King of the Cage returned to HDNet tonight with another solid card at KOTC: “Legacy.” The event was headlined by a heavyweight clash between Mike “MAK” Kyle and Jon “Man of Faith” Murphy. Elsewhere, Tony Johnson captured the KOTC Heavyweight Championship by defeating Tony “Kryptonite” Lopez in a lopsided five-round bout.

Fresh off of his upset victory over veteran Rich “No Love” Clementi, Quinn Mulhern became KOTC Welterweight Champion when he dispatched of Koffi Adzitso. MMARising.com has live play-by-play from all of the night’s action.

 

Mike “MAK” Kyle vs Jon “Man of Faith” Murphy

Round 1:
The fighters traded punches and Murphy landed a head kick. Kyle responded by taking Murphy down and working from side-control. He stood over Murphy and kicked at his legs, then dove in with punches and elbows. More strikes followed for Kyle as he battered Murphy from Murphy’s butterfly guard. Kyle moved to half-guard and struck with his free hand, but Murphy scrambled back to his feet.

Murphy rushed forward with a jumping knee that partially landed and he followed with some big punches. Kyle backed up and appeared to be rocked, but he fired back with two counterpunches and scored a brief takedown. The fighters clinched against the cage and Kyle landed knees. He tried for a takedown, but Murphy latched onto a standing guillotine choke. The fight went to the ground and Murphy used the choke to sweep. He struck from the top until the bell. Very close round. 10-9 Kyle, barely.

Round 2:
Kyle landed a nice combination to begin the second round and the fight returned to a clinch. Murphy locked on another guillotine choke and pulled half-guard. Kyle escaped and blasted Murphy with two big elbows. More short punches and elbows followed for Kyle as Murphy tried to hold on. Murphy moved to get back to his feet, but Kyle scored with punches to the body.

Referee Josh Rosenthal stood the fighters up and Murphy landed a stiff jab. He reversed a takedown and stood over Kyle. Murphy threw short punches from Kyle’s guard and Kyle answered with elbows from the bottom. More elbows landed for both fighters and Murphy passed to side-control. Kyle swept and landed elbows and punches to the body. Murphy rolled to his side and Kyle kept the pressure on with a barrage of elbows and punches. The referee stopped the fight, giving Kyle a big win.

Winner: Mike Kyle by TKO (Punches & Elbows) at 4:53 of round two. He improves to 15-7-1.

 

KOTC Heavyweight Championship

Tony Johnson vs Tony “Kryptonite” Lopez

Round 1:
Johnson landed a stiff jab to open the fight and Lopez replied with a leg kick. Johnson threw wild punches and scored a quick takedown. He moved to side-control and then unloaded with punches as Lopez worked back to his feet. Lopez survived and tried to lock up a Kimura. Johnson picked him up and slammed him face-first onto the mat. Lopez maintained his grip on Johnson’s arm as Johnson landed more punches. Big knees landed for Johnson, but he could not slam Lopez a second time.

The fighters scrambled and Johnson scored a takedown. Lopez locked on an armbar and Johnson tried to slam his way free. He eventually escaped and Lopez transitioned into an omoplata. Johnson powered out and struck from the top. He moved back to side-control and landed punches and hammerfists as Lopez rolled to his stomach. Lopez got to his feet just as the bell sounded. 10-9 Johnson.

Round 2:
The fighters exchanged kicks and jabs in the second round and Johnson connected with a flurry that backed Lopez up. He took Lopez down and landed in half-guard. Johnson scored with elbows from the top, but Lopez regained guard and worked for submissions. Little transpired as Lopez tied Johnson up and prevented him from landing anything damaging.

Johnson postured up and Lopez locked on a triangle choke. He retained the choke for close to a minute, but could not tighten it enough and Johnson powered out. Johnson looked to move back to half-guard, but Lopez regained full guard and tried to get back to his feet. Johnson kept him down until the bell. Fairly uneventful round. 10-9 Johnson.

Round 3:
Lopez looked to keep the fight standing in the third round as both fighters appeared to be very tired. Johnson scored a takedown and locked on a guillotine choke as Lopez tried to get back to his feet. Lopez stood and managed to get out of the tight choke, but Johnson slammed him down again. Lopez rolled and tried to get up, but was forced to turtle as Johnson threw punches.

Johnson briefly secured a front headlock and then took partial back control as Lopez tried to get to his feet again. Lopez could do little as Johnson held him in place and landed punches with his free hand. Lopez tried for a Kimura and Johnson punched his way out of danger. Once more, Lopez attempted a Kimura, but Johnson was simply too strong. 10-8 Johnson.

Round 4:
Sparse strikes were exchanged in the opening minute of the fourth round as both fighters seemed to be completely gassed. Lopez landed single leg kicks and kept his distance, but Johnson scored an easy takedown. Lopez tried to kick Johnson off, but Johnson stayed on top and looked briefly for a straight armbar.

