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 DFC Sin City 9 Review
by Jay Lawrence
On September 17th, 2016, the 9th edition of the Sin City enterprise brought 1928 MMA fans into Hayashi's Lounge in Las Vegas. Tomas Lindberg became the 5th DFC fighter to accumulate 4 wins in DFC (2 of which were title wins). The event scored a rating of 122.32, becoming the 5th best event in DFC history to date. With an attendance of 1928, this was also the 3rd most attended event in DFC history to date. It was an exciting event holding a title match, the debut of a world champion in Richard Fliehr, and 9 out of 10 fighters finished early with 7 of them finishing in the first round. There was blood, there was glory, some got laid, and some got laid out.
Opening Fight -
135 lbs Maxi Smut DEFEATS Byron Jones TKO (Punches) 1 00:57
Byron Jones is having a rough start to his career. He lost his first fight in 18 seconds and never got anywhere really. In this fight Byron almost didn't make weight, then when the fight started he appeared well out of shape. Jones started off aggressive and got the first punch in, but that was about it. Smut dominated the rest of the fight and within the first minute Byron was mouth-breathing on the mat, LIGHTS OUT. Smut's next fight will be against #4 ranked Bilibro Baggins on 10-01-2016
Fight 2-
170 lbs Nagarjun Sagar Singh Khema DEFEATS Costa Diego TKO (Strikes) 3 03:06
This welterweight fight was a bit of a clinch spam. By "bit" of a clinch spam, I mean Diego attempted to clinch with Khema 60 times and got it just 14 times. For some reason, Diego decided to break the clinch soon after getting it. Why do fighters do this!?!?! It took Singh 3 rounds and 3 minutes to knockout Diego, but he managed to do it. Diego was fired by his manager KLE2 after the fight and DFC hopes to sign Singh (I had to do that) for some future fights.
Fight 3-
145 lbs Mark Hunt DEFEATS Mark Gregory TKO (Strikes) 1
02:38
These two fighters have had some trouble getting the MMA world to take them serious. Both debuted great, but Gregory has been unable to find the win since then and this night was no different. Gregory managed to crack Hung with a good hook, but that just pissed Hunt off. Hunt slammed Gregory against the cage into a clinch and tore him apart from there. 2 minutes of a clinch with Hunt and Gregory was over it. Gregory got smacked with a good uppercut and the referee stopped the fight before Hunt retired Gregory. Hunt looked great in this fight and hopefully he can keep his win streak going.
Hunt is now a free agent with good skills and wouldn't be a bad pickup for a newer manager. At 3 losses in a row, Gregory has shown he is not DFC material and has unfortunately been released from his contract. DFC wishes the best for Gregory who has always been a class-act.
Fight 4-
185 lbs Jason ReConnor DEFEATS Jon Smultz Decision (Unanimous) 3 05:00
HOLY sub attempts! These guys looked like two chimpanzees trying to hump each other. Sub attempt after sub attempt, neither could gain the upper hand. Without figuring out how to force their opponent to tapout, these two left the fight up to the judges. Luckily for ReConner, he threw in some ground strikes that gave the judges something to look at. Boring fight, 67 total sub attempts, that has to be a DFC record. Hopefully the next fight will wake up the crowd after this snooze fest. I should fine these fighters for putting me to sleep.
Fight 5-
185 lbs Alexander Dippe DEFEATS Lukasz Nemec TKO (Strikes) 1 04:17
Nemec needed this fight to go to the ground, desperately. On the ground I don't think Dippe could last a minute against Nemec. However, Dippe's sprawls were on point in this fight. Dippe stayed poised and carefully executed his hits in order to stay in a good position to defend takedown attempts from Nemec. While in the clinch Dippe scored knee strike after knee strike and I am surprised Nemec's jaw is still attached. It took 20 knee strikes to take out the determined Nemec, but Dippe Got 'er Done while stile within the first round. Dippe is now on a 3 fight win streak and his next fight will be a tough test in Alfie Jackson on 10-5-2016.
