The Sprawl and Brawl Video Review - WEF 9: World Class
Posted by Randy Harrison on 05.21.2008
The second disc of the repackaged WEF set and we get to see a HUGE lineup of fighters like Jens Pulver, Dan Severn, Rich Franklin and Carlos Newton. All those names and a few more big ones,
Hello again everyone, and welcome to another edition of The Sprawl and Brawl Video Review. I'm Randy Harrison, your usual party host and I'm trying to get this thing in between possibly gettign to see the American Idol finale and a huge bout of the dry heaves. I've been stomach-sick for the past two days, but I just couldn't bring myself to leave you Sprawl and Brawl-less for two weeks in a row. Today, we're looking at the second disc of the two-disc World Extreme Fighting repackaged set, WEF: The Greatest. This is a compilation of matches from the WEF 9 event, held on May 13, 2000 in Evansville, Indiana. This card has a who's who of fighters with talent like Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons, Dan "The Beast" Severn, Matt Hughes, Rich Franklin and Carlos Newton. Much like the first disc, there are only seven matches shown out of the twelve on the card, but the only fight worth mentioning off of the undercard is Din Thomas, who finished Don Banville with a corner stoppage between the second and third rounds.
We get a video with a rundown of the main event as well as some highlights from previous shows before we see their cheesy 80's video graphic opening again. For those of you who would know, Michael Landsberg, former SportsCentre anchor in Canada and current host of Off The Record, does the voice-over for the opening. That or someone who sounds exactly like him.
Match One: Lightweights
Eric Hibler (1-1) vs. Jens Pulver (15-1-1)
It sounds like it could very well be Michael Landsberg on commentary, but all I know for sure is that it's not Stephen Quadros this time. Pulver makes his way to the cage first with the announcers talking about his great left hand, his strong wrestling and his conditioning, the last two of which are seemingly by-products of training at Miletich Fighting Systems. Hibler talked some shit before the fight, saying that Pulver didn't know it but that he was going to bring it to him. His strengths are listed as size and conditioning and that he's patient. Those aren't really huge strengths to have going in against Jens Pulver.
Round One
Pulver lands a solid leg kick and a NICE overhand left that stuns Hibler, putting him on the mat. Pulver ends up on top in the full guard and throws another heavy left hand after posturing up. Some short rights land for Pulver now to the head and body and Hibler lands a good elbow from the bottom, pushing Pulver away and getting the fight back to its feet. Low kick from Hibler lands and Pulver tries a high kick in response but it gets blocked. A good jab lands for Pulver and they clinch with Hibler trying to take it to the mat, falling back into guard. Pulver kicks at the legs of Hibler before Hibler gets back to his feet and he lands two VICIOUS knees that put Hibler down to the mat again. The referee won't step in and Pulver goes ahead and finishes with a couple of NASTY left hands to finish the fight.
Winner: Jens Pulver, TKO (strikes) at 1:54 of Round One
Fight Analysis: Quick and nasty, much like you'd expect a Jens Pulver fight to turn out. Those left hands were absolutely vicious on the canvas after those two knees right to the jaw that put Hibler down. Pulver was on a HUGE roll here, with quick hands, fantastic wrestling and devastating knees. He had it working on every level and this is probably near the pinnacle of his career so far.
Match Two: Heavyweights
Bobby Hoffman (14-2) vs. Kerry Schall (6-1)
Schall is nicknamed the "Meat Truck" for this fight, which I'm hoping we get an explanation on since it seems like it should have a hell of a story behind it. Apparently Hoffman has been talking some shit on some of the fighters on the card, including the one he's facing in the cage. He looks great here and he's listed as being ultra-agressive. He's introduced as "Freight Train" which is a little different than his "Bad Seed" nickname he currently totes around. Schall comes out looking calm and is apparently a brawler though experience could be an issue for him. He does have a nice smiley face on the front of his trunks though. Still no idea about Schall's nickname which saddens me.
