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ITFL Review – Week 8 Part 1
We’re back for another week of International Team Fighting League and with just 3 fights left in the regular season, everyone would come out looking to close the season strong with a few wins for their team and individually to make the playoffs and climb the rankings for a better seed. This week in team action the Aces of Spades takes on the overall team leader Reaper Combat-wear. Team Hells Balls Nutrition takes on the Replacements Team, Team TFP Graphics battles it out with Team Misfits, and last but not least Team Syndicate takes on Team Kaiser in a battle for the group B lead. Let’s have a look out how the action went down this past weekend.
Si Robertson (21-5) vs. Dakota Royer (32-14)
Our night kicked off with a battle between Team TFP Graphics and Team Misfits as Si Robertson took on Dakota Royer in a fight that looked like it would be contested on the feet. Si Robertson came out the aggressor early in round 1 but was a bit sloppy with his punches and was eating plenty of counter strikes from his opponent. Dakota Royer was finding a lot of success with his strikes landing almost everything he was throwing in the first round. A big head kick by Royer opened up a nasty cut on his opponent and as soon as Royer saw blood he turned up the pressure, landing a nice jab and then a head shot that rocked him. Dakota followed that up with a nice front kick that really got Robertson breathing heavily and then a nasty uppercut knocked Robertson to the mat. Royer showed great patience waving his opponent back to his feet and then feinted a leg kick and threw a brutal super-man punch that knocked Robertson out cold!
Royer def. Robertson by 1st round KO
Artie Lange (16-13) vs. Biff Biffman (27-7-1)
The next fight on our card was again between Team TFP Graphics and Team Misfits as Biff Biffman squared off against “Everybody’s favorite punching bag” Artie Lange. After accusing Sean McDonnell earlier in the season of fight fixing Artie Lange has lost 4 of his last 5 fights and all of them by way of finish. Could the trip out of the country to go into hiding be the un-doing of Artie Lange’s career? Biffman came out the aggressor early in round 1 and it seemed like Artie Lange was a bit hesitant to pull the trigger after so many KO losses recently. Biffman was finding a lot of success landing his strikes in the first round, but the few times he missed Artie Lange really made him pay for it by landing devastating power shots. Lange was able to drop Biffman to the canvas twice in the 1st round but Biffman survived until the end of the round. In round 2 Biffman was again the aggressor stalking after his opponent and finding a lot of success with the accuracy of his punches and kicks. Lange again was very hesitant to get into striking exchanges with his opponent and only seemed to throw a strike when he had a clear opening. His lack of activity had him down 2 rounds going into the 3rd despite 2 knockdowns in the opening frame. The 3rd round was much like the previous round as Biffman stalked after his opponent landing the majority of his strikes while Lange refused to get into striking exchanges and only threw a punch when there was a clear opening.
Biffman def. Lange by 30-27 Unanimous Decision
Aran Schmeck (10-7) vs. Michael Rodalgo (23-14)
Up next was the first match-up between Team Hells Balls Nutrition as they took on the Replacements Team. Representing Team HB is newcomer Aran Schmeck as he was a last minute replacement for Garrick Ballantyne who was on suicide watch and apparently escaped out the back door when 1 of the guards weren’t looking. His opponent is Michael Rodalgo who is usually a ground specialist but being matched up against another grappler who he is superior to on the feet I wouldn’t be shocked to see him keep this fight standing. The first round got underway and Rodalgo immediately pushed is opponent into the clinch position. After a few landed strikes Rodalgo broke from the position and then threw a right hand that missed and was countered with a takedown into full-guard. Rodalgo immediately started to open up his submission game from his back but after one of his attempts failed he allowed his opponent to move into side-control. Schmeck started to use his ground strikes to try to set up his submission game as he switched back and forth between arm-triangle and kimura attempts. When Schmeck heard there was only 10 seconds left in the round he really went after a kimura attempt and was able to get his legs above his opponents head and it didn’t take long for Rodalgo to tap as his arm came right out of the socket.
Schmeck def. Rodalgo by 1st round Submission (kimura)
Bam Boon 1 (12-13) vs. Maximus Scott (31-12)
Another contest between Team Hells Balls and the Replacement Teams was next as Bam Boon 1 looked to get his first victory of the tournament when he took on the very well-rounded Maximus Scott. The first round got under-way and Boon 1 landed a big hook that opened up a cut on Scott right in the opening moments of the fight. Scott started looking to wear his opponent down with leg kicks and was finding a lot of success landing that strike. Boon 1 did manage to land a few more strikes throughout the round but it seemed like he gassed himself out trying to put Scott away early and once Scott saw his opponent was getting tired he really started trying to put him away. Due to Boon 1 getting tired he started to get sloppy and started letting his hands drop. Scott took full advantage of that landing a nice jab followed by a right hook that put Bam Boon 1 out cold.
