World Vale Tudo Fight League - 135lb Grand Prix

[Alfred]

I wanted to say thanks for putting on this tournament. These are a major part of what is getting me addicted to the game, and I know personally after one FUBAR attempt at a debacle of a tournament, it takes a lot of logistics and planning. Good job.

 

You're welcome mate. I've put on a fair few tournaments now and I would say one of the biggest factors is definitely having trusted managers sign up. Even then there's been long time players just disappear without warning and brand new players that see the entire thing out. I guess the next biggest thing is having a contingency for when things do mess up which we seem to have now somewhat.

 

Anyway, glad you're enjoying it. Makes it worthwhile.

[Columbo]

Thanks for the great write-ups. I think Tom Baker is a good fighter, but my camp usually loses when we face Balor's camp (ScottyJC). Let's hope for a good fight!

[Alfred]

Iron Man Vale Tudo – 135lbs Grand Prix

End of Group Stage Review and Play-Off Draw

After 10 weeks and five group stage events, the final eight fighters that will continue on towards championship glory have now been decided alongside the four who will compete for some redemption in the 5th Place-Off.

Group A

In the end it was Able Archer who was able to emerge as the Group A winner after a significant scare in his final group stage match up with Polly Paulson. Getting caught up in Paulson's strong clinch game, Archer found himself on wobbly legs before somehow managing to drag Paulson down to the ground and slap on a loose triangle. Quick thinking by Archer who will definitely need that level of awareness as he moves into the next round paired against the Group C runner up. Even with the loss Paulson did enough during the group stage to secure a second place finish and will now move on into the finals against the winner of Group A

Pete Peterson managed to salvage a spot in the 5th Place Play-Off after a crushing 26 second KO over BJJ specialist Nilton Guimaraes and also sending the Brazilian fighter home. He will go on to fight the fighter who ended third in Group D. The result will no doubt be extra disappointing for Guimaraes as should he have won, he himself would have been the one to move on. With the loss Guimaraes actually slips below Nance Gibbord and ends up bottom of the pile while Gibbord moves up to a fourth place finish

Group B

Relief for Gruff Dragon no doubt as the final weeks results in Group B go his way and he will be moving on into the finals as the runner up of the group. A case of "out of the frying pan into the fire" perhaps however as he finds himself matched against the winner of Group D.

Topping the group in fine fashion is boxer Joe Slasher who has come back from a decision loss in his opening group stage bout to post three straight wins from there, including two KO's. Slasher finishes comfortably as Group B champion and will move on to face the runner up of Group A

In third place we have Chris Chaitle who battled hard for his final group standing against a tough Gichin Funakoshi. Chaitle was able to get the submission victory and send Funakoshi out of the tournament. Possibly a harsh result for the Okinawan who had managed to pick up some solid victories during his time here. Chaitle moves on to face Group C's third place fighter

Rounding out the group in the fifth and final spot is Crisostomo Ibarra who will definitely be very disappointed with his performances this season. His manager is by now a veteran of tournaments such as these and going home without picking up a single win will likely be unacceptable to him

Group C

Group C has produced arguably the most impressive fighter up to this point in Takayama Yataro who not only manages to finish in the top spot but has done it off the back of four straight finish victories in a row. Yataro's hard work now rewards him with a spot in the finals against the runner up of Group D

Duke Nukem showed no fear in his final group stage bout against Anders Silver knowing that a finish loss could potentially send him crashing out of the tournament. Instead he picked up his third KO of the season and now moves on into the finals as Group C's runner up. He is paired against the Group A winner

One Fortythree was able to overcome a tough start to the season after dropping his first two fights. Now after two wins in a row, it has been enough to put him into the 5th Place Play-Off against Group B's offering.

In fourth we have Anders Silver who finishes the season a not too terrible 1-3 and in fifth place we have Rascals Alfalfa who unfortunately was unable to pick up a single point this time around

Group D

A fantastic finish for Group D with undefeated rivals Balor Fino and Tom Baker going head to head in the final week of group stage fights and Balor Fino eeking out a decision win to snatch the Group D title. Fino now moves on as potentially one of the favourites to win it all and he will take on the Group B runner up in his first fight of the play-off finals.

Baker will have no real reason to lose heart as he finishes very comfortable in second place and some five points ahead of his closest rival. Baker finds himself paired against Group C's winner.

