Sun Promotion sure knows how to throw a party. Dallas, Texas was the location and Pedro Rizzo was the executioner with 6722 people to view the spectacle. The fights were really good and the eye candy was in abundance. They had a different ring girl for each round and there was plenty of sweat and blood to appease the crowds. The behind-the-scenes was a little disorganized but the fights were in good order.
Brian Russel vs. Tom East
Brian and Russel started off the night with a bang. They rush together after the bell in the first round and Tom gets the takedown and lands on top in half guard. Brian seems to be coping well from underneath by tying up Tom's arms. Tom slips to half guard and starts to throw nasty knees to the liver that we can hear on press row. He then transitions to some nasty hammer fists and continues the GNP forcing Brian to tap out due to strikes. The crowd roars and Tom stands in triumph. You can tell he is the home town boy.
Tom East wins by tap out due to strikes.
Sonny Neilson vs. Armondo Valadez
Round one dings and Armando comes in swinging. Sonny wisely ties him up and pushes him towards the cage. Armando reverses the position and throws Sonny with a hip throw. Sonny goes for the armbar and Armando escapes and they both get back up. Armando gets a single leg trip off the very next clinch. Sonny again goes for a high guard and an arm bar but armondo pulls a houdini and spins into the move to free the arm. The crowd roars at this point and Armondo then stuffs Sonny against the cage and starts to throw huge overhands. Armando then tries a guillotine and gets swept. Sonny then delivers a series of short elbows causing Armondo to turn. Sonny then jumps on Armondo's back and gets hooks and goes for the rear naked choke but Armondo is saved by the bell.
Armando complains about his arm in between rounds but he shrugs it off as the bell rings. Round two starts with Armando throwing haymakers. He is visibly tired but he manages to throw a spinning hammerfist that connects nicely. The crowd roars again but Sonny jumps in and gets the clinch. He pushes Armando against the fence and they trade knees but the worst knee of all is one delivered by Sonny that causes Valadez to immediately drop and grab his side in pain. You could hear the crunch and all the press winced to the sound.
Sonny Neilson wins by KO
Justin Wren vs Justin Howard
Justin Wren walks to the ring and the crowd raises to its feet and roars. You can definitely tell that he is from Dallas and the crowd favorite. Round one starts with Wren jumping out the gates swinging. He secures a clinch and throws a knee that we can hear all the way to press row. Howard answers with a leg kick and a knee to the head. He continues to throw leg kicks to the lead leg and you can tell that they are taking their toll. Wren scores a good overhand but Howards counter punching well. Wren secures another clinch and throws a nasty knee to the face yet again. Both break and continue to circle, having exhausted themselves in this first round.
Round two starts and Wren goes for the shoot but Howard stuff it and counters with a good left-right. Wren pushes Howard to the cage and delivers some more knees. Wren drops and finally scores the double take down. The crowd surges to its feet and roars. Wren passes and gets mount and starts to throw some nasty bombs forcing the referee to step in and call the match. Wren wins by TKO due to referee stoppage.
Anthony Njokuani vs. Kenneth Rosfort
Anthony struts into the ring and the crowd cheers because he is from Dallas also. You can tell by the way he stands that he is a traditional Muy Thai fighter. Round one starts and they both rush to the clinch. Kenneth gets tie up. They both start throwing knees but Anthony swims in and gets a traditional Muy Thai hold with his elbows tucked in tightly. They trade knees for about a minute but Anthony gets the upper hand because his are cleaner and forces Kenneth to break the clinch. Anthony throws a left kick to the head and a right hand that lands flush on Kenneth's chin and makes Rosfort fall face flat on the mat unconscious.