Round One
They move to a clinch right off the bat and trade some inside knees before Hoffman starts stomping at the feet of Schall. Short right lands for Schall and Hoffman starts digging knees into the thighs while pressing up against the fence. Hoffman fires off a short right of his own and they continue to trade knees to the body from in tight. Hoffman grazes the cup of Schall and apologizes for it, talking to him in the clinch and apparently they're both alright with it. More inside knees from both men and foot stomps from Hoffman as they continue to clinch against the fence. They trade right hands with neither man landing them solidly and they end up right back in the clinch, trading short knees inside. The crowd gets on them a little bit and Hoffman tries to score the takedown after hearing the boos, but Schall avoids it and almost gets a guillotine against the fence as they're back to the clinch.
Round Analysis: Hoffman wins the round, but just barely because there wasn't much action at all during it. According to a between round graphic, Hoffman landed 17 knees. That's good enough to give him the round in my books, since Schall wasn't able to really land anything of significance.
Round Two
They come out throwing sloppy punches and it just leads to another clinch against the fence, with Hoffman landing the inside knees. Schall tries a foot stomp and misses, which leads to Hoffman landing one of his own. They continue to do the inside leg striking and there's nothing much happening with either fighter. The crowd starts booing again and they do a little flurrying with Hoffman landing the better strikes before it goes right back to a clinch. Inside right hands to the head and body from Hoffman and they continue to just clinch and work up against the fence. The referee finally steps in and separates them and Hoffman lands a solid leg kick before throwing a sloppy overhand right, rushing behind it back into the clinch. Schall grabs the fence and uses it to reverse position, landing a good right hand/standing elbow and Hoffman's mouthpiece goes flying. A good left lands for Schall and the round runs a few seconds longer after they can't get the air horn to work.
Round Analysis: Schall actually did a little more and landed the better strikes, so I'd give the round to him, but this is still a less than exciting fight with a ton of clinch work and nothing to show for it. One round apiece heading into the third though, so maybe that will fire these guys up.
Round Three
Kind of funny to see Pat Miletich in Hoffman's corner and Rich Franklin in Schall's corner considering the history those two have. It's right back to the clinch as the bell sounds though, so perhaps there's not the sense of urgency I thought there would have been. They just end up trading the inside knees again, though with less frequency than in the last round, throwing some combinations of punches as well, but both guys are throwing so sloppy that they couldn't hit a barn door. Schall almost has a guillotine but lets it go and they stand and scrap a little more before Hoffman LOADS UP a knee to the midsection. Hoffman throws a kick and ends up off-balance, forcing Hoffman to run away a little bit and he gives up the better clinch position to Schall against the fence. Schall tries a takedown but it gets stuffed and Hoffman has the Thai clinch and will be looking to rain in some knees. No knees, just clinching and they end up trading foot stomps with a minute left in the fight. Short left hand lands for Hoffman and he gets a couple of knees to the body before landing a couple of glancing rights and lefts. Hoffman gets the better position now and throws a combination of punches that glance off of Schall's face and Schall lands a right uppercut right at the horn to end the fight. The color guy talks about how this fight could go to overtime it was that close, but I'm REALLY hoping there isn't. Ah, crap there is.
Round Four: Overtime
I predict clinching and not a lot of action. Hoffman looks exhausted and he comes forward with punches before they end up right back into the clinch again. Schall gets the better position and they struggle against the fence. Schall lands a couple of punches and they end up right back into the clinch again with almost nothing happening and the referee separates them into the middle of the cage. And they're right back to the clinch. Fantastic. Hoffman gets a takedown into the full mount out of that clinch and he's trying to secure one of Schall's hands so he can strike. Hoffman postures up and throws some punches and elbows, going CRAZY on Schall all the way up until the horn.
Winner: Bobby Hoffman, Unanimous Decision
Fight Analysis: They waited until the last minute, literally to do anything of consequence, but Hoffman got a big trip and that's probably what won him the fight. A little boring and not a lot of action though, showing that Hoffman had a TON of work to do on his gas tank if he wanted to make even a remote impact.