The feel good story of the tournament carries on with Brian Marais defying the odds to secure a spot in the 5th Place Play-Offs. He ends the group stage with a solid 2-2 record and will go on to fight the third place fighter in Group A

At the bottom of the group we have Eunan Moray who has been disappointing throughout. He finishes in fourth with a single forfeit win and rounding out the group is Makhlamed Armagedonenov who went awol after losing his opening round fight. It's rumoured that his manager Malikoy Muza received a package of dog faeces through his door sometime after.

THE PATH TO GLORY - PLAYOFF FINALS

(B1) Joe Slasher v (A2) Polly Paulson

(D1) Balor Fino v (B2) Gruff Dragon

(C1) Takayama Yataro v (D2) Tom Baker

(A1) Able Archer v (C2) Duke Nukem

5TH PLACE PLAYOFF

(D3) Brian Marais v (A3) Pete Peterson

(B3) Chris Chaitle v (C3) One Fortythree

[Guest]

Duke Nukem: I let Anders Silver throw everything he had in his toolkit at me and took it with a smile. I'm getting better, stronger, faster every fight. Every day in training I'm picking up new skills and techniques, every fight I'm tuning my game just a little but tighter. I've been beaten before, but Archer won't be able. Once he feels how hard I hit he will turn into a grappler real fast; unfortunately for him he won't be able to take me down. It's going to be a bad newsday for Able Archer.

[Alfred]

Iron Man Vale Tudo – 135lbs Grand Prix

18th November 2018

Championship Playoff – Round 1

(PO1) (B1) Joe Slasher (3-1 in Tournament) (Rank3) v (A2) Polly Paulson (2-1-1 in Tournament (Rank8)

Kicking off the championship play-offs we have Group B winner Joe Slasher and he will be taking on Group A runner up Polly Paulson.

Joe Slasher, it must be said, has done fantastically to get to where he is right now. Suffering a fairly significant injury in a warm up QFC fight before the tournament, that injury would follow him into his opening group stage fight against Gichin Funakoshi leaving him looking sluggish and a far cry from the fighter that presents himself to us in this first round of knockout action. With a then record of 0-2 (0-1 in season), Slasher has battled back with two first round KO’s and a massive decision victory over group favourite Gruff Dragon to seal his place as Group A champion with a season record of 3-1. Now the heavy handed boxer prepares to continue with this good run of form and with a pre play-off ranking of 3 of 8, it is obvious that Slasher could be a one to keep an eye on over the next few events.

His opponent is Polly Paulson, a brawler from Gurton, England who managed to put together a 2-1-1 record and secure a hard fought second place finish in Group A. Paulson has looked devastating at times this season, with two brutal first round KO’s, one of which against Nilton Guimaraes clocked in at just twelve seconds. Despite this however, Paulson missed out on topping the group after a disappointing draw against Pete Peterson and a loss against Able Archer in his final group stage bout of which would have secured him a first place spot. As it was, Paulson finished second only by virtue of his heavy handed finish wins and one solitary point. Still, with a pre play-off ranking of 8 of 8, an opportunity in the play-off finals is still an opportunity no matter how it comes and with that Polly Paulson has an outside chance to take it all.

This should be a very interesting and entertaining fight as both fighters are known for their heavy hands and their love for stand up brawling. On the outside, Joe Slasher will be the more refined technician and with his remarkable boxing skills would probably have quite an advantage from that distance. Paulson has shown competence at that range but his real strength is in the clinch where he can make the best use of his respectable wrestling and muay thai combined.

Perhaps the biggest area of interest in this fight that is likely to be overlooked is the fact that Slasher has made obvious improvements in his ground skills having earned his blue belt during the tournament. Is this something that Slasher will look to use offensively against a clinch heavy field of fighters or is it purely defensive to counter some of the submission/ground and pound wrestlers? If it is the former then Paulson will really be under pressure and might not be able to clinch with the impunity that he would no doubt prefer. Still, with his heavy hands and KO power, Paulson will always be dangerous wherever he is. Can he overcome the boxing skills of Joe Slasher and the fine form that he has been displaying over the past few events? Only time will tell.

Prediction: Slasher by Dec. Slasher seems to be the better fighter overall but this is a tough match up for him and Paulson hasn’t exactly done badly at all and if the fight stays in the clinch for too long, Paulson could end up taking the decision himself.