Scott def. Boon 1 by 1st round KO
Andre Toulon (15-14) vs. Dirk Diggler (24-8)
Andre Toulon came into this tournament as a late replacement for retiring fighter Ogmundur Girsurrson and had a hard-fought unanimous decision lost to Greco Roman in his debut. His second fight in our tournament didn’t get any easier facing an elite kick-boxer in Dirk Diggler. The first round got under-way and Andre Toulon came out the aggressor but Diggler was doing a good job not eating strikes as he looked to land powerful counter shots. Toulon started to find his range a little bit better and jumped out to a lead which he held until the end of the round. Dirk Diggler came out throwing more strikes early in round 2 and a nice jab opened up a cut on his opponent in the first minute of the round. The two fighters traded strikes back and forth on the feet for the entirety of round 2 but Diggler was landing the harder blows and we had an even fight heading into round 3. Andre came out more aggressive early in round 3 but was missing with most of his strikes. After a lunging right hand missed by Toulon, his opponent countered with a flying knee and then followed it up with a hook that managed to get around his opponent’s defenses and open up his cut even worse. Toulon kept coming forward for the rest of the round but Diggler did a nice job landing big counter shots and after another nice jab Toulon’s cut was really started to bleed badly. These two warriors really let loose to close the round and after 3 exciting rounds we headed to the judge’s for a decision.
Diggler def. Toulon by 29-28 Unanimous Decision
Karl Thomas (21-11) vs. Edward Richtofen (9-2)
Our main-card got underway with the 4th fight between Team Misfits and Team TFP Graphics on this first card and the Misfits entered with a slight 2-1 lead. Team TFP Graphics sent their talented young kick-boxer to the cage to try to even this thing up as he took on elite muay-thai specialist Karl Thomas. The first round got under-way and both fighters came out opening up with a crisp kick-boxing game. Karl Thomas was really trying to get this fight to the clinch early and finally managed it just before the minute mark of the round. The two fighters traded shots briefly against the cage before Thomas broke the clinch and circled back to the middle of the cage. Karl Thomas and Edward Richtofen traded strikes back and forth on the feet for the remainder of what was a really close round. Karl Thomas came out really aggressive in round 2 and was managing to land the majority of his strikes, but when Thomas shook his hands off, looking to compose himself he took a jab to the jaw that rocked him. After Richtofen missed wildly with a right hand, his opponent grazed him with a counter head kick that could’ve been bad news had it landed cleanly. Thomas then took the fight into the clinch position and opened up a cut on Richtofen with a big knee to the head. The two fighters battled for position against the cage until the end of another close round. In round 3 Thomas came out and immediately engaged his opponent into the clinch position. The two traded strikes against the cage for over a minute before separating and exchanging on the feet for the last 4 minutes of the round. After 3 closely contested rounds we headed to the judge’s scorecards.
Richtofen def. Thomas by 30-27 Unanimous Decision
Rage Blade (30-20-2) vs. Thomas Billington (29-13-2)
Up next on the card is our first match-up between Team Aces of Spades and Team Reaper Combat-wear as the Aces sent out their elite boxer Rage Blade to take on the former Olympic wrestler and ADCC champion Thomas Billington. The first round got under-way and both fighters came out looking to dictate the pace of the striking and both guys were landing a fair amount of their strikes. A jab by Billington found its way through Blade’s defenses and opened up a cut on him, then a little later in the round Blade threw a right and left that both missed and gave up a counter takedown into half-guard. Blade did a nice job controlling his opponent and forced a ref stand-up but then immediately gave up another takedown. He again controlled his opponent until the referee was forced to stand up the fight and then was immediately put on his back by Billington. Rage Blade came out and forced the clinch position early in round 2 but after two minutes of very little action the referee was forced to separate the two fighters and they went back to striking at a distance. Neither fighter was landing a high percentage of their strikes over the next minute but Billington eventually shot in and got a nice takedown into side control and held his opponent down for the majority of the time left in the round. Billington came out landing strikes early in round 2 and 1 of his shots to the head early in the round rocked Blade and Billington followed it up with a nasty left hook that violently twisted his opponent’s head around knocking him out cold.
