Strikeforce Challengers 1 Results
by Robert Sargent
Showcasing the promotion's future stars, Strikeforce's debut Challengers event ended with a highly controversial finish in the main event between "Iron" Mike Aina and Billy Evangelista, but the women's bout in the co-main event stole the show.
Controversy also plagued the opening bout of the televised card, as Bao Quach picked up a Unanimous Decision over Tito Jones, despite being dropped twice in the final round.
"Iron" Mike Aina vs Billy Evangelista
With both fighters having been part of controversial bouts in the past two years - Aina being absolutely robbed of a decision victory over Nick Diaz, and Evangelista winning a contested Split Decision over Nam Phan - it is perhaps no surprise that this fight ended in less than favourable circumstances.Aina opened up with a quick combination and attempted a head kick. Evangelista replied with quick punches and a solid leg kick. More leg kicks landed for Evangelista, and Aina attempted another head kick. The fighters continued to exchange leg kicks as each looked to set up combinations. Both attempted flurries, but neither landed. Evangelista shot for a takedown, but Aina used impressive takedown defence and clinched against the cage. He landed knees and punches to the body, then scored with two hooks. Evangelista tried for another takedown and very briefly got Aina down. Aina stood and Evangelista peppered him with knees. The fighters went back and forth with knees and Evangelista scored with an elbow over the top. Aina was hit with a knee to the groin just before the bell, but the round ended. Close round. 10-9 Evangelista.
Round two began with another exchange of kicks. Evangelista tried for a takedown, but met with three quick punches from Aina. Evangelista continued to target the lead leg of Aina and landed two punches, but Aina fired back a hard kick to the body. The fighters clinched and both landed short strikes. After separating, the fighters traded jabs and Evangelista scored a takedown. He postured up and landed punches from the top. The damage quickly began to add up, as Evangelista punished Aina with hard strikes. Aina used the cage to try to get back to his feet, but Evangelista kneed Aina while he was still kneeling down. Time was immediately called and Aina's jaw appeared to be injured.
Aina had been hit on the left side, but was favouring the right side of his jaw. The doctor came into the ring and deemed that Aina could potentially have a broken jaw. At the time, referee Herb Dean believed that the knee strike from Evangelista had struck Aina in the jaw, which would have been an illegal blow. As a result, Evangelista was disqualified and Aina, who could not continue, was given the victory. However, replays later showed that the knee strike from Evangelista had hit Aina's left shoulder, not his face, and that his shoulder had then been driven into his jaw. Highly controversial ending to the fight, as the knee strike was perfectly legal.
Winner: Mike Aina by Disqualification (Illegal Knee) at 3:40 of round two. He improves to 12-6-1.
Sarah Kaufman vs Miesha "Takedown" Tate
Though she came up just short in this great fight, Tate became the first woman to take Kaufman the distance and was also the first fighter to win a round against Kaufman, as she dominated round two. The lone blemish on this fight was that it was contested under the three-minute round system that was formerly employed by EliteXC for female fights, and this was a perfect example of why the women should have five-minute rounds as well. For that matter, they already do in most other promotions.Kaufman opened up with quick punches and Tate countered with a body kick. An exchange of punches followed, with Kaufman getting the better of it. Tate tried to fire back, but her punches had nowhere near the power of Kaufman's. Tate tried for a takedown, but Kaufman stuffed it and landed more punches. Tate backed up as Kaufman peppered her with quick strikes, then tried to take Kaufman down again. Kaufman defended the takedown and landed some big punches, then stuffed yet another takedown attempt from Tate. The process repeated once again, as Tate could not get Kaufman to the mat. Tate used two kicks to try to defend against the relentless offence from Kaufman, then finally scored a takedown with 20 seconds left. She could do little before the round ended. 10-9 Kaufman.
Tate began round two with a leg kick and two quick jabs before Kaufman rocked her with a combination. Tate, bleeding badly from the nose, shot for a takedown and got it. Pinning Kaufman against the cage, Tate worked from half-guard and landed some decent punches with her free hand. Kaufman prevented Tate from posturing up, but Tate continued to land short punches. Kaufman regained guard and Tate stood up, then landed strikes from the top. Tate tried to stack Kaufman against the cage, but Kaufman rolled free and stood up. Tate attempted to take Kaufman's back to secure a standing choke, but the round came to a close. Tate becomes the first woman to win a round against Kaufman. 10-9 Tate.
Kaufman got the better of an early exchange of punches in round three, which prompted Tate to try unsuccessfully for a takedown. Kaufman landed more punches and sprawled out of a takedown attempt. The fighters stood and Kaufman landed a knee in the clinch, then blasted Tate with an overhand right. Tate tried for a takedown and Kaufman threw her off. Tate began to fatigue from absorbing the punches from Kaufman, but attempted another takedown. She managed to pull half-guard, but Kaufman spun and sat on her stomach. From the top, Kaufman rained down punches and hammerfists to the face and body of Tate. Kaufman twisted and got to her feet, then scored with three more big punches before the bell. 10-9 Kaufman.