(PO2) (D1) Balor Fino (Rank2) v (B2) Gruff Dragon (Rank7)

Balor Fino topped what initially looked to be a very tough collection of fighters in group D and comes into this playoff stage as an undefeated prospect to win it all. Technically only 3-0 in real fights, Fino is 4-0 this tournament due to picking up a forfeit win over awol fighter Makhlamed Armagedonenov but that shouldn’t take anything away from the young fighter from Iceland who’s determination has seen him victorious over fighters with arguably better inner qualities. Fino has also performed at key moments having gone into his final group stage match up in a head to head to decide who would call themselves Group D champion. Fino was the one to come out on top but he will now face a tough challenge in the first round of this championship playoff stage.

The man who will stand opposite Fino on this occasion is Group B runner up Gruff Dragon and as a fighter that was predicted to top his group, the jury is still out on this young submission wrestler as to whether he has what it takes to up his game from here. Dragon began his campaign with a gruelling draw against fellow grappler Crisostomo Ibarra and followed up with two wins in a row. One, a submission victory late in the first round and the second, a decision victory over Chris Chaitle that put him in first place in the group and on par to go through as predicted. Things, however, took a dramatic turn as Dragon was outpointed in his showdown with Joe Slasher and due to the competitiveness of the group found himself dangling precariously in the runner up spot and in danger of dropping down into the 5th Place Playoff. Dragon went into the final group stage week on a bye and had to watch imperviously as the results came in and on this occasion, things went his way and now he finds himself in the final knockout stage with a chance at overall glory.

This is a tough match up for both fighters but probably more so for Dragon who has only managed to find one finish win out of his four group stage fights. Both fighters are wonderful wrestlers but both use their wrestling in very different ways. Fino will want to keep this fight standing and has a striking game that definitely belies his meagre skills on paper and Dragon will want to get this fight down to the ground as quickly as is possible. Takedowns versus takedown defence and Fino is already two up against ground fighters whereas Dragon has not been as dominant against strikers and was on the receiving end of an absolute anti-grappling clinic when he fought Joe Slasher. Fino’s striking isn’t anywhere near as technical as Slashers though so perhaps Dragon won’t feel the pressure to get things done in a rush but he will still not likely want anything to do with Fino on the feet and that could make him somewhat predictable to a good camp like Fino’s.

Prediction: Fino by Dec. Dragon hasn’t had the finishing skills to get things done and Fino will likely be ready for his game. Fino on the other hand might be able to control the stand up and clinch but without the raw technical ability of some other strikers will find it hard to crack Dragon’s good chin and get a finish.

(PO3) (C1) Takayama Yataro (Rank1) v (D2) Tom Baker (Rank6)

Unfortunately, at the time of writing, Tom Baker has seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth and has yet to sign on the dotted line for his hard fought first round play-off bout against Group C winner Takayama Yataro. A great shame as after five events of group stage fighting, you really get the sense that all eight finalists have earned their place and could potentially have a shot at taking it all. Maybe it is fitting that this preview is also being written on the 25th anniversary of the birth of the UFC which of course without, we most assuredly wouldn’t be here today. On that day 25 years ago, eight men came together in one of the most dangerous, exciting and polarising martial arts events ever seen in modern times and bravely faced their fears when so many others would have run away.

So, as it stands currently, Takayama Yataro looks set to receive a bye into the next round which can only spell trouble for everyone else as Yataro has been truly magnificent so far and is the only fighter to have won all four of his group stage fights by finish. Added to his tune up fight before the tournament began, Yataro is currently undefeated with a record of 5-0. It is fair to say that the Japanese wrestler will be the solid favourite going forward and the fact that he now looks likely to receive uninterrupted training time will only strengthen this assertion.

(PO4) (A1) Able Archer v (Rank4) (C2) Duke Nukem(Rank5)

Our final match up of this first round knockout stage features Group A winner Able Archer taking on Group C runner up Duke Nukem and this one could be an absolute sleeper for fight on the night.

Able Archer was able to come out on top in Group A after what turned out to be a very competitive and back and forth group stage. Archer’s path to the finals had a very unexpected bump however when he managed to lose a shock upset against struggling Nance Gibbord that put a whole lot of pressure on him going into his final group fight against Polly Paulson. Showing tremendous composure however, Archer got back to business and secured a first place spot with a first round submission win and adding to his current 3-1 record. With that submission win also, Archer showed us another element to his fight game as previous to that we had only seen him fighting inside in the clinch. This will only serve to make him more dangerous and could definitely be a huge factor going into this fight against an opponent that prefers the stand up side.

