Picking up his third straight first-round knockout victory, Marlon Sandro at last captured the Sengoku Featherweight Championship tonight with a destruction of Masanori “Kin-chan” Kanehara. The title bout headlined a stoppage-filled Sengoku Raiden Championships 13 card that also featured the opening round of the Sengoku Welterweight Grand Prix.
Elsewhere, rising star Maximo “Maxi” Blanco stopped Strikeforce veteran Rodrigo Damm early in the second round, while Hiroshi Izumi dispatched of Chang Seob Lee in round one of their featured bout.
SRC Featherweight Championship
Marlon Sandro vs Masanori “Kin-chan” Kanehara
Round 1:
Kanehara threw a body kick early in the first round and Sandro answered with a one-two that was blocked. He landed a nice right hand and Kanehara ducked forward directly into a brutal uppercut from Sandro. Kanehara collapsed face-first to the canvas and, just like that, Sandro captured the title in quick and dramatic fashion.
Winner: Marlon Sandro by KO (Punch) at 0:38 of round one. He improves to 17-1-0 and becomes the new SRC Featherweight Champion.
Hiroshi Izumi vs Chang Seob Lee
Round 1:
Lee opened the fight with kicks and jabs, then fired off a pair of quick combinations. Izumi scored a takedown and landed in side-control. He threw short punches and moved to mount. Lee gave up his back and Izumi blasted him with punches from the back. Lee absorbed the punches and illegally used the ropes to get back to his feet. Lee was given a Yellow Card for holding the ropes. The fight resumed and Lee landed a combination and just missed with a head kick.
Izumi ducked under an overhand right and landed one of his own. Lee began to taunt and the fighters exchanged wild punches, with Lee landing two solid right hands. Izumi clinched and Lee held onto the ropes. Izumi got him down anyway and landed in mount. He pinned Lee’s arm down and rained down punches. Lee rolled over and Izumi battered him with more punches until the fight was finally stopped. Lee protested the stoppage, but it was warranted and the win was a good one for Izumi.
Winner: Hiroshi Izumi by TKO (Punches) at 4:37 of round one. He improves to 2-1-0.
Yasubey Enomoto vs Sanae Kikuta
Round 1:
Kikuta looked to clinch for a takedown early on and Enomoto fought it off with punches. Kikuta clinched a second time, but could not take Enomoto down. Enomoto landed a nice left hand and a combination in close, but Kikuta backed him into the corner. Enomoto stayed on his feet and scored with punches as the fighters returned to the middle of the ring. Enomoto continued to dominate the striking exchanges with punches and he landed a kick in the corner.
Kikuta answered with jabs, but remained on the defensive as Enomoto chased him around the ring with punching flurries. More punches scored for Enomoto and Kikuta began to bleed from the bridge of the nose. After more flurries of punches and a pair of hard body kicks, Enomoto dropped Kikuta with an uppercut. Kikuta turtled as Enomoto teed off with punches and hammerfists until the fight was finally stopped. Dominant victory for Enomoto.
Winner: Yasubey Enomoto by TKO (Punches) at 3:57 of round one. He improves to 4-1-0.
Maximo “Maxi” Blanco vs Rodrigo Damm
Round 1:
Both fighters alternated between southpaw and orthodox stances in the opening round and Damm scored with a leg kick. Blanco missed with a spinning heel kick and ate a jab and a counter right hand. Another leg kick landed for Damm. And another. Damm continued to find a home for kicks to Blanco’s lead leg as Blanco seemed content to stay on the outside. A stiff jab landed for Damm and he circled free of a clinch attempt.
The fighters exchanged jabs and Damm’s crisp strikes kept Blanco guessing. Damm missed with a leg kick and Blanco backed him into a corner. Damm circled out and jabbed again. Blanco finally scored with a leg kick of his own, but Damm quickly answered with a pair of leg kicks and a vicious body kick. Blanco landed a spinning back kick to the body, but Damm was unfazed. He walked Blanco down and landed a body kick and a right hand before the bell. 10-9 Damm.
Round 2:
The fighters cautiously pawed out with jabs for the first 30 seconds of round two and Blanco threw a leg kick. He landed a left hand and sent Damm off-balance with a second punch. Damm circled away, but was clipped by a right hook. He crumpled to the mat and Blanco unloaded with right hands until the referee rescued Damm. Big win for Blanco, who puts himself in title contention.
Winner: Maximo Blanco by TKO (Punches) at 0:45 of round two. He improves to 6-2-1, 1 NC.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)