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 ehab Fighting Championship 6 – Flat lined
Wild Bob's Bar – Amsterdam – 11.7.2015
EVENT REVIEW
Building on the success of RFC 5 – A Pool of Blood, RFC 6 – Flat Lined, cemented RFCs position as one of the key MMA organizations in Europe. As the chase for RFCs inaugural belts hots up, the fighters put on an outstanding show of skill, heart and that most crowd-pleasing of all aspects of an MMA fight, how to finish your opponent. With only one fight going to the judges and a lone submission, the fans were treated to a devastating display of (T)KO power.
Fight 1 - Arnlaugur Arngrimurson (2-0-0) vs Danny Hall (0-3-0) – 170lbs
After a lop sided decision loss in his RFC debut, Danny Hall looked to get back on track with a W over the surging Arnlaugur Arngrimurson. Fresh off a first round KO victory at RFC 1, Arngrimurson had different ideas.
Both fighters, respectful of each other’s striking abilities, made a tentative start to the bout. It was Hall who landed early with a nice right to Arngrimursons head. Brushing off the punch, Arngrimurson moved into the clinch where he went to work on Halls body and ribs. For best part of a minute and a half, Arngrimurson banged away at Halls body, mixing in the odd uppercut just for good measure. Winded after taking so many shots, Hall, too concerned with protecting his body, exposed himself to a vicious left hook which buckled his legs. After another landing thudding blow to Halls ribs, Arngrimurson wound up with a right hook which connected flush to the chin of Hall which dropped him out cold on the spot.
An ecstatic Arngrimurson let his title intentions be known by tapping his waist indicating he wants he 170lb belt. With two devastating first round KO victories in his first two RFC bouts, Arnlaugur Arngrimurson has joined a couple of other fighters in the 170lb division who have elevated themselves above the pack in the chase for the belt. Danny Hall meanwhile is now 0-2 in a three fight deal with RFC. A loss in his next bout is likely to mean him being dropped by RFC.
Result - Arnlaugur Arngrimurson – KO (Punch) – 4m 8s RND 1
Fight 2 - Cameron Adam (1-2-0) vs Xanana Dias (1-0-0) – 265+lbs
Making his MMA debut, former pro muay thai fighter Xanana Dias predicted fireworks inside the Octagon, and after calling out Cameron Adam on buzz, fans waited with baited breath to see if he would live up the hype he’d surrounded himself with. Once inside the Octagon however, the occasion seemed to overwhelm the youngster.
Showing total disrespect for his opponents muay thai, Cameron Adam moved straight into the clinch at the opening bell. Showing signs of nerves, Dias seemed reluctant to engage and was content to hold on and with neither fighter doing much, the referee stepped in to separate them. Dias moved straight back into the clinch and landed with a decent body shot but with the crowd now showing their displeasure, neither fighter showed any willingness to offer up any offence.
Only a minute and a half into the fight, Adam was already breathing heavy and this seemed to wake Dias up. He began to let go with some punches on the inside before pressing Adam up against the cage and stalling again. After several warnings from the referee to work, the fighters were separated again.
The fight continued this way until four minutes into the round, Dias landed with a left to the side of Adams head followed by a solid right hook to the body. After several shots which bounced off of Adams arms, Dias connected with a short uppercut which turned Adams legs to jelly. After a beautiful one-two followed by a thunderous right uppercut, Dias landed with a looping left hand which, had the cage not been there, would have sent Adam sprawling. With only the cage keeping Adam on his feet, Dias unloaded with a flurry of punches which dropped Adam to his knees. The referee, having seen enough, jumped in and called off the fight.
Clearly upset by the fans booing, Dias thanked them for attending and promised a better performance next time out. In a division packed with bigger guys with genuine KO power, Dias is going to have to up his game considerably if he’s going have any chance of competing with them. Adam meanwhile, moves on to 0-2 in his last two fights and maybe should consider a drop in weight class.
Result - Xanana Dias – (T)KO - (Strikes) – 4m 38s RND 1
Fight 3 - Adrian Wolf (1-1-0) vs Callum McGuinness (0-2-0) – 185lbs
After being unceremoniously dumped by Las Vegas promotion, Troid EP, after suffering a first round submission loss, Adrian Wolf had a point to prove to RFCs owners for giving him the chance to resurrect his young career. His opponent, Callum McGuiness was in a similar position himself after losing his last fight by being KO’d in less than fifty seconds.
Both fighters came out at the opening bell throwing bombs but it was Wolf who connected early with a straight left down the pipe, which cut McGuiness on the bridge of the nose. Undeterred, McGuiness landed with a perfectly timed spinning back kick followed by a stunning head kick that would have knocked many other fighters off their feet. Displaying his excellent muay thai skills, McGuiness began chopping away at Wolfs legs.