Duke Nukem comes into this fight off the back of a crushing return win against Anders Silver after a previous loss to eventual group winner Takayama Yataro threatened to derail his otherwise perfect campaign. Lead by an enthusiastic management team, Nukem could perhaps be quite the dark horse at this point with his current 3-1 record with all wins coming by way of first round knockout. He beat predicted group winner One Fortythree early in the group stage and followed up with a stunning KO win over Rascals Alfalfa and apart from the loss previously mentioned, has looked to be a very strong competitor. Of course, this is now where it really counts and a single loss will mean crashing out of the competition. Duke Nukem faces a very tough test in Able Archer.

On paper both are fighters that have used their wrestling as a base for a more stand up orientated game plan. Archer being the slightly superior in that area has predominantly preferred the clinch to dish out punishment where as Nukem has very much preferred standing at range and using his mediocre boxing skills to very good effect. Nukem has fought inside the clinch however and he has not yet come across anyone better than him there so this could be a very interesting showdown if any in-fighting does occur. Would Archers slightly better wrestling skills give him an advantage or would Nukem’s more technical boxing allow him to dominate?

One potential reason for Nukem to avoid the clinch however might be Archer’s seemingly newfound ability to pick up submission wins from the ground and this again might be something we see Archer attempting at a much higher rate of eagerness. With the better wrestling and a blue belt level against a white belt level of BJJ, Archer would most defintely have the advantage should the fight end up in that domain.

This fight looks to be razor tight competitive affair with both fighters holding similar records with similar finish rates and being very equal in size.

Prediction: Archer by Submission. Archer might have the wrestling skills to close the distance and shut down Nukem from doing too much damage in the clinch. Because of that I see him having at least a few opportunities on the ground where Nukem will not be able to stop the submission.

Round 2 - SEMI-FINAL

(PO5) Winner PO1 vs Winner PO2

(PO6) Winner PO3 vs Winner PO4

Round 3 – FINAL

Winner PO5 vs Winner PO6

5th Place Playoff – Semi-Final

(FP1) (D3) Brian Marais v (A3) Pete Peterson

Our first of two 5th Place Play-Off fights for fighters that finished third in their respective groups with the first being group D’s Brain Marais and group A’s Pete Peterson.

BJJ Brown Belt Brian Marias wasn’t given any chance at all of moving on from the initial group stage as pure BJJ fighters have usually fared quite poorly in past tournaments . Adding to that doubt was Marias’ managers inexperience in the game at that time but that initial conclusion, I am pleased to say, has been completely unfounded as Marias has battled his way into fighting for fifth place and, in my opinion, that would be quite an achievement considering he was predicted to finish at the bottom of the pile. Of course, there is still a way to go from here and Marias will first have to get past his opponent here tonight but with big wins over Makhlamed Armagedonenov and predicted Group D winner Eunan Moray, Marais might be quietly confident.

Looking to pick up the fifth place prize himself is Group A’s Pete Peterson who went into his final group stage fight against Abel Archer with the opportunity to actually snatch the top spot. It wasn’t to be however as Archer picked up a first round submission just before the five minute mark and Peterson was resigned to a third place finish behind Polly Paulson by only a single point. Peterson might have reason to feel a little aggrieved about that as his very respectable six point tally might have been enough to get him into the play-offs in other groups. Peterson comes into this fight with a record of 2-1-1 and will no doubt be looking to finish this tournament with a bang.

In terms of match up this fight isn’t likely to bring many surprises as Marias will only ever really be looking to get this fight to the ground. How he will achieve that however might be a cause for concern for his camp however as so far he has not managed to figure out a way past the strong wrestling stand up fighters of which category Peterson falls certainly. His may potentially get a shot at pulling guard if Peterson dares to get that up close and personal but considering his solid skills at range, Peterson will likely prefer to keep as much distance from the skilled submission artist as possible.

Prediction: Peterson by KO. This is Peterson’s fight to lose. Marias has been on the receving end of two KO losses out of four fights and without any real skills in either striking or wrestling, the only reason this fight would likely hit the floor is if Peterson chooses it to. Marias not only needs to get this fight to the floor, he needs top position too which against a wrestler like Peterson, is too much to ask surely?

