. Wilks owns a won over TUF vet Roman Mitichyan, Mills has a few quality wins and an amusing No Contest with Paul Taylor where a fan blew an air horn in the arena. Both fighters at first thought the round was over, but then Mills locked in a rear naked choke on the confused Taylor.
Early Wilks looks to be the counterpuncher landing hard at the same time Mills does. Mills presses forward hard lands a hard left and a right, Wilks keels over backwards. Mills is standing over Wilks, Wilks is looking to control a leg for a heel hook leaving his face open for Mills punches. After eating a few Wilks is able to spin Mills to the mat, Mills looks to play the dueling leg lock game for a second but is forced to tap out very quickly at 30 seconds of round one from that heel hook. Yeah, you can't play footsies with an Erik Paulson guy, catch wrestling is king. Somewhere Karl Gotch is smiling. Bisping expresses shock that Mills went out so early.
UK Lightweight Fight #3
Martin Stapleton (5-1) vs. Dan James (3-0)
I couldn't find tape on either of these guys. Stapleton lands a counter left as James looks antsy moving in and out with lots of footwork but not throwing anything, Stapleton shots with a single leg and has James pressed against the fence in full guard. James is looking to control Stapleton with arm control, and apparently by grabbing the gloves as Goddard warns him for doing so. Stapleton frees his arm and throws a right, James ducks it and tries to scramble up, Stapleton hops on James back. Stapleton has one hook in and uses it to push James onto his back in full mount. Stapleton lands a few hard shots to get James to turn over and after working for it for a few seconds finishes the fight in round one by rear naked choke at 1:37 of round one.
UK Lightweight Fight #4
AJ Wenn (7-2) vs. Ross Pearson (8-3)
Pearson is another of the guys I think can stick in the UFC with a good showing this season. Like Lawson though, 155 is so tough and they've been keeping so few guys from TUF lately that he could quickly be back to the UK scene. I've seen Wenn once against Andre Winner, Wenn ate a few of the knees Winner beat Kelly with earlier but showed lots of grit and rode through it, in the end Winner was just too much on the feet for Wenn, I think Pearson will be as well.
After a brief exchange on the feet Pearson presses forward landing nothing, but has double underhooks against the cage. Wenn is able to work to over-under and the two spin trading control on the cage. Wenn raises his right leg up to protect against knee strikes and Pearson uses a beautiful leg sweep to counter on Wenns left leg knocking Wenn to his knees although Wenn hops right back up. Wenn again fights free from double underhooks and the two again go back to trading pushing each other against the fence. After a few knees to the body Wenn drops for a single leg, Pearson fights it by holding close to Wenns upper body preventing him from exploding, and as so often happens a failed takedown leads to a successful one by the opponent as Pearson is able to get in deep on a double. Pearson scoops Wenn up and drops him hard landing in side control. But again Wenn posts up on an arm and is back to his feet. Pearson looks for another foot sweep but Wenn uses his long arms to post up and stay upright.
With only one arm to defend Pearson lands two hard shots on Wenn and is able to loop his arm behind and through Wenns. This gives him great grip and leverage for knees and he lands a hard one to the body followed by two to the head. Pearson is deep on another double and picks Wenn well up and drops him down again. Wenn uses the cage to wall walk up and only eats a few shots for his trouble. Still in the clinch Pearson tries the Thai plumb for more knees, Wenn counters by dropping for a single leg, that's a perfect set up for a brabo choke, Pearson briefly looks for it but lets it go to hand fight and stave off the takedown. Wenn gets Pearson down and lands two hard rights, Pearson kicks away and is right back up. Pearson sprawls out on a Wenn shot, the two end the round still clinching but Pearson finishes it with two knees to the body, a jumping knee, and a knee to the head, Wenn turns away as Round one closes. Easy 10-9 for Pearson. Pearson briefly thought that last knee had finished the fight as Wenn is saved by the bell. Wenn is wobbly and White and Bisping think the fight may be stopped.
Round Two
Wenn looks steady as he throws a leg and body kick early. Pearson steps in front of a Wenn lead left hook and counters with one of his own. This opens Wenn up for a hard right that drops him, Pearson jumps on top, Wenn is able to try and fight for arm control but quickly turtles and the fight is ended at 0:22 of Round Two. Bisping feels Pearson reminds him of himself when he was on TUF.