Match Three: Welterweights
Carlos Newton (9-3) vs. Karl Schmidt (5-0)
They talk about Newton's technical prowess on the mat as well as Schmidt's Marine background and that he's got a lot less experience which is going to play a factor. Newton comes out first at 176 pounds and they talk about his mental and physical gifts before mentioning his history in PRIDE, Shooto and the UFC. This is his debut fight in the WEF and this is his first fight after a bit longer lay-off, so they bring that up as well. Schmidt comes out and they talk about how his conditioning is top-notch, his agression is a big advantage, but it could also come back to bite him if Newton stays calm as he's known to do.
Round One
They come right out to the center of the cage, with Newton landing a good left hand and Schmidt getting a double-leg takedown into a full guard. Schmidt doesn't look like he knows what to do from the top and Newton controls his body well, twisting for an armbar attempt and he gets it and IT'S OVER!!
Winner: Carlos Newton, submission (armbar) at 1:12 of Round One
Fight Analysis: Much like I expected it to go with Newton going up against someone with a ton less experience. Newton was in control from top to bottom and even when he gave up the takedown, you could see the armbar coming. Dominating win for "The Ronin".
Match Four: Middleweights
Dave Menne (30-3-1) vs Jose Landi-Jons (32-3)
The announcers tell us that this could main event any card in the world, and honestly in this time frame, I think they'd be right. They talk about how Landi-Jons has an aggressive attitude and the ability to land heavy, HEAVY knees. Menne makes his way to the cage and they talk about how large he is for the middlewight division, which could come into play in this fight. He's got his wrestling that he's going to fall back on to try to avoid the dangerous striking of Landi-Jons.
Round One
They start out a little slow, cautiously moving to the center of the cage and trading some leg kicks before they exchange punches with Menne JUST missing a couple of shots. They end up clinched against the fence and Pele ends up taking Menne's back with Menne rolling with it, trying for a kneebar into an anklelock attempt. Landi-Jons grabs onto the midsection to try to hold onto Menne and control where his body ends up to keep the submission from getting locked in. Landi-Jons does a little pushing with his feet too, trying to get Menne's grip broken, throwing some heel strikes as well. Menne spins out of the leglock attempt, into top position, ending up in Landi-Jons full guard. Landi-Jons holds on tightly to the guard and controls Menne's body, keeping him from getting any striking done. Menne works the body with right hands as best as he can, with Pele throwing some elbows from the bottom to respond. Menne continues to work to the ribs and body of Pele and does a LOT of damage with those punches, trying to pass the guard and almost getting swept. Menne continues to punish from the top until Landi-Jons gets him pushed away and gets back to his feet. Thirty seconds left in the round and they're both throwing wild strikes with Menne landing a kick to the head and Pele doing some damage from the Thai clinch with knees right at the horn.
Round Analysis: Menne takes this round with the impressive takedown and ground and pound, though Landi-Jons almost managed to steal it with his flurry of knees at the end. A lot closer round than it sounded like or may have even looked like, and it's going to be interesting to see if Landi-Jons can make any adjustments for the rest of the fight.
Round Two
Landi-Jons lands a good left and a NICE combination to follow that up with Menne landing a stiff jab of his own. Menne shoots in for a takedown but Landi-Jons stuffs it and he lands a knee to the head before working the body with more knee strikes from the clinch in the middle of the cage. Menne tries to throw a few back of his own but Landi-Jons is doing more damage with his strikes to the body. Landi-Jons gets a takedown into Menne's guard, posturing up to land a strike and then just walks away to let Menne get back to his feet. Hard right hands land for Landi-Jons and the fight ends up clinched against the fence with Menne holding the better position, pushing Landi-Jons against the fence. They trade some knees inside and the referee steps in to separate them as it looks like Menne has a cut above his right eye. Spinning back kick from Landi-Jons gets blocked by Menne and they work the clinch with Landi-Jons landing a good overhand right. Menne fires back with some short uppercuts from the clinch. Hard leg kick from Landi-Jons and he gets one back from Menne as the pace slows a little bit. They trade knees on the inside and Landi-Jons gets a right hand before Menne lands a couple of solid uppercuts inside. They do a little kneeing to the legs against the fence and the horn sounds to end the second.
Round Analysis:This round was a bit more up Landi-Jons alley, scoring with his strikes and controlling Menne while avoiding the big takdown. He scored one of his own and took the round, making it one round each going to the third.
