411's IFL: Miletich vs. Gracie Report 09.23.06
Posted by Jon Hartley on 09.23.2006
The International Fight League came to Moline, IL last weekend and 411's Jon Hartley was there! Check out the recap for full results and detailed match rundowns, including UFC legend Pat Miletich's return to fighting against Renzo Gracie! Plus, the latest info from MMA legends Don Frye and Mark Kerr!
All Photos by Chris Hartley
Pre-fight Notes
--I was able to talk to a few fighters you may have heard of before the event got underway. Some guy named Don Frye, along with Mark Kerr (that's what I think he said his name was). Anyway, Frye has been announced (along with Marco Ruas) as a new coach for the IFL, and he said that he will be selecting most of his roster from a group of fifty to sixty fighters that he's working with in Arizona. He assured me that they are a quality group and all are skilled, worthy competitors. I wouldn't doubt it, as Arizona has a pretty active MMA scene that includes a lot of small shows (Rage in the Cage being the most well-known) and has produced some good fighters. Frye also said that he was looking into securing Dennis Hallman for his team, which was surprising as he is currently a Dragon. Finally, Don told me that he's open to the idea of fighting for the IFL if the opportunity arises.
Kerr...future IFL coach?
--Kerr was very friendly and although it was hard to tell exactly what kind of shape he is in, he looked bigger than he had in some photographs of him the last year or two. He told me he's been training hard since last summer, and that he would be training with Bas Rutten for a month leading up to his fight with "The Ultimate Fighter 2"'s Mike Whitehead in November. He said he expected to become a coach for the IFL in the future as they continue to expand the league. I talked to him about the infamous documentary of his Pride Fighting Championships days, "The Smashing Machine", and he said that although the film showed him in some compromising situations, it altogether dispelled myths about fighters. "This was one of the first times people saw fighters as other than being beer-brawling neanderthals," he said.
--During the show, they announced that not only would Ruas have his own IFL team, but that he would be participating in a superfight of his own early in 2007 (they specifically said "first quarter of 2007"). They also re-announced an upcoming fight between Allan Goes and Daniel Gracie, playing up that they have "personal issues". Of course, they got in the ring at the same time, smiled broadly at one another and hugged before walking to the center of the ring. I suppose the issues aren't so heated after all.
--Other observations about the IFL: I was unsure about the team concept and thought it to be hokey when I first heard about it. However, after attending an event, especially one in the home venue of one of the competing teams, I think the idea has a lot of promise. During the Silverbacks' fights, the home fans were rabidly cheering for their own and booing against anyone and anything wearing a red jersey. Now, I know many of you are a little sensitive to the whole "booing" thing (and I understand to an extent, for example...how do you boo Renzo Gracie?!?!?! But that's another matter), but that's just how American fans conduct themselves at sporting events. The important thing is that the fans CARED about the outcomes of those fights; even though most had likely not heard of the combatants before.
--One interesting thing about living in a community that houses the best gym in North America for mixed martial arts: everyone thinks they know something about MMA, or someone that fights, or basically waaaay more than they actually do. I had people around me arguing whether or not Jeremy Horn actually moved to Utah, a million others saying "yeah, I have a cousin that fights" (uh huh), and overheard some of the most moronic comments imaginable during the event. Stuff like, "Choke 'im out!", which may not be a dumb comment except for the fact that the fighters were standing at the time, each with an underhook, clinched against the corner. If Joe Schmoe knows an effective choke from there, I'm sure the fighters would love to learn it. Then there was "Get 'im off of you!" whenever the fight hit the ground. Yeah, it's that simple. Later, after an impressive kneebar, one of the two idiots in front of me said the fighter "got lucky". Another fan behind me (who claimed to have known Miletich in high school) was trying to explain what happened to his wife- "He had him until the other guy got the move." Riiiiiight. Somewhere, Bas Rutten quivers in fear of losing his job as color commentator.
Preliminary Bout, 170 lbs.-- Delson Heleno (Pitbulls) vs. Ben Uker (Silverbacks)
This fight saw Heleno immediately attempting takedowns, though he had trouble getting the Silverback welterweight to the mat. After extended clinches that saw the two battling for underhooks and some tentative standup action, Heleno suddenly exploded upward with a flying knee that rocked Uker badly, and the following pounce and punches was merely academic as the referee called the stoppage at 3:14 of round one.
