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 HIGHLAND GAMES 26 PREVIEW
Matt Downes (2-2) Vs Chiyono Fuji (2-1) – Heavyweight
Two Highland Games 1 originals take to the cage for this opening contest.
Matt Downes debuted for the org with a 1-0 record, a submission victory over for Highland Games attraction Eddie Kilpatrick. A win over journeyman Samuel Jackson set him up for a clash with Thor Heyerdahl. Considering the skills Thor has shown since then, its easy to see that the contest came a little too early for Downes. Another loss to now retired Vincent Cruz put a black mark on the early career of Downes, and now it would seem that a win is necessary for him to continue his Highland Games career.
To be honest, I’m bewildered at how Fuji’s hype hasn’t picked up by now. In all 3 of his contests for the company, Fuji has picked up post-fight bonuses. A record setting 5 second KO, which has since been matched by Bobby Hughes, set the stage for a promising career. A fight of the night scrap with Zeca Fulero ended in another first round victory. The fight earned Fuji a fight with Mib Louie, with potential title implications in the balance. Louie completely outclassed the Japanese fighter, sending him to the canvas 3 times in 2 minutes and bloodying him up so badly that the referee was forced to call it.
The bookies favourite for this fight is Chiyono Fuji with odds sitting at 1.67 to 2.00.
Anatoly Petkrovic (5-1) Vs Hideki Higkiko (4-1) – Lightweight
Petkrovic is a member of HG owner Callum McGregor’s own stable of fighters. The Azerbaijan native has looked impressive thus far in his career, suffering just one defeat at the hands of current number 1 contender Jack Stick in his fifth outing. Despite winning 5 of his 6 contests, Petkrovic has yet to beat the top tier of the division. He will do that when he fights Hideki Higkiko.
Hideki hails from Osaka, Japan, and recently switched his management after his 2 minute knockout loss to Scooby Ali in his last outing. Now under the guise of Joe Kingpin, Hideko looks to increase his record to 5-1 by utilizing his fantastic kicking ability mixed with his stellar takedown defence.
With the grappler challenging the striker here, it’s expected that the winner of this fight will be just one or two more victories short of a title shot, but for the loser, it’s a long descent towards the bottom of the division.
Ryne Woodsmall of New Age Betting has this fight at 1.55 – 2.20 for the Japanese striker.
Piotr Wyspianski (4-1) Vs The Fighter (3-1) – Middleweight
The next preliminary bout pits Highland Games newcomer Piotr Wyspainski against 3-1 jiu jitsu specialist The Fighter.
Both men suffered a loss to Massa Hurmaaja in their last contest, with Pitor suffering a first round submission at AFL 16 while Fighter went the distance at the 18th Highland Games event.
“Wyspa” is a muay thai expert, and he added to his impressive knockout ability with a kneebar submission win over Lister Man on the independent circuit. With his all round game ever improving, Piotr will want a win in this fight so he can prove that Massa is not the be all and end all of his career.
Looking to take the fight to the ground early will be The Fighter. With three straight submission wins to his name, including an impressive kimura debut over Matthew Michaels, Fighter has proven to be a dangerous foe for anyone in the division. Current contender Massa Hurmaaja, who’s coming off a first round submission victory over Grant Morrison, spent nearly 15 minutes on the floor with Fighter and was unable to put him away. Even more impressively was that it looked like Fighter was the better grappler, while Massa was able to be more offensive.
Like the fight before it, this fight is all about Fighter’s ability to take the fight to the ground, otherwise he’ll be in for a rough night against Wyspa.
New Age calls it Piotr Wyspianski – 1.75, The Fighter – 1.89.
Benny Askren (3-1) Vs Keijo Virtanen (3-0) – Heavyweight
Benny Askren is a long time competitor in the Highland Games heavyweight division and is yet another destructive clinch striker that excels inside the cage. With a track record quite similar to the 205 number 1 contender LightHeavy Weight, Askren has stopped all 3 of his victims by cuts as a result of his lethal elbows in the pocket. The only blemish on Asrken’s record was against top competitor Jacek Trzebiatowski where he was taken down and controlled across the distance.
Bringing his slick submission skills to the cage for a second time, Keijo Virtanen is looking to make it 4-0 in this contest on December 14th. The gameplan for Virtanen is simple, drag the fight to the floor and utilize his BJJ Brown Belt to lock on a submission. In his last trip to the cage, Virtanen managed to earn a submission of the night with an armbar victory over Barry Allen.
