A Freakishly Good Elbow…

The opening round of the main event between Anderson "The Spider" Silva and Tony "The Freak" Fryklund started off as a rather cautious affair.  Fryklund circled whilst hunting for openings in his opponent’s defence but achieved little of note during this initial feeling-out period.  Silva refrained from throwing anything, opting instead for the chance to watch Frykland’s movements and assess his style.  Within a minute Silva had “The Freak” all figured out and began to open up with punch and kick combinations.  Silva’s class became evermore evident as he punctuated his combinations with knees and elbows- the effect of which was fast becoming apparent. 

In a brief period between assaults, Silva threw a backward-elbow in an uppercut sort of fashion.  After having missed with the right, Silva threw back the elbow in to the tiny gap left in Fryklund’s guard.  The description of the strike is lacking somewhat, but blame not the writer, blame Anderson Silva for using a move that is rarely if ever used in MMA.  The innovative Brazilian used the strike with great aplomb, resulting in a “you had to see it to believe it” moment.  It was this elbow that ended the night for Tony Frykland at 2:02 of round one and has doubtlessly resulted in a few seconds of footage that will be used again and again in every Cage Rage highlight reel from now on.  Apparently Silva had predicted the knockout via “Anderson Elbow”, a report that Andy Greer was later to confirm.

The rest of the fight-card for Cage Rage 16: Critical Condition was one for the hardcore fan, sporting appearances from a plethora of ex-UFC fighters.  Unfortunately, the mixture of mainstream and hardcore fan that Cage Rage attract was only represented by the latter category, with many of the mainstream perhaps opting to wait for the more anticipated card of Cage Rage 17. 

The title of the event, “Critical Condition”, turned out to be rather inapt as a large proportion of the fights ended with a verdict from the judges.  Nonetheless, this merely demonstrated the aptitude of the match-making involved.

Menne Produces a Lindland-esque Yawn-Fest…

The penultimate fight of the evening was between former UFC welterweight champion Dave Menne and UK favourite Alex Reid.  After both entrances had been made, Menne mysteriously left the cage, only to return a few moments later.  It was speculated that Menne had forgotten to wear his box.  However, nothing more was said of the incident and the bout took place as planned- although not for Alex "The Detonator" Reid.  After an unearthly crack of shins the two found their way to the matt with Menne on top; and in this position it stayed for almost three rounds.  Long periods of control and light ground ‘n’ pound from Menne were only suspended by brief periods of stand-up and the intervals between rounds.  Commendably, Reid made every effort to bring some closure to the fight when allowed to his feet, however, these periods were just too short for Reid to utilise his textbook striking.  After three dull and tiresome rounds, the judges unanimously found in favour of Menne.

There is a strong argument that the judging criteria should take note of which fighter is making the most effort to bring the fight to a conclusive end.  Menne was guilty of what Matt Lindland has been criticised for in the past, namely ‘lay and pray’.  Reid brought excitement and a willingness to finish the fight, whilst Menne’s contribution was nothing more than a toilet and bar break for those in attendance.

Upstart UK Fighter Takes on U.S Veteran…

Paul Daley was his usual self prior to this bout, issuing streams of smack-talk toward the U.S veteran Dave Strasser- Daley prophesied that Strasser had flown 5,000 miles to get knocked out.  Although this foretelling never came to fruition, Daley did impose his will and continue a relentless barrage of strikes throughout the duration of the entire bout.  The rising UK star rose just a little bit more when he made a seasoned veteran look practically average.  Daley’s strength-sapping knees and body punches gained him the upper hand in all three rounds and saw him take a unanimous judges decision.  Although a dominant performance, the knockout never really looked likely.

Russian Veteran a Welcome Newcomer…

Amar Suloev, another veteran of the UFC and former opponent of Chuck Liddell, entirely out-classed UK foe James Evans Nicholle.  Suloev’s trigger-fingers were itchy from the very first second, launching shot after shot at the massively overwhelmed UK fighter.  The eventual demise of E-Nicolle was initiated by a deleterious right hook, paving the way for a mass of unanswered punches.  On the bell signalling the end of round one, Suloev looked set to finish E-Nicolle off with some heavy ground ‘n’ pound but was unable to within time.  Nevertheless, not one single punch more was thrown as E-Nicolle and corner decided that enough punishment had been endured by the brave and hardy UK fighter.  Suloev was awarded the well-deserved victory.  Suloev would be a welcome regular at Cage Rage and a bout with Curtis Stout is well worth considering.

Stout Hunts for Big K.O After Back-to-Back Loses…

After having suffered back-to-back defeats, Curtis "Ban em Out" Stout was set to face yet another opponent who is more than capable of handing him yet another mark to go in the ‘L’ column. 

Round one saw Jorge "Macaco" Patino gain control of Stout and put him on his back.  Patino moved from position to position with the fluidity of a seasoned grappler- a rarity for a Chute Boxe fighter.  Although Stout was able to bring himself back to his feet midway through the round, Patino re-gained control and started working for a side-choke.  The bell sounded for the end of the round, and although Patino looked a little disappointed, the choke never really had Stout in any trouble.

Within the opening seconds of the second round, Patino was back in control and had Stout back where he least wanted to be.  Stout however was not willing to let himself be manhandled as he had been in the first and managed to get back to his feet.  Now back in his comfort zone, Stout threw out a stinging left hook that immediately put Patino on alert and encouraged the takedown.  The round played out with Patino continuing to control Stout, who although feisty and game, was simply unable to avoid Patino’s ground game.