All three judges scored the bout in favour of Kaufman, who remains undefeated but had to go the distance for the first time. Kaufman will make a quick return to competition, as she will fight for the third time in less than two months at Strikeforce Challengers 2 on June 19th. She will face submission wizard "The Queen of Spades" Shayna Baszler.
Winner: Sarah Kaufman by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 9-0-0.
Lavar "Big" Johnson vs Carl Seumanutafa
Ending the fight in extremely quick and unorthodoxed fashion, Johnson sidestepped a takedown attempt and drilled Seumanutafa with an uppercut under Seumanutafa's arm, which left the Samoan unconscious on the mat.Johnson used his jab to keep Seumanutafa at a distance in the opening seconds, but Seumanutafa shot in for a takedown. Johnson stepped to the side and landed an uppercut underneath the arm of the diving Seumanutafa. The strike landed flush on Seumanutafa's jaw, sending him face-first to the mat. The fight was immediately stopped, giving Johnson one of the most bizarre one-punch knockouts in MMA history.
Winner: Lavar Johnson by KO (Punch) at 0:17 of round one. He improves to 12-3-0.
Aaron Rosa vs Anthony "A-Train" Ruiz
Though it was Ruiz who pushed the pace with strikes early in round one, Rosa reversed a clinch against the cage and scored a takedown, then moved to mount and soon secured a fight-ending rear naked choke when Ruiz attempted to roll free.Rosa looked to land combinations early in the first round, but was met with a series of hard punches from Ruiz. The fighters clinched against the cage and Ruiz landed knees to the legs and body. Rosa replied with short punches and knees of his own, but Ruiz kept him pinned against the cage. A wild exchange ensued, with both fighters landing big punches. Ruiz tried for a takedown, but Rosa defended. More knees were exchanged, and Rosa attempted a Judo throw. Ruiz immediately got back to his feet, but Rosa reversed a clinch and slammed him to the mat. Rosa landed punches from mount as Ruiz attempted to roll over. Rosa took Ruiz's back and secured a body triangle, then looked to finish the fight with a rear naked choke. Ruiz tried to pull Rosa's arms off, but could not and soon went to sleep. The referee stopped the fight.
Winner: Aaron Rosa by Technical Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:29 of round one. He improves to 12-2-0.
Bao Quach vs Tito Jones
After winning the first two rounds, Quach was dropped twice in round three and nearly finished on both occasions, but the judges bizarrely scored round three as a 10-9 for Jones, rather than a 10-8 (or even 10-7), which left Quach as the victor in a fight that should have been a Draw.Quick punches and kicks were exchanged early in round one. Quach circled to his left and landed stiff kicks to Jones's lead leg. The fighters traded kicks to the legs, but both seemed to be cautious. Quach landed more kicks to the inside and outside of Jones's leg, but the action was sparse. Jones came forward with a trio of right hooks, but Quach continued to target his leg with more hard kicks. Quach began to mix in kicks to the body, but leg kicks made up the majority of his offence. Jones attempted a takedown, but Quach defended and the fighters traded knees in a clinch. 10-9 Quach.
Round two began with more hard kicks from Quach, as he kept his distance and picked his shots. Quach scored with a kick, punch combo, but Jones landed a nice counterpunch and began to taunt Quach. Leg kicks continued to add up for Quach, but action was once again rather sparse. Quach set up a quick combination with more kicks, but was unable to land cleanly. Both landed crosses in an exchange, and Quach followed up with low kicks. Jones began to favour his lead leg, as Quach had racked up dozens of leg kicks throughout the fight. Jones landed a nice combination, but Quach scored with more leg kicks. 10-9 Quach.
The final round saw Quach throw more of his textbook leg kicks, but Jones caught him with a right hook. The punch stunned Quach, and his eye immediately began to swell as his nose bled. Jones dropped Quach with another punch and looked to dive in for the finish. The fighters scrambled and Quach got to his feet, but looked to be very wobbly. Jones allowed Quach to backpedal for quite some time, but he dropped Quach with another right hook. Quach again battled back to his feet, but Jones landed a pair of hard hooks to the body. The fight returned to sparse strikes and Quach slipped while throwing a head kick. Jones landed a side kick to the body, but displayed absolutely no aggression whatsoever. Quach landed leg kicks in the final minute, while Jones replied with a left cross and a flying knee. 10-8 Jones.
Despite the fact that Quach was dropped twice in round three, the judges unanimously ruled it as only a 10-9 round for Jones, which meant that Quach escaped with a questionable decision victory.
Winner: Bao Quach by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 16-9-1.
Undercard Fights:
Ben Holscher defeated Cody Canterbury by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 2:47 of round one. He improves to 2-0-0 with the win.Ousmane Thomas Diagne defeated Kaleo "Leo Boy" Kwan by Unanimous Decision after three rounds. He improves to 1-0-0 with the win.
Fabricio "Morango" Camoes defeated Torrance Taylor by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:21 of round one. He improves to 10-4-0 with the win.
Spencer Herns defeated Chad Sutton by Majority Decision after three rounds. He improves to 1-0-0 with the win.
While controversy was the theme of the night, the women's war between Sarah Kaufman and Miesha Tate proved that the female division of Strikeforce has many more great talents besides Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos and the soon-to-be-signed Gina Carano.