Round Three
They start the third round very slowly with Landi-Jons backing away from Menne and playing to the crowd a little bit before landing a hard leg kick. Landi-Jons catches a Menne leg kick and almost gets a trip off of it but Menne does well to keep his balance and they're back to circling around in the middle of the cage. Menne misses a leg kick and then eats a BIG right hand, throwing a left kick up high that almost lands on the head of Landi-Jons. Menne does a little dancing and could have pissed Landi-Jons off as he rushes forward with a wicked combination but Menne weathers the storm and scrambles to put Landi-Jons onto his back. They trade strikes with Landi-Jons throwing a ton of elbows from the bottom and Menne pistoning right hands in on Pele's head. Menne starts working some ground and pound from the full guard, pressing Landi-Jons into the fence and working the body and head. Huge "USA" chant fires up from the crowd as he continues to work away with the ground and pound from the top, pinning Landi-Jons down and preventing him from being able to do any striking, though Landi-Jons starts landing some HEAVY elbows from the bottom. Menne fires back with tons of punches from the top and Landi-Jons actually manages to push him away and get to his feet with ten seconds left in the round. A BLISTERING right hand lands for Landi-Jons and they end up in a clinch in the middle of the ring as Landi-Jons lands another PUNISHING right hand, nearly knocking Menne out cold. This fight is one that I WANT to see go to overtime as all three rounds have had quite a bit of action.
No overtime for this one sadly, just right to a decision though the crowd gives a standing ovation to both fighters. Menne looks to be in rough shape from those last two right hands and they announce the scores as 29-29, 30-28 and 29-28 for Menne. Pele looks shocked and a lot of fans are actually shaking their heads as well. Landi-Jons heads out of the cage and to the back, seemingly disgusted by the decision.
Winner: Dave Menne, Majority Decision
Fight Analysis:I'd have to agree with Landi-Jons that the decision was a little suspect. Menne controlled the majority of the final round with the takedown and top position, but Pele was scoring heavily with those elbow strikes off of his back and then nearly finished Menne at the end of the fight. I'd say that this was a fight that should have gone another round as it was just too close either way after the first three. That being said, this was a great action fight and both guys were trying to push the pace and do damage for the entire fifteen minutes. Great fight and a great back-and-forth war that was highly entertaining.
Match Five: Light Heavyweights
Rich Franklin (6-0-1) vs. Gary Myers (58-4-1)
They bill Franklin as being a bit of an unknown and that Myers is the hometown favorite and the favorite for this fight. He's in at a stout 211 pounds for this fight, one of the heaviest weights I've seen him fight at personally. The announcers talk about Franklin training with Kerry Schall and he's even wearing the same fruity fight shorts that Schall was. They say that his conditioning is top-notch and that his striking is well up there as well. Myers charges through the ramp to the cage, throwing his shirt off and running into his corner. He's weighing in at 213 pounds but is giving up almost six inches in height to Franklin. His record is obviously a little inflated, and this is his first fight in nearly a year after having his leg broken by Carlos Barreto in an IVC tournament. Franklin looks MUCH more calm and composed compared to Myers, who seems like he has a bit of a Napoleon complex going on.
Round One
Myers charges forward looking for a clinch but Franklin actually picks him off with a couple of good strikes and keeps him at bay. Myers fakes a shot in and they move to a clinch with Franklin landing some hard shots to the body. A good inside knee lands from Franklin and another and Franklin is doing well in keeping himself from being taken down. Myers tries some punches to the thigh of Franklin and they continue to clinch against the fence. More inside shots from both fighters, with Franklin looking more towards knees and Myers landing punches. Franklin gets a good right hand over the top and they're back to the clinch just as quickly, doing a little hand-fighting against the fence. Franklin scores again with the knees to the body and Myers continues to land the punches to the ribs with Franklin landing some hard elbows standing right at the horn that could be enough to steal him the round.
Round Analysis: Franklin may have taken that round with the little flurry at the end, but it was actually a fairly even round with both of them striking well from the clinch. It looked like Franklin did a little more damage with the knees though so based on that and the good standing elbows, I'd give him the round, but this is closer than one would expect.