Johnson threw occasional punches from Lopez’s guard, but the action slowed to a crawl. Lopez prevented Johnson from passing to half-guard and referee Steve Mazzagatti stood the fighters up. Both landed sloppy punches and Johnson took Lopez’s back. He tried to slam Lopez, but Lopez stayed on his feet. Johnson landed knees to the leg until the bell. 10-9 Johnson.

Round 5:
Johnson clinched early in the final round and picked Lopez up, then dropped him to the mat. He landed in half-guard and Lopez tried to counter with a Kimura. Lopez regained guard and worked for a triangle choke as Johnson elbowed from the top. Lopez scrambled into a desperation armbar attempt, but Johnson easily escaped.

Johnson threw short left hands from Lopez’s half-guard and prevented Lopez from moving, but there was very little offence from either fighter. The pace slowed to a crawl again as Johnson threw occasional punches, but Lopez managed to lock on an armbar. He wrenched back on Johnson’s arm in the final few seconds, but Johnson made it to the bell. 10-9 Johnson.

Winner: Tony Johnson by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) after five rounds. He improves to 2-0-0 and becomes the new KOTC Heavyweight Champion.

 

Jaime “El Cucui” Jara vs Tim “The Dirty Bird” Means

Round 1:
Jara opened the fight with a one-two and clinched against the cage. He tripped Means to the mat and landed in half-guard. Jara moved right to mount, but Means escaped out the back and stood up. He landed knees as Jara rose to his feet. Punches landed for both fighters and Jara connected with a solid left hook. A huge one-two from Jara rocked Means badly. Jara latched onto a standing guillotine choke and dragged Means to the mat. Means tapped out, giving Jara an impressive win.

Winner: Jaime Jara by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 2:19 of round one. He improves to 26-7-0, 1 NC.

 

Nick “Afrozilla” Gaston vs Mike Guidry

Round 1:
Guidry rushed forward with punches that backed Gaston up, but Gaston clinched and pressed Guidry up against the cage. Guidry reversed and tried for a takedown. The fighters stayed in a clinch and Guidry landed short knees to the legs. Gaston circled away and Guidry drilled him with a lunging right hand. Gaston replied with a knee to the body and the fighters clinched again. Gaston secured a Thai clinch and punished Guidry with knees and elbows.

Guidry landed a combination, but was rocked by a pair of big right hands. Gaston scored with more knees and took Guidry down. He landed in side-control and isolated Guidry’s arms. Gaston cut Guidry with short elbow strikes, but Guidry regained half-guard. More punches and elbows landed for Gaston as Guidry bled heavily from the nose. With mere seconds remaining in the round, Gaston secured a keylock and torqued back on Guidry’s arm until Guidry tapped out.

Winner: Nick Gaston by Submission (Keylock) at 4:49 of round one. He improves to 2-0-0, 1 NC.

 

KOTC Welterweight Championship

Quinn Mulhern vs Koffi “Lion King” Adzitso

Round 1:
The fighters traded power punches right away and Adzitso backed Mulhern up with a trio of looping hooks. They clinched briefly before Adzitso backed away. He threw a combination, but missed the mark. A one-two from Adzitso opened a cut above Mulhern’s right eye and Adzitso continued to push the pace. More wild punches landed for Adzitso. Mulhern shot in for a takedown and pulled butterfly guard.

Mulhern worked for an omoplata and then a triangle choke, but Adzitso managed to work his way free. Again, Mulhern secured a tight triangle choke and added a combination armbar, but Adzitso persevered and escaped. Mulhern was relentless with submissions as Adzitso insisted on staying in his guard. He locked on a shoulder lock and rolled into a vicious omoplata. Adzitso somehow survived until the bell. Ridiculous heart shown by Adzitso. 10-9 Mulhern.

Round 2:
Mulhern shot in for a takedown immediately in round two and took Adzitso down near the cage. He passed straight to mount and landed punches, then took Adzitso’s back. Mulhern worked for a rear-naked choke and secured it. Adzitso tried to fight, but was forced to tap out. Big win for Mulhern, who captures KOTC title gold.

Winner: Quinn Mulhern by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:36 of round two. He improves to 11-1-0 and becomes the new KOTC Welterweight Champion.

 

Dustin “The Persian Prince” Akbari vs Jack “The Motor” Montgomery

Round 1:
Akbari clinched immediately and scored a takedown against the cage. Montgomery attempted a guillotine choke from his back, but Akbari punched his way free. Akbari struck from the top and dropped back for a leg submission, but Montgomery regained guard. Montgomery worked for a triangle choke and Akbari scored with big punches to escape.

The fighters scrambled and Akbari took Montgomery’s back. Montgomery turtled as Akbari blasted him with punches that knocked him out cold. Replays showed that it was an uppercut that did the damage. Solid win for Akbari.

Winner: Dustin Akbari by KO (Punches) at 2:30 of round one. He improves to 5-1-0.

 

As expected, the main event of KOTC: “Legacy” delivered fireworks and saw Mike “MAK” Kyle pick up another impressive stoppage victory. In other action, Tony Johnson and Quinn Mulhern both captured KOTC gold and will no doubt face tough tests ahead.