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UK Invasion presented by Soul Supremacy Fight Club- Review
Hello, Steve Hickson here with your review of UK Invasion.
Jake Locker (0-1) vs. Wilson Cricket (0-2)
The first fight of the evening was a super heavyweight fight between winless fighters Jake Locker and Wilson Cricket. Cricket entered the bout coming off a quick loss in his debut, while Locker was making his debut at super heavyweight. Locker shot in immediately with a takedown. From there he passed to side guard, and locked in an arm triangle. Cricket slipped his head out, but Locker held onto the arm and locked in an armbar to end it.
Winner by submission Jake Locker
Toberticus Kelltonville (21-22) vs. Shane Jackson (7-6)
The next fight was a heavyweight showdown between former title challenger Toberticus Kelltonville and Shane Jackson. Kelltonville is the more well rounded of the two, while Jackson is the much better wrestler. The fight started with Jackson throwing a myriad of strikes, but landing nothing. Kelltonville countered with a takedown, but stood up only to be taken down by Jackson. Jackson was unable to land anything from the top, and was eventually swept. Kelltonville moved to mount, but the round ended before he could do much damage. Jackson started the second by clinching up with his opponent. Kelltonville used it to pull guard. He was active with submissions from the bottom, but Jackson fought them off and landed some good shots from guard before moving to mount and attempting his own submissions. Kelltonville was able to get up late, but didn’t have time to work any strikes. The third round started with both fighters throwing strikes. Kelltonville caught Jackson off guard, and landed a takedown into mount. From there he was able to slide up Jackson’s body, and grab an armbar to force the tap at 2:58 of the first round.
Winner by submission Toberticus Kelltonville
Jermain King (1-1) vs. Randy Royale (2-9-1)
The third fight of the evening was a light heavyweight fight between Jermain King and Randy Royale. Both fighters are primarily strikers, with Royale specializing in boxing while King is a muay thai fighter. Royale tried to take it to the ground early, but King put him down with a big head kick. Royale got up, but was floored by right from King. Royale got up again, and again was sent to the floor. This time King followed him and ended it at only :28 of the first round.
Winner by tko Jermain King
Lloyd Mayweather (0-0) vs. Eddie Willers (0-0)
The fourth fight featured two debuting fighters in the lightweight division, Lloyd Mayweather and Eddie Willers. The fight started with Willers landing some punches. Mayweather tried for a takedown, but was dropped by a Willers right hook. He got back up, but was dropped by a straight right and finished at :22 of the first round.
Winner by tko Eddie Willers
Rusty Bullworth Jr (6-4) vs. Shawn Jackson (10-7-1)
The fifth fight was a heavyweight fight between former title challenger Rusty Bullworth Jr and Shawn Jackson. Both fighters rely on wrestling, so it was no surprise to see Jackson get a takedown immediately. Jackson spent the next two minutes throwing elbows and punches, but didn’t land much before a referee standup. Jackson showed some good striking, but opted to again take it to the ground. He quickly moved to mount, and a few strikes later Bullworth Jr was out cold. The win has earned Jackson a shot at the heavyweight title.
Winner by knockout Shawn Jackson
Bruce Reagan (3-2) vs. Maliki Yoder (2-0)
The first fight on the main card was a super heavyweight fight between current title holder Maliki Yoder and Bruce Reagan. This was a rematch from the justification card which Yoder won by first round knockout. Yoder clinched early then, after some stalling, landed a big knee and took the fight to the ground by pulling guard. Yoder quickly hit a switch, and landed in mount. From there he landed a barrage of unanswered strikes until the referee stopped it at 1:27 of the first round.
Winner by tko Maliki Yoder
Juri Boyka (4-6) vs. Luke Dowson (0-1)
Next up was a heavyweight fight between Juri Boyka and Luke Dowson. Both fighters enter the fight looking to end their losing streaks. Boyka initiated an early clinch, and proceeded to land multiple knees. Dowson tried to fight back, but was unable to keep up with Boyka’s work rate. The second round played almost exactly the same as the first, with Boyka securing an early clinch and landing knees at will. The third round went the same as the previous two, with Boyka dominating from the clinch. All three judges scored it 30-27 for Boyka.
