SBN coverage of UFC on FX 4Mayhem in Malaysia, anyone?
With DREAM officially in the grave, ONE FC has stepped up to the plate to stake its claim as the premiere mixed martial arts (MMA) organization in Asia. To that end, it has put together a very intriguing lineup of fights for its fourth outing, "Destiny of Warriors," which goes down today (June 23. 2012)
MMAmania.com will have up-to-the-minute results and LIVE blow-by-blow coverage of the event, starting with the preliminary broadcast at 8 a.m. ET.
To watch live video of the event click here.
ONE FC 4 features former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) title contender Renato Sobral taking on Japan's finest 205-pounder, Tatsuya Mizuno. In addition, former ZUFFA poster boy Roger Huerta will try to break a long-running funk by disposing of EVOLVE MMA's Zorobabel Moreira, considered one of the top prospects in Asian MMA.
The Master of Leglocks himself, Masakazu Imanari, will also be in action.
Full results and play-by-play of ONE FC 4: "Destiny of Warriors" after the jump.
Main Event:
205 lbs.: Renato Sobral def. Tatsuya Mizuno by submission (armbar) at 0:31 of Round One
Main Card:
135 lbs.: Leandro Issa def. Masakazu Imanari by unanimous decision
170 lbs.: Adam Kayoom def. Gregor Gracie by unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Eric Kelly def. Bae Young Kwon by unanimous decision155 lbs.: Arnaud Lepont def. Brian Choi by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:38 of Round Three
170 lbs.: Zorobabel Moreira def. Roger Huerta by KO (soccer kick) at 3:53 of Round TwoPreliminary Card:
145 lbs.: Mitch Chilson def. AJ Lias Mansor by Submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:39 of Round One
170 lbs.: Marcos Escobar def. Rodrigo Praxedes by Submission (D'arce choke) at 1:40 of Round Three
155 lbs.: Peter Davis def. Kim Quek Hong by TKO at 0:55 of Round One
205 lbs.: Renato Sobral vs. Tatsuya Mizuno
Round one:Instant takedown from Mizuno, who seems to be having fun. He tries a Sakuraba cartwheel guard pass but settles for landing a big right hand and settling in Babalu's guard. Out of nowhere, though, Babalu latches onto an armbar and elicits the tap. Wow.
Final result: Sobral def. Mizuo by submission (armbar)
-end-
135 lbs.: Leandro Issa vs. Masakazu Imanari
Round one: As an Imanari fight, this is either going to be fantastic or murderously boring.
Imanari with his hands down as usual, Issa looks tensed. Head kick from Imanari blocked. Nice leg kick from Issa. Again. Spinning backfist misses for Imanari, leg kick doesn’t. Imanari’s hands at his waist at this point and has a spinning backfist blocked. Another good leg kick from Issa. Imanarai caught with a left hook coming in and goes down, but I’m not convinced that wasn’t one of his usual flops to get guard. Nice elbows from Issa on top, but I’m not sure dicking around in Imanari’s guard is a great idea. Issa still working the elbows and doing well. Nice series of left elbows. Thudding punch connects for Issa, who has no fear of Imanari’s lethal guard and has so far made mincemeat of it. Bell. Imanari needs to wind up in top position sometime this next round.
Round two: Leg kick from Issa and another. Leaping left hook from Imanari. Another solid leg kick from Issa. BIG leg kick from Issa and that wasn’t a flop as Imanari fell. He pops back up to his feet. Hard body kick from Issa, who is just eating Imanari alive in the standup. Imanari’s wacky punches aren’t getting anywhere close to their target. Spinning backfists from Imanari miss by a mile. Groin shot pauses the action. Issa with a nice takedown; he really has no respect for Imanari’s guard. Elbow from Issa and a couple more. Issa elects to disengage and stand. Left hook counter from Issa puts a stamp on a round he absolutely dominated.
Round three: Hard leg kick by Issa and another. Imanari switching stances and shots a double that isn’t even close. One-two from Issa and another big leg kick. Spinning something from Imanari misses. Leg kick and left hands from Issa and another leg kick before he takes Imanari down. Short punches from Issa, who hops out and lets Imanari up. Takedown from Issa again. He lets Imanari up and Imanari actually stuffs a couple shots this time while pushing forward. Knee from Issa when Imanari sprawls and he winds up back in Imanari’s guard. Domination by Issa.