Preliminary Bout, 185 lbs.-- Dennis Hallman (Dragons) vs. Jeff Quinlan (Razorclaws)
UFC veteran Dennis Hallman gets instructions from the ref as coach Carlos Newton looks on
I'm shocked to see that Hallman is only an alternate for the Dragons! Interesting decision to say the least.
Hallman began with a double-leg takedown into side mount, and taking advantage of an ensuing scramble to get Quinlan's back. Hallman had his hooks in and it looked bad for Quinlan, who was in his first professional fight with the only man to beat Matt Hughes twice. However, after a minute and a half of fighting off a rear naked choke attempt, he spun onto his back and then squirmed out of the mount, surviving an armbar attempt on the way out. Round one ended with Quinlan getting a late takedown. I had the round 10-9 for Hallman and his dominating positional work.
Quinlan landed a few shots in the early standup action of round two, but Hallman again shot in and eventually got the takedown. Hallman had Quinlan side-mounted, but Quinlan tried to shove Hallman away and get up. For the second time, Hallman got Quinlan's back in the scramble, again working for a rear naked choke. Quinlan spun around and Hallman had him mounted, and then Quinlan was able to reverse position, only to end up in a Hallman triangle attempt to end round two. 10-9 Hallman.
Round three saw Quinlan landing punches and backing Hallman into a corner. Hallman tried to pull guard to no avail (and much to the disapproval of the crowd). Hallman failed another takedown attempt before hitting a nice high kick. Quinlan then landed a takedown of his own, landing body shots from half guard. Hallman regained guard, with Quinlan still staying active in the ground and pound. Near the end of the round, Quinlan went to stand up, but Hallman quickly took him down, landing in the mount with not enough time to mount any offense. 10-9 Quinlan from my perspective, 29-28 Hallman overall.
The official decision was 29-27, 29-29, 29-28 Hallman. Hallman looked much better on the ground, always having the dominant position, but wasn't able to do anything with it, whether it be securing a close submission attempt or doing physical damage to Quinlan. Hallman went for a couple rear naked chokes and an armbar, but wasn't really close to securing any of them. All in all, a somewhat less than impressive performance for Hallman.
Afterwards, we had the series of matches between the hometown Quad City Silverbacks and Renzo Gracie's New York Pitbulls.
Lightweights-- Bart Palaszewski (Silverbacks) vs. Marcio Feitosa (Pitbulls)
An interesting graphic cited the MMA records of the two teams as 63-15 and 7-5-1 combined, with the Silverbacks having an enormous experience advantage. Apparently, Gracie completely revamped his team, loading it up with BJJ specialists. Not entirely surprising.
Bart Palaszewski gets ready to fight as cornerman Jeremy Horn looks on
The first round had Feitosa working to get the fight to the ground, with Palaszewski pushing the pace standing up, but not landing much of note. Feitosa did earn a couple of takedowns, but did nothing with them and the fight was stood back up. Palaszewski landed a couple of nice legkicks as the round came to an end. Neither took advantage of their strengths in round one, and I had it 10-10.
It was more of the same in round two, although Feitosa landed a couple of nice leg kicks and punches with Palaszewski still pursuing Feitosa in the standup portion. Feitosa again got a takedown, but this time was much more active in Palaszewski's guard, and doing some damage with quality ground and pound. 10-9 Feitosa.
Palaszewski must have thought he was behind on the cards, because he landed some good punches in the third and thwarted early takedown attempts by his Brazilian adversary. A long clinch in the corner saw action slow to a standstill and led to a standing restart in the middle. Palaszewski did use his double underhooks to hit some good knees to the body, along with a few quality uppercuts. Feitosa got a takedown to end the fight but it was too little to late for me, as I had Palaszewski winning a 10-9 round.
The official cards had two judges with 29-28 Palaszewski, one with 30-28 Feitosa. Renzo Gracie would go on to complain about the judging of this fight later on, although I don't think it was as clear cut (for either fighter) as he obviously did.