(FP2) (B3) Chris Chaitle v (C3) One Fortythree

Our second 5th Place Play-Off fight is between Group B’s Chris Chaitle and Group C’s One Fortythree

Chris “Lights On” Chaitle has done well to battle back from his 0-2 start in Group B and finish in third place after big wins against Crisostomo Ibarra and Gichin Funakoshi. The Funakoshi fight in particular gave us a great insight into just how good Chaitle could be on his day as Funakoshi was looking to be a strong candidate to move into the play-offs. Chaitle has a competent base in boxing and a purple belt in BJJ meaning that he can theoretically move between two extremes and have the confidence to at least hang with those better in certain areas long enough to beat them where the are weak. A clever game plan no doubt but that could very much be put to the test here tonight as he faces brawling wrestler One Fortythree.

One Fortythree, like Chaitle, was disappointing early on in the group stage and also managed to go 0-2. He battled back well and picked up two first round TKO wins against Anders Silver and Rascals Alfalfa and managed to narrowly avoid crashing out of the tournament altogether. Fortythree has shown that he most dangerous in the clinch and also that he is no slouch on the ground as, although he lost in the end, he gave undefeated ground and pound monster Yataro his toughest fight and is the only fighter to go into the second round with him, largely off the back of his grappling defence. Now he gets a chance to continue the momentum he has gained and perhaps a little redemption for his disappointing group stage results.

This is an interesting fight mainly down to the fact that we will witness two fighters currently in good form, go head to head and with very conflicting styles. Chaitle will fight on the inside or on the ground and Fortythree will want to fight in the clinch. Chaitle has and will pull guard to good effect from the clinch and has shown a strong ground game picking up a submission win from there while Fortythree seems tailor made for the ground and managed to hang for a good amount of time with ground monster Takayama Yataro. On paper this is likely to be a real tactical affair with whoever managing to keep the fight in their domain picking up the win.

Prediction: Fortythree by Dec. Not a confident prediction at all as I can just as easily see either fighter picking up finish wins from different positions but overall I believe the wrestling to be the real key to unlocking this fight and on this occasion it is Fortythree in possession.

Round 2 – FINAL

Winner FP1 vs Winner FP2

[Guest]

Duke Nukem: Joe Slasher is a dangerous striker, but I feel like I have a bigger tool kit than him, and he doesn't have an answer for a fighter like me. He will get frustrated, then he will get scared, then he will get knocked out.

[Alfred]

Iron Man Vale Tudo – 135lbs Grand Prix

2nd December 2018

5th Place Play-Off Final

“I Weigh” One Fortythree (3-2 in Season/4-2 overall) vs. Pete Peterson (3-1-1 in Season/3-1-1 overall)

Our fifth place play-off final is here and on the night, one of two deserving finalists will walk away with not only a cash prize but also a small amount of redemption following what what likely a mediocre group stage campaign.

One Fortythree has really turned things around following his two early season losses and comes into this fight on a three fight winning streak. All three wins have been by first round TKO including his semi-final match up against heavy handed Chris Chaitle in which Fortythree once again dominated in the clinch. Also on display was some good defensive skills on the feet meaning not only was Fortythree able to move into the final without any lingering cuts or injuries, he was also able to get back in the gym relatively quickly in order to iron out any last minute kinks in the armour. Tonight, One Fortythree could end his tournament with a very respectable 4-2 record and one befitting a 5th place finish but to get there, he firsts needs to beat a very tough and very similar fighter in Pete Peterson.

Pete Peterson found himself in the 5th Place Play-Off by only the narrowest of margins and in all honesty, wouldn’t have looked out of place in the main championship play-offs. But regardless, he is here and has had to battle through the semi-finals in which he defeated overachieving Brian Marias by TKO. Like his opponent tonight, Peterson was able to get through without sustaining any real damage and will have had a decent amount of time back in the gym to prepare for this fight.

Both fighters will be bringing a very similar style to the bout but on paper it really looks as the Peterson will have decent advantage in most areas. Slightly ahead in all stand up aspects, it is the wrestling that will be key and Peterson is also a step beyond in that regard also. Fortythree does have an advantage in his BJJ however though as of yet we haven’t really seen either him able to use it in any real offensive capacity.

Probably the biggest factor going in Fortythree’s favour is his rate of finishing. In four career wins overall he has a perfect record of four KO’s which is something Peterson cannot claim. Still, Peterson has only managed to lose one fight so far and that was against a Able Archer who was able to make it into the championship play-offs.

Prediction: Fortythree by Submission. If a prediction didn’t have to be put forward then I wouldn’t as this fight seems razor tight to me. If the fight stays standing then I believe it is Peterson who will slowly edge ahead and probably win a decision but I have a feeling this fight will hit the floor and Fortythree will surprise with a hidden away submission game.

