Bwang Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Good luck in the finals Stepdads. May the best team win! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted June 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Good luck in the finals Stepdads. May the best team win! You don't really mean that. There's an hour to go. Let's get some venom spewing and spice this up! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HareRumpler Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 You don't really mean that. There's an hour to go. Let's get some venom spewing and spice this up! Bwang is just trying to reverse karma them! haha 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaolinVenom Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 AWC PLAY-OFF FINALS HARD KNOCKS ARENA - LONDON Xavier: Greetings, ladies and gentlemen! I know some of you are shocked to see Furious Styles and in the broadcast booth tonight, but there was no way we could pass up an opportunity like this! Besides, instead of being flown to Los Angeles like we normally are to broadcast our preview show for Inferno Combat Series, all we had to do was hop in our cars and drive to the Hard Knocks arena since we’re stationed right here in London! Styles: I have to admit, X, that it’s very cool to drive my own car to a kick ass venue and event like this, although I still struggle with driving on the correct side of the street around here! Lord knows I’ve nearly caused a few accidents while I had to adjust to driving on the opposite side of the street! Xavier: Don’t you have a car with the steering wheel on the right-hand side as opposed to the left? Styles: I do, thanks, to ICS and the other excellent organizations that have taken excellent care of us while we’ve been their broadcast partners. However, I’m still too American for my own good and I like our cars better, anyway, although the German homies have hooked me up with a seriously kick ass C63 AMG! Xavier: It’s definitely a beautiful car, Styles! I’m just worried you’ll get carried away and will end up on the British news after having crashed your car through a building because you wiped out while taking a sharp turn going way too fast! Styles: I’ll be all right, X! Don’t worry! Xavier: I’ll try not to. We may not agree on many things but you’re still my colleague and friend. Styles: Don’t go and get all sappy on me man! We’re cool homies and that’s that. Xavier: All right. Shifting focus to the reason why we’re here, the AWC Play-Off Finals are jumping off tonight and this will be an incredible night of action! These ten battles are amongst some of the very best in the business, period, and we’re fortunate to be right here with the best seat in the house! Styles: Now that, we agree on! We have the best view of this kick ass night and I can’t wait to see what unfolds! Xavier: Agreed! With that, let’s get down to business! BANTAMWEIGHT DIVISION: EVIL EMPIRE (3-4; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSURHO “PERMAFROST” VIIKATE (2-5; CURRENT STREAK: 3 LOSSES) Xavier: Starting off this night of fireworks are the bantamweights so you know that this battle will feature a lot of speed. Evil Empire, of, to no one’s surprise, The Evil Empire alliance, steps into this battle with average boxing, solid Muay Thai, good grappling and a blue belt. Styles: That’s pretty ballsy to name yourself after an entire empire! I dig that brashness and confidence! Xavier: From what we’ve seen so far from the St. Joseph product, Empire has some incendiary blasts for fists and if he gets too many clean looks, whoever the opponent is will be kissing canvas in a very painful way! One aspect of his abilities that can’t be overlooked are his painful kicks! Before finishing off Urho Viikate the first time they crossed paths at AWC S01 RD7 B, he kicked him upside his head like he stole food out of his refrigerator and rocked Viikate’s world! Once he saw Viikate had the legs of a baby deer trying to balance itself, he cracked him with an uppercut that had him staring at the arena lights then pounded on him until the referee decided that was all she wrote! Empre also proved he has some wallop in his punches when he dropped Chrollo Lucifer, quite the last name, by the way, a mere eighteen seconds into the fight! He’s definitely had his struggles with being tapped out and knocked out so there are concerns about his chin, but that’s the way it is in this business. The fact he defeated Viikate previously gives Empire the mental edge and that’s important in any fight, let alone this specific one because he knows Viikate will be looking for vengeance over that loss. The bottom line for Empire in this fight is to press the pace and catch Viikate early and often with vicious strikes, especially one or two crushing combinations that rattle Viikate’s cage and open him up for the aggressive finish that Empire seeks! Empire can even lock Viikate into a clinch if need be and, obviously, avoid being dragged to the canvas where Viikate prefers to make his home, so to speak. Empire wins this fight by knockout by keeping it in the vertical plane! Styles: To say Viikate has been struggling as of late is quite the understatement! The FinnFighters representative who hails from Espoo, Finland, is all about trying to make his opponents lament while tapping out to him furious-ly. You know I like that, X, and you saw what I did there with the furious-ly comment, right!? Xavier: Yes, I did. That was clever. Styles: Of course it was! I’m the one who said it! What else did you expect!? Anyway, I’m very impressed by the fact that Viikate defeated an opponent using a Brabo Choke! I didn’t even know what that was let alone the fact he used it to attain a victory! Anyone who thinks that Viikate isn’t looking at the footage of his previous fight against Empire and seething internally is a damned fool! You better believe he wants to exact revenge against Empire for that twenty-one second TKO loss and there’s no doubt in my mind that memory alone has fueled his training. He’s also fully aware that he absolutely can not get caught up in the standup against Empire because the longer this fights stays standing, the longer he puts himself and his questionable chin at risk, and that’s not what he wants to do here! Looking at his scope of work, it’s very obvious that he’s an aggressive grappler and I don’t think that will change whatsoever in this fight. However, since he’s slightly taller and heavier, he may have to opt to look for counterattacking strikes while in the standup to keep Empire from rushing in and overwhelming him with strikes. Speed, footwork and striking defense will need to be Viikate’s calling card in this fight and I expect him to do nothing else but utilize those attributes to get Empire to the mat as soon as he possibly can! The level of aggression he showed against Tkach at AWC S01 RD4 A is exactly the speed and pace he’ll want to begin with while he’s fresh so he can take full advantage of the position battle and wear down Empire in the process. Although Viikate has struggled over his last three fights, two against Shu Fang Tzeng specifically, I still think he uses his solid grappling and brown belt skills to score the takedown, control the action and lock in the submission for the tapout he wants to score!PREDICTIONS: Styles – Viikate by Submission; Xavier – Empire by KO LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION: KAKE RENDELIN (5-2; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSFINN VERNON (1-7; CURRENT STREAK: 7 LOSSES) Styles: The FinnFighters are back at it in the cage with the man from Tempere who, in a nutshell, likes to drop bombs on opponents’ jaws until they either crumble under the pressure or just flat out get dropped like a sack of rocks! He brings very good boxing and solid grappling to this fight while he treats kicks like it’s an ex-wife he wants nothing to do with and he abhors going to the ground. Maybe he thinks the mat is covered with nasty sweat and Covid juice, but whatever works for him! Standup is the name of the game with Rendelin and he plays that game very well! With the exception of his most previous fight against Gerhard Smakatron where he knocked him out halfway through the third round, if the fight goes to the third round then Rendelin struggles to finish it. Despite Vernon’s struggles, you better believe he and his management team are aware of that fact so Rendelin does have a certain