New Age gives it the same odds as the previous fight, 1.75 for Askren and 1.89 for Virtanen.
Aleksandar Mihaylov (3-0) Vs Razor MuayThai (3-1) – Middleweight
Fighting out of the small Polynesian island of Tavalu, Alexsandar Mihaylov is sure to bring something different to the cage when he makes his debut. With knockout victories in all 3 of his professional contests, it’s not hard to see why he comes into this fight with a lot of hype behind him. Aleksandar’s style is to utilize all aspects of his heavy handed hits, trying to take his opponent’s head off at range or switching it up and moving into some dirty boxing.
Looking to remove Mihaylov from his undefeated streak is Razor MuayThai. This marks his fourth fight in Highland Games after 3 straight first round knockouts. Razor’s MMA debut was against Jonah Sorentino, a current top contender who has proven himself time and time again. Wins over Domingo Rojo, Ramulus Artemis and Jack Sock have put an exclamation mark on the abilities of this muay thai fighter, and a win here puts him one step closer to challenging for the belt.
Alexksandar Mihaylov – 1.90 / Razor MuayThai – 1.74.
Jacek Trzebiatowski (4-1) Vs Ali Mouba (3-0) – Heavyweight
Jacek returns to the cage as one of the top fighters in the org. An early loss to Mib Louie, which Jacek unimpressively tapped out to strikes, made people doubt that he would ever achieve greatness. Bouncing back with wins over Rape Alarm, Benny Askren and Kellen Patrick, Jacek has cemented his abilities and overwritten the L with dominant performances. Jacek could be chasing down a title shot with a victory, or perhaps even more appealing would be the opportunity to even the scorecard against Louie.
His opponent is one of the most hyped fighters ever to step into Highland Games in his debut. Ali Mouba is cocky and confident, but above all he is capable. Knockout out independent vet Avengers Avenge in his debut, Mouba started what would be an impressive run. A decision victory over Fray Bentos, followed by a submission win in the main event of the short lived Island Champions, Mouba knows what it’s like to have the spotlight on him and will look to showcase his wrestling skills to the world against Jacek.
Astonishingly, Jacek Trzebiatowski comes into this fight as the biggest underdog on the card tonight. New Age betting has him 2.60 – 1.40 down, showing the hype Mouba brings into this one.
Pedro Lazaro (4-1) Vs Potter Dunn (5-2) – Heavyweight
Pedro Lazaro has gone from strength since joining Highland Games and improves every time he competes. Starting his career under the Scottish flag, Lazaro took on fellow promotional newcomer Mib Louie. Despite seeming to get the better of the striking exchanges and controlling in the clinch, Lazaro lost after eating a devastating head kick. Rebounding after the defeat with back to back unanimous decision wins over Trunk Slamchest and Mateusz Puszke, the first major challenger since Louie came in the form of Theros Staal. Staal was on a two fight winning, ending both opponents before the end of the first round. Not only did Lazaro defeat Theros Staal, but he knocked him out, picking up Fight of the Night in doing so. Currently ranked 10th on The Island’s HW rankings, a win here over Potter Dunn would definitely put Lazaro into possible contention for the title.
Looking to bring Lazaro’s hype train to a screeching halt is experienced independent fighter Potter Dunn. With all of his professional victories coming by way of submission, it’s very easy to see what the gameplan for Dunn will be when he takes on Pedro. Dunn’s mixed it with some fellow experienced fighters. Dimentio Boychello, Magnus Cross and Gunnar Nelson are just a few of the Island veterans that Dunn has shared the cage with. Despite this, one fight in AFL is the only organisational experience Dunn has faced. With all 6 of his other contests taking place on the independent circuit, it’s time for Dunn to step onto the main stage and show his jiu jitsu skills to the world.
Potter Dunn is expected to be the favourite coming into this contest. 1.61 – 2.08.
Andrya Ignatov (5-1) Vs Chikere Morce (4-1) – Heavyweight
Ignatov comes from a team of greats, with four of his stable mates holding championship belts under the guidance of Eddie Roach. His Island training partner, Andrei Alexeyev, will be looking to add a 5th title to the cabinet when he takes on Barney Gumble for the HG 265 strap at Highland Games 28. Andrya Ignatov feels like that opportunity could have been his. After making it 5 straight with just one fight going past the first round, Andrya made his Highland Games debut against a man who’s name has been repeated several times in this breakdown; Mib Louie. After struggling to secure his trademark clinch, Ignatov fell back on his kickboxing. Despite looking okay, he was in there with a much more talented striker. At 1:59 of the first round, Louie launched with a tremendous flying knee which say Ignatov crash to the mat. I know personally that he is furious with the defeat and vows to leave a path of destruction behind him on his road to redemption.