Fight 6-
145 lbs Shane Myres DEFEATS Chat Watts TKO (Strikes) 1 02:45
Shane Myres is a DFC original and one of only a few fighters with 5 fights in the org. He is one of the few fighters that have been in DFC since it was once called Bad Boy Productions. Shane has had a difficult career thus far unable to get on any kind of a streak as he has yet to get 2 wins in a row or even 2 losses in a row. Batting .500%, Myres has still slowly climbed the DFC weight rankings and a win vs. the higher ranked Watts only bettered Shane's position.
This fight was not without excitement. Watts brought the fight into a clinch and opened a cut on Myers within the first minute. Myers couldn't get much going from the clinch as Watts started to tear him apart. Watts mistakenly released Myres from the clinch giving Myers some much needed breathing room. Myers tried to take this fight to the ground where he could use his his BJJ brown belt and superior wrestling skills, but Watts didn't allow Myers any chance of a takedown.
Watts brought the fight back to the clinch which seemed to be a good move for him, until Myres cracked him with a good punch to the face. Watts was rocked and Myres knew it. Myres decided now to keep the fight in the clinch and Myres moved Watts around like Watts was a drunkard at a bar. Watts tried to defend, but Myers found an uppercut through the hole knocking Watts down to his knees and forcing a finish. Myres, a ground fighter, really showing he knows how to fight on his feet too! Myers' next fight will be against Johny Vargas on 10-5-2016.
Fight 7- UNDERDOG VICTORY
145 lbs Andre Hendrix DEFEATS Raylan Steele Submission (Kimura) 1 02:56
We should just call Hendrix "The Champ". This fighter's first fight ever was for a title, and he won it. His second fight, he lost it. Hendrix left the fighting org business to try his hand in the QFC and went undefeated. After signing with DFC his first fight was again, for another title and he won it. He defended it twice before losing it to the current champ. This marked Andre's first organization fight in which he was not fighting for a title, but it was definitely no walk in the park! Raylan Steele is beast in his own regard coming into this fight undefeated. Steele got two punches in before Hendrix had him on the mat flailing like a fish out of water. In just under three minutes Hendrix squeezed in on his signature move, the Kimura. The fight was over and I sure hope Steele's arm isn't broken. Hendrix earns the Submission of the night award and Hendrix will be fighting Chat Watts in his next fight on 10-8-2016.
Fight 8-
205 lbs Dean Wesson DEFEATS Vince Collins Submission (Armbar) 1 01:27
I think Collins was out of his element a little here. Collins should've been the superior standup fighter, but he seemed sluggish on his feet. Wesson played the defensive at the start, and seemed more than happy to accept the takedown attempt from Collins, moving the fight into Wesson's comfort zone. From the ground Wesson made quick work of Collins by getting a hold of his arm and wrenching down on a strong armbar. Collins quickly tapped and this win puts Wesson on a 5-fight win streak. Wesson next fight will be against the debuting Princess Penny on 10-5-2016.
Co-Main Event-
265 lbs 3 Richard Fliehr DEFEATS James Myres TKO (Punches) 1 00:30
You really never know what you're going to get when you sign a big name fighter who fought elsewhere. In the past they have come to DFC and got their asses handed to them forcing their frustrated managers to release them soon after. Richard Fliehr won 3 out of 5 fights in the St. Petersburg DFC before he moved to DFC in Las Vegas while under new management.
Well, Fliehr can fight! and WOW he has a big punch. Fleihr took this fight to the clinch right away and from there Myres was just trying to stay alive. Fleihr attacked Myres from all angles landing every shot and the confused, disoriented Myers left his chin wide open.
A big uppercut from Fliehr found the defenseless chin and Myres was left in la-la land, covering up his head as if it were getting attacked by a swarm of bees. I don't think Myres will ever be the same after that punch. Fliehr on the other hand, looks to be a promising new recruit for DFC. Fleihr's next fight will be against the undefeated Yuri Cheryshev on 10-5-2016. Fliehr earns the KO of the night award.
Main Event- UNDERDOG VICTORY
145 lbs Tomas Lindberg DEFEATS Granat Xhaka TKO (Strikes) 5 03:25 145 lbs Title
vs
With a combined record of 9-0, these two fighters come to the ring as champions in their own right. Knocking out the best opponents DFC has to offer, these two deserved the lime light they got here today and they proved to the world they are warriors. This was a featherweight MMA rules bout between Tomas Lindberg and Granat Xhaka. Lindberg's entrance music is At The Gates - The Book of Sand. A fine choice. Both these guys have solid standup skills and neither is particularly fantastic on the ground, so let's hope for a nice standup war!
