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SPNY 146: Atomi vs Le Preview
Good evening and welcome to the Liberty Dome here in New York City for SPNY 146, tonight’s 10 fight card will be headed up by the first Welterweight title defence for Tomi Atomi since regaining his crown from Julio Madrigal, with tonight’s challenger being the ever dangerous Phan Tran Le. There will also be a lot of interest in the undercard with 4 genuine Light Heavyweight contenders, Joey Rodinerio Bravo, Jarred Rose, Johnie Ballantine, and Austin Anderson in action across 3 fights.
Main Event: Welterweight Title
Tomi Atomi (c) 24-6-1 (9-1-1 SPNY) vs Phan Tran Le 16-6 (6-2 SPNY)
Atomi’s record with SPNY could most easily be described as a highlight reel; 5 title defences, 8 of the night awards, and even a few finishes by a fighter primarily known for winning by decision. Tonight Atomi should have a huge advantage over Le on the ground so expect him to try to take this down very early. The bookmakers have recognised this and have him as the shortest priced favourite of the night tonight as he looks to re-establish himself as the pound-for-pound king in SPNY.
Le can claim to be one of the best Muay Thai fighters in SPNY and his brutal clinch work has led to him having a very strong following with the SPNY fan base. To get to this point Le has won his last 4 fights and is arguably in career best form. I do worry about whether or not Le has what it takes to win this fight if Atomi can prevent the clinch however; Atomi has a 5 inch reach advantage and better striking at range and a significant edge on the ground.
Atomi is the favourite coming into this and deservedly so, as long as he can get this fight to ground he will be able to use his massive grappling advantage to finish this by submission.
2: Light Heavyweight
Joey Rodinerio Bravo 22-14-1 (3-2 SPNY) vs Jarred Rose 16-8 (4-3 SPNY)
So heavily contested is the SPNY Light Heavyweight division at the moment that any one of 6 or 7 contenders could lay claim to a title shot with 3 or more consecutive wins. Tonight Bravo will be looking to stake such a claim against Rose. With both these fighters primarily submission grapplers I don’t expext Bravo’s 2 inches of reach to play much of a part in the outcome of this fight. Given Bravo is not known for his chin and Rose has a reputation for very good ground & pound I suspect Bravo may look to control from the top rather than finish because he will not want to spend any time on the bottom during this fight.
Rose is the underdog tonight but I feel that if this fight stays on its feet for any length of time or if he can get the top position on the ground he is a very good chance of picking up a win. Bravo’s striking is very basic for a top level fighter and Rose has the experience and quality to expose him on his feet if he can stuff the takedown. If he decides not to try to stand and bang he will be a very good chance of finishing with a TKO if he can work Bravo over with strikes from the top position. I don’t think this fight is as straightforward as some have claimed.
I expect a close fight with Bravo by decision, but I think Rose is a punchers chance.
3: Super Heavyweight
Troy McLure 15-5 (12-3 SPNY) vs Scott Norton 11-3 (SPNY Debut)
As the Super Heavyweight division continues to wind down the huge punching McLure has had a fellow knockout specialist boxer brought in just for this fight. McLure will come out throwing huge haymakers which if they land flush will demolish Norton. We’ve seen enough of him to know that he knows no other way. All 11 of Norton’s wins have come by knockout as well, but he tends to build into the finish by quantity of punches rather than a single flush shot, but his skills in the clinch could take McLure out of his comfort zone completely.
I really hope to see McLure land one flush and finish this quickly; McLure by KO.
4: Light Heavyweight
Johnie Ballantine 37-20-1 (3-0-1 SPNY) vs Haloti Gnata 18-7 (15-7 SPNY)
Ballantine is perhaps one of the most unlucky fighters in SPNY with a drawn bid for the vacant title not enough to secure him a second shot despite having won his previous 4 fights. How well he can bounce back form that disappointment against the dangerous striking of Gnata will determine if he remains amongst the contenders. With two guys likely to stand and bang in this one I can’t help but feel that Ballantine’s 17 career knockout losses combined with Gnata’s 2 inch reach advantage may decide this one.
Gnata by KO.
5: Light Heavyweight
Oscar Salcedo 25-18 (7-6 SPNY) vs Austin Anderson 10-6 (4-3 SPNY)
This one matches two fighters who have world class boxing and wrestling which makes it a little unpredictable with respect to how the fighters will approach the fight. Salcedo looks to finish fights early with big shots, Anderson is more of a grinder, but defence may well decide this. Anderson has looked harder to hit in his last few fights and that suggests to me he will be able to grind out this one.
Anderson by KO.
6: Welterweight
Glenn Benton 22-12 (3-1 SPNY) vs Yusuke Urameshi 12-7 (2-0 SPNY)
Benton is an outside contender for a shot at the Welterweight title but would need a win here and maybe another big name such as Zarathustra or Cross before he can demand his chance. Having beaten tonight’s title challenger Le a few months ago however he will feel he isn’t far off. Tonight his opponent is Urameshi who has gone through a disrupted preparation as his training camp parted company with their financial backer and has been left without management or proper training. I don’t expect him to come in 100% and because of that I can’t see him posing a problem for Benton.
Benton by KO.
7: Heavyweight
Melvin Cronkite 14-4 (5-1 SPNY) vs Madz Ladz 7-4 (5-4 SPNY)
Cronkite returns to SPNY after his last 7 fights were taken elsewhere and will find that the Heavyweight division is even stronger and deeper than when he left. His submission skills against the pure wrestling of Ladz should make an interesting fight on the ground, but amazingly in all the time I’ve watched these two I think I can only remember a single leg kick from Cronkite and no standing strikes from Ladz ever. Who controls the top position will be a big factor in the outcome although Cronkite will still be dangerous from his guard, but if Ladz finds himself on bottom it could be goodnight early.
Cronkite by submission.
8: Light Heavyweight
Zachery Rey 28-15-1 (7-5 SPNY) vs Antero Rokka 10-6 (1-1 SPNY)
Rokka may come into this one with the poorer form, but he does have a significant power advantage over his more experienced rival. I don’t think that Rey has the power to hurt Rokka so he will just keep coming until his big shot lands, meaning Rey will have to fight the perfect fight to come away with a win in this one. Don’t expect either fighter to go to the ground.
Rokka by KO.
9: Lightweight
Arturro Affi 15-6-1 (2-1 SPNY) vs Doctor Rockzo 18-18 (8-9 SPNY)
Affi has won 2 of his first 3 fights here but is currently not training full time and I don’t see that being a winning strategy in the long term at this level. Rockzo is a popular honest toiler in SPNY’s Lightweight division but hasn’t been a legitimate title contender since a decision to Christian Jacobs for the title back at SPNY 49. Knowing how well Rockzo has prepared and that Affi is not a grappler I have to give the veteran my vote of confidence tonight.
Rockzo by submission.
10: Featherweight
Cesar James The Reaper 5-2 (4-2 SPNY) vs Daiel White 1-1 (SPNY Debut)
Although I’m told White has an amateur grounding in both boxing and kick boxing he has yet to link with a real MMA coach and training camp and I’m worried he may be mismatched against the knockout power of The Reaper. For some reason in his early fights White has attempted a lot of takedowns even though he has no background in wrestling and is still very much a novice in BJJ, and if he does that tonight it will surely leave him open for some big shots by The Reaper.
The Reaper to finish White by KO.
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