Billington def. Blade by 3rd round KO
Dynamite Nixon (20-15) vs. Dragon Slayer (11-3-1)
Next on the card is another fight between the Aces of Spades and Reaper Combat-wear as Dynamite Nixon faces the point’s leader so far in the season in Dragon Slayer. Our first round got under-way and Dynamite Nixon got this fight to the ground with a good takedown into guard early in the round. Dragon Slayer looked for a submission off his back but then Nixon dropped back looking for a leg-lock but he allowed Slayer to get on top in his guard. After another failed submission attempt by Nixon, Slayer managed to pass into half-guard and then started to look for submission of his own. The two fighters traded submission attempts on the ground for the rest of the round. Slayer came out and landed a big head kick that opened up a cut on Nixon early in round 2. Dynamite Nixon was pretty sloppy with his strikes early in round 2 and ate a few counter shots for his mistakes. Dragon Slayer really started to look comfortable on the feet moving forward and landing a large percentage of his strikes. An overhand left that landed by Slayer rocked his opponent and followed it up with a nasty uppercut that sent Nixon tumbling to the mat. After a hail of unanswered strikes on the ground by Slayer the referee was forced to jump in and save Nixon.
Slayer def. Dynamite Nixon by 2nd round TKO
Jax Teller (13-7) vs. Karl Denke (28-9-1)
Our co-main event of the evening was the 5th and decisive fight between Team Misfits and Team TFP Graphics as elite muay-thai specialist Jax Teller takes on elite boxer and former Olympic wrestler Karl Denke. The first round got under-way and both fighters traded combinations before Karl Denke managed to get the fight to the ground with a nice takedown early in the round. Teller did a nice getting the butterflies but when he tried to sweep Denke managed to pass into side-control. Jax Teller tried to escape and gave up his back but then managed to scramble back into half-guard and control the position until the referee stood the fight back up. Denke immediately drug the fight back to the ground and though Teller controlled the position and forced another stand-up with a minute left in the round he just spent too much time on his back in round 1. Teller came out clinching early in round 2 but immediately broke the position, then after a missed leg kick by Teller his opponent landed a counter takedown into guard. Karl Denke eventually moved to half-guard and then into the mount position and after a few big strikes from mount you could see he really hurt Jax Teller. Denke let Teller get back to half-guard though and he managed to hang on until the end of the round but would need to make something happen in round 3 if he had any hope of pulling this fight out. Karl Denke got the fight to the ground again early in round 3 but Teller used the cage to get the fight back to the feet in the clinch position. Denke eventually separated and we were back to trading strikes at a distance. Jax Teller tried to get the fight to the clinch a few times late in the round and when he did manage to get it there he landed a nice elbow over the top that opened up a cut on his opponent. Denke landed a nice single-leg takedown against the cage to finish the round and we went to the judge’s scorecard.
Denke def. Teller by 30-27 Unanimous Decision
Jan Dudek (23-9-1) vs. Tweedle Dee (27-5-1)
Up next is the main event of the evening as we have our first contest between Team Kaiser and Team Syndicate Nutrition. Tweedle Dee asked for this fight as he was hoping for a finish to climb the rankings in the individual rankings. His opponent Jan Dudek wasn’t happy with the fight pick thinking he didn’t stand much chance in this fight. Tweedle Dee came out pushing the pace early in the first round and closed the distance and pushed his opponent against the cage in the clinch position early in the round. Dee managed to pull-guard against the cage and immediately started working his submission game from his back. Dudek managed to avoid the submission attempts and passed nicely into side-control, but he just controlled the position from the top and the referee eventually stood these two fighters back up. Once back on the feet Dudek landed a nice jab that opened up a big cut on his opponent but Dee closed the round strong and won the round. Tweedle Dee came out and got a nice takedown early in round 2 but Dudek did a nice job avoiding damage and forced the ref to stand the fight up. Dee then clinched Dudek up against the cage and the two battled for positioning against the cage for the rest of the round. Dudek was down on the score-cards going into the last round and he’d really need to make something happen. Dee came out and clinched early in the round though and the two battled for position against the cage for well over a minute before Dee landed a nice trip takedown into half-guard. Dee managed to control from that position up until the end of the round and we went to the judge’s scorecards.
Dee def. Dudek by 30-27 Unanimous Decision
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