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 The stands are filled for the second night in a row as one of the most outstpoken and controversial fighters in Highland Games history; LightHeavy Weight, defends his 205 title against the last Attack Fight League Champion and jiu jitsu expert; Rodrigo Gracie. We have a card stacked with heavyweight killers, so it’s highly unlikely that many of these fights go the distance. Without further ado, let’s get into it.
Death Ripping (3-0) Vs Judah Seraphim (4-2) – Middleweight
Death is debuting with us here tonight after an impressive 3 fight career in the independents. Having spent just 2 minutes and 48 seconds in the cage throughout his career, it’s obvious how devastating his punches can be when he lands on the target.
Judah Seraphim is a strong boxer who enjoys throwing hands with any opponent. The 18 year old has experience beyond his years, and it’s expected that he’ll get exactly what he wants in terms of an opponent who will stand and trade with him.
Quar Fang (4-3) Vs Barol Kedorf (2-4) – Heavyweight
Recently, Quar Fang was on a career high with a three fight winning streak with 2 knockout of the night bonuses. A second loss to Benny Askren has taken that away from him, and once again reiterated the boxer’s susceptibility to cuts. Fang always needs to win his fights quickly and cleanly to avoid having the ref step in to look at his lacerations.
Barol Kedorf has been with us for longer than you’d expect. He debuts at Highland Games 3, being submitted by Michael Kamara. A HG record of 2-3 has always kept him at the bottom of the ladder, and with 2 straight defeats, it seems that he could fall off onto the ground with another unimpressive performance here tonight.
Nashik Adwadi (3-2) Vs Billy The Kid (3-2) – Heavyweight
Nashik has been signed to Highland Games for a long time but hasn’t had the quickest turnaround of fights. Lost in the hustle of Harriet Marshall’s regime in charge, Adwadi didn’t fight from HG 11 to HG 28. With a 3-1 record in the organisation, with all 3 wins coming by way of KO and his sole loss being a decision, Nashik is a prospect to keep your eye on.
Not much was expected of Billy when he joined HG. He was coming off of a loss, and then was stopped by Jax Dax in his debut. Surprisingly, the underdog has turned it all around with a 3 fight win streak, stopping all 3 competitors in the process. Making it 4 in a row would be huge for Billy, and might just be the breakthrough he needs to compete at the top of the division.
Sailele Lealofi (5-2) Vs Magnus Cross (8-5) – Heavyweight
A submissionist, Lealofi’s 5 victories have all come by way of the opponent tapping the mat. His specialty is chokes, with nothing being more satisfying then remove air from the lungs of his adversarial opponent.
Magnus Cross is a veteran of 13 fights, taking on names like San Terra, Clinton Offley and Benny Askren. His combination of solid boxing with a questionable chin might not be great for Cross, but for us fans it certainly makes for an interesting fighter to watch.
Talon Axel (4-3) Vs Eduardo Massa Alcantara (6-3) – Light Heavyweight
Axel has been around the block in Highland Games and three post fight bonuses to his name. Highlight reel head kick knockouts are his specialty, and if he lands one tonight, Axel will most likely have his name on the bonus sheet once again.
Eduardo recently had his 4 fight knockout streak dashed by Jihani Tuomiola, and in turn, his opportunity to challenge for the belt ripped away from him. Alcantara is now 4-2 in Highland Games and has shown knockout power throughout his entire career. The road back to the top will be long, but Alcantara’s experience will give him an advantage as he rebuilds his reputation.
Zakari Moss (9-3) Vs Gianluca Balotelli (5-3) – Bantamweight
There is certainly some bad blood between these competitors.
When Moss took on Pravola, it was announced that the loser would compete against the debuting Gianluca Balotelli. Moss and Balotelli had a back and forth, with Moss ending the discussion by submitting Frank Pravola in just 1 minute 22 seconds.
While Moss went on to also submit Jomlong Kiapoity, Balloteli earned knockout of the night against Pravola.
That set up the contest we have here. Gianluca has fantastic striking, but Zakari Moss is an outstanding grappler with finishing ability.
Jason Barrett (6-3) Vs Richard Riddick (8-4) – Heavyweight
As it currently stands, Jason Barrett is my favourite fighter in Highland Games. Exciting knockout power, the ability to come back and change a fight at any moment, and a fighter’s spirit that sees him constantly competing, he’s an absolute dream to work with as a promoter. After going 5-0 in Highland Games, he had a number 1 contenders fight against Mib Louie which he lost. Going 1-2 since then is a strange look for the puncher, and he needs to turn it all around with another win.
A man who’s currently fallen on hard times is Richard Riddick. Once 7-0 and the Attack Fighting League super heavyweight champion, Riddick fell to Matt Punisher by TKO in his second defence. A big win over Nelson Frazier Jr gave him a crack at Barney Gumble for the HG belt, but again he was stopped by punches. Back to back losses to Heyderdahl and Lazaro since then have Riddick on a 3 fight losing streak, and although he isn’t expected to be cut with a fight here tonight, he’d certainly be in last chance saloon.