Chikere Morce has proved me wrong since he made his debut. Once dubbed as “the most boring fighter in the promotion”, he has finished his last two opponents. Jason Newstead was stopped by knees in the clinch, and Morce even walked away with a Knockout of the Night bonus with his head kick which dispatched Chris Dotson. The one scar on Morce’s record is to Diamond Andy, who in similar fashion to Ignatov’s sole loss, appeared to be the superior all round striker. This hasn’t held Morce back from proving to the world that he can be an exciting and impressive feature on any card, and if he can make a statement against Ignatov tonight, the elite of the division will most certainly be put on notice.
Morce equals Jacek Yrzebiatowski’s underdog status at 2:60, while Ignatov is tonight’s biggest favourite with an impressive 1.40 on paper.
Ludko Struja (4-1) Vs James Helm (4-1) – Light Heavyweight
Struja is on a title chasing mission in Highland Games after going 4 straight since joining the organisation. A debuting loss to experienced submission machine Arnaldo Guiosa bad been more than made up for with four dominant ground and pound victories. In his last outing, it was the biggest test of Struja’s short career. Momo La Brute started his career with a perfect 5-0 record, and after a 0-2 slip, it seemed like La Brute was ready to destroy the division. In addition, Brute’s only two losses were by submission, something Struja had not really shown in his career. The test didn’t faze Ludko one bit. At 1:30 of the first round, Struja overcame an early cut to bring the fight to the floor. From there, it was simply routine for the Croatian bruiser, securing his fourth straight TKO in the first round in the second minute.
James Helm has flew under the radar so far in the company. An unimpressive start say him with his debut by unanimous decision, then submit under the weight of Eduardo Massa Alacantara’s strikes. Helm considered retirement then and there, but he maintained focus and bounced back with a boxing master class against Yukazi Hirouni. Then, when signed to Highland Games, it was an opportunity for redemption for 26 year old. Taking on Alacantara one more time, James Helm took just 26 seconds to land a hellacious overhand right which send his opponent crashing to the canvas. This was by far the greatest moment of James Helm’s life, and he continued the momentum with a 47 second finish of Huff Tuff. On a three fight win streak, James Helm can put himself right into the elite of the division.
N.A.B. sees this as Helm’s fight, 1.74 to 1.90.
Amine Nesquik (5-1) Vs Alexey Juralev (4-1) – Heavyweight
Nesquik is furious following his loss to Andrei Alexeyev in his last outing. This was all that stood between him and a shot at the gold, and unfortunately, after two rounds of domination, Nesquik was caught sleeping and caught with a gigantic head kick. This was a fighter who was under 2 minutes away from his dream, and instead of was send clambering down the rankings, forced to rebuild the reputation he maintained before entering the contest. Amine comes into fights with devastating knockout power in his hands, and switches between distance fighting and the clinch game in an effort to put a beating on his opponents from anywhere the fight takes place. During his time in UltimateXC, Nesquik picked up two fight of the night titles, in addition to Knockout of the Night in the promotion’s inaugural event. In Highland Games, it was a win over experienced jiu jitsu master Jose Juarez that allowed him to burst on the scene. Still on the cusp of getting a title shot, Nesquik desperately needs a win in this fight to keep his dream of becoming the Highland Games heavyweight champion alive.
Knockout power doesn’t get any more correctly personified than Alexey Juralev. This man has won all of his 4 victories within the very first round, picking up Knockout of the Night in two of them. At Highland Games 2, Juralev suffered a disappointing head kick loss to kickboxing specialist Christian Long. To respond, Juralev would go through fan favourite Eddie Kilpatrick, Jonathan Soto and former main eventer Diamond Andy to establish himself as one of the most powerful hitters that we have seen inside the Highland Games cage. There is no man walking the face of the earth that puts fear into the heart of Alexey Juralev, and he is supremely confident that anyone who has the testicular fortitude to stand across the cage from him will be met with a swift and clean knockout loss on their record. A win in this fight gives Juralev some options. He will be ranked in the top bracket, and be one or two wins shy of a title opportunity. One fight that you can be sure he’ll be eyeing up is a potential clash with the man who previously bested him; Christian Long. Wiping the only black mark off of his record would put Alexey Juralev in a very advantageous position.
Nesquik will be the underdog in this fight, coming in at 2.00 to Juralev’s 1:67.
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