Final result: Issa def. Imanari by unanimous decision
-end-
170 lbs.: Gregor Gracie vs. Adam Kayoom
Round one: Kayoom working the leg early. Gracie rushes in with punches and nails a nice takedown into half guard. Gracie standing over Kayoom, who is looking for the upkicks. Nice punches from Gregor coming back in. Kayoom goes for a kneebar but can’t get it and winds up back on the bottom. Gracie in side and lands a knee. Back to half. Gracie looks like he’s planning an arm-triangle but abandons it and passes to side. Gracie tries to step into mount and gets tied up in guard again. Nice knees from the top in half guard from Gregor. Nice ground-and pound from Gracie and Kayoom gives up his back while trying to get out. Big punches from the back by Gracie. Gracie pouring it on and Hume is inches from stopping this. Kayoom survives and manages to roll back into half guard. Nice soccer kick at the end from Gracie. He's owning this fight.
Round two: Leg kick from Kayoom early goes into Gregor’s groin and we have a pause in the action. Kayoom goes right back to the leg kicks when they reset. Nice takedown from Gracie, who is not on top in guard. Kayoom with the body triangle from the bottom and now goes for a leg. Gracie takes advantage and gets to half guard. Back to full. Elbows from the bottom for Kayoom, Gracie responds with punches. Body triangle again. Nice smacks from the bottom by Kayoom. Hume stands them up with fifty seconds left. Nice elbow standing and a good front kick to the jaw, both from Kayoom. Kayoom chopping with the leg kicks and lands another head kick before the bell. Gregor is exhausted and it wouldn’t surprise me if Kayoom stopped him in the next round.
Round three: Both men land in the clinch. Weak takedown from Gregor rebuffed. ANOTHER head kick from Kayoom, who looks a bit winded himself. Nice leg kick from Kayoom prompts Gregor to shoot a double. Adam defending well against the cage and lands a good knee. Adam wins up in top position, but elects to wave Gregor up. Left hand and leg kick. Gregor shoots, Adam sidesteps and soccer kicks him when he rolls, Cro Cop-Nog style. Gregor is completely wiped out but still manages to shoot another double. He finally manages to get Kayoom down and hangs around in full guard. Body triangle for Kayoom as they trade shots. Hume stands them up. Gregor shoots again and is rebuffed. Adam pounds away from top position but can’t put him away. Fight ends with Kayoom on top, and I think he earned the win.
Final result: Kayoom def. Gracie by unanimous decision
-end-
145 lbs.: Bae Young Kwon vs. Eric Kelly
Round one: Leg kick exchange and a good body kick from Kelly. Beautiful Judo throw from Kwon puts him in mount, but Kelly immediately reverses. Kwon fishes for a Kimura, but elects to find his way to his feet instead. Another great throw from Kwon gives him side control and he briefly takes Kelly’s back, but the Filipino fighter worms his way out and back to the feet. Nice knee tap from Kwon but Kelly stands again. Yet another throw from Kwon has him in side control. Krown again gets the back but is too far off to one side and gets reversed. Brief triangle attempt from Kwon provides enough room for him to return to his feet when Kelly pulls out. Nice leg kick from Kelly and a right hand. Flying knee from Kwon doesn’t connect, but he briefly gets into front headlock position before Kelly escapes and socks him in the mouth. Another good leg kick from Kelly and another. Quick punch flurry ends with Kwon landing a right. Great, close round. 10-9 Kwon.
Round two: Leg kick from Kwon. Bigger leg kick from Kelly. Slick trip from Kwon but he just can’t stay on top as Kelly makes his way to his feet. Kwon nearly takes his back standing but can’t maintain it. More-traditional double-leg from Kwon puts him on top. He gets the back again and actually has hooks in this time. Doesn’t look like he’s on there very well, but he’s fishing for the RNC. Kwon too high and Kelly slips out. Nice elbows from Kwon in the clinch. Matt Hume gives Kwon a yellow card for strikes to the back of the head, although those looks like the side of the head to me. Nice kick from Kelly, nice left hand from Kwon in return. Elbow on the break from Kelly connects. Nice body kick from Kelly; Kwon tries to respond likewise but slips and Kelly grabs his back. RNC looks extremely deep, but Kwon is saved by the bell. 10-9 Kelly.