Anthony Njokuani wins by KO first round
Eric Schambari vs Christian Smith
Eric struts into the ring. Christian looks a little nervous and Eric looks focused and just plain scary. The press agent next to me leans over and whispers that he tried to get a match done with Eric vs. his friend and is glad that it didn't go through because Eric is "no joke". Round one starts and Eric stalks Christian. Smith throws a laser left and draws first blood. Eric shoots in and goes for the takedown but misses. Eventually he gets in and gets a single and the takedown. Smith scrambles and Eric only gets half guard. Eric then tries for an arm triangle but is unsuccessful because Christian holds his arm and pushes it way from his neck. Eric eventually gives up the arm triange and Smith scrambles but Eric gets full mount. Smith bucks him but falls back into the arm triangle and eventually the referee is forced to step in.
Eric Schambari wins by arm triangle
Damien Stelly vs. Mike Sheppard
The shortest fight of the night was a bit of a yawner. Round one starts and Damien immediately shoots in and gets side mount. He presses Mike against the pole and isolates the opposite limb applying a key lock and forcing Mike to tap out.
Damien wins by Key Lock
Jason Maxwell vs Yuki Inoue
Round one starts and Yuki starts the fight out with a kick. Jason answers with one of his own. Jason shoots in but Yuki reverses and gets the takedown off a single leg trip. Jason uses the cage to get back up and both start throwing knees. Jason gets a takedown off a hip throw and Yuki shunts to the side going for a kimura. Jason opens up with some elbows but Yuki won't let go of the arm even though it is tuck underneath Jason's leg. Yuki gets up and slams Jason against the fence. Jason secures the take down and falls into guard. Jason then gets back off a scramble but Yuki blocks the hooks with his legs. Both eventually get back up and start to throw. Yuki once again gets the leg trip and Jason tries a guillotine but the bell rings.
Round two starts and both throw down. Yuki at this points starts to dominate the match by repeatedly taking down Jason at will. Jason gets up and manages a hip throw but when he lunges in, Yuki catches his hips with both his feet and lifts him off the ground. They both get up and Jason gets a nice uppercut but over-commits and Yuki once again takes him down. Yuki then dominates the ground game by controlling Jasons every move.
Round three starts with Jason taking down Yuki but they scramble and both get back up. Yuki throws some sloppy punches that sets up a leg trip buy Yuki can't seem to pass guard or really GNP but Jason is doing nothing but defending. The round ends with Jason on his back.
Yukie Inoue wins by split decision
Alex Andrade vs. Klas Akesson
Alex Andrade enters the ring with the crowd cheering wildly. He is yet another Dallas native on home turf. Round one starts with Alex coming out swinging. They lock up and both throw knees with Alex pushing Klas against the fence. Alex sinks a guillotine but can't get it. He tries again and is unsuccessful again. Alex then works some body shots against the cage but they become very inactive and the ref has to break them up and re-start. Alex looks tired but keeps leaning up against Klas after rushing in again. They break and Klas gets a nice straight right before the bell.
Round two starts and Alex once again presses Klas up against the cage. Alex gets a double leg takedown and stuffs Klas in the corner. Alex then lands some nice hammerfists. They both eventually get back up and Alex lands a straight right that knocks Klas out on his feet and causes him to turn away. The ref tries to jump in but Klas turns back in to Alex and meets another left-right combo that knocks him down. The ref jump into the middle as Klas and Alex start to swing on the ground and peels Alex off Klas. Klas gets up protesting to the referee and slams his mouthpiece down in frustration.
Alex wins by KO
Carlos Prater vs. Anthony Lapsley
This fight can be defined as the ground fight of the night. Words really can't descibe the depths of the skill shown but its worth trying. There wasn't much up-top work but each were constantly trying for submissions when in guard instead of settling for defense and utilizing position changes and throws to better their causes.
Round one starts with Anthony throwing punches but Carlos reverses the charge and presses him against the cage. Anthony then scores a loud foot stomp while tied up on the cage. Carlos throws some quick knees and Anthony goes for a single leg. Carlos gets the inside leg trip and falls to side mount. They both eventually get back up and clinch again. Carlos goes for a flying Guillotine and Anthony weathers through the weight on his neck. Anthony reverses and stuffs Carlos with some GNP from on top. Anthony gets thrown off and gets Carlos back. Carlos escapes and is then subsequently mounted. Carlos is now bleeding over the left eye from some viscious GNP that happened while mounted. Carlos rolls away from the hits and gives up his back. Carlos tries to roll back and can't. Anthony gets too nigh and Carlos does a shoulder throw to reverse the position.