UK Welterweight Fight #2
Tommy Maguire (5-2) vs. Nick Osipczak (3-0)
I've seen Osipczak once but there wasn't much to take from it apart from he's pretty good, it was a basic showing, takedown, pass to mount, pound until your opponent turtles. Maguire is a little doughy and Osipczak says he's excited to fight a ginger.
Osipczak is lanky and has tons of reach on Maguire, he opens by slapping his foot off Maguire with a head kick. Osipczak fights off a first Maguire takedown attempt, the two end up clinched, Maguire looks for a single again, he lifts the leg and Osipczak pretty much just softly falls over onto his back. Maguire postures up to his feet and lands a few hard rights but eats an upkick square. Maguire is in Osipczaks half-guard, he trys to pass straight to mount but Osipczak does a good job getting his knees up and forcing Maguire up too high on his body to hold control. Osipczak scrambles up, he leaves his neck exposed, Maguire grabs a front headlock and lands a knee. Maguire is trying a standing guillotine but doesn't nearly have the leverage so he pulls full guard and tries to finish it from the ground. Osipczak grinds his elbows into Maguire after popping his head free and lands one nice body-head combo, Maguire raises his hips for an armbar, Osipczak decides to stand up and freeing himself to go to the feet where he has the range.
Osipczak with a jab and two knees to the body as Maguire looks tired. Maguire with a body head 1-2 finished with a really wide but hard hook to Osipczaks temple. And another as he caught Osipczak as he was looking to clinch, Osipczak gets the clinch though and lands another two knees. Maguire is backing up and just covering up, Osipczak is landing but nothing fierce, he's mixing it up well though with body and head shots and some knees as well. A hard left hook to the body then a knee to the leaning Maguires head drops him and finishes matters at 4:08 of Round One for Osipczaks wins.
UK Welterweight Fight #3
Alex Reid (10-9-1) vs. Dean Amasinger (4-1)
Reid has been around forever, usually fighting tougher guys at 185 and losing. Everyone should check his loss to Ninja Rua which came from a very unusual cut to his leg after the two traded kicks right off the top. The question in this fight is if Amasinger is good enough to get past the exciting gatekeeper The Reidinator. In clipped format preventing me from breaking down the fight in long-winded fashion. In round one we see Amasinger land some hooks, take Reid down then fight off multiple triangle attempts. Round two we see an Amasinger slam, a really tight Reid triangle that Amasinger escapes and then rides out the round on top.
That tight sub attempt was enough for the two to go to the third overtime round. And again we see Amasinger control the fight on the feet, get the takedown and fall right into another triangle attempt. Amasinger gets the nod from the judges.
UK Welterweight Fight #4
David Faulkner (2-1) vs. James Bateman (2-1)
Faulkner also works out of the Wolfslair Academy. His only loss was to the aforementioned Dean Amasinger by DQ when Faulkner used a heel hook which were against the rules since that was a "Class-B" fight. Bisping also talks up Faulkners leg locks but questions his confidence.
Faulkner ducks a right and clinches up for a takedown, Bateman tries to hit a switch and gets it halfway. The two scramble back up and clinch against the cage. Faulkner again looks for a takedown but neither time has he gotten his hips close to low enough to threaten Bateman. Bateman tries the Thai plumb, Faulkner punches around it and Batemans jumping knee only lands to the chest, Bateman with two hard shots as the two seperate and Faulkner shoots back in. Another Bateman jumping knee is nowhere close. After another failed attempt Faulkner finally gets deep enough on Bateman and dumps him down. Faulkner is standing over top of Bateman holding his feet. Bateman trips up Faulkner, Faulkner falls back but is able to secure one foot and it looks like he locks in a reverse heel hook which Bateman taps to very very fast at 1:45 of round one.
Really good fights, two leg lock finishes, a brief reverse triangle, some nice KOs, good times. Winner, Pearson, and Lawson are the top three Brits and the only three I could see hanging around of the eight unless we see a surprise Amir-type uprising.
Next week we'll get the American elimination fights and a tease of some guys fighting weight issues.
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