amount of pressure on him to finish this fight early, especially against an opponent who, let’s be honest, is a considerable underdog in this battle! Rendelin knows he has to absolutely avoid going to the ground like the plague so I absolutely expect him to let fists fly fast and furious-ly – see, I did it again – to end this fight in the first round! He can’t completely throw caution to the wind of course because, after all, Vernon is a warrior, and anything can happen in that cage! Many people watching this fight expect it to mirror the battle between Rendelin and Zane Alexander at AWS S01 RD1 A, and I have to concur with that perspective! Randelin wins this battle by knockout! Xavier: The shorter warrior from right here in London brings his very good Muay Thai and purple belt skills into the cage and you better believe The Evil Empire have done all they can to get this man as mentally prepared for this battle as possible! We always give credit where it’s due, Styles, and I give this man credit for continuing to battle like a true warrior despite the losses, damage and pain! That’s a sign of a hell of a lot of heart and to me, that’s just as important as having certain skills in the cage. Even if Vernon doesn’t win another battle, the fact he continually strives to better himself despite various difficulties resonates strongly in this industry and he could end up being an excellent trainer for a future Hall of Fame fighter. In the meanwhile, the short-term goal is to overcome the stacked odds against him by shocking Rendelin and pretty much everyone watching this fight by taking it to the hard-hitting fighter and not only withstanding his knockout power but managing to drag him to the mat and control the action, space and pace of the fight until he locks in the submission he needs to turn things around! The downward spiral that Vernon is enduring would absolutely break a lesser man’s spirits but Vernon knows this is a chance for redemption. A great showing tonight will silence some critics while a victory would obviously silence everyone. He managed to stretch out his fight against Yadeep Singh at AWC S01 RD7 A, so counterattacking Randelin is the key to victory here. Vernon secures the major upset by forcing Randelin to tap out!PREDICTIONS: Xavier – Vernon by Submission; Styles – Randelin by KO LIGHTWEIGHT DIVISION: DIGI BOX (4-3; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSGARTH “BABY YODA” WADER (2-5; CURRENT STREAK: NONE) Xavier: Here we have to warriors who are familiar with one another due to a previous skirmish at AWC S01 RD6 B. The red hoodie-wearing brawler from Oulu, Finland, represents the FinnFighters as he steps into the cage tonight! A very good boxer with a brown belt, he has the potential to flatten an opponent with a brutal punch and while the opponent is dazed, he can lock and twist them into a pretzel while looking to secure the tapout! Box has enough of a height advantage here to frustrate Wader with repetitive jabs, crosses, and one-two combinations that will keep Wader from easily getting inside of Box’s defenses to look to cause damage. Box will definitely look to stay on the outside and fire away with quick, accurate strikes to move ahead on the judges’ scorecards while keeping his range sharp so he can land the power shots he wants that will obviously damage Wader and keep him right where Box wants him to be. When Box is able to establish himself early and often, he’s very dangerous to contend with and the aggression and power he brings makes him a tough matchup for any fighter at any time! Mix in the fact that he’s proven to have a solid chin that can absorb clean strikes and not slow him down whatsoever and he can make things very uncomfortable quick, fast, and in a hurry. He’s also a methodical fighter so any opponent who expects him to start the fight off throwing fists like a man possessed will be disappointed. He knows how to dissect an opponent while picking his spots and Wader will have a tough time contending with that patience. Box wins this fight by using his height and hand speed to set Wader up for the knockout and land it before Wader knows what hit him! Styles: “Baby Yoda” huh? Well, besides The Mandalorian being a kick ass program, Wader has had his moments in the cage and The Evil Empire is hoping the man from Tatooine, Azerbaijan, can bring yet another winning moment into that cage tonight! As you touched upon, X, Box and Wader have crossed paths before and that didn’t bode too well for Box. The fact that Wader defeated Box by way of majority decision is great news for Wader but it’s not enough for him. He doesn’t want the judges sitting cage side to determine the outcome of battles that he’s in. He wants to finish every opponent who steps in his way, and though that’s usually the mantra by which all warriors live by, there are some who live that mantra with more dedication than others. No one questions this man’s dedication because he continually gets back to training rigorously and leaps at every opportunity to fight! That’s a tribute to his warrior spirit and fighting passion, so props to him for that. His solid Muay Thai and grappling enables him to lock opponents into a clinch and keep them there while landing damaging strikes and frustrating the hell out of the opponent, especially those who favor the ground game more than the standup. You better believe that in the back of Wader’s mind is the fact that he has yet to win by finishing off an opponent. You and I both know, X, that his training team has been working very hard on improving his recognition of when an opponent is in trouble and is ripe for being finished off if Wader steps up his level of aggression and tries his hardest to finish the fight right then and there! There are concerns about his chin but he’s at a point where he may have to say to hell with it and just go for broke, even if that means he gets cracked by some powerful shots on the way inside of Box’s defenses! Wader wins this battle by clinch and knockout!PREDICTIONS: Styles – Wader by KO; Xavier – Box by Ko HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION: “BIG” DICK GLOVER (3-4-1; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSMARKKU INNANEN (4-3; CURRENT STREAK: 3 LOSSES) Styles: Oh, X, this is just too damn easy! Xavier: Just remember that this is a family show so you can’t go overboard with it! Styles: I know it’s a family show but give me a break! The dude is an aspiring porn star, he’s from Hollywood, or Hollyweird, depending on who you ask, and his name is Dick! I mean, come on! What do you want from me!? Xavier: Professionalism! Styles: I’m always professional, X! You know that. Xavier: I don’t know, Styles. Sometimes you push it just a bit much! Styles: That’s what she said! That’s what she said to Dick! Xavier: Wow! Like an idiot I walked right into that one! Styles: Yeah you did! I could say something after that comment, too, but I’ll leave that alone. I already got you. Xavier: I appreciate your generosity. Styles: No doubt! So, Glover, who has some kind of weird static going on around him with flashing lights and a PLAY sign that floats behind his head, steps into this fight with solid boxing, miniscule Muay Thai, solid grappling and a white belt. The Evil Empire, nonetheless, shows their support of this aspiring porn star and that has been of benefit to him! Looking at his resume you’ll see he literally has only had one fight go past the first round. What does that tell you? Aggression, anger and the desire to hurt the opponent is the first, second and third edict he lives by! That straightforward style is very popular with MMA fans because they know what they’re going to get with him and that’s very typically someone getting knocked the eff out! Granted, he’s had his jaw cracked four times, twice by Bubba Wallace, along with Francisco Baroza and the man who he faces in the cage tonight, Markku Innanen! Do you think Glover has in the back of his mind that the last time he squared off against Innanen, that fight ended in the first round because Innanen made him bleed like a Quentin Tarantino movie until the referee and cage side doctor decided enough was enough? You bet your ass he does! Does Glover want to beat Innanen senseless and potentially make him bleed so badly that he’ll need a blood transfusion in the medical wing of this arena? Abso-frickin-lutely! The scary part of that previous ordeal though, X, is that Glover looked