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HFC 24 Review
Event Review: HFC 24 - McCarthy vs Foster 3
Honour Fighting Championships (300k+)
November 19, 2016, The Underground - London
Attendance: 1000 (Sold Out), Event Rating: 97.65
Author: Master Po
Foreword:
In front of a sold out crowd Honour Fighting Championships presented London with another stellar event! No fight was left to the judges, and as a matter of fact, no fight made it to the second round. It was an epic striking extravaganza where every fight was ended by way of first round KO! I managed to get a few moments to speak with the new owner of the organization Enzo Robiero, and he told me he was pleased with the outcome. He also made sure to inform me that he has big plans moving forward and that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Honour Fighting Championships is a heavy hitter for a newer organization and ready to carve out a name in London and the entire Tycooniverse.
Jason Taylor vs Nummer Trenton - 205 lbs
Trenton came to the event making his MMA debut. As soon as the bell rang it appeared that Taylor felt Trenton's power and resorted to takedown attempt after failed takedown attempt. Trenton knocked Taylor down, waved him back to his feet, then knocked him down again with a vicious hook and out with a series of hard shots. Taylor is now batting .500 with two consecutive losses, while the new kid on the block Trenton, introduced himself to the Honour Fighting Championships organization and the world with an exclamation point!
Prediction: Trenton first round TKO (Strikes).
Result: Trenton TKO (Strikes) 0:43 of round 1.
Wouter Leg Lock vs Eric Hambro - 205 lbs
This one was all Hambro. Hambro peppered Lock early and often. Lock, stunned and out of sorts, could never find his bearings. Hambro drove in with a nice takedown into side control where the fight would stay. He pummeled Lock with textbook ground and pound until the ref had no choice but to call the contest. Lock is now 2-3 and seemingly losing ground with two losses in his last two fights. Hambro 2-2, is turning the corner and he looks to be getting on the winning track.
Prediction: Lock second round Submission
Result: Hambro TKO (Strikes) 2:31 of round 1.
Jack Jackhammer vs Jan Rey Reyes - 145 lbs
Reyes came into this match looking to redeem himself after losing his MMA debut by submission to....some guy, which he certainly did. He came out swinging. He landed some good shots then clinched up with Jackhammer who could not escape or work effectively in that arena. Reyes rocked him early in the round, but Jackhammer showed decent chin and heart to somehow recover from that intially. Around the two minute mark Reyes landed an uppercut that cut Jackhammer and laid him down. Jackhammer managed to work himself back to his feet only to get caught by a second, and even more powerful uppercut. That was more than he could overcome though. He was out on his feet long before a barrage of strikes by Reyes found their marks. Many in attendance showed their disgust with the ref, Reyes included.
Prediction: Jackhammer Decision (Unanimous).
Result: Reyes TKO (Strikes) 2:50 of round 1.
Dorian Prine vs Harry Duncan - 185 lbs
Two youngsters came out to battle with youthful vim and vigor in this one. Prine came out striking but couldn't find his range. Duncan almost immediately took the fight into the clinch. From there things got real ugly for Prine who could do next to nothing, including defend himself. Duncan showed nice flexibility landing knee after knee and tossing in some elbows for variety. Duncan cut him early with a knee to the head. Not long after that he landed another knee to the head which deepened the cut and rocked Prine to his core. Duncan then landed yet another knee to the head and the ref waved it off. Both fighters move to 2-2. Prine losing his last two and Duncan winning his last two. At this point it looks like both will continue their current trends.
Prediction: Duncan Decision (Unanimous).
Result: Duncan TKO (Strikes) 2:56 of round 1.
My Name vs Justin Duponte - 135 lbs
This match was a blood bath. Not the proverbial one, a literal one. This was another Muy Thai clinch battle. Name took it to the clinch where at first, it seemed both fighters were defending well. Duponte threw a lot and blocked a lot. Name threw a lot and blocked a lot as well. The outcome of the fight was the result of a cut that Name opened up on Duponte early in the clinch with an elbow that found its way home. Just the sheer volume of elbows by Name was the difference in this one. I believe compu-strike calculated 56 elbows thrown by Name and 27 landed. Duponte has big heart and was still in fighting condition if it weren't for the gash over his eyebrow. The doctor at cage side had no alternative to calling this one. Actually, Duponte may need a blood transfusion after leaking profusely like that in what would be the longest fight of the event.
Predicion: Duponte TKO (Strikes) first round.
Result: Name TKO (Cut) 3:57 of round 1.
Farnad Behpour vs Kurt Angle - 265+ lbs
The big boys came to mix it up in this clash. Angle tried every takedown attempt in his arsenal at least once and was stuffed every time. He tried to clinch and was stuffed there. He came in swinging with that familiar wild combination and whiffed. The look of frustration on his face could not be disguised. Eventually all that wasted energy would be his demise. Behpour found an opening and popped him with a brutal body blow. You could see Angle sucking wind. Behpour popped him with a good head kick, then a better head kick. In this one the 15 cm height advantage paid dividends for Behpour with a head kick KO at range.