Championship Play-Off Semi-Final

Takayama Yataro (5-0 in season/5-0 overall) vs. Gruff Dragon (3-1-1 in Season/3-1-1 overall)

After agreeing with the remaining four semi-finalists, the draw was altered in order to avoid fighters being matched against other fighters that had already met in the group stage. One interesting and fortunate consequence of doing so was that it meant that both semi-final match ups featured both a group winner and a group runner up and also that it guaranteed a grappler versus striker final.

Our first semi-final bout features the grapplers going head to head with undefeated Group C winner Takayama Yataro taking on Group B runner up Gruff Dragon.

It has been a little while since we have seen Takayama Yataro in the cage after he found himself with a bye into the semi-final when his original opponent forfeit his place. Ever honourable, Yataro and his management lobbied for a fight against absolutely anyone rather then simply walk into the final four but for the sake fairness, it was decided that this was the best way. Whilst this means that Yataro will be absolutely rested and prepared, it could also mean that a small amount of ring rust may have set in though we will not be able to know that until the bell rings.

His opponent tonight is Belgian grappler Gruff Dragon who struggled to secure a second place spot in his group but went on to provide one of the bigger upsets of the quarter final when he defeated potential favourite Balor Fino with a second round submission. Fino was expected in the finals, potentially against Yataro but tonight it is Dragon that will have that honour and many eyes will be watching to see if he can pull of yet another big upset against a fighter that so far no one has been able to figure out.

As strange as it is to say, on paper, Dragon looks to have the tiniest of advantages mainly stemming from some slightly above abysmal Muay Thai. Obviously we know that this means little and that the form of Yataro counts for much more than simply who looks better in the gym. Yataro has made absolute mincemeat out of his opponents so far though he has yet to fight someone close to having the ground skills of Dragon. Dragon on the other hand hasn’t always looked to be the most impressive if you take away his quarter-final win against Fino and it will be very interesting to see how he matches up against the ground and pound style of Yataro.

Neither fighter will really want to be on their back, especially Dragon, and gaining top position will definitely be a high priority early on. It could end up being a gruelling fight also as so far neither fighter has yet been finished but with the final only a short while away, a long draw out fight would not be ideal for the victor which could add a sense of urgency to proceedings.

Prediction: Yataro by KO on the ground. Dragon of course has a very good chance off of his back should he end up there but Yataro has been on fire all through this tournament and it would be foolish to bet against him now.

Joe Slasher (4-1 in season/4-2 overall) vs. Duke Nukem (4-1 in season/4-1 overall)

This fight is not to be missed. Joe Slasher and Duke Nukem, two highly skilled strikers, both very different but extremely competent at what they do will go head to head to decide the last spot in the championship final.

Joe Slasher has done remarkably well to overturn a disappointing start to his MMA career and will come into this fight on a four fight win streak, three of which include first round KO’s. He has defeated submission wrestlers, BJJ fighters and brawlers alike and will no doubt feel that he can do it all. His heavy hands were on display during his quarter final match up against Polly Paulson as, though shots were traded during the short duration of the match, the power of Slasher looked to make all the difference. As a result, Slasher not only avoided bringing injury and cuts into this match up of which is something he knows from experience how detrimental it can be, he will be well rested and fully prepared to do battle once again.

His opponent is Group C runner up Duke Nukem who apart from a one sided loss to Takayama Yataro, has looked extremely strong in this tournament and fully deserving of his current position. He looked good in his quarter final match against Able Archer and did well to shut down Archer’s clever attempt to turn the fight into the ground war and was able to escape back to his feet where he picked up the KO around the five minute mark. Now he faces probably his toughest fight since Yataro and will need to figure out a way around Slashers superior boxing skills.

An interesting match up as though both are strikers, they are both very different overall. Slasher has some remarkable boxing skills and on top of that some deadly power in those hands also. Nukem has not been tested standing up but he has suffered a KO from the ground. Nukem has been most destructive in the clinch by using his strong wrestling to bully his opponents and whilst Slasher has put some effort into improving in that area, Nukem is still far better there.

Both fighters have displayed good intelligence in the face of problems such as these which will definitely add a very tactical element to the fight overall. We would expect to see a lot of back and forth during this bout with both fighters attempting to keep things in their preferred comfort zone.

Prediction: Joe Slasher by KO. A tough prediction to make as both fighters have very obvious ways to win and things could very easily go the other way but, as for the same reasons as the other semi-final, Slasher has been in fine form which makes betting against him seem like the wrong move.