Round three: Nice right straight from Kelly. Quick clinch and both men land hard. Good leg kick from Kwon. Beautiful double-leg from Kwon puts him on top in half. Kwon rolls back for a heel hook and Kelly decides to do the same. Kwon disengages and gets top position. Kelly tries to spin out but gets stuck in turtle position. Kwon gets hooks in but he’s just way too high on Kelly’s back. He goes for an armbar but loses position. Kwon fiddling with a leglock, but decides to just get up. Kelly takes the back standing in beautiful fashion and looks like he has the choke, but Kwon spins and lands on top in guard. Short punches from Kwon. Kwon has Kelly against the fence and is using it to actually keep him down for once. Kwon finishes with a series of punches.
Apparently, this is PRIDE-style scoring (fight in its entirety, not round-by-round), so ignore those numbers at the end of the previous round. Damn close fight, but I’ll give it to Kwon.
Final result: Kelly def. Kwon by unanimous decision
-end-
155 lbs.: Brian Choi vs. Arnaud Lepont
Round one: Both guys swinging like mad in the first fifteen seconds. Lepont the aggressor. Nice left from Lepont prompts a takedown attempt from Choi, which fails. Lepont firing away with Choi against the cage, but Choi lands a knee and they reset. Takedown from Choi stuffed. Nice uppercut from Lepont and a knee. Nice double-leg from Choi but he lands in a kimura. He passes to half and he’s safe. Lepont lets go of the sub and regains guard. Choi landing periodic ground-and-pound. Nothing devastating, but he’s landing. Shimada stands them up with a little under a minute left. Knee from Lepont, uppercuts from Choi. Takedown right at the bell from Choi. Lepont controlled the beginning, but that swung towards Choi in a big way. 10-9 same.
Round two: Friendly hug to start that second round. Choi more aggressive in the second, as Lepont seems a bit winded. Lepont grabs the plum but eats some punches. Choi shoots a double and gets it. Lepont tries to stand but gives up his back. Impressively, he shakes Choi off but the undeterred Choi shoots again. Standstill as Choi presses Lepont into the fence and the latter toys with a kimura. Choi gets the body lock but can’t get anything. They break. Nice right hand from Choi. More quick punching exchanges until Choi gets another double-leg. Choi not doing much from top position. Half-assed triangle attempt from Lepont fails. Round ends with Choi laying and Lepont fishing for a kimura. 10-9 Choi.
Round three: Good right hand from Choi has Lepont in trouble. Choi tries to pound away from the top but can’t finish him. Choi now in side control, but Lepont pops up. Another shot from Choi leads to Lepont whacking away at him with punches before dropping for a guillotine. Choi rolls out but gives up his back. Lepont quickly latches onto the choke and elicits the tap. Great comeback
Final result: Lepont def. Choi by submission (rear-naked choke)
-end-
170 lbs.: Roger Huerta vs. Zorobabel Moreira
Round one: Huerta just looks weird bald. Just pitting that out there.
Huerta aggressive early, but Zoro catches a kick and sweeps him down. Huerta finds his way to his feet quickly, though. Nice right upstairs and body kick from Zoro, but Huerta bulls his way inside and batters away with short punches. Zoro gets the Thai clinch with his back on the fence but loses it quickly as Huerta thumps away. Nice leg kicks from Zoro. Kick from Zoro is caught and released shortly thereafter. Nice left from Roger. Jab, leg kick, and head kick all land from Zoro and another head kick. Huerta roars back with solid punches. Teep to the face from Zoro and a hard leg kick. Good straight from Zoro; Huerta looks a lot more tentative now. Another leg kick from Zoro. Solid head kick from Zoro. Heurta pushes forward with punches that fall short. Hard combo from Huerta after Zoro caches a kick. Huerta finishes the round on the attack. Very close, entertaining round.
Round two: Roger bulls forward with punches and lands a handful. Flying knee from Zoro misses and leads to a clinch. Nice leg kick by Zoro. Hard left by Zoro and another. Another leg kick. Clinch. Zoro is doing a great job using his length here. Thai clinch and Zoro lands a knee while Huerta punches. Good right hands from Roger, who eats another solid leg kick. Left hook from Zoro lands, Huerta responds in kind. Huerta looks slow at the moment. Zoro unloading on the cage now with knees and punches, just battering Huerta. Roger escapes but continues eating punches HUGE straight right from Zoro drops him. Roger gets up and is eating punch after punch after knee, but he’s still going and throwing. Never mind, he’s crumbling. Roger is dead on his feet. They need to stop this. Zoro just owning him. MONSTER soccer kick from Zoro after Roger fails a takedown and Roger is completely out. Good lord, that was PRIDE-esque.