Welterweights-- Marcello Azevedo (Pitbulls) vs. Rory Markham (Silverbacks)
Out of all the Silverbacks fighters, Markham is the one I could most see going on to do big things in MMA. This fight did present some challenges for Markham, though, as Azevedo was very scrappy and aggressive on the ground.
Azevedo started with takedown attempts at the get-go, finally getting one early on and then sitting back for a leg lock. Markham rolled multiple times to get himself free, ending up on his back with full guard. Azevedo frequently stood up inside Markham's guard, actively trying to pass. He did briefly get to side mount, but Markham quickly got his guard back. Finally, Markham scooted out after pushing Azevedo away, hitting Azevedo with a crisp 1-2 while standing. After a failed Azevedo takedown, Markham landed a punch that rocked him, following up with shots on the ground to force a stoppage. Azevedo appeared to be somewhat with it and immediately protested (and with just 2 seconds left, may have had a case), but it still goes down as a TKO (referee stoppage) at 3:58 of round one.
Middleweights-- Ryan McGivern (Silverbacks) vs. Fabio Leopoldo (Pitbulls)
McGivern stalked Leopoldo to start, hitting him with a couple of decent punches, before getting underhooks and a takedown. McGivern was the first of the Silverbacks fighters to actively try to get the fight to the ground against the BJJ-minded Pitbulls. After some inactivity in the half-guard of Leopoldo, Fabio was able to regain his feet and stand, only to be taken down again. McGivern slipped out of a guillotine attempt from the Pitbull, and mounted Leopoldo as the round ended.
Round two had a slow start, with a clinch in the corner which led to another McGivern takedown. There was some decent ground and pound, but the fight was stood up. Leopoldo tried a takedown of his own and McGivern was able to sidestep and get Leopoldo's back. However, Leopoldo showed some slick ground skills, rolling through and taking one of McGivern's legs for a tight kneebar that forced the Silverback to tap at 2:49 of round two.
Light Heavyweights-- Mike Ciesnolevicz (Silverbacks) vs. Andre Gusmao (Pitbulls)
Round one featured Ciesnolevicz as the aggressor, getting a takedown early on. However, Gusmao had a guillotine, albeit with the Silverbacks fighter's arm in. After nearly a minute and a half, Gusmao gave up on the hold and Ciesnolevicz got side mount, doing little with it. Gusmao eventually got out of the predicament and the round ended with Ciesnolevicz working hard for another takedown.
The action picked up in round two, as Gusmao hit Ciesnolevicz with a solid punch, followed by some ground and pound which led to Ciesnolevicz covering up in desperation. With Ciesnolevicz not fighting back actively, the referee stopped the fight at 1:01. After the fight, we were treated to some capoeira stylings from Gusmao, so that's always nice.
Heavyweights-- Ben Rothwell (Silverbacks) vs. Bryan Vetell (Pitbulls)
This is what the IFL envisioned. A rabid home crowd cheering on their team's heavyweight as the teams are deadlocked 2-2, with a berth in the next round on the line.
It seemed that both fighters knew the importance of the fight, as it was a tentative start...although neither looked to want to take it to the ground. Finally, Vetell rushed in with punches, landing only a few before getting an underhook in the clinch. Vetell kept busy with knees before the two seperated, exchanging in the process. Vetell hit a nice low kick before Rothwell whiffed with a punch, leading to another clinch in the corner. After knees from both fighters, they were seperated and went RIGHT BACK to the clinch. Take that, ref. Rothwell pushed away, launching into a flurry of punches, and hit Vetell with a huge right that sent Vetell crashing to the canvas as the crowd went NUTS. Vetell was out, and there you have it at 3:17 of round one.
And with the Silverbacks advancing by the slimmest of margins, Frank Shamrock's Razorclaws took on Carlos Newton's Dragons.
Lightweights-- Josh Odom (Razorclaws) vs. Rob DiCenso (Dragons)
DiCenso immediately took down the Razorclaw lightweight, picking him up while in the closed guard a couple of times for slams, trying to loosen up Odom's defense. Odom did a good job of holding on, forcing a standup halfway through the round. DiCenso tried another takedown, but Odom was ready and stopped it, putting DiCenso on his back. Odom kicked DiCenso's legs as he was in the buttscoot position, and then got a nice kick to the body after DiCenso stood up. 10-9 Odom, who started working the body early.