Just after a minute into the round, Wolf landed with a crisp body shot that seemed to knock the wind out of McGuiness and slow his offence, but it didn’t stop him landing with some stinging leg kicks. Taking too much damage on the outside, Wolf lunged in with a left hook followed by a short right and tied McGuiness up in the clinch. Once there, he connected with a pair of cracking uppercuts that rattled McGuiness followed by another punishing body shot. With McGuiness struggling for breath, Wolf, sensing his opportunity, pushed off and circled away to the centre of the cage, beckoning McGuiness forward. Game as ever, McGuiness moved in only to be cracked with a massive right hook followed by a left cross that removed him from his senses. Still on his feet, McGuiness endured another monster of a right hand that sent him to the floor with a thud that could be heard from around the arena. Knowing his opponent was out, Wolf celebrated by running round the cage like a man possessed.
The crowd were on their feet and for good reason. These two warriors had put on an amazing show and it’s a pity it ended like it did. Wolf had made the statement he intended to make and although a loser tonight, I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing Callum McGuiness again in RFC.
Result - Adrian Wolf – KO (Strikes) – 2m 17s RND 1
Fight 4 - Blanco Rosso (1-1-0) vs Brandon Vee (1-0-0) – 265lbs
Result - Brandon Vee – Unanimous Decision – 30-27, 30-27, 30-27.
Fight 5 - Pierre Letot (1-1-0) vs Taylor Marish (1-0-0) – 265lbs
Making his MMA/RFC debut, highly touted collegiate wrestler Taylor Marish took on French muay thai specialist, Pierre Letot. Making no secret of his plan to use his superior striking to win the fight, Letot was as surprised as anyone when Marish took him on at his own game.
Letot opened the fight with a crunching leg kick as if to give Marish a taste of whats to come. Marish though, took it in his stride and fired back with with a left right combination that Letot narrowly avoided. Letot let go with his own left right but Marish countered with a crisp right to Letots head, opening a cut above his left eye. Letot immediately fired back with a left jab which in turn, cut Marish above his left eye.
Both fighters now respectful of the others striking, they circled around each other looking for an opportunity to present itself. The opportunity would present itself to Marish. As Letot shook his arms out to compose himself, Marish caught him with a stiff jab which he followed up with another beautiful one two combination. Letot, looking frustrated at being outstruck by Marish, darted in looking to clinch, but showing lightning quick reflexes, Marish slipped to his left and clobbered Letot with a right hand that put Letot on his butt. Springing back to his feet but on wobbly legs, Letot backed away and circled to his right. Marish feinted with a left kick and as Letot stopped and circled to his left, Marish let go with a beautiful overhand right followed by a left hook that sent Letot crashing to the floor. With the referee waving him off, Marish walked away with his arm raised, nodding as if to acknowledge his nights work.
With a fairly well rounded game and KO power to go with it, Taylor Marish may well have put himself in the picture for a crack the 265+ belt.
Result - Taylor Marish – KO (Punches) – 1m 9s RND 1
Fight 6 - Dexter Sferntwist (3-0-0) vs Maciej Wilk (0-3-0)– 170lbs
Apparently ‘good in bed’, Maciej Wilk may well be better off looking for a job where he can utilize whatever ‘skills’ that requires, as he certainly doesn’t look suited to the fight game. Coming into the fight on the back of two (T)KO defeats, he was matched up against heavy handed Dexter Sferntwist. Although not the most technical of strikers, Sferntwist has managed to (T)KO all three of his opponents in his first three fights.
Both men wasted no time in getting at it once the bell rang to get the fight underway, trading blows in the centre of the Octagon. However, as Sferntwist started to assert himself, Wilks threw a kick to the body which missed its target by a mile and hit Sferntwist right between the legs. After watching the replay on the big screen, it looked to me like it was intentional, maybe Wilks was hurt and needed a breather but, who knows. Taking only thirty seconds of the five minutes allowed, Sferntwist signalled to the referee he was OK to continue. Seemingly enraged by the incident, Sferntwist set about making Wilks pay for his transgression. A body kick of his own which could be heard from the back of the arena brought out an ‘oooomph’ from Wilks and Sferntwist went looking to knock him out.
Using a push kick to keep Wilks where he wanted him, Sferntwist started to connect with some well-placed and timed punches to the head and body of Wilks. Unable to get any offence of his own going, Wilks moved in to the clinch but Sferntwist was having none of it. Breaking free of the clinch, he peppered Wilks’ head with some nice jabs before instigating a clinch himself. With Wilks looking to stall, Sferntwist pulled back and just as he did, another kick from Wilks hit Sferntwist right between the legs. Boos from the crowd let Wilks know exactly what they thought of him but showing true fighter spirit, Sferntwist got straight back into action.