Round Two
Myers throws a couple of jabs but they come nowhere near hitting Franklin who has a ton of reach. They move back to the clinch and Franklin lands a HARD knee to the gut as Myers continues to throw those punches to the kidneys. Franklin with a couple of overhand rights that land and he is starting to take over the fight with strikes while Myers continues to look for the takedown. He's really starting to wear Myers out with the punches and knees as he's not firing back nearly as often as he was in the first round. The crowd gets on them a little and Franklin throws a few more knees to the body, following that up with a BIG one to the head. Franklin is just punishing Myers, who seems to be gassing from taking all of these knees to the body. The crowd isn't happy with the flow of action, but that seems more because their hometown boy is losing because Franklin is staying active the entire time. More knees from Franklin punctuate a dominating round for him before the horn.
Round Analysis: Franklin took this round over and seems like the FAR superior conditioned athlete, landing a ton of shots and getting stronger as the fight rolls on while doing a ton of damage to the ribs and gut of Myers, as well as depleting his gas tank. I don't think Franklin is unknown anymore, at least not to Myers.
Round Three
Myers looks like he's trying to stretch out a back cramp or something before the start of the round and he looks to be in pain but he's coming out for the third. They touch gloves to start and Franklin works his jab a little before stuffing a Myers takedown attempt and keeping the fight on its feet. Myers hands are coming down and Franklin lands a good leg kick, following that up with a HARD high kick that puts Myers down and he's done!!
Winner: Rich Franklin, KO (kick) at 0:59 of Round Three
Fight Analysis: Domination from Franklin in the second and third rounds and honestly, it looked like Myers had given up before the third round had even started. Remember how I said that Rich wasn't an unknown anymore, well strike that because ring announcer T. Jay Thompson can be heard over the microphone saying "What's his name? What's his NAME?" before announcing Franklin as the winner. Oh, how times have changed.
Match Six:Welterweights
Alexandre Barros (5-0) vs. Matt Hughes (14-1)
Barros is apparently a late replacement, though they don't say who he was replacing and he's also an IVC champion in his home country of Brazil. Matt Hughes comes out and the announcers say that he was scheduled to fight Chris Brennan. Brennan didn't show and Hughes thought that he was faking to get out of the fight. They list his strengths as his strength, his conditioning as well as his wrestling, while mentioning that his ground and pound is near the top of the world. Barros is a Marco Ruas trained fighter and also restate his win in the eight-man IVC tournament which happened about nine months before this fight.
Round One
Barros looks much bigger than Hughes, even though they only have about a five pound weight difference. They circle slowly to start out the fight and Hughes finally explodes, shooting in and getting the takedown while pressing Barros up against the fence. Hughes postures up for some striking and just grinds Barros' head up against the fence with a crossface as well. Hughes continues to just strike away, punishing Barros before grabbing a neck crank up against the fence. Hughes continues to work from the top and does a real number on Barros, continually pressing his head against the fence and the bar running along the bottom of the fence. He grabs one of Barros' arms and pins it under his body, freeing up that entire side for undefended strikes. Hughes taking over with left hands as he continues to pin that arm under Barros' body. Hughes postures up and almost lets Barros out from underneath but continues to hammer away with punches to put him back on the ground. He moves into half-guard and continues to hammer away, doing the neck crank again before the horn sounds to end the round. The announcers drop an interesting tidbit about how Hughes was accepted into training for the Secret Service but put it on hold to progress in his fight career.
Round Analysis: Hughes mauled him for five minutes. That's all that really needs to be said.
Round Two
This round starts a lot like the first round until Barros tries a high kick that misses. He lands a leg kick though and Hughes just bullrushes through it, forcing Barros up against the fence and taking him down. It's a carbon-copy of the first round as he's pressing Barros up against the fence and pounding on him, trying to pass the guard. Barros is looking for a kimura from the bottom but there's nothing there and Hughes lands a couple of punches and a HARD elbow to the side of Barros. Hughes continues to maul, landing a solid elbow and a couple of GOOD left hands as he continues to force Barros' head against the fence, almost seeming to want to push it through the fence like play-doh. Hughes postures up and is working just enough to the head and body to keep this fight on the ground, moving over out of the guard and into a side control position. He lands a nice elbow but there's not a lot of room to strike as Barros controls his head and body. Hughes postures up for a couple more punches and pulls out of the guard, standing above Barros as the round closes out.