like he enjoyed bleeding that much! I think this dude has a masochistic side to him and that would actually make sense for this industry as well as the one he’s trying to get into, but I’ll let him elaborate on that. I’m not tryin’ to get up in dude’s business like that! Glover gains vengeance over Innanen by knocking him out cold! Xavier: I immediately see that Innanen has an issue with Bubba Wallace, and it’s interesting that both he and Glover have tasted the power that Wallace brings with him into battle and both have lost by brutal punishment. Wallace is an undefeated wrecking machine, but we’ll get to that later! In this battle, Innanen brings decent boxing, solid Muay Thai and grappling, and a white belt. What that boils down to is this fight will be a standup, toe-to-toe war of behemoths who will test one another’s ability to take the other man’s punches better than the other. Innanen has the mental edge advantage in this fight since the first time they crossed paths at AWC S01 RD1 A. As of late and evidenced by his 3-fight losing streak, the momentum and confidence he built from his fast start with winning four fights in a row has been abruptly halted. Similar to his opponent this evening, Innanen has only had one fight last until the third round so this encounter will be much like the first one they had in terms of ferocity, intent and damage! During his 4-fight win streak, Innanen established himself as a seriously heavy hitter who could turn the lights out on any opponent at any given point in time. It seems the last three opponents have either figured out his angles of approach to a fight or they simply landed the first crushing blow before he could. Either way, it’s imperative that Innanen find that mean streak and that intensity that allowed him to steamroll his first four opponents! If he does that, he puts himself in excellent position to once again defeat Glover by dropping him where he stands. Innanen is going to have to counterattack Glover’s aggression, and it would be smart for Innanen to utilize leg and body kicks to wear the big man down before going for the knockout. Innanen wins this by knockout!PREDICTIONS: Xavier – Glover by KO; Styles – Innanen by KO WELTERWEIGHT DIVISION: WILLY DO (4-4; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSJESSE RISTINEN (4-3; CURRENT STREAK: NONE) Xavier: The Evil Empire is represented by the man hailing from Bangkok, Thailand and his even fighting record. Styles: You know that’s one of the best names of a city on the world map, right, X? Xavier: Don’t start! Do has decent boxing, solid Muay Thai, decent grappling and a blue belt so he’s striving towards being a balanced fighter while relying on Muay Thai to be his main weapon of choice in the standup, if you will. He began his career well with a 3-fight win streak but then turned right around and went on a skid by losing 3-fights in a row. Needless to say, Do is a momentum fighter and judging by the pattern he’s established for himself in the cage, he’s going to have to overcome his most recent loss to Yaurod Atidibil and snatch that momentum back into his grasp! If he fails to do so, this could be a rather nasty fight for him, and I know he doesn’t want to get involved in a squabble of that magnitude! When Do is locked in, he’s able to focus on the advantages he has over an opponent and really exploit them well. If he’s unable to establish the pace of the fight immediately then that’s where he runs into trouble. Since he knows how it feels for Ristinen to lock him into a Kimura, you can bet your bottom dollar that Do will avoid that at all costs, even if that means taking bigger risks by trying to lock Ristinen into a clinch early and sustain that clinch for as long as possible while risking being taken to the mat with a leg trip or hip toss. There are times in combat where you have to take calculated risks and for Do, he may very well have to accept the fact that he’ll have to take calculated risks in this fight. He’ll be very comfortable as long as this fight stays standing and he keeps his head moving so Ristinen doesn’t catch him with clean shots to the jaw, and Do can exploit his Muay Thai advantage by chopping away at Ristinen’s legs and body to slow him down and take away some of his energy and strength so he can’t score takedowns nearly as easily. Do gets a measure of vengeance by knocking out Ristinen tonight! Styles: The 27-year-old grappling specialist from Oulu, Finland, is chomping at the bit to get this fight to the ground as fast as possible so he can imitate a puppet master who pulls various strings to make the wooden figurine with his very good grappling and brown belt. In the standup there’s much to be desired, but he has enough ability to land strikes in the counterattack, so Do will have to exercise some caution there because Ristinen could catch him unexpectedly and then boom, the entire scope of this fight changes! Ristinen’s most recent loss to Diego Diaz snapped a 3-fight winning streak he had established plus it goes to show you that anyone can beat anyone else on any given night. Ristinen had bested Diaz in their previous battle at AWC S01 RD7 A in the first round via Kimura, so Diaz returned the favor, so to speak, by locking Ristinen into a Triangle Armbar in a mere two seconds longer than it took Ristinen to lock in that Kimura. The battle plan for Ristinen is quite simple, and that’s to endure the opening storm that Do is sure to unleash as the bell rings then catch him off balance with a quick takedown then float right into controlling position to keep him where you want him before going for the submission finish! There’s a mental edge with Ristinen for the mere fact he defeated Do the first time they locked horns at AWC SO1 RD6 A. No matter what happens one the bell rings, Ristinen knows for certain he can defeated Do and that goes a long way. Ristinen’s training team has concerns about his ability to absorb power shots and to keep going despite the pain and damage done by them. They want him to ignore the pain as best as possible and only focus on getting Do the ground where he can be exploited. Do’s kicks are especially something Ristinen will have to be on the lookout for because he does not want to eat a thrust kick or round kick to the cranium that causes him to lose his balance or his consciousness! Ristinen secures the victory by tapout!PREDICTIONS: Styles – Ristinen by Submission; Xavier – Do by KO LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION: HAMZA DEMIROVIC (7-1; CURRENT STREAK: 3 WINS)VERSUSGERHARD “OR GO HOME” SMAKATRON (4-5; CURRENT STREAK: 2 LOSSES) Styles: The Stepdads are on the scene with one very good representative of their alliance as Demirovic from Sarajevo, Bosnia & Herzegovina, steps into the cage. If not for Zane Alexander, Demirovic would be undefeated and that’s impressive because people have definitely done their best to take him out quickly! The first time these two crossed paths, Demirovic sent a message to Smakatron by defeating him in the first round by TKO at AWC S01 RD7 A! That victory, plus the other six overall, have Demirovic feeling very confident, cool, and collected. His meal ticket to make it to this point has obviously been to bring major heat with his bone-crunching knockout power, especially when he’s been able to lock an opponent into a clinch. Once he locks that in, the opponent is going to be pummeled with various types of strikes from various angles while not being able to escape Demirovic’s clutches until the round ends or the opponent’s ability to take those thunderous strikes collapses! Typically, Demirovic ends a fight in the first round though four of his fights have gone past the first round. I have no doubt that Smakatron’s management team will have him watch the footage from the fight that Demirovic and Zane Alexander had fairly recently to possibly pick up some pointers from Alexander in an effort to ensure his best chance of withstanding the pace and speed Smakatron will surely try to impose! Demirovic manages to avoid the counterattacks that Smakatron is sure to attempt whenever possible and Demirovic will emerge victorious by tapout! Xavier: YABAI makes their debut tonight in the form of Smakatron. The Albanian from Gjirokaster has decent boxing, solid Muay Thai and respectable grappling. Aggression and enough knockout power to be dangerous are what Smakatron can lean on in this fight. As much knockout power he carries, he