The Tool Review: Rumble On The Rock 8
Posted by Adam Tool on 08.13.2008
Rumble On The Rock delivers with their welterweight tournament, featuring Anderson Silva, Jake Shields, Frank Trigg, Carlos Condit, and Yushin Okami! We’ve also got a big main event between two very big men, as Cabbage takes on Butterbean!
This is the last part of my review of the Rumble On The Rock 5-Event Set, a two disc collection containing the full cards from Rumble On The Rock 4-8. I’ve already recapped the four previous shows, and you can find #4 here, #5 is here, #6 is here, and #7 is here. If you’re interested in picking this one up, you can find it at Amazon for $9.47. I got it at my local Best Buy for just $9.99, and I can honestly say it’s well worth the money.
RUMBLE ON THE ROCK 8
-January 20th, 2006
-From the Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii
We are welcomed to the show by Ryan Bennett and Ricco Rodriguez. They run down the fights in the welterweight tournament. They get to match-up between Renato “Charuto” Verissimo vs. Carlos Condit, and Ricco says that Charuto should have an easy night and go right through Condit with a quick submission. Excuse me while I go pre-heat my oven, because Ricco will be eating those words later. They also hype the main event of Cabbage vs. Butterbean, and not surprisingly Ricco predicts a knock out finish. Bennett throws it to Bruce Buffer who hypes up the crowd and introduces the now traditional Hawaiian blessing/dance/thing.
MATCH ONE: LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS - Kengo Ura (3-3) vs. Mike Malone (1-4)
Ura has fought in the WEC and Valor Fighting. Malone won his first fight and has since dropped four in a row. He has never fought outside of Hawaii.
Round 1
Our referee is Troy “Rude Boy” Mandaloniz. Ura misses the jab, then fakes a shoot. Ura lands an outside leg kick. Malone presses forward with a combination and Ura ducks under and takes him down into guard. He presses him towards the cage and passes to side control. Malone is staying active on the bottom and gets to half guard. Ura works for a kimura but Malone has his leg locked up. Ura lets go of the arm and floats over to side control. Malone gets back to guard and Ura finally starts throwing some punches. He starts to rain down with some short elbows, and Malone flips over. Malone has a hold of the leg but Ura is staying heavy on top. He gets Malone back to his back and throws some more punches. Malone pushes him off with the legs but Ura grabs the left leg and locks up an ankle lock. Malone taps immediately.
Ura would go back to Valor Fighting and has not competed in over two years. Malone would take almost two years off before getting his second career win at the end of 2007.
MATCH TWO: LIGHTWEIGHTS - Josh Donahue (3-2) vs. Ross Ebanez (9-3 1 NC)
Donahue has spent his entire career thus far in Rage In The Cage. Ebanez has fought on nearly every Rumble On The Rock show and is coming off a loss to Carlos Condit.
Round 1
Larry Landless (still sporting the blond locks) is our referee. Donahue shoots in but Ebanez sprawls out and hits a big right hand. Donahue goes in again and grabs a single but Ebanez keeps it standing and lands a few hammer fists to the head. Ebanez lands an outside leg kick and Donahue shoots in again, but Ebanez sprawls out and lands a few more punches. Donahue comes in again looking for the takedown and Ebanez makes him pay for it with a couple of knees to the head. Donahue presses forward with a right hand that misses, and Ebanez catches him with a straight left followed by a right hook. Donahue goes down and Ebanez jumps in throwing some punches. Donahue pulls guard and gets an armbar, but Ebanez picks him up and throws him off. Ebanez jumps back into Donahue’s guard and starts throwing some big punches, and Larry Landless steps in to stop it. Great performance from Ebanez here.
Winner: Ross Ebanez, TKO (strikes), round 1, 3:22
Ebanez would eventually make his way to EliteXC, losing to Mike Pyle and Eddie Alvarez. He last competed for ICON Sport earlier this year. This would be Donahue’s final MMA fight.
MATCH THREE: HEAVYWEIGHTS - Scott Junk (0-1) vs. Vilatonu Fonokalaifi (0-0)
Buffer announces that this is a Rumble On The Rock super-fight, and will be two five minute rounds.
Junk is coming off his first fight, and loss, to the man doing color commentary: Ricco Rodriguez. This is Fonokalaifi’s professional MMA debut.
Round 1
Larry Landless is the third man in the cage. They slug it out early and Junk presses him towards the cage and ties up. Junk tries to pull him down but Fonokalaifi ends up on top in Junk’s guard. Fonokalaifi gets to the mount but Junk is holding him close to avoid any damage. Fonokalaifi gets to posture up and starts unloading some big right hands, and Junk tries to buck him off. Fonokalaifi is staying on top but he seems to be slowing down. Junk tries to buck him off again but Fonokalaifi grabs a hold of the head and rolls into a guillotine. Junk ends up on top and gets his head out, and now he has the mount. He throws some big punches followed by a short elbow. Junk really starts unloading with the rights and left, mixing in some elbows as well. Landless finally steps in to stop it.
Winner: Scott Junk, TKO (strikes), round 1, 3:02
Junk gets his first career win here, and he would go on to win his next five fights before being submitted by Christian Wellisch at UFC 76. Fonokalaifi took a few years off and came back earlier this year for NVP, where he lost to Lolohea Mahe.
We now go into the opening round of the welterweight championship tournament, starting with a nice video package.
MATCH FOUR: WELTERWEIGHTS - Anderson Silva (14-3) vs. Yushin Okami (12