[Guest]

Duke Nukem: Slasher is a dangerous opponent, but nothing I haven't seen before. I can pick him apart at range, or I can tangle him up in the spider web and grind the fight out of him. Either way, it's going to be a rough day at the office for Joe Slasher. The critics have counted me out in EVERY SINGLE FIGHT, yet here I am, still knocking people out and wondering who I have to kill to get some respect around here. I don't know who that might be, but I know who's next. See you in the cage, slasher.

[Alfred]

Iron Man Vale Tudo – 135lbs Grand Prix Final

It’s been another great season for Iron Man tournaments that has been full of upsets and surprises, heartbreaks and glory and tonight we crown our overall champion at 135lbs.

The last event saw the 5th place spot sown up with Jamaica’s One Fortythree taking the honours with a strong performance over Pete Peterson who was without his management team in his corner. Utterly abandoned and on his own, Peterson just couldn’t find a second gear to match Fortythree’s grit and found himself on the receiving end of a TKO finish late in the first round. Congratulations to 5th place One Fortythree.

Now on to tonight's finals.

3rd Place Bout

Takayama Yataro (5-1 in season) vs. Duke Nukem (4-2 in season)

Takayama Yataro will likely feel extremely disappointed to have ended up fighting for third place against a man that he has already beaten once. From the beginning of the tournament all the way up until his last fight, Yataro had looked like a strong contender to take it all after consistently destroying whoever was put in front of him. He even had the good fortune to be gifted a bye into the semi-final after his scheduled opponent was no where to be found leaving Yataro ample time to recover and prepare. In something of an upset, due to form if nothing more, Yataro was caught by scrappy wrestler Gruff Dragon in a armbar early in round one and his chance at championship glory alongside his undefeated record was lost all in that instant. Having spoken to his management team you get the feeling that Yataro now casts somewhat of a dejected shadow and it’ll be very interesting to see if he will be able to motivate himself in this final tournament fight.

His opponent is Duke Nukem who has been active on social media formats and has kept things very interesting with his vocal interactions on the forums. Apart from his earlier loss to Yataro, Nukem had looked very good himself elsewhere in the tournament and, though touted as the ever so slight underdog going into his semi-final match up against Joe Slasher, Nukem was expected to have as good a chance as any at reaching the final at that point. It would have been a little disappointing for him however as Slasher was clearly the better fighter and largely a step ahead all the way to a second round TKO win. Nukem tried his best to keep up but it was the clinch of all places that really was his undoing. Now, Nukem has an opportunity to finish the tournament with a degree of vengeance for his earlier loss to Yataro and really pile on the misery for his opponent. A third place finish is nothing to sneeze at but even if honour and glory aren’t your thing, the cash prize incentive usually is.

135lbs Championship Final

Joe Slasher (5-1 in season) vs. Gruff Dragon (4-1-1 in season)

Tonight's final will also be a rematch after their group stage encounter ended with Joe Slasher putting on an anti-grappling clinic and winning a decision that almost sent Dragon crashing out of the tournament. In hindsight, perhaps Dragon wasn’t given enough credit for his performances and his deceptively average record in the group stage meant that he has been able to fly under the radar a little but now, after taking out two massive favourites in the knockout stages, Gruff Dragon can no longer be considered an outsider and will come into this fight with every chance of emerging as tournament champion. To do so however, he will need to avenge his loss to Slasher and somehow get past their last result in which Dragon was unable to truly trouble Joe Slasher.

If form was the most deserving factor for winning the tournament then few would argue against Joe Slasher coming into this final. After going 0-2 in his first career fights (one loss a QFC warm up before the tournament and the second his opening group stage fight) Slasher has gone on a fantastic tear of five straight wins that includes four KO’s and one hard fought tactical victory over his opponent tonight Gruff Dragon. Slasher has seemingly gotten stronger and stronger as the victories have piled up and tonight we get to see if he can once again defeat his group nemesis in the same manor. Though he had a fairly tough semi-final match up against Duke Nukem, Slasher was able to remain in control throughout and pick up the TKO victory late in the second round and will have had a decent amount of time to prepare for this final showdown which, thankfully, both fighters will come into completely injury and cut free so we can truly see who is the grand champion.

Can Joe Slasher do it again and walk away with the grand prize or will it be Gruff Dragon who comes along and snatches it all away

[Guest]

Duke Nukem: Okay, okay, Slasher WAS the better fighter, that day. Anybody can beat anybody else on a given day. I never lose; I win, or I learn. The next time I see Slasher in the cage will make this defeat actually taste sweet, and I can't wait.