Round two has Anthony advancing but Carlos counters successfully. Both go down and Carlos is side mounted. Carlos pushes back to half and goes for an armbar. Anthony opens up with some steller over hands. Carlos twists and goes for a heel hook but can't finish it. Both stand up and struggle against the fence clinched. Carlos gets a double leg take down and gets side mount. Carlos advances to mount and tries for an arm triangle but can't finish it before the bell rings.
Round three has Anthony securing the take down and getting Carlos back. Carlos tries for a heel hook but can't hold and falls back into guard. Anthony goes for an arm bar and misses. Lapsley then inches up his guard and tries for a triangle unsuccessfully. Carlos continues to stuff Anthony in the corner and GNP him. Carlos passes to side mount and forces Anthony to roll away from him. Prater then opens up with some nasty knees to the kidneys that reverberate all the way to press row. Anthony then rolls back because the knees are taking their toll. Anthony is grinning as he reverses his position and ends up on top. He throws some short hammers to finish out the round.
Carlos Prater wins a close decision 29-28
Pedro Rizzo vs. Justin Eilers
Pedro is back to his old self. He constantly stalked Justin all match instead of settling for counters. Both were bloody and beaten by the end and it would have turned my stomach to see five rounds. Thank goodness it was only three.
Round one starts with the two heavyweights circling. Justin is laser precise with his kicks and rights. He bobs in for a body shot and follows with a nasty right that bounces off Pedro's face. Pedro counters with a right that just misses. Both then proceed to trade leather and Justin get caughts with a nasty overhand and goes down to the canvas. Eilers recovers just in time to pull guard. Rizzo then throws some huge elbows from up-top while Justin tries desperately to cover. Rizzo goes to half guard and continues to rain down some nasty punches causing Justin to give up his back and roll to a fetal position. Pedro leans on Justins back and seems content to throw hooks to the side of Justin's head. Eilers comes out of his turtle shell every few seconds to throw some elbows over his shoulder at Pedro and they seem to be connecting with frequency. Both sets of blows are loud. After a little bit, Justin lunges up from his turtle position and reverses away from the cage. Both trade blows while pressed against the cage. Pedro throws a half-hearted foot stomp and the bell rings.
Round two has Justin jumping in and landing a straight that sends sweat and water flying off Pedro's head. Pedro then throws a straight and Justin counters. They then trade back and forth with Pedro stalking Eilers around the ring. Justin eventually lunges in and lands a glancing uppercut that seems to stop at the rafters. Pedro immediately answers with a 1-2 while Justin kicks as a counter. Pedro continues to rain in power shots. Justin starts by getting off first but then flags as Pedro continues to apply some heavy leather. Pedro has blood streaming from the bridge of his nose and a mouse under one of his eyes. Justin is cut over his left eye. Pedro lands a nasty knee that has Eilers in trouble. Pedro then goes to work on the front leg of Justin and throws kick after thunking kick and causes Justin to go backwards. Pedro then fakes to the front leg and goes to the head causing sweat to fly off Justin's face. Eilers is rocked but the bell rings and saves him.
Round three starts with both feeling each other out with 1-2 combos. Both are bleeding from the nose and are torn and beaten. Justin finally uses some leading leg kicks and follows up with another upper cut. Pedro continues to work Justin's front leg and is causing visible swelling. Justin lands a hard 1-2 that pushes Pedro back against the cage. Both trade body shots. Pedro goes for the double leg and rains down massive over hands on Justin. Both eventually get up and trade straight right as the bell rings.
Pedro wins unanimous decision
Guy Metzger did a really good job with the matchmaking and if their fights follow his lead, then the "Art of War" should do good for itself. Plan to see another event in May in Austin, Texas.