Final result: Moreira def. Huerta by KO (soccer kick)
-end-
145 lbs.: Mitch Chilson vs. AJ Lias Mansor
Round one: Lias Mansor is the first Silat fighter I’ve seen in MMA. Chilson, who cut the hammiest promo I’ve ever seen, better thank his lucky stars that there aren’t any sticks around.
“Mr. Boo”, Yuji Shimada is your ref.
Immediate takedown from Lias Mansor, but Chilson gets to his feet and lands a great throw of his own. Mitch working out of half guard and moves quickly to mount. Lias Mansor regains half before getting up and shooting a takedown of his own. Chilson pressed against the cage, but he reverses and lands a good knee in the Thai clinch. Lias Mansor desperate for a takedown, but gets sprawled on. Chilson quickly goes from front headlock position to Lias Mansor’s back and locks in the RNC. Nice work.
Final result: Chilson def. Lias Mansor by submission (rear-naked choke)
-end-
170 lbs.: Marcos Escobar vs. Rodrigo Praxedes
Round one: Apparently, both these guys have fantastic BJJ and fight out of Nova Uniao. This oughta be good.
Escobar debuting at the age of 36. Interesting.
Quick exchange early on. Escobar tries to follow an overhand right with a takedown but gets rebuffed. Thai plum for Escobar, but Praxedes takes advantage and takes him down. Praxedes now in side control as Escobar tries to hold his head down. Praxedes nearly gets his back, but Escobar regains guard and starts elbowing his opponent. He gets back to his feet and counters a Praxedes hip toss to land on top in half. Escobar putting pressure on Praxedes, who tries to shrimp out and winds up eating a knee to the head. Escobar briefly entertains a D’arce but doesn’t commit. Ground-and-pound now from Escobar, who uses the striking to pass to half. Praxedes spins out and they reset on the feet for five seconds before Escobar nails a double-leg. Escobar working out of half guard and extracts his legs into mount at the ten-second mark. Praxedes saved by the bell. 10-9 Escobar.
Round two: Ugly head kick whiffs for Praxedes and Escobar responds by lunging forward with punches into a takedown attempt. He presses Praxedes into the fence and nails him with one of the finer specimens of nut shots I’ve seen lately. Praxedes taking advantage of the five minutes and I don’t blame him.
Oh geeze, Renzo, don’t get back in MMA. Please.
Nice right once they start again from Praxedes is met by a right from Escobar, who shoots a double and presses him into the fence. Praxedes entertains a guillotine briefly before deciding to just stop the takedown instead. Knees to the leg and torso from Escobar, Praxedes catches one high but can’t do anything with it. More legwork from Escobar, but not enough to stop Hume from breaking them up. Praxedes looks exhausted, but lands an overhand right out of nowhere and drops Escobar. He tries to finish with strikes, but has to settle for side control. Escobar reverses quickly and stands up again, though. Praxedes just kinda falls over of his own accord and starts getting whacked with punches. As seen as he tries to get up, Escobar knees him in the face. Escobar moves to mount and just pounds away until the bell. Praxedes just completely wiped out at this point. 10-9 Escobar.
Round three: Escobar way, way fresher at this point as Praxedes just kinda shuffles around the ring. Escobar immediately takes him down and moves to half guard. Escobar working to pass, but Praxedes turns into him and exposes himself to a D’arce. It looks deep and it is; Praxedes taps out as the announcer continues failing to know the difference between a D’arce and an anaconda. I thought you knew better than this, Jason Chambers.
Final result: Escobar def. Praxedes by submission (D'arce choke)
-end-
155 lbs.: Kim Hock Quek vs. Pete Davis
Round one: Lenne Hardt makes everything better. Just saying.
Davis probing with the jab, but eats a leg kick. Kim counters a body kick with punches, but Hock gets caught with a spinning back kick to the face and buckles. He gets back to his feet, but Davis just explodes on him, hurling everything and the kitchen sink until referee Matt Hume calls the fight. Hock was standing, but unresponsive. Good stoppage.
Final result: Davis def. Hock by TKO (strikes)
-end-