It was clear right off the start that Xhaka wanted to keep this fight in close from the clinch and Lindberg wanted to keep a distance. Xhaka took the fight into the clinch twice in this round and dominated while there, but Lindberg was quick to break the clinch and while standing at a distance Lindberg's boxing skills really shined. Lindberg landed more hits and was the clear winner of the first round.
The second round started off the same with Xhaka going to the clinch early and destroying Lindberg while in the clinch. Lindberg broke the clinch less than a minute later and picked Xhaka apart from a distance. Xhaka had the reach advantage in this fight, but Lindberg is a far superior boxer who is quick on his feet and quicker with his fists. At about the 2:30 mark, Lindberg faked a jab and through a straight right landing on Xhaka's temple.
Xhaka was clearly rocked by the punch and the fight appeared to be over here. Xhaka stayed in the fight and stayed on his feet though, like a true warrior. It didn't mean much however as Lindberg continued his onslaught like a fully automatic machine gun at a paper target. Xhaka dodged and moved the best he could, but Lindberg kept him backing up and wanted the finish; he wouldn't get it in the second round.
In the third round Xhaka went back to trying to get this fight in a clinch. Xhaka really needed to clinch with Lindberg in order to have any chance of winning this fight. Lindberg somehow kept his distance while also keeping Xhaka on his heels.
Xhaka became a beaten up moving punching bag for Lindberg. Unable to find many openings Xhaka was being completely outboxed in this round, but Xhaka was taking every shot Lindberg through and Lindberg was starting to show his lack of stamina. Perhaps Xhaka was just tiring Lindberg out in order to take advantage later.
By the 4th round all near 2000 fans at Hayashi's lounge were on their feet. Both fighters in the cage were gassed out, Xhaka looked like he was ran over by a dump truck, twice. Lindberg looked like he just got done running a marathon and he probably felt like that too after so many punches thrown. The bell ran and despite how tired the fighters were, they exploded out of their corners like it was round 1 all over again. Xhaka went for the clinch and Lindberg punished him for it.
Xhaka went into counter-mode and tried to counter Lindberg's punches. He got in a few good shots, but nowhere near the sum of punches Lindberg was landing. Xhaka was again unable to bring the fight to a clinch and Lindberg dominated yet another round. If Xhaka had any chance of winning this fight it would need to come in the 5th round.
The last round had the arena in a roar, the noise was so loud the fighters couldn't hear their own corner coaches. Both fighters were clearly exhausted and Lindberg came out in round 5 throwing more punches. A back pedaling Xhaka was taking every punch like it tickled.
The crazy guy had a smile on his face as he was literally getting pummeled into the ground. A lesser fighter would've been dropped by any of those punches, did Xhaka have morphine pulsing through his veins? How could he stay standing while taking so many hits!? Win or lose, I'm a fan of this guy by now and even the Lindberg fans were cheering for Xhaka now. Xhaka took the energy from the crowd and closed the gap on Lindberg, finally bringing the fight into a clinch again. Could Xhaka win this? Maybe! From the clinch Xhaka tried to throw some punches, but his energy was so drained he was like a wet noodle smacking a table.
Xhaka kept Lindberg in the clinch, but Lindberg found uppercut after uppercut knocking Xhaka's head back. The last uppercut looked like it could've broken Xhaka's neck. Xhaka's body was exhausted and no matter how much his brain told his body to go further, Xhaka had nothing left in the tank. Lindberg, also exhausted, found enough energy to strike Xhaka a few more times until finally Xhaka couldn't even defend himself. At 3:25 in the 5th round, the referee stopped the fight for the sake of Xhaka's health.
This was probably the best fight I have ever seen. Xhaka has one hell of a chin and took 180 punches from Lindberg who has knocked out ALL his previous opponents in the first minute. I hope these two fighters fight again one day as I would love to see this fight another time. Lindberg successfully defended his title and I'd say he deserves to wear the gold. Wow, just wow! Both fighters earned the fight of the night award, obviously!
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