Christian Long (6-5) Vs Clinton Offley (9-2) – Heavyweight
Long’s road until this stage has been heavily turbulent. Going 3-0, with a stunning headkick knockout of Alexey Juralev in his Highland Games debut, Long earned an opportunity to challenge Barney Guble for the inaugural Highland Games 265 strap. Long lost, but bounced back with two more victories, both earning fight of the night and a TKO of Elias Page earning Knockout of the Night. Christian would then drop 3 straight fights and was on the chopping block, saving himself by KOing Antonio The Sparta. Fresh off a knockout loss to Jason Barrett, he will need to win this fight if he wants to avoid being back in a troublesome position.
Clinton Offley is probably the most talented Island fighter to never win a title. His only losses are to Gunnar McGregor for the UltimateXC belt, and then an L to Gumble in his last fight for the Highland Games gold. Outside of this, he has been absolutely perfect in his career. 8 of his 9 wins have been by submission, 2 earning Submission of the Night in HG. Offley is gutted that he lost the fight to Gumble, but he knows how talented he is as a competitor and if he is able to put a string of wins together, he’ll be back on top, and it all starts tonight.
Pedro Lazaro (9-2) Vs Mitchel Thompson (7-2) – Heavyweight
This is a match up I personally didn’t see happening, but Thompson specifically requested this fight.
Pedro ‘Pirate’ Lazaro is an extremely experienced heavyweight fighter, taking on some of the most talented guys at 265 and being victorious in all but two of his fights.
A clinch master, Lazaro has wins over Jason Barrett, Richard Riddick, Thor Heyerdahl and Keijo Virtanen and is a onetime title contender.
Up until recently, Pedro has focused on doing whatever it takes to win the fight, winning most of his fights by decision. Back to back stoppages of Barrett and Riddick have proven that Pedro has adapted his game to become a more lethal competitor.
Mitchel Thompson will fight anyone anytime. He’ll fight anyone at the drop of a hat, and with deadly boxing and impactful punches, Mitchel knows that he can win a fight on any given night. In his time, Thompson has struggled slightly with grapplers, losing to submissionist Keijo Birtanen, clincher Nelson Frazier Jr and an early decision to wrestler Mase Force. Thompson wants to prove everyone wrong. He has requested a fight against a top grappler, Pedro Lazaro, and he believes fully that if he can land on Lazaro’s chin, he will walk away from this fight with an upset loss and potentially a crack at the greatest Island fighter of all time; Barney Gumble.
LightHeavy Weight (11-1) Vs Rodrigo Gracie (10-2) – Light Heavyweight Title Fight
LHW has an opinion about everything, running down HG fighters left right and centre. Everyone wants to see this guy get knocked out cold, but if that’s what you want then LHW is sitting with his belt around his waist laughing at you.
Currently the champion is riding a winning streak of 8 fights, 6 of those scheduled for 5 rounds and 5 of them being successful title defences. Weight also avenged his only loss to Eirikur Adalsteinn, so essentially he is now an undefeated fighter.
If you haven’t seen LightHeavy Weight fight before, and are squeamish in any way, then we won’t even take your money from you. Don’t tune in, because what this man does to his opponents is little short of sickening. With 7 wins due to cuts, LHW likes to take the fight into the clinch and use his elbows like razors to slice his opponent open.
Recently, he looked a little bit more human, even being dropped by a headkick from Dieter Von Sprockets. None the less, his record sheets reads nothing other than pure dominance, and he’s eyeing up another name to his list of victims tonight.
Rodrigo Gracie was a top contender in Highland Games with wins over Alfonso Bebeto, Lock Down and Wo Fi. It was looking like Gracie might well be the logical contender for the title, but he decided that he’d take his services to Attack Fight League. After a triangle choke victory over Bunaidi Pakpahan, Rodrigo was lined up to fight AFL LHW kingpin Michael Coleman.
Coleman boasted a record of 8-1 and was the heavy favourite to win the fight. None the less, Rodrigo went out there and submitted Michael Coleman in under 2 minutes, taking the title in the organisation’s last event and picking up a submission of the night bonus in the process.
Now, riding an incredible wave of momentum, Gracie has returned to Highland Games to continue what he had started 2 months ago. Rodrigo Gracie will compete for the first time for the Highland Games Light Heavyweight Championship, and he believes in his ability to take the fight to the floor, avoid the clinch, and ultimately submit LHW.
Our second event in as many nights is upon us. Some big behemoths are looking to get towards the top of the division, while Rodrigo Gracie is looking to add a second title to his Island collection. We should be in for a good one tonight folks, so tune in and watch the action unfold.
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