The round continued with Sferntwist using Wilks head and body as a punching bag. With the crowd loving it, Sferntwist began taunting Wilks, telling him he was ‘gonna get knocked out’ and just at the end of the round, Sferntwist hit Wilks with a looping left hand that staggered him but just as he moved in for the kill, the bell sounded, bringing the round to an end.
Round two and Sferntwist picked up right where he left off. Beautiful combinations to the head and body of Wilks had him in a daze. Almost every attempt from Wilks to fire back was countered beautifully by Sferntwist and thirty seconds in, he began to turn it on. A thudding liver shot followed by a right hook to the temple had Wilks hurt. In an attempt to hide the fact he was hurt, Wilks tried to answer back with some leg kicks but Sferntwist brushed them off and carried on with his beat-down.
For vastly different reasons, both fighters looked tired now and as the middle of the round approached, Wilk managed to get the fight into the clinch. This made no difference though as Sferntwist was the more active fighter and sensing he was able to finish Wilks, he broke the clinch and picked up the pace. Picking his shots more carefully now, Sferntwist began connecting with almost everything he threw at Wilks. Bobbing and weaving, he landed lefts, r8ghts, uppercuts and a straight right that hit Wilks in the eye, causing him put his hand over it. Seeing Wilks was now more concerned with protecting his eye, Sferntwist shot into the clinch and unloaded with a couple more uppercuts and a left hook to Wilks’ temple. In desperation, Wilks tried to get the fight to the floor a couple of times but badly hurt, and gassed, Sferntwist had no problem stuffing his attempts.
An unexpected shoulder strike from Sferntwist set up the finish. Caught completely by surprise, an uppercut from Sferntwist knocked Wilks’ gumshield out of his mouth, he followed up with a left hook and another uppercut which, to the amusement of Sferntwist, led to Wilks performing an involuntary shimmy. Knowing he had Wilks’ number, Sferntwist was just waiting for the right shot to end the fight.
Walking his opponent down now, Sferntwist moved into the clinch and hit Wilks with another shoulder strike that snapped his head back. With his corner shouting for uppercuts, Sferntwist obliged and landed a beautiful right uppercut followed by a thudding left to the body. Hands by his side now and toying with Wilks, Sferntwist slapped him with his left hand and unleashed a devastating right uppercut detached Wilks’ feet from the floor. When he hit the floor, just for good measure, Sferntwist pounced on Wilks and let go a barrage of punches before the referee had the chance to jump in and call the fight off.
A great display of precision striking from Dexter Sferntwist had the crowd cheering his name and in appreciation, Dexter turned and bowed to all four corners of the arena. Asked why he was toying with Wilks at the end of the fight, Sferntwist replied saying he felt the low blows were intentional so wanted to teach him a lesson. Now 3-0-0, Sferntwist has just added his name to list of contenders for the 170lb strap. Wilks is now on a three fight skid and maybe a job in the adult entertainment business, or modelling bedsheets would be a career more suited to his skillset.
Result - Dexter Sferntwist – (T)KO (Strikes) – 4m 28s RND 2
Fight 7 - Brandon Baumgartner (2-0-0) vs Marco Van Der Berg (0-1-0) – 155lbs
Fighting out of the famed ‘Fallen Warriors Gym’ in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Dutch kickboxer and MMA debutant, Marco Van Der Berg, hoped to follow in the footsteps of his idol, Alistair Overeem, and climb to the top of the MMA mountain. The first obstacle in his way was Germanys own, Brandon Baumgartner.
After a successful run to the semi-finals of last years ADCC, Baumgartner made the transition to MMA where his slick jiu-jitsu earned him a submission victory in his MMA debut. Carrying the weight of a nations hopes on his young shoulders, Baumgartner went into the fight full of confidence, and boy did it show.
As the bell rang to get the fight underway, Van Der Berg moved forward and threw a vicious leg kick which Baumgartner avoided but as he lifted his leg to avoid the kick, Van Der Berg, surprisingly, lunged in and took Baumgartner to the floor. Landing in Baumgartners guard, Van Der Berg looked set to posture up but in the blink of an eye, Baumgartner latched on to his arm, turned over and pulled off a twenty nine second armbar submission. By the time Van Der Berg realized what had just happened, Baumgartner was up on the cage celebrating his victory. A dazzling display from Baumgartner which earned him SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT honours. Now 2-0-0, with both wins coming by way of first round armbars, Brandon Baumgartner put RFCs 155lbers on notice.
Result - Brandon Baumgartner – Submission (Armbar) – 0m 29s RND 1
Fight 8 - Fionn MacCumhaill (5-0-0) vs Bobby Sliver (2-1-0) – 265+lbs
QFC 555 Tournament winner, Fionn MacCumhaill made short work of muay thai specialist, Bobby Sliver in the nights second 265+lb fight. A boxer with an iron chin, MacCunhaill KO’d his way to the QFC final where he won a comfortable decision against current HFC 265+lb champion, AS Kane. Sliver meanwhile, came into the fight on the back of two first round demolition jobs on Lester Horton and Augustus Berry at the lighter 265lb weightclass.