also has a suspect chin, and since he’s felt the sting of Demirovic’s fists previously, Smakatron knows full well he’s going to need his striking defense to be sharp and his senses alert to ensure his footwork is proper and effective while keeping his head moving and chin tucked to diminish the possibility of him having his chin tested too often by Demirovic. When Smakatron is able to establish himself early in a fight then great results for him are achieved because he’s able to abruptly halt any opponent with one clean strike, let alone a series of them! Even more good news for Smakatron is if and when he finds himself locked into a clinch battle with Demirovic, he knows he can handle it because he has a substantial advantage in terms of Muay Thai abilities. In fact, it may prove to be detrimental to Demirovic to get into a clinch battle because the tables may be turned on him and he’ll be the one absorbing massive power shots while being controlled against the cage! Smakatron knows he can soften up Demirovic’s legs with well-timed kicks that can cause Demirovic to second guess his approach to getting inside of Smakatron’s defenses to land the strikes he wants to land, especially since his boxing ability looks to be a bit better. If Smakatron can land a vicious head kick mixed in with body strikes, I think he sets himself up very nicely to score the knockout tonight!PREDICTIONS: Xavier – Smakatron by KO; Styles – Demirovic by Submission HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION: FRANCISCO BAROZA (3-5; CURRENT STREAK: 2 WINS)VERSUSBUBBA WALLACE (7-0; CURRENT STREAK: 7 WINS) Xavier: Baroza, the man who enters the cage with blood on his face, which I still don’t know how he convinced the administrators to let him do that, and the large yellow mouthpiece showing represents YABAI in this fight. He knows full well this is one hell of an opportunity to ruin the unblemished record that Wallace brings into the cage tonight, and the people of Vilcabamba,, Ecuador, are firmly behind Baroza just as much as his YABAI alliance mates are! Let’s be honest here, ladies and gentlemen. Everyone that faces Wallace wants to be the first man to put a mark on his record and snap his winning streak, and Baroza will be extra motivated to accomplish just that. His solid boxing, respectable Muay Thai and good grappling all point in the direction of this fight being a toe-to-toe standup war, and that’s exactly what the fans want to see! Baroza is going to have to dig very deep and fight to the very best of his abilities, especially on defense, because he knows full well what the powerhouse named Wallace is all about. He had his first taste of Wallace’s power when Wallace shared it with him at AWC S01 RD3 B by knocking him out late in the first round of that encounter! The timing of this fight is great for Baroza because he has momentum from winning his last two fights, confidence from winning both of them by KO and TKO respectively, and he also got rid of the 5-fight losing streak monkey on his back in the process. Baroza could very well just go balls to the wall and give an all-out effort to try and knock Wallace out in the first round because all but two of Baroza’s fights have ended in the first round and I don’t expect that pattern to change anytime soon. Baroza puts an end to Wallace’s impressive winning streak tonight by knocking out the powerhouse! Styles: The Stepdads definitely have major bragging rights here as the madman from Memphis steps into the cage to continue his path of destruction! Not only has he won 7-fights in a row, but he’s won all of them in the first round. That, alone, is very impressive, let alone he hasn’t absorbed major damage while doing so, a nod to his training regimen and desire to end an opponent quickly. Wallace has bled but that only seemed to cause him to increase the pressure he put on the opponent who cut him and that’s a dangerous attribute! This man hasn’t even been rocked yet and I don’t care who says what. That’s an intimidating fact and is something every opponent will have in the back of his head because someone may catch Wallace clean and, yes, he’ll bleed, but he may not get fazed overall and that will cause the opponent to become trepid and uncertain, and just a slight amount of uncertainty can mess with a fighter’s psyche. Wallace’s solid boxing and grappling skills allow him to either stay on the outside and throw rocket blasts for punches at his opponent or, if the opponent wants to get in tight quarters, lock the opponent into a clinch and unload overwhelming devastation up close and personal! It seems at this point that if anyone can get to the second round against Wallace then they’ll win some type of commendation because as of now, it just doesn’t seem that’ll be the case anytime soon. No disrespect to Baroza by any means, but I just don’t see the results of fighting against Wallace changing anytime soon. Wallace continues his wanton path of destruction by knocking out Baroza cold once again!PREDICTIONS: Styles – Wallace by KO; Xavier – Baroza by KO BANTAMWEIGHT DIVISION: “THE DRUNK MONK” SHU FANG TZENG (7-1; CURRENT STREAK: 5 WINS)VERSUS“MARAUDING” MARUS HALAND (5-2; CURRENT STREAK: 4 WINS) Styles: All right, X, I have a question for you. Have you ever seen Tzeng fight? Xavier: No, I haven’t. Styles: Dude! You’ve got to see him fight! He implores the Drunken Monkey Kung Fu style and it’s wild! He looks like a drunken fool stumbling down a back alley after an all night bender but he’ll suddenly flow into a series of strikes out of nowhere and then, boom, he’ll stop, lean against the cage, pretend like he’s drinking something, then stagger around the cage some more! Xavier: I’ll have to see this because that makes no sense to me! Styles: Me either but it works! Dude only has one loss on his record and the fans eat it up when he fights, so for him, it’s all good. Of course, we’ll see if it’s all good against Haland in this matchup! Hailing from Lhasa, Tibet, China, Tzeng is a very skilled grappler with respectable grappling that’s supported by a brown belt, so he obviously wants this fight to be on the horizontal plane as quickly and as long as possible to give him the best chance of securing a win. One aspect that works inn his favor is that he’s riding a 5-fight win streak, so momentum, confidence and belief are all very high at the right time. Add in the fact that he defeated Haland by Triangle Choke at AWC S01 RD4 A late in the second round and there’s the knowledge that he knows he can defeat him! Tzeng favors basically three submissions: Guillotine, Triangle Choke and an Armbar. If Haland can defend against those particular submission maneuvers then Tzeng may have to adjust a bit, but I don’t think that’ll prove to be difficult as he’s obviously well-versed in the BJJ realm and should be able to transition smoothly into a different position to attempt to dominate the action on the ground while making Haland defend like his life depended on it until Tzeng is able to lock in an unsuspecting submission that Haland can’t fight off. I have no doubt that both of these men will closely watch the footage of Tzeng’s battle against Chrollo Lucifer to see what was shown and how Lucifer was able to secure the unanimous decision over Tzeng at AWC S01 RD2 A. If Tzeng can prevent that set of circumstances from happening, then his Drunken Monkey style will prevail once again he makes Haland tapout! Xavier: The Oslo, Norway, product steps into this battle representing The Stepdads, and he’s shown plenty of ability with his respectable boxing and solid grappling. He also has a blue belt but tonight, unfortunately, that doesn’t carry much weight against a ground specialist like Tzeng. Of course, as you touched upon, Styles, Haland is very familiar with Tzeng’s capabilities in the cage and for Haland, that’s an advantage as I see it because Tzeng won’t catch him off guard with his unorthodox style! Additionally, Haland has had enough time to study any new developments that Tzeng has developed plus Haland has established himself as a tough opponent in the meanwhile. Like Tzeng, Haland brings a nice winning streak into this fight so the momentum that both of these men carry will make this an even tougher fight for the both of them because neither of them wants to have their hard-earned winning streaks halted, let alone lose the battle! Haland has established himself as a knockout artist, undoubtedly, and