Prediction: Behpour first round KO (Punch).
Result: Behpour KO (Head Kick) 2:59 of round 1.
Luke Rockhold vs Libio Do Santos - 185 lbs, Title
I assume this went as most would have predicted. Rockhold, the current champ, sprawled on every takedown attempt Do Santos threw at him until he could find a spot to secure the clinch. The clinch is Rockhold's house. Do Santos was an unwelcome visitor there. Rockhold did what he does, digging at the body, and slipping uppercuts and hooks over the top. Do Santos actually did surprisingly well defending against a competitor with the pedigree of Rockhold from the clinch, but it just wasn't enough. Rockhold ultimately landed an authoritative uppercut that put Do Santos to sleep on his feet, with a follow up hail of strikes forcing yet another referee stoppage. Rockhold is a beast and looking at the 185 lb division I struggle to find a competitor to present him with a viable challenge. Do Santos has a future in the MMA game but he is going to have to find some sort of striking ability to at least set up takedown attemps. He could have a lot of success if he could take fights to his happy place on the ground
Prediction: Rockhold second round TKO (Strikes).
Result: Rockhold TKO (Strikes) 2:09 of round 1.
LazovicZ The BIG MaN vs Tito Jones - 185 lbs
Well, it's hard to analyze a 31 second fight, but I believe that LazovicZ came into this fight less than 100 percent. Something seemed off. I think he was battling morale issues due to coming off a recent TKO loss and he seemed to not be at full energy. Jones landed two ferocious body shots that had BIG MaN immediately panting. A nice combination then sent him to the floor. Jones took a step back and waved BIG MaN to his feet, which he obliged. Jones, who is more of a Muy Thai practitioner, landed a left hook that looked like it came from Tyson in the 80s. LazovicZ was out cold. Maybe BIG MaN's team should give him a little time off to get his morale and energy back up to snuff then get back to work at the gym. Jones would be up for consideration in regards to challenging Rockhold for the 185 lb title, but he has already lost to him twice. Only time will tell what the future holds for Tito.
Prediction: LazovicZ Decision (Unanimous).
Result: Jones KO (Punch) 0:31 of round 1.
Fight of the Night Award
Co-Main Event:
Cub Lamas vs Punt Hardman - 145 lbs
Hardman who is kind of a "well rounder," made it evident he wanted to take this battle to the mat. Fight statistics showed he had 8 takedown attempts in the fight. None of which were successful. After watching Hardman completely gas himself out swinging for the fences with takedown attempts the crowd was beginning to get a little bit restless which is to be expected. Lamas landed a 1-2 that dropped Hardman like a bad habit. He was rocked and cut. Lamas waved him up then landed one of the most relentless uppercuts I've ever seen in my life that literally lifted Hardman off his feet. Needless to say that was the end. Lamas is legit. He has to be the topic of discussion for a title fight in the 145 lb division. What's next for PH? I'm not sure but I would take a look at training regimens and pre-fight strategies if it were up to me.
Prediction: Lamas second round TKO (Strikes).
Result: Lamas TKO (Strikes) 1:32 of round 1.
KO of the Night Award
Main Event:
McCarthy vs Foster 3
McCarthy won the last meeting between these two. This was not much different at all. Foster came out and immediately clinched up with McCarthy. Bad move. I'm assuming his thinking was to clinch up and pull guard or try to land a takedown. McCarthy ain't no pushover in any sense of the word. McCarthy went straight to body shots and as you can imagine had Foster snorting, wheezing, and whooping. Then as Foster was paying more attention to defending body shots McCarthy went to the head landing several uppercuts that had Foster's neck snapping. The crowd was abuzz encouraging their champ. Eventually McCarthy landed a precise overhand right. Good night Irene! Keeping with the underlying theme of the night this was a short lived fight as well. These guys knew each other all too well and should have been well prepared and equipped for victory. Both have excellent management and are world class athletes (although some could question Foster who has a bit of baggage around the mid section). Moving forward it would seem that the sky is the limit for McCarthy going 5-0 with 5 KOs in his last 5 appearences. He is really coming into his own and dominating the 265+ lb division. Foster will have to go back to the drawing board with his camp. As it is now McCarthy leads the series 2-1 with 2 KOs.
Prediction: McCarthy TKO (Strikes) first round.
Result: McCarthy TKO (Strikes) 0:39 of round 1.
Conclusion:
The atmosphere was electric at HFC 24 and if you were lucky enough to be part of the sold out crowd at The Underground - London you got your money's worth. The fighters came and left it all in the cage. Some were victorious. Others feel short. The theme of the night was hardcore striking. Having an entire event with 1st round knockouts is a historical landmark. Honour Fighting Championships rose to the occassion with excellent matchmaking. The stable of athletes that are part of this organization make it what it is. Honour Fighting Championships is an absolute bellwether in the Tycooniverse. I can't wait to see what's next!
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