Round two saw Odom still owning the standup portion of the fight, although DiCenso was able to hit Odom occasionally as well. Later in the round, Odom hit a great 1-2 combo and began landing at will. A pattern repeated with DiCenso attempting takedowns and Odom getting the best of the standup. 10-9 Odom again.
In round three, Odom turned up the pressure and began hitting some truly painful kicks to DiCenso's midsection. DiCenso began backing up, obviously tied and hurt by the body shots. Odom kept the kicks coming and eventually DiCenso just fell over, unable to continue from the constant abuse. The fight was stopped at 1:47 of the third.
Welterweights-- Ray Steinbess (Razorclaws) vs. Claude Patrick (Dragons)
Steinbess tried to take Patrick down early, but was met with a nice knee from Patrick. Patrick went for a single leg takedown of his own, getting Steinbess down. Patrick went quickly from half guard to mount, working some quality ground and pound. Steinbess was able to get to half guard and then swept Patrick nicely, but Patrick secured a guillotine in the process. Steinbess' arm was in, but it was still tight enough to force the early tapout and even the teams at a win each.
Middleweights-- Brian Foster (Razorclaws) vs. Joe Doerksen (Dragons)
Doerksen, of course, is a UFC veteran with four appearances to his name. Early on, he showed some good standup but walked into a takedown while trying to land shots on Foster. Foster nearly got an armbar for his trouble, but he rolled out of it. Foster tried to land effective punches from the top, but Doerksen had him controlled. With 2:25 left, the fight was stood up. Foster rocked Doerksen and followed him to the ground before standing up and landing another good shot on the downed UFC vet. Doerksen got back to his feet and clinched Foster, hitting some knees and going for a takedown that Foster had scouted. Foster secured a takedown of his own and was active as the round ended. 10-9 Foster in an impressive round.
Doerksen threw a nice kick to Foster's midsection as round two opened, convincing Foster to take down Doerksen and ending up in the Canadian's butterfly guard. Foster stood back up eventually, throwing a high kick that only partically connected before clinching with Doerksen. Doerksen worked knees to the body before the two were seperated. Doerksen then hit Foster hard, but Foster showed no ill effects, throwing shots of his own. Doerksen worked a takedown into side mount, throwing knees to Foster's body before mounting him. Foster felt the pressure and turned his back to him, leading to a rear naked choke that gave Doerksen the win at 3:40.
Doerksen sinks the rear naked choke in deep to finish Brian Foster
Light Heavyweights--Raphael Davis (Razorclaws) vs. Brent Beauparlant (Dragons)
Davis looked much more explosive early on, taking down Beauparlant and easily stopping a takedown attempt by his Canadian opponent. Davis landed knees from the clinch, some uppercuts, and more knees to leave Beauparlant wobbly. Both landed shots then as the exchange continued, culminating with a nice kick by Beauparlant. Davis had a nice attempt for a kimura, although Beauparlant rolled out of it before landing a few punches near the end of the round. I had it 10-9 Davis, although Beauparlant had his moments.
Round two began with the fighters exchanging body shots, and Beauparlant landing a nice right cross as they seperated from an early clinch. Beauparlant then hurt Davis with another right, leading to Davis shooting for a desperate takedown, which he succeeded with. Beauparlant reversed position however, and mounted Davis. Davis got Beauparlant's back, but he stood up and escaped the dangerous predicament. They began brawling again, with Davis eating punches like Butterbean, only if the punches were instead half-pound cheeseburgers. Or eating punches like Mike Tyson, only if the punches were instead "Lennox Lewis's children". I'm not picky. Beauparlant lands a German suplex that Kurt Angle would be pround of to end the round. 10-8 Beauparlant.