there’s no doubt he’s very anxious to gain vengeance against Tzeng by knocking him out and evening up the record between them. Haland has only had one fight make it to the third round so he’s just as aggressive as Tzeng, if not more so, so this will prove to be an exciting fight that the fans will eat up and ask for more! Haland can stay on the outside and launch quick, accurate strikes to help keep Tzeng at bay while scoring vital points on the scorecards, and he could even lock Tzeng into a clinch if he sees and feels that Tzeng is fading or doesn’t have the strength to prevent Haland from locking in a clinch. If he does so, naturally he’s going to have to keep his balance and not let Tzeng trip him to the ground from the clinch. I think Haland figures out the unusual style of Tzeng and wraps up the victory with a knockout!PREDICTIONS: Xavier – Haland by KO; Styles – Tzeng by Submission LIGHTWEIGHT DIVISION: CHUBBY FUNSTER (5-2; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSMAXIMUS “SNAKEBITE” FURIOTO (7-2; CURRENT STREAK: 5 WINS) Xavier: San Jose, Costa Rica, is on the map and The Stepdads are in the spotlight again for this battle. Passable boxing and Muay Thai are overshadowed by good grappling and a brown belt, so Funster obviously wants to get this fight to the mat as soon as possible and keep it down there where he can unleash his skills while putting Furioto in different dangerous situations! Funster is a bit taller than Furioto but I don’t think that will make much difference since both of them favor the horizontal plane anyway. However, I think Funster is going to have to try and score some points in the standup because he may not be quite up to the same speed Furioto is in the grappling game, and if that’s the case then he’ll definitely want to gain some distance on the scorecards in case he’s not able to control the positioning of this fight or has difficulty securing any multitude of submission attempts and holds we’ll be sure to see between these two fighters! Funster also has an idea of what Furioto is capable of because he lost to him by unanimous decision recently at AWC S01 RD7 B, so Funster is definitely looking to even the score between him and Furioto while obviously pushing to improve his record and positioning in the tournament. Funster has let it be known that he has certain…tastes when it comes to enjoying himself and partying, and as I always say, to each their own. However, his antics may cause Furioto to be a little uncomfortable and that could very well cause Furioto to leave an opening in his defenses that Funster can take advantage of as they battle for positioning on the ground. I think Funster figures out a way to overcome Furioto’s skills and lock in the submission for the tapout! Styles: The wild driver from Tokyo, Japan, steps into this battle representing YABAI. The aggressive grappler has established himself as a ground-fighting specialist, and as such, this fight is right up his alley because he knows Funster is going to make this a grappling battle which is very welcome and comfortable for Furioto. Plus, on side note, Furioto’s wearing his unique headband which seems to have a life of its own, as well as his fighting gloves that seem to move on his hands even when he’s not moving them. I don’t know how to describe it, X, but it’s just very unique! Similar to Funster, Furioto enjoys causing opponent’s to be very uncomfortable while they feel various tendons and ligaments stretched to the brink of their range, and Furioto knows he has to make sure Funster doesn’t catch him with an errant elbows or a haymaker out of nowhere because he doesn’t want to have his chin tested at all, especially if he can avoid absorbing damage in the standup completely. After his loss to Scooter Bob in a QFC fight, questions were raised about his chin’s ability to stand up to hard-hitting opponents, but the best way to avoid that, aside from great striking defense of course, is to drag the fight to the ground where that power base is non-existent unless Funster manages to work his way into full mount and drop bombs with ground and pound, but I just don’t see that happening. I also have the feeling that Furioto isn’t happy that he defeated Funster by unanimous decision because he wants to make him tapout to potentially embarrass him, so expect Furioto to be very aggressive from start to finish as he works diligently to lock in a submission that causes Funster to yell in pain before being forced to submit!PREDICTIONS: Styles – Furioto by Submission; Xavier – Funster by Submission WELTERWEIGHT DIVISION: YAUROD ATIDIBIL (7-1; CURRENT STREAK: NONE)VERSUSDIEGO DIAZ (5-3; CURRENT STREAK: NONE) Styles: And to the final battle of the evening, we have Atidibil, the member of The Stepdads who has some sort of Twilight Zone spinning cone thing happening behind him whenever you look at him, and for a very good fighter, I think someone should tell dude there are many options to take care of that thinning hair of his. I assume he has some money for being such a good fighter so he should hook that up. Just sayin’. He steps into this fight with respectable boxing and solid grappling and has displayed just a touch of Muay Thai with a blue belt, but his approach is to keep the fight vertical where he can stand and trade strikes with the best of them because it seems his chin is made out of adamantium or something! Diego Diaz snapped a 6-fight win streak but Atidibil bounced right back with a late second round TKO of Willy Do at AWC Play-Off Semi-Final, so he’s back on track and right where he needs to be for this fight. The only second round win he’s had so far was that last fight against Willy Do. Every other fight has ended in either the first or third rounds so he either feels that he can put an opponent into trouble early and then he rushes them with the intent of finishing, or if he feels he needs to play the long game and look to wear down the opponent first before going for the third round finish then he’ll play it that way. That’s intelligence on display, in my opinion, and that’s what separates him from other fighters who could get hit with a sledgehammer and say that it tickled. Obviously, he knows what Diaz is all about and Diaz has the bragging rights to say he’s the only blemish on Atidibil’s record, but we all know that Atidibil wants to rectify that blemish a bit and will be very locked in on trying to knock Diaz out. I think this time around he clocks Diaz before he has a chance to drag this fight to the ground and Atidibil feels a bit better about the one loss after that! Xavier: DD, as his YABAI alliance mates call him, has a psychological edge in this fight because, as you touched upon, Styles, he’s the only man who has bested Atidibil at this point in his career. The ground-based specialist is quite dangerous and capable with his good grappling and brown belt, and once he has the opportunity to play twister with an opponent, the majority of the time he’s going to make them wish they were anywhere but in his grasp as he contorts their bodies in painful ways until they either escape or tapout! He hates the standup as if it represented a large plate of vegetables he was forced to eat as a child so he’s going to have to decide if he’s going to try and score some quick points with fast, accurate strikes before going for any takedowns, or if he’s just going to throw caution to the wind and launch in like a college freshman into a pool full of hot college seniors who are partying nude. Styles: Did you of all people really just say that!? Xavier: Like you, I have my moments! Styles: Well, all right, X! Xavier: I had a feeling you’d appreciate that! Continuing, he has to keep his chin clear of Atidibil’s fists or this fight will be over before it truly gets started! Head movement, footwork and speed will be his allies and he has to finish this fight because the cage side judges may not favor his ground control style of combat but a finish obviously removes that x factor and he absolutely wants to make another mark on Atidibil’s record. Diaz is aggressive and that promises to make this fight a quick one because there’ll be no bantering or wasted motion. Both of these men like to get right down to it, and Diaz has only had one fight make it to the third round and one other make it to the second, so I don’t think the fans will have to wait long for a winner to be decided in this one! Diaz continues his bragging rights by locking Atidibil into a submission that he’s forced to tapout to yet again!PREDICTIONS: Xavier – Diaz by Submission; Styles – Atidibil by KO Xavier: We thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for the opportunity to present this special broadcast to you live in London! It has been a pleasure and we hope that all of you blokes, blue bloods and whomever else have enjoyed the content we’ve provided. Styles: A big shout out to KAISER Nutrition – Q160! They hooked us up with some products and I have to say they taste pretty frickin sweet! Thank you, everyone, for joining us tonight, we truly appreciate it, and we hope all of you truly enjoy the fights! 