 

Speaking of revenge: Yataro, I haven't forgot about you. At all. In fact, I've been ignoring all of my other opponents at the gym and focusing on how to beat you in the inevitable rematch. I am your fate. Excuses are like assholes, but even Slasher knows he got lucky. I was getting calls from people asking if I was sick for fucks sake. Let's just say I'm blaming it all on my management and leave it at that. Fuck you for that, John. But you, Yataro, I owe you one for real. Everyone saw you grabbing the cage, grabbing my shorts, sitting in between my legs and rubbing my balls with your stomach. You fight like a faggot, so I brought the toughest faggots in the world to my training camp at Hell House MMA and practiced not letting them rage cuddle me on the floor. Plus I'm juiced to the gills, and so far there hasn't been a single test this whole tournament! Whooo!

[Alfred]

TOURNAMENT END

It was another exciting season and there were many great fights that went down. Hopefully a few, future players in the world of MMATycoon were born from this but only time will tell.

Firstly congratulations to Joe Slasher and his manager Big Larry. From a tough start to the tournament stemming from a loss in a QFC warm up fight, Slasher was able to turn things around putting together a six fight winning streak that culminated in a decisive victory in the final. Ending the tournament 6-1, Slasher is the 135lbs tournament champion and an truly deserving one at that.

Commiserations to Gruff Dragon who ends the tournament in second place. Dragon, who shared the group stage with champion Joe Slasher, was probably expected to do better early on but managed to qualify for the play offs none the less. Some stellar performances in the knockout rounds saw him taking out favourites Balor Fino in the first round and then surprisingly tournament terror Takayama Yataro in the semi-final. A rematch in the final against Joe Slasher will have been disappointing for him as Dragon was unable to match his performance in their first showdown which ended in a decision loss.

Third place is Takayama Yataro who many believed would be the last man standing after a perfect 4-0 group stage campaign. Yataro was handed a bye in the final after his opponent Tom Baker failed to show, giving him ample time to prepare for his semi-final match up with Gruff Dragon. Perhaps the extra time off threw him off of his game or perhaps it was just one in a lifetime occurrence, Yataro was caught in a submission early and had to settle for the 3rd Place match up against Duke Nukem. With a victory over his opponent from the group stage already, Yataro channelled his frustrations into Nukem's face and was able to get the TKO victory early in the first round.

And lastly in Forth place we have Duke Nukem. Nukem put on some good performances during the tournament but will most remembered for his vocal contributions on media forums. A solid fighter but was always considered an outsider and Nukem will hopefully find contentment in finishing 4th out of 20 other fighters.

Fifth place, as already covered, was One Fortythree after battling his way through the 5th Place Play Offs

PRIZE ALLOCATION

1st Place - Joe Slasher - 1 Million T$ + 3 Months VIP

2nd Place - Gruff Dragon - 500k T$

3rd Place - Takayama Yataro - 300k T$

4th Place - Duke Nukem - 200k T$

5th Place - One Fortythree - 100k T$

Would like to take this opportunity to once again thank the generous sponsors KAISER Nutrition and Sportivite for contributing very large amounts to the Prize Pool. Please make sure to check them out and support them.

[XxxtremeT13]

well.....At least winner and the 2nd place fighters were both in my division in the start of all this....Annnnndddd... I mean I did beat the winner...oh what could have been...if I had just beat Gruff maybe Gichin "Shōtō" Funakoshi would have been the winner....Oh the dreams of me actually winning at this game. My dreams continue.

[Alfred]

Damn! That's true really. Maybe Slasher would want to avenge his loss? 100k to the winner?

 

Anyway, I thought your guy did really well and I was surprised that he didn't qualify for anything. Your group definitely turned out to be the group of death though

[BigLarry]

Thanks kd for setting up this tournament, great write-ups and awesome rewards. Slasher walked away with the prize, he is a gambler he knows when to stop.

[Alfred]

Thanks kd for setting up this tournament, great write-ups and awesome rewards. Slasher walked away with the prize, he is a gambler he knows when to stop.

 

No worries mate. Was a lot of fun for me too. Congrats on winning!

[XxxtremeT13]

 

No worries mate. Was a lot of fun for me too. Congrats on winning!

maybe if I just talk mad trash and call you out for a rematch everyday, I'll get my shot????? I mean, I am looking for an upcoming fight for him! Wanna lose again?