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 KOTB 16: Gringo
The King of the Beach promotion is back to Hayashi’s Lounge a week after their most successful card in promotional history, and I have a feeling they may repeat that achievement this weekend. KOTB 16’s stacked main card will see a light-heavyweight title fight, a middleweight title fight and a pair of number-one contender fights between some of KOTB’s most popular fighters.
Diesel Hendrix (3-1, 1-1) v Carlos Fierro (3-0, 1-0)
Opening up the aforementioned main card will be a pair of welterweights on the fringe of contention, as Las Vegas-born Diesel Hendrix takes on a fellow sprawl and brawler in Rio’s Carlos Frierro. Hendrix is coming of a tightly contested decision loss to future title contender Rick Sharp and will be looking to get himself back on track here. Fierro, on the other hand, is coming off a knockout win over former KOTB-veteran Inci Yarakos in his debut for the promotion. Both fighters employ really similar game plans of using defensive wrestling to set up powerful punching combinations on the feet. Hendrix should have the more polished boxing and Fierro the better grappling, but this is a really tough one to call. Athleticism, secondary skills and aggression could all play roles in this one.
Blob "Voodoo Child" Sapp (4-1, 2-1) v Conrad "The Joker" Mcgillicutty (4-2, 0-0)
Next up, we have a super-heavyweight fight that the fans have been clamoring over since Conrad Mcgillicutty signed with KOTB. Louisiana’s Blob Sapp has been making waves in the division recently and was very vocal in getting a high level opponent on this card. Dublin, Ireland’s Mcgillicutty - a tireless self-promoter and one of KOTB’s most popular signings in recent memory - wasted no time in calling Sapp out. The two have since engaged in a number of heated arguments, which mostly consist of their opinions over each other’s physical attributes, or lack thereof. Expect both of these men to charge in and start swinging from the opening bell.
Marty McFly (5-0, 1-0) v Simon Sims (7-2, 2-1)
We follow that amazing pairing with another high-stakes bout, this time at light-heavyweight. American Marty McFly will look to follow up his impressive KOTB debut with his fifth straight first round T(KO) against Australian kickboxer Simon Sims. Sims has really turned things around since his debut loss for the promotion and looked the best he ever has in his last outing against a dangerous clinch fighter in Diederik Boschman. This is another fight where both fighters prefer to stand and throw leather, so it’ll be interesting to see if either man chooses to show another side of their growing MMA skill set.
Eric Ashton (7-1, 2-0) v Nathan "The Constrictor" Fisher (3-1, 0-0)
Our co-main event sees the return of KOTB’s middleweight champion Eric Ashton. Ashton has taken a bit of time off since his triumph over Thatcher Halverson, but stayed busy by reaching the second round of the World Grappling Championships in St. Petersburg. He’ll look to defend his title for the first time against Canadian grappling sensation Nathan Fisher. Fisher has spent his entire career at light-heavyweight, but has taken some time since signing with KOTB to change his diet and perfect his weight cutting technique. It seems Fisher has done it correctly and should have no problems making weight come fight time. This is a really interesting matchup with Ashton’s relentless takedowns and lethal GNP against Fisher’s own world-class ground game.
Third Round "YOLO" Romero (7-0, 2-0) v Yuri "Hands Of Stone" Boyka (4-1, 1-0)
And in our main event, Cuba’s Third Round Romero will take on Russia’s Yuri Boyka in what should be a violent light-heavyweight title fight. The champion Romero has looked nothing short of unstoppable in his career so far, with all of his fights ending in knockouts in less than two minutes. In the past, we’ve seen fighters get on top and then try to protect their perfect records, but not Romero. The Cuban proceeded to call out Boyka after his title win, a man many consider to be the most dangerous fighter in the division. Boyka is another striker, but one of KOTB’s more well-rounded ones, as he has shown tight combinations, heavy kicks and devastating knees in the clinch. Overall, this fight and this card is not going to be for the feint of heart. Expect blood, concussions and violence, with a healthy serving of courage and heart.
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