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 It was the best event of GKNY to date, and a promising sign for the newly operational GAMMA franchise, GAMMA Kids NY. New York’s The Underground was packed and then some, various fight fans later confirming they had snuck in without a ticket; one of them bounced from the venue after she elbowed a male fighter in response to an ass grab.
2 titles were fought over, and 2 fighters walked away with their first taste of gold in what has become the best received event so far. Of the winners, a new #1 GKNY P4P fighter emerged and many more proved they have what it takes to be successful with GAMMA, and maybe 1 day move on to the premier Las Vegas based promotion.
Underworld 2 has set high standards for events to come and the Underworld Clothing sponsored event has become a great monthly must-see for New York’s GKNY fight fans.
So, let’s take a closer look at how things unfolded on this big night.
[Main Event] Ziadouh def Tyson by TKO (Strikes) at 01:26 of Round 1
Ivan Ziadouh (4-1) put his world class boxing on display, notching his first win with GKNY and 4th in his last 5 outings with a big TKO to become the #1 super-heavyweight contender.
It was all the Russian from the get go, cutting his opponent early on and limiting him to just 2 punches before he let loose with a brutal right hook to end the fight in the first round, his 3rd first round finish and 3rd TKO.
“The Bulldog” has had a strong start to his career, going undefeated with Epicity Productions in Vegas before joining the GAMMA feeder. The infamous Mentor Corleone manages the Legion of Doom fighter, who is now 1-1 since joining the GAMMA franchise.
Mike Tyson (8-5) came into the fight with only 1 fight lasting longer than the first round, and chalks up the 12th time he hasn’t seen a second round in 13 bouts. “IRON” records his 5th loss and is now 1-1 since joining GAMMA Kids and has dropped a fair few places with the loss, tumbling out of GKNY’s top 20 P4P fighters and is now #5 in the division.
Tyson made it known this result wouldn’t deter him, saying: “I’m going to come back stronger and more vicious than ever. I’m going to implement a brand new regiment to become more dangerous than ever.”
The winner, Ziadouh, made quick work of his post-fight interview before leaving the GKNY cage, simple stating: “Who's next?!”
[Co-Main Event] BatzCastelmore def Hardy by TKO (Strikes) at 01:23 of Round 1 to win the GKNY Light-Heavyweight title
Saying Charles BatzCastelmore (3-0) had a good night would be an understatement. The Frenchman went home with the 205 lbs title, in the process adding another TKO to his record (3), first round finish (2), has now won 3 in a row and is undefeated as a professional MMA fighter.
"D’Artagnan" ended up with the third fastest finish of the night in a fight he absolutely dominated. The new light-heavyweight champ landed 94% of his strikes, which included 4 nicely timed combos and a head kick.
Marcus Hardy (3-1) did manage a takedown after he was rocked to steady himself, but moments later the fight was back standing and BatzCastelmore was just too good with his striking, a combo knocking Hardy down once, then once more before his killer instinct kicked in and the ref had to end the fight.
The win puts a champ in the light-heavyweight division, the first to hold the belt. BatzCastelmore takes the #4 GKNY P4P spot and may be set to take on the #2 contender, Alexy Innokenti, or the newly signed Gerry Kelly. Hardy drops to #10 on the 205 lbs rankings ladder.
Hardy summed things up nicely with his post-fight speech: “It was a great fight. Both of us knew going in it was gonna be tough and I think we showcased that tonight. He just happened to get the better of me tonight.”
Putin def Rollins by TKO (Strikes) at 00:10 of Round 2 to win the GKNY Super-Heavyweight title
Beast Putin (6-1) had himself a massive night when he walked away with the super-heavyweight belt, the #1 GKNY P4P fighter rank and the KO of the night award with his TKO victory. That’s 5 straight
for the Russian and Legion of Doom ally.
“Fatherland” had Rollins rocked at the end of the first, the bell saving him from a most likely first round finish, but things didn’t get any better for the Swede. The LOD: Performance Center member, and training partner to Ziadouh, came out strong in the second with his award winning flurry that started with his deadly right hand.