Up to this point, Stout was losing on points and desperately needed a knockout.  Predictably, Patino attempted another takedown which was squandered by Stout.  Still remembering the left hook from the previous round, Patino religiously kept his right hand held very high to prevent any last-minute upset.  Although Patino was able to score a couple of takedowns throughout the round with Stout able to land some meaningful blows, neither man was able to bring an end to the bout.  The judges came to the unanimous conclusion that Patino had faired better- this time there were no arguments from Stout’s corner.

Pickett Defends Title, But Questions Remain…

After a rather contentious decision win over Robbie Olivier at Cage Rage 15, Brad "One Punch" Pickett yet again defended his title via a razor close decision.  It was suggested after Pickett’s last win that where a judge is in doubt he must always side with the champion- the same maxim applied to this decision also. 

In the opening round Japanese fighter Hiroyuki Abe matched Pickett in the stand-up exchanges as well as landing several effective takedowns.  In the second, Abe achieved further takedowns but looked as though he began to tire.  Pickett used his superior conditioning to throw punches and land kicks until the round came to a close.  As it stood after round two, the pair had taken a round each with it all left to win in the third.

The final round continued much in the same fashion as the end of the second, with Pickett imposing his stand-up skills against the ever tiring Abe.  Pickett’s clinch and knee tactics were equally as effective at sapping the strength of his Japanese opponent.  Yet in a second wind, Abe landed a mass of punches, all of which were unanswered.  To avoid any further damage, Pickett sought the double-leg takedown, only to find himself within an armbar attempt- the bell for the end of the fight rung out mid-technique.

Although many felt that Hiroyuki Abe had edged Pickett, the British featherweight champion was awarded a unanimous decision.  It seems that a truly convincing decision is the minimum requirement to topple “One Punch” from the top spot- hopefully the rematch with Olivier at Cage Rage 17 will see a satisfactory conclusion.

Buzz Scores Submission in the Fight that Never Should Have Been…

Although good match-making was alluded to earlier, Robert "Buzz" Berry massively out-classed MMA debutant Gary Rawlings in a negligent miss-match of skills.  Many in attendance were sceptical about putting a fighter with no previous professional experience in the cage with Buzz- and rightly so.  It took only forty-seven seconds for Buzz to avoid the wild swings of Rawlings, achieve the takedown and apply a key lock- a very merciful end for a fighter that should never have been there.  It is hoped that this fight does not foreshadow the outcome of putting Kiane in the cage with David "Tank" Abbott at Cage Rage 17.

“The Beast” Pounds his way to Light-Heavyweight Victory…

The fate of the vacant light-heavyweight title was to be decided by Mark Epstein and Ryan Robinson.  The bout was a three-round, ground ‘n’ pound war of attrition.  In each of the three rounds Ryan “NXS” Robinson achieved the takedown and began pounding; only to be reversed and subject to some pounding himself.  All three rounds were carbon copies of each other, and each very difficult to decide- yet a conclusion was reached nonetheless and Mark “The Beast” Epstein was awarded a majority decision. 

In retrospect, the decision must have been made based upon the affectivity of each of the periods of ground ‘n’ pound.  Epstein did appear to inflict more damage and maintained a greater level of control when on top; however, it was Robinson who achieved the takedowns.  As the takedown debate continues there will doubtless be those who thought that Robinson should have won- but it was Epstein who was awarded the victory, of which he was deserving.

The “Bad Ass” and the “Bad Boy” Acting like Bad Girls in a Bad Fight…

Barely even worthy of note is the bout between Jason "Bad Ass" Barrett and Jeremy "Bad Boy" Bailey.  The bad blood between the two was evident from the start, with both being forced to promise not to kick-off before the bell for the first round.  However, what a sorry state of affairs it is when it’s not possible to get two fighters who hate each other so much to duke it out inside the cage.  The bout lasted only 4:50 in which time Barrett managed to get himself disqualified for hair pulling of all things.  What a “Bad Ass” Barrett must feel knowing that hair pulling will now be held against him on his fight record.  In a false show of respect the two fighters left the cage leaving this writer feeling resoundingly under whelmed and disappointed.

Possibly the Shortest Debut in Cage Rage History…

An impressive victory against Robert Berry gained Georgian-born Tengiz Tedoradze the British Cage Rage heavyweight title.  With a win over James Thompson in his back catalogue, many believed that the new champ would start on a string of victories to lead him to a rematch with “The Colossus”.  Unfortunately for the Georgian, this was not the case.  Five seconds and one injurious left hook saw Tengiz disengaged from his senses, rendering Edson Drago victorious.  A rematch with Thompson seems now as likely as a bout with Pride heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko, who was in attendance for most of the evening.

And in the Rest of the Evening’s Action…

The highly anticipated bout between Jess Liaudin and Gesias Cavalcante was called off because Liaudin was sent to hospital during his warm-up.  It’s feared that he may have tried to cut too much weight and left himself too dehydrated;

Daisuke Nakamura looked impressive in his submission win over TUF applicant Michael Johnson.  The submission was achieved at 1:54 of round one via kimura;

Mustapha al Turk forced the referee to interject at 3:02 of round one with some heavy ground ‘n’ pound; and,

Mark Buchanan schooled Fereidioun Naghizadeh until the referee was forced to stop the action at 2:04 of round two owing to some heavy knees and punches.  This is not the first time that Buchanan has looked impressive and we may see him begin to work his way up from prelim to title bout soon enough.

By Peter Hugh Jones for MMA Universe