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imcool Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Nice preview David! Congrats to YABAI, great come from behind tournament win!!! Thanks to Alfred for organizing, was a fun one! 5 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJMitchell Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Congrats boys. Just too good 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted June 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 IT'S ALL OVER FOLKS! YABAI HAVE DONE IT!! Even though YABAI are absolutely chock-full of talented managers, you'd have to consider this an upset due to the effortless way that The Stepdads waltzed into this final? Three fights to two, YABAI are the Alliance World Champions of 2020 and The Stepdads will have to make do with second place. Fighting for third, things were a lot closer than I thought but FinnFighters take the bronze 3-2 with Evil Empire finishing in fourth. I will do a comprehensive write up for the finals and post event breakdown of each alliance and it's fighters. Thank you for taking part everyone and thank you to everyone who persevered with the many months of carrying a 25 year old creation. I hope that at least a couple of fighters might have a little crack at an ID org before being cast aside but it definitely won't be my own. The most useless Granite Chin I've ever seen. Thanks again everyone and hope to see you in the KT tournament coming very soon! 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poraan Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Honestly i think 25 year creation is fine, because of more differend builds. 18 year olds have good future, but i believe tournament would be more boring. Unless fighters would get a lot training time. Learning speed would be huge factor and at later part of tournament we would see better mma. Randelin 6(5)-2 did fine, but he doesent have hiddens, so not worth to try against younger guys. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squiiid28 Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Unbelievable Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaolinVenom Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Nice preview David! Congrats to YABAI, great come from behind tournament win!!! Thanks to Alfred for organizing, was a fun one! Thank you very much, imcool! I truly appreciate it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjsquirrel Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Said YABAI would take it before it started Congrats 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwang Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Good luck in the finals Stepdads. May the best team win! You don't really mean that. There's an hour to go. Let's get some venom spewing and spice this up! Too big an event to get cocky beforehand. I got my wish though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bwang Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Amazing preview as ever by David. Thanks very much for getting the tournament done Alfred and keeping the interest in it high to the end. Looking forward to that review. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShaolinVenom Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Amazing preview as ever by David. Thanks very much for getting the tournament done Alfred and keeping the interest in it high to the end. Looking forward to that review. Thank you very much, Bwang, I greatly appreciate it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
actionjackson Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Really well run tourney Alfred and a ton of fun! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marky Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 This was good shit guys. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzypants Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Congrats YABAI and thanks Alfred for a great tournament! Really enjoyed it. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shards Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Surprising finish and here I was trying to record the ending for some sweet Stepdad highlights, I'll post it up here for you all anyway. https://youtu.be/MnM7lI-0Hcg?t=32 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramirez Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 really fun tourney to be a part of, thanks very much for all the work you put in to make it happen Alfred! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lotos Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Thanks Alfred. That was dope and really well run!! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HareRumpler Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Surprising finish and here I was trying to record the ending for some sweet Stepdad highlights, I'll post it up here for you all anyway. https://youtu.be/MnM7lI-0Hcg?t=32 That was fantastic...laughed really hard at some of those! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monsieur.Camara Posted June 18, 2020 Report Share Posted June 18, 2020 Congrats to YABAI. Huge thanks to Alfred, we finished another massive one broooooo Never in doubt. You KT guys get to 40 now and stop fookin around, Alfred will deliver. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted June 21, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2020 http://mmatycoon.com/images/company/logo/1578179774awc%20logo.gif Alliance World Championship – Play-Off Finals (Wednesday 17th June 2020, Hard Knocks Arena, London) It was a capacity crowd of three-thousand that gathered to witness the culmination of many months of inter-alliance wars. Seven alliances in total had come together to prove just who are the most skilled and talented collective of managers in the tycoonsphere. Finally, we whittled it down to just two. Team YABAI and The Stepdads. Also on the card was the battle for third place between perhaps the most veteran alliance in the game the FinnFighters and long shot outsiders The Evil Empire. No one really considered Evil Empire to have much of a chance in this showdown especially considering that they had just about scrapped through the group stage and qualified at the very last second. A 5-0 drubbing in the semi-finals at the hands of The Stepdads meant that there really was no pressure or expectation for them going into this third place match up whilst their opponents FinnFighters were still smarting from their semi-final loss to YABAI and would most definitely be feeling the weight of expectations to come away with at least something as one of the oldest and most experienced teams in the competition. The 135lbers kicked things off with Evil Empire’s Evil Empire taking on FinnFighters Urho “Permafrost” Viikate. Empire had already scored a twenty-one second first round TKO against Viikate in round seven of the group stage and was expected to hand his alliance the only solid victory that could be forseen. Empire didn’t disappoint and though it took marginally longer this time around at twenty-seven seconds, Empire once again got the win and took first blood for his underdog alliance. EVIL EMPIRE 1 FINNFIGHTERS 0 At 155lbs things were much less assured as alliance team captains faced each other for the second time. Garth “Baby Yoda” Wader for Evil Empire versus Digi Box for FinnFighters. Wader had managed to squeak a very close majority decision over Box in round six of the group stage but overall had been disappointing for his alliance throughout the course of the tournament. Box had managed to finish above Wader in the group in third place whilst Wader had limped in at fifth. With both fighters having been defeated in their semi-final match ups there would have been a real eagerness to finish