Round Analysis: Second verse, same as the first.
Round Three
Barros lands a good leg kick but Hughes ends up picking him up for a BIG slam, landing right into side control. He drags Barros over to the fence again and does the same thing he did in the first two rounds, working on him and punishing him against the cage. HARD knees to the body land for Hughes and he continues to work them in over and over. Barros tries to push off the fence but can't really find any way to get away from Hughes, just continuing to take punishment from the bottom. Hughes looks to move to the full mount but he can't get it and instead works some ground and pound from the half-guard. Hughes is VERY close to the full mount and Barros is only trying to save himself from getting beaten up worse, offering no offense at all from the bottom. Hughes grinds away on top and pounds for the last minute of the fight, putting an exclamation point on his dominating victory. The judges score it as 30-25, 30-26 and 30-27, all for Hughes.
Winner: Matt Hughes, Unanimous Decision
Fight Analysis: There really isn't anything that needs to be said after this fight. Hughes did what Hughes does and he just hammered away for fifteen minutes, completely crushing Barros and destroying him for the entire fight. Hughes was still a prospect at this point, but he was one HELL of a prospect. One of the more one-sided maulings that I've seen without a finish in quite some time.
Match Seven: Main Event
Marcus Silveira (32-2) vs. Dan Severn (40-4)
This one is for the WEF Heavyweight Superfight Championship and should be an interesting bout. Severn makes his way to the ring first with his customary grey t-shirt on and he stops to drink in the applause of the crowd for a moment as the announcers talk about his grappling and size, as well as his ground and pound skills which are very good for a man of his size. They talk about how Silveira was at the top of the heavyweight ladder a couple of years before this fight as he makes his way to the cage, as well as hyping his black belt in Jiu-Jitsu under Carlson Gracie. They also talk about Silveira's submission background and experience. Severn's got about twenty-five pounds on Silveira which could play huge in the grappling.
Round One
Silveira rushes across the center of the cage and Severn backs off, looking to set up a shot after avoiding any of Silveira's flurries. Severn shoots in and Silveira actually does really well to sprawl away from it, grabbing a guillotine choke on Severn but Severn slams back and rolls Silveira over to break the hold. They end up clinched against the fence and Severn gets a front facelock, landing a couple of knees to the face before Silveira breaks free of the front facelock. They break the clinch and Silveira throws a right hand that Severn ducks under into a takedown attempt. Ten-finger guillotine attempt by Silveira but Severn rolls him over again, taking side control and throwing a couple of knees to the face before trying for a keylock. Elbow to the body lands for Severn and he scores with another knee to the body and it looks like he's setting up for that keylock again. Silveira tries to get the guard back, getting it to half-guard at least and Severn lands some hard punches to the body. Short elbow lands for Severn and another couple and he continues to land some punches and right hands before trying to take the mount. Another short elbow from Severn lands and he works to a head and arm triangle, submitting Silveira on the mat in a HUGE surprise.
Winner: Dan Severn, submission (arm triangle choke) at 4:46 of Round One
Fight Analysis: Severn is understandably pumped and that was a BIG win for him. He dominated Silveira on the mat and did what he always does, working takedowns and pounding shots until he softened his opponent up enough to finish him or submit him. A great win for Severn and he totally executed his gameplan to perfection.
Severn gets presented with his big belt and his trophy and that's about all there is to it as there's no credits, just the finish of the DVD.
The 411: Big names and good fights, which seemed to be a staple of the WEF shows at this point. They have a nice mix of stars from the United States as well as international fighters which makes for a big night of action. No real slow fights out of all of them, outside of the Hoffman/Schall fight, but that was the only one out of the seven on this disc. I'll go with a strong rating for this one since it was a really entertaining show from top to bottom.
