World Victory Road "Sengoku V" Results
by Robert Sargent
Beginning their inaugural Middleweight Grand Prix, World Victory Road kicked off the tournament at "Sengoku V" with four bouts that saw Jorge Santiago, Kazuhiro Nakamura, Siyar Bahadurzada and Yuki Sasaki all advance to the next round.
Though Santiago's battle with Logan Clark was excellent, the tournament was marred by the unsportsmanlike conduct of Bahadurzada and lacklustre remaining qualifying bouts.
Alexandre "Xande" Ribeiro vs Takashi Sugiura
Ribeiro, a five-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, surprised many by keeping the fight standing and holding his own in the striking exchanges, eventually finishing the fight with a third-round knee that opened up a nasty cut over Sugiura's eye.It was Ribeiro who pushed forward with strikes early in round one, landing a big right hook and following it up with a head kick. He tried for a takedown, but could not get Sugiura to the ground. The fight continued on the feet and neither fighter could land any damaging blows. Ribeiro eventually stunned Sugiura with a right cross and scored a quick takedown. Moving to mount, Ribeiro landed strikes from the top before trying unsuccessfully for an armbar just before the bell.
Round two was much more even, as Sugiura prevented Ribeiro from scoring any takedowns or damaging strikes. The round was contested almost entirely on the feet, with neither fighter having a significant advantage. As the round neared its end, Ribeiro finally managed to score a takedown, but had too little time to work for a submission.
Ribeiro was visibly fatigued in round three, but managed to hold his own in striking exchanges throughout the first four minutes of the round. Just as it seemed that the fight would go to the judges, Ribeiro lunged forward with a barrage of punches and a right knee that sent Sugiura reeling. Another knee to the head from Ribeiro opened up a large gash above Sugiura's eye, which forced the bout to be stopped.
Winner: Alexandre Ribeiro by TKO (Cut) at 4:18 of round three. He improves to 1-0-0.
WVR Middleweight Grand Prix Bouts
Jorge Santiago vs Logan "The Pink Pounder" Clark
Though Clark was a very game opponent, Santiago locked on a series of submissions throughout the fight and eventually forced the WEC veteran to submit with a kata-gatame arm-triangle choke in round two.In round one, Clark's striking prowess was evident, as he landed crisp strikes and controlled most of the exchanges. Santiago, however, took the fight to the ground and imposed his will. He locked on a Kimura that had Clark in trouble, but Clark escaped back to his feet. For the duration of the round, Clark continued to keep Santiago guessing with strikes.
Round two was more of the same, and Santiago wisely took the fight to the mat. He went for an armbar attempt, but Clark gamely fought it off and worked to get the fight back to the feet. However, Santiago would have none of it, as he worked past Clark's guard and locked on a tight arm-triangle choke. Clark was forced to submit, while Santiago advances to the semi-finals of the tournament.
Winner: Jorge Santiago by Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) at 3:35 of round two. He improves to 18-7-0.
Kazuhiro Nakamura vs Paul Cahoon
Rebounding from a pair of losses in the UFC, Nakamura won a fairly lacklustre decision in this slow and methodical striking battle.All three rounds of this bout were nearly identical, with Nakamura using vastly superior footwork and solid right crosses to keep Cahoon off-balance. Cahoon, who seemed to be considerably outclassed, had no answers for Nakamura's strikes, but managed to prevent Nakamura from landing any huge shots. In the end, the fight went to the judges and Nakamura emerged with a clear-cut decision win.
Winner: Kazuhiro Nakamura by Unanimous Decision after three rounds. He improves to 12-8-0.
Siyar "The Afghan Killa" Bahadurzada vs Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos
In a very unfortunate and classless turn of events, Santos suffered a freak elbow injury after reversing a takedown attempt early in round one, and an oblivious Bahadurzada ridiculously jumped onto the ring ropes to celebrate his "victory."Santos landed some good strikes in the early seconds, which prompted Bahadurzada to try for a body-lock takedown. Santos spun free and landed in mount, but posted his elbow awkwardly on the canvas and badly dislocated it at the joint. With Santos in great pain, the fight was quickly halted and Santos was carried off on a stretcher. Meanwhile, in a tasteless display which he later apologised for, Bahadurzada cheered wildly in the corner as his opponent was taken out.
Winner: Siyar Bahadurzada by TKO (Elbow Injury) at 0:22 of round one. He improves to 14-3-1.
Yuki Sasaki vs Yuki Kondo
In perhaps his final chance to rejuvenate his career and compete for a major title, Kondo came up short against fellow veteran Sasaki, succumbing to a second-round choke.Round one was extremely uneventful, as neither fighter could land any meaningful strikes as the fight remained on the feet. Both fighters circled each other and preferred caution over aggression. Sasaki scored a takedown early in round two and immediately went for submissions. After taking Kondo's back, Sasaki quickly locked on a rear naked choke that forced the Pancrase, PRIDE and UFC veteran to submit.
Winner: Yuki Sasaki by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:08 of round two. He improves to 22-14-1.
Non-Tournament Bouts
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal vs Travis "Diesel" Wiuff
In one of the major shockers of the night, Lawal made his MMA debut a hugely successful one by knocking out the 65-fight veteran, Wiuff, in the middle of the first round.Lawal's speed and agility were evident right from the opening bell, as he danced around Wiuff and landed strikes seemingly at will. After scoring with quick punches, Lawal faked a shot and lunged forward with a Superman Punch that stunned Wiuff. As Wiuff fell back into the ropes, Lawal scored a quick takedown and landed strikes from the top until the referee stopped the fight. A tremendous debut victory for Lawal.
Winner: Muhammed Lawal by TKO (Punches) at 2:11 of round one. He improves to 1-0-0.
Jorge "GameBred" Masvidal vs Ryan "The Lion" Schultz
After a very controversial stoppage loss to Rodrigo Damm, Masvidal came back with a vengeance by dominating the former IFL Lightweight Champion, Schultz, and scoring a TKO victory in less than two minutes.Following early striking exchanges, Masvidal countered a quick combination from Schultz by landing a flurry of his own. He followed it up with a right cross and a flying knee that crumpled Schultz to the canvas. Masvidal pounced and landed strikes until the referee stepped in and called a stop to the fight, leaving Schultz winless since debuting in World Victory Road.
Winner: Jorge Masvidal by TKO (Punches) at 1:57 of round one. He improves to 14-3-0.
Kiuma Kunioku va A Sol Kwon
Kunioku, a Pancrase legend who has faced fellow standouts Nate Marquardt and Yuki Kondo four and five times each, respectively, used a multitude of submission attempts and complete domination on the ground to score a hard-fought decision victory over the dangerous Korean striker.Kwon's striking edge was clear as day, as he controlled the fight with punches and his ever-popular stomps, but Kunioku repeatedly took the fight to the ground and went for submission after submission. Though he was unsuccessful in his attempts, Kunioku controlled enough of the bout to earn a clear decision from the judges, who unanimously awarded him with the win.
Winner: Kiuma Kunioku by Unanimous Decision after three rounds. He improves to 34-22-9.
Despite the unfortunate injury to Evangelista Santos, "Sengoku V" saw four skilled middleweights advance to the tournament semi-finals of the first World Victory Road Middleweight Grand Prix, while Muhammed Lawal and Jorge Masvidal scored punishing victories in their fights.