Round three had both fighters come out visibly fatigued, with Davis gutsily trying to rally back. BRAWLING MADNESS ensued, with the two throwing sloppy half-speed punches before Beauparlant landed a punch out of nowhere after Davis had turned the tide a bit. Knees from the side mount to the body for Beauparlant on his fallen foe. Davis manages to avoid a stoppage and even attempts a kimura, but not getting close to securing it. Beauparlant got Davis's back to end the round. 10-9 Beauparlant.
The decision is rendered as follows: 29-27, 29-28, 30-25 (!), all for Beauparlant, as the Dragons advance to the next round. Interesting to have one judge score it two rounds to one while another gives all three to Beauparlant, with two rounds being 10-8.
Heavyweights-- Travis Wiuff (Razorclaws) vs. Wojtek Kasvowski (Dragons)
Wiuff, of course, appeared in the UFC previously and had a nineteen (19!!!) fight win streak going before losing to Renato "Babalu" Sobral at UFC 52. He lost his first two IFL fights though, surprisingly. Wiuff pursued to begin, getting a takedown into half guard. Kasvowski did his best to hold Wiuff close as Wiuff tried to get a knee to his belly to pass to mount. The fight was stood up, and Kasvowski landed a nice kick to Wiuff's midsection before being taken down again. Wiuff worked for a kimura from the North-South position, but couldn't get it. 10-9 Wiuff.
Round two started with a BIG right hand by Wiuff, some ground and pound, and Kasvowski finally pushing Wiuff off of him and standing up. Wiuff chased him down, swinging but not landing, and got another takedown. Once on the ground, Wiuff worked hammerfists, body/body/head combos, and some other good ground and pound to finish a dominant round. 10-8 for Travis "Don't Call Me Why-Uff" Wiuff.
Round three was more of the same, with Wiuff getting a takedown into half-guard and working ground and pound for the majority of the last four minutes. I had this round at 10-9 instead of 10-8 because Kasvowski landed a few leg kicks to open the round.
The ringside judges say: 30-25, 30-27, 30-27 for Wiuff.
Finally, we have our main event, and the Quad City fans go NUTS for Pat Miletich. Great atmosphere inside The Mark of the Quad Cities.
Superfight-- Pat Miletich vs. Renzo Gracie
Much had been made of Gracie losing six of his last seven fights. Not nearly as much had been made of Miletich fighting a BJJ expert after having career-shortening neck problems.
Tentative standup to start, as Miletich is calmly trying to find his range and Gracie is keeping him at bay with quick punches, although neither fighter is really landing anything of consequence. However, things picked up as Miletich quickly found himself the recipient of a Gracie attempt at a standing guillotine against the ropes. Miletich stayed calm and didn't appear to be in danger as he controlled Gracie's wrist and kept him from cinching the attempt tight. However, as the seconds turned to minutes, Gracie tightened the hold and Miletich began to look concerned. Finally, Miletich looked as if he thought about slamming Gracie down but instead was forced to tap in front of a shocked crowd to end the fight in the late first round. Gracie's supporters (there was a small section of Pitbulls faithful ringside) rushed the ring as Miletich appeared extremely dejected.
Post-fight, Miletich was gracious as always, while Gracie was happy to win but complained of a poor judges decision that cost his team the chance to advance.
Post-fight Awards
The IFL awards fighters with bonuses according to performance, with the fastest finish, best submission and knockout, and best fight all being recognized for each series. Here are the results of the awards for the night:
Silverbacks-Pitbulls Fight of the Night--Bart Palaszewski vs. Marcio Feitosa Best Submission--Fabio Leopoldo Best Knockout--Ben Rothwell
Razorclaws-Dragons Fight of the Night--Joe Doerksen vs. Brian Foster Best Submission--Claude Patrick Best Knockout--Josh Odom
Overall, a very high quality show for the IFL and they certainly come off as a big-time promotion. They have gained attention from hardcore and casual MMA fans with their team concept, high profile coaches, and well-matched superfights. With a rumored 11 events planned for 2007 and even more shows being broadcast on FSN, the IFL has established a good foundation to build upon.
Be sure to check your local listings, FSN has already began showing the IFL: Portland event featuring the Matt Lindland-Jeremy Horn fight, and a special two-hour Best Damn Sports Show Period edition of the IFL on FSN will show fights from this show, so check that out beginning October 2nd!