Winner by unanimous decision Juri Boyka
Erik Everlast (5-5-1) vs. Mike Materson (7-7)
The next fight was a light heavyweight fight between company newcomer Erik Everlast and former two time title challenger Mike Materson. Both fighters are very well rounded, with Materson holding a slight edge if the fight goes to the ground. Knowing he had the advantage, Materson got a quick takedown. Everlast was able to use a sloppy submission attempt to sweep, and get back to his feet. On the feet, Everlast seemed to be the only one willing to engage. Materson spent most of the round trying for a takedown. Materson finally got it back down, and landed some strikes from guard before Everlast again swept and got back to his feet. The second round started the same as the first, with Materson landing the takedown and Everlast sweeping to get back up. This time though, Materson got it back down without taking much damage and worked some good strikes to finish the round. Materson landed another takedown early in the third, and again Everlast got up quickly. Materson then landed another takedown, but finally started to work on multiple submissions. Everlast fought them off, but could not get back to his feet. All three judges scored it 29-28 for Materson.
Winner by unanimous decision Mike Materson
Ace Espinoza (4-3) vs. Sean Dignam (18-10-1)
The co-main event was a light heavyweight fight between Ace Espinoza and Sean Dignam. Espinoza is a former title challenger and prospect with great muay thai and jui jitsu to match. Dignam is a journeyman fighter with average striking, but a pretty good ground game. Dignam used his superior wrestling to take the fight down immediately. From there, both fighters were very active with Dignam working mostly strikes and Espinoza throwing up some submissions. Midway through the round Espinoza was able to escape and take Dignam’s back, but the fight was stood up for a lack of action. The round ended with Dignam landing another takedown. Espinoza did a better job of keeping it standing in the second, and landed some good knees from the clinch. Dignam eventually did get the takedown about a minute into the round. This time Espinoza was much more active off his back, as he attempted ten submissions during the round. Dignam continued to work strikes with a couple sub attempts late, but Espinoza probably stole the round from the bottom. Dignam landed another early takedown in the third. This time Espinoza was much less active and Dignam controlled him with strikes from guard until a referee standup. After some leg kicks from Espinoza, Dignam was able to land a takedown to end the round. This marked the first time either fighter had went past the third round, so we really got to see their cardio. The fourth round started with an Espinoza clinch, and he used it very well. Espinoza landed almost at will from the clinch, with Dignam unable to stop anything. Dignam seemed to be gassed as the fight was turning heavily in Espinoza’s favor. The fifth rounded started similar to the last with Espinoza picking Dignam apart. Dignam was however able to get it back to the ground a minute into the round. It seemed Espinoza might win another from the bottom, until Dignam advanced to mount late and landed a flurry of shots. Dignam was unable to finish it, so it went to the judges. The judges scored it 48-47 Dignam, 48-46 Espinoza, and 47-47 for a draw. The decision basically hinged on the fourth round, with all three judges scoring 10-8 for Espinoza.
Match is declared a draw
Kuma Nelson (10-0) vs. Kain Velazquez (13-3)
The main event was a light heavyweight matchup between Kuma Nelson and the champion Kain Velazquez. Nelson is a well rounded fighter that has been dominant in his young career. Velazquez is a world class striker who is recognized as the greatest fighter in SSFC history, and the only member of the SSFC hall of fame. He has never been out of the first round in SSFC and has only twice gone past the first minute. That would all change tonight. The first round started off with both fighters looking for a knockout. Velazquez was more aggressive early, but Nelson was able to counter effectively and keep the fight even. After a brief clinch that didn’t provide much action, Velazquez started to find his rhythm. Velazquez landed a right hand on the button and dropped Nelson. Velazquez didn’t follow, and Nelson was able to survive the remaining minute on shaky legs. The second round started off with Velazquez controlling the fight with striking, until Nelson landed an illegal strike to the groin causing a brief stoppage. The round continued with Velazquez winning the standup battle, and Nelson mainly scoring with shots to the body and legs. Nelson was able to get a late clinch and work some small punches on Velazquez. The third round started with Nelson getting the better of the early exchanges. Velazquez started to take things over about a minute in, but Nelson continued to land shots to the body and legs that really seemed to be affecting Velazquez. The fourth round showed that Nelson’s game plan was finally starting to work, as Velazquez seemed to be moving slower and starting to gas. Nelson took advantage and really started to work Velazquez over in the clinch. The fifth round saw more of the same from Nelson. The body shots really took a toll on Velazquez, as it seemed he might completely gas out, but somehow he was able to summon everything he had left to attack late and try to get the knockout but Nelson ate everything he had as the round ended. The judges scored it 48-47 Nelson, 48-47 Velazquez, and 48-47 for the winner and still light heavyweight champion Kain Velazquez.
Winner by split decision Kain Velazquez
What a night of fights that was. Espinoza vs. Dignam would probably have won fight of the night on any other card, except this one. Velazquez vs. Nelson was by far the best fight in SSFC history. Let’s hope this is a sign of things to come, as this was the highest rated card in SSFC history. Stay tuned for our next card, where both the heavyweight and bantamweight titles will be contested.
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