on a high note and on this occasion it was Wader who once again got the win via a judges decision and put his alliance into a very advantageous and unexpected lead two fights in. EVIL EMPIRE 2 FINNFIGHTERS 0 Next up at 170lbs was Willy Do of Evil Empire versus Jesse Ristinen of FinnFighters with Evil Empire needing only one win to take home the bronze. Ristinen had already scored a first round submission victory over Do in round six of the tournament and made sure not to succumb to the pressure this time round. Getting the takedown within the first minute, Ristinen was able to snatch one back for his alliance and keep them in the game. Ristinen with a Kimura submission at around two minutes of the first round. EVIL EMPIRE 2 v FINNFIGHTERS 1 Unfortunately for Evil Empire, their next up to bat was Finn Vernon who had so far yet to pick up a single win. He would be facing Kake Randelin who had already put Vernon away inside of three minutes during their first encounter back in round five of the group stage. Randelin had also manage to finish in third place of the group whilst Vernon had finished dead last. Adding further worry to Evil Empires medal hopes was the fact that Randelin had looked extremely motivated in his semi-final match up and was coming in off a win over YABAI team captain Gerhard Smakatron The fight started and almost instantly Vernon was cut open and you could hear the collective groan coming from the Evil Empire side. Randelin bagan to land heavy shots forcing Vernon to clinch but close quarters was no safer for him as Randelin clobbered him with some big shots to the head. In under two minutes, Randelin had gotten the TKO finish and had pulled his alliance right back into the fight at two apiece. EVIL EMPIRE 2 FINNFIGHTERS 2 Going into the heavyweight bout, no would would have predicted that Evil Empire would be in with a shot at bronze but here we were and it would come down to “Big” Dick Glover of Evil Empire and Markku Innanen of FinnFighters. Glover had been up and down during the group stage and finished one space below Innanen in fourth. Most importantly however was the fact that Innanen had managed to batter Glover in the first round of group fights making him look like a baby in the clinch. Unfortunately for Glover, things played out similarly to the first time only this time worse and Glover was put away just before the end of the first round by TKO. EVIL EMPIRE 2 FINNFIGHTERS 3 The stoic FinnFighters camp gave a resolute nod to Innanen who had just saved them from an embarrassing defeat and a wry smile came over his face as his hand was raised in the centre of the cage. FinnFighters had managed to come back from 2-0 behind to claim the third place of the Alliance World Championship. Whether they would be pleased with their overall performance after reflection, only they would could say. From the outside it does seem as though they finished where most would have predicted but I’m sure there’s an argument that grizzled veterans such as they could have done a little bit better overall. For Evil Empire it was a much more competitive performance than expected but still obvious overall that they would need to improve a great deal if they are to reach the level of the top alliances in the game. It was now time for the finals of this Alliance World Championship and the buzz in the air was tangible. Two massively talented camps going head to head in what was guaranteed to be fireworks. The Stepdads had seemingly waltzed into this final without barely breaking a sweat. Sure, they had suffered losses here and there during the group stage but that was a rare occurrence indeed. YABAI on the other hand had suffered almost twice as many defeats and had struggled to keep up with their top two rivals over the course of the first few rounds. A couple of their fighters too had performed well below expectations making things all the more difficult for them. Still, they had managed to overcome FinnFighters in the semi-final with a score of 4-1 and were coming in with a lot of fire and confidence. The Stepdads too had put on an absolute clinic in the semi-finals managing to dismantle The Evil Empire 5-0 but perhaps what the Stepdads had really needed was down and dirty war to prepare them for this final showdown. Up first as always was the 135lbers. Group champion Shu Fang Tzeng of YABAI taking on The Stepdads “Marauding” Markus Haland. Shu Fang Tzeng had put on some superb performances on his way to winning the 135lb division including a second round submission win over his opponent tonight. Haland had done his best to keep pace but in the end second was the best that he could do. Both fighters had scored wins in their semi-final match ups and both were riding significant win streaks. Five for Tzeng and four for Haland. It was Tzeng who struck first with yet another sublime submission victory, this time in just under a minute and a half. Probably no surprise as Tzeng was a strong favourite going into this one and he didn’t let his alliance teammates down. YABAI 1 THE STEPDADS 0 155lbs match up between YABAI’s Maximus Furioto and The Stepdads Chubby Funster looked, on paper at least, to be a little bit more difficult to predict. Furioto who had topped the table at lightweight and also outworked Funster for a decision win during the final group round looked to have the slight advantage going into this and many would have no doubt put some money down on Furioto taking home the win for his alliance. Funster had been no push over however and had been neck-a-neck with Furioto in the table all the way up to the last group round finishing only one measly point behind. Perhaps fuelled by the loss of his team mate a short while before, Funster was able to dig deep and after dropping the first round to Furioto, made an inspired resurgence. Looking far more comfortable on his feet then his opponent, Funster managed to compliment his dangerous ground game with some seriously impressive striking skills. Winning the war of ranges both at distance and in the clinch, there is no doubt that it was this ability that helped Funster secure the armbar late in round three and pull back proceedings to 1-1. A great fight that earned fight of the night honours for both men. YABAI 1 THE STEPDADS 1 Next up at 170lbs, one of the most anticipated fights of the evening with YABAI’s Diego Diaz taking on The Stepdads team captain Yaurod Atidibil. At the beginning of the tournament, Yaurod Atidibil was predicted to be the big dog in the welterweight class and up until this point he had managed to more or less live up to that assertion. He finished first as expected and managed to dominate all but one fighter; his opponent tonight Diego Diaz. Unlike Atidibil, Diaz wasn’t expected to be amongst the top fighters in the group but over the weeks of competition, he proved that he was more than equal and battled his way to a second place group finish. His submission victory over Atidibil in round six no doubt the highlight of that run and the big question going into this fight was whether he do it again or would master tactician Atitibil adjust his game plan accordingly? The question was answered in just two minutes and thirty-four seconds as a jubilant Diaz pushed a defeated Atitibil off of him and raced over to his corner, arms aloft. A slick submission following an aggressive combination of chained attacked gave Diaz the somewhat shock victory over an extremely well regarded fighter and notched another on the chalkboard for his alliance. YABAI 2 THE STEPDADS 1 Moving into the 205lbs class was The Stepdads Hamza Demirovic taking on YABAI’s underperforming team captain Gerhard Smakatron. Demirovic had been a solid, dependable source of points for his alliance during the group stage with only one loss to group winner Zane Alexander separating double three fight winning streaks. Smakatron on the other hand had been somewhat of an anchor, dragging his alliance down and in the way of gathering any momentum. Demirovic had managed to secure a second place finish in the group whilst Smakatron, predicted earlier to finish second himself, could only do as well as fifth. Most relevant to this fight however was Demirovic’s first round TKO clinch destruction over Smakatron in round seven. With their first encounter still fresh in everybody’s mind and the fact that Smakatron had been the only YABAI fighter to lose in the semi-final, it’s safe to say that many believed this to be a gimme