The big question was whether or not Sliver would carry his power up into the 265+lb weightclass but the move up proved too much as he was dispatched with relative ease just twenty seconds into the fight. Despite wobbling MacCuhaill with an uppercut that would have put many 265lbers to sleep, he rushed in for a takedown only to find himself on the end of a perfectly timed MacChumaill knee that almost took his head off his shoulders.
Suffering his first loss in such a way may make Sliver re-evaluate his move up to 265+. MacCumhaill meanwhile moves on to 5-0-0, earning KO OF THE NIGHT in the process and RFCs matchmaker will have a hard time ignoring him when it comes to fighting for the RFC 265+lb strap
Result - Fionn MacCumhaill – KO (Knee) – 0m 20s RND 1
Fight 9 – Co-Main Event - Gus Spencer – (6-0-0) vs Vidar Helgesson (1-1-0) – 185lbs
After demolishing Son Goku at RFCs inaugural event back in early October, surging middleweight, Gus Spencer was matched against RFC newcomer, Vidar Hegesson for his second fight. With only one fight making out of the first round, (barely), Spencer was odds on favourite to continue his win streak and he didn’t disappoint.
Spencers boxing proved too strong for Helgesson as he was cut by straight right early in the first before being dropped shortly after by another crisp right hook. After letting Helgesson back to his feet, Spencer was almost submitted by a Helgesson kimura but the hook seemed to have taken too much out of Helgesson as he stalled to recover on the floor. After almost a minute of inactivity, the referee stood the fighters up and Spencer connected with another right hook just before the rounds end.
Sensing Helgesson hadn’t fully recoverd, Spencer went hunting him down in the second. Several shots to the head followed by a devastating uppercut sent Helgesson crashing to the floor again but once again, Spencer motioned him to get back to his feet. With the crowd on their feet, Spencer walked Helgesson down until a straight right hand right down the pipe sent Helgesson crashing back to the floor. Spencer followed him down this time pounded him to sleep with hammerfists before the referee jumped in to save Helgesson from further punishment.
With the RFC 185lb division hotting up, it will be interesting to see how the title picture unfolds. One thing for sure though, Gus Spencer will be there when it does.
Result - Gus Spencer – (T)KO (Strikes) – 0m 55s RND 2
Fight 10 – Main Event - Angelo Moore (6-0-0) vs Michael Bizping (3-1-0) – 170lbs
Tonights main event saw RFCs top ranked fighter, Angelo Moore take on motor mouth jiu-jitsu specialist, Michael Bizping. Calling practically every RFC 170lber out before the fight, made no secret of his game plan going into tonights contest. Moore meanwhile, preferred to let his fighting do the talking.
At the opening bell, Bizping walked right onto a straight right from Moore that opened a gaping cut above his left eye. Moore landed again with a solid overhand right before Bizping countered with stinging left right combination that wobbled Moore momentarily. That was about as close as Bizping would get to Moore for the rest of the fight. Using his slick, superior boxing, Moore peppered and pounded Bizping for best part of the round, moving beautifully in and out of the clinch where he worked Bizpings body with some thudding shots.
The size and strength difference between the fighters became obvious as Bizping tried in vain to get the fight to the floor on several occasions only for Moore to shrug off the attempts and punish Bizping some more. At the midway point of the first, Moore turned it on and began picking a bewildered Bizping apart and unable to answer Moores boxing, Bizping walked back to his corner at the rounds end looking well and truly beaten.
Seeing his opponents heart wasn’t in the fight, Moore opened the second round with a right hand that sent an exhausted Bizping to the floor. Wanting to finish the fight on the feet, Moore waved him back up and planted a stinging left hook to side of Bizpings head which further opened the cut above his eye. Blinded by the blood pouring down from his eye, Bizping looked up at the clock just as Moore unleashed another right hand that landed flush on his jaw. Crumpled on the floor, Moore pounced on Bizping and unloaded with a flurry of punches and elbows to finish the fight.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we may well have just witnessed the first RFC 170lb champ at work, an awesome display form Angelo Moore sees him move to 6-0-0. Dropping his first fight, Bizping, now 3-1-0 complained he felt unwell before the fight and stated his intention to drop to 155lb.
Result – Angelo Moore – (T)KO (Strikes) – 0m 15s RND 2
After an awesome night of fights, and with the highest rated event to date, RFC continues in meteoric rise up the MMA tycoon rankings. With the quality of the fighters, and the fights on display, the rest of the MMA world should take note, RFC is here to stay
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