Castor Rollins (2-2) was coming off a KO of the night win over Ziadouh, his 2 fight win streak stopped in spectacular fashion. The Bomb Squad affiliate immediately spoke of wanting a chance to redeem himself: “Grant me a rematch and I'll Hulk Smash your Ass!”
Once again, it was the Russian fighter that had little to say. When asked about his win, he kept it short before leaving with his belt: “I knew it.”
Pro def Catalan by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)
After a Fight of the night loss, Kyle Pro (9-3) bounced back in another one of his recent fights that have gone the distance, his 3rd in 5, and his second straight judges win. That makes it 4 wins in the last 5 fights the Ni-Vanuatu has appeared in, the last 3 with GKNY.
Both fighters were in the mood to take the action in close, clinching one another, yet Pro dominated that department, landing 60 from 86 (69%) compared to Catalan’s 4 from 4 (100%). The fight never went to the ground, and when at distance Pro still out struck the Filipino.
Mark Catalan (4-3) was coming off a Fight of the night win over Matt Pacquiao at the last Underworld event, yet didn’t have the strength to match KO nor the wrestling offence to change things up, unable to take down Pro in his 5 attempts.
Kyle “KO” Pro becomes the #5 ranked featherweight with the win.
Skywalker def Lomholt by Submission (Kimura) at 00:46 of Round 1
Anakin Skywalker (4-1) followed up on his impressive Sub of the night victory at the last Underworld event, taking just 46 seconds to earn himself his second straight round 1 submission win, making that his 3rd first round finish and his 4th submission (triangle, kneebar x2, RNC, kimura) finish out of 4 wins.
“Vader” ate a body kick before shooting in and successfully taking Lomholt to the ground. The American immediately moved into half guard and worked the kimura, the Dane helpless and unable to do anything more than tap to avoid serious injury to his arm.
That makes it 2 straight for Skywalker, his one and only defeat coming against Modified Horse at the GAMMA Kids very first event, and interestingly the only opponent he’s faced that has been skilled in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Brian Lomholt (1-1) walks away unsuccessful in his GKNY debut, Skywalker afterwards confirming why he’s been so dominant and asking for a more ‘enjoyable’ next match-up: “I would like to fight some grappling oriented fighters as it's always fun to roll with fellow grappler.”
Undercard
The Underworld 2 prelims showed great action and promise, housing both the Sub of the night and Fight of the night awards. The sub of the night went to the debutant Ohm Melet for his 23 second finish of out of form Marek Strzelba; the quickest finish of the night.
The fight of the night went to the 3rd fight on the card, Damien Parker and Miguel Garcia both walked away with 2k extra toward their earnings in a late Parker win after a really good fight.
Other notable mentions were Andre Souza with a sub win in his GKNY debut against the more experienced Jimmy Snuka. Tiago Nero took a judge’s win over Vasily Romanov. In the opener we also had Alex Rodriguez snap his 4 fight losing streak by adding another loss to the ever growing second column on Reyaldo Ramon’s record.
Undercard short results:
Souza def Snuka by Submission (Arm Triangle) at 02:52 of Round 1
Nero def Romanov by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)
Parker def Garcia by TKO (Strikes) at 03:57 of Round 3
Melet def Strzelba by Submission (Americana) at 00:23 of Round 1
Rodriguez def Ramon by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)
Awards
Fight of the night: Damien Parker vs Miguel Garcia
KO of the night: Beast Putin
Sub of the night: Ohm Melet
Underworld 2 Sponsors:
Underworld Clothing: Merchandise and event partner, the only place to go for all your underworld clothing needs.
Global Association of MMA™: The oldest, most active and organized promotion in the world! The leader in unbiased booking since creation in May 2009.
Combet LOD: Your #1 source for all GKNY betting.
Coming Up:
GKNY 9 - MC Vs Sphinx: 13 Jun 2015 @ Wild Bob's Bar - New York
Next Underworld Event:
Underworld 3: 27 Jun 2015 @ The Underground - New York
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