fight for The Stepdads and that the only hope was that Smakatron wasn’t injured too badly. Already looking past this fight to the final, the fans settled down ready to get this one over with. The bell rang and the first thing that was abundantly clear was that Demirovic seemed different. Unsure? As if he hadn’t quite been given the instructions that he needed this time around. The second thing that stood out however was that Smakatron looked very certain about what needed to be done. With a determined gaze he marched forward landing shots where he could, mixing up his kicks with his punches all the while avoiding Demirovic’s desperate attempts to tie up. When the fight did occasionally lead to the clinch, it was Smakatron that broke away but not before putting in some serious work on Demirovic’s face. The bell rang to end the round and Smakatron was clearly one up on the judges score card. Demirovic staggered to his corner and tried to regroup. The bell rang once more and the two fighters met in the middle of the cage and traded routine shots. Smakatron was clearly the more aggressive with the stand up and it wasn’t long before he landed one right through Demirovic’s guard causing him once more to desperately attempt to clinch. Steppding aside, Smakatron landed a sickening shot to the ribs further breaking down Demirovic’s posture. A nice leg kick and then a massive uppercut right on the chin dropped Demirovic cold and with that it was all over. The fans absolutely wild at what they had just witnessed. The Stepdads gimme fight had just turned into a nightmare. Their solid, dependable light-heavyweight fighter outclassed and outmatched. YABAI had done it. YABAI were the Alliance World Championship winners with still one fight to go. YABAI 3 THE STEPDADS 1 It took a little extra time to get prepared for the last fight of the night and in truth, it felt as though a lot of the energy had already been sucked out of the arena. The Stepdads entourage cast a solemn shadow but one man seemed determined not to get caught up in all of that and that was The Stepdads undefeated heavyweight Bubba Wallace. Wallace faced YABAI’s Francisco Baroza in the final fight of the night and though the alliance tournament had already been decided, Wallace still had something to fight for; that being his undefeated record and the challenge of being the sole fighter to go thought the entire tournament without taking a loss. He had dominated his group. He had dominated his opponent in the play-off semi-finals. He had dominated everyone. Seven wins so far and all by first round TKO. A truly frightening prospect for anyone. Standing in front of him, a man he had already defeated with ease. Baroza had struggled in this tournament and performed well below expectations. Predicted a second place finish, Baroza finished last though it must be said that he had just started to look like a very dangerous stand up fighter in his last couple of fights and was coming into this one on a two fight win streak. With the pressure off and with nothing to fight for but pride, Baroza was free to let it all go in the cage. Baroza got things going with a nice kick to the leg before Wallace was able to bully his way into the clinch. Baroza was game and well as active but Wallace looked as strong as ever and was landing some jarring shots to the head and body. Baroza wisely untangled himself from that mess and landed a stinging overhand that opened a cut on Wallace. A leg kick, a jab. Barazo looked sharp on the outside. Wallace clinched again and the two fighters went at it once more. As before Wallace was just too strong and landed the much heavier blows whilst Baroza missed with what he threw. The end of the round approached and a little short shot from Wallace landed stunning Baroza. Another and another and Barozo looked as though he was on borrowed time and weak legs. He managed to stay close and hang on for dear life, smothering Wallace’s further onslaught. The bell rang to end the round. Wallace clearly in control and looking assured at this point. Baroza was helped back to his corner with the referee and ringside doctor looking on with concern. Baroza could be heard telling his corner “I’m ok, I’m ok” and they agonised on whether to let him go out again for the second. The ten second warning, Wallace bouncing on his feet opposite while Baroza laboured to his feet. Brave but perhaps foolish, the crowd sensed something destructive about to happen. The bell rang and Wallace charged towards Baroza. A massive right hand crumpled Baroza to the mat and the referee instantly talked Wallace off before he could do permanent damage. Wallace leapt to his feet and let out a frightening primal roar as the crowd exploded with approval. Wallace wins the battle but his alliance have lost the war. YABAI 3 THE STEPDADS 2 The Stepdads have been superb throughout this tournament and whilst it feels like an upset for them to lose at this point, you look at the talented managers of YABAI and realise that that simply isn’t the case. It was a great final and has been a superb tournament. The biggest shame is that the vast majority of the fighters that took part will have been retired by now but I do hope to follow the careers of at least a few and watch what they can do out in the real organisations. Thank you all for taking part and making it easy to run. Looking forward to the next one! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monsieur.Camara Posted June 21, 2020 Report Share Posted June 21, 2020 A lot of these 25 year olds will be sacked by their respective elite managers. They will be on the FA with huge hype. Newer managers will pick them up. It would be cool if they go to Flesh & Blood , a 350k org with a large 25 year old base, in a rebuilding mode and only 103 fighter roster. http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/company/logo/1591714304jpeg.jpg This is where we gonna see if 350k orgs can finally collaborate. I mean they are all in the same alliance, it should be a no brainer. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alfred Posted June 21, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2020 Alliance World Championship - Post Tournament Analysis http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/15159157921515632355Logo.png #Heritage Record: 11-19 Predicted Finish: 6th Actual Finish: 7th Performance: D- A promising start and some solid performances put unfancied Heritage on course to qualify for the play-off finals but there collective effort was undermined by three fighters going awol which included their team captain. A real shame for those that put in the effort for their team only to end in last place through no fault of their own and a real shame as at one point you got the feeling that #Heritage could have ended up being the surprise package of the tournament. 135lbs Name: Sergej Tkach Record: 2-4 Predicted Group Finish: 6th Actual Group Finish: 6th Performance: E + Good early start in group stage - Went AWOL. Only made four out of six scheduled fights - Two losses by first round finish & two losses by forfeit - As team captain, let his alliance down massively 155lbs Name: so Bitch Record: 0-6 Predicted Group Finish: 2nd Actual Group Finish: 7th Performance: F - Lost every fight in group stage - Finished far below predicted place - Finish last in 155lbs group - Went AWOL. Only made three of six scheduled fights - Left his alliance to carry his burden - Three out of three fights he did show up for he lost by first round submission 170lbs Name: Kybeau Ren Record: 3-3 Predicted Group Finish: 6th Actual Group Finish: 4th Performance: C- + Great finish to group stage after tough first half + Three fight win streak + Three out of three victories by finish - Poor start to group - Three fight losing streak 205lbs Name: Furious Panda Record: 4-2 Predicted Group Finish: 6th Actual Group Finish: 4th Performance: B- + Good start to group stage + Three fight win streak + Finished two places above predicted + MVP of Heritage alliance - Both losses by finish 265lbs Name: Gwart “The Spartan” Bartem Record: 2-4 Predicted Group Finish: 7th Actual Group Finish: 5th Performance: D + Couple of decent wins over top managers + Avoided predicted last place finish - Went AWOL for one fight - Three out of four losses by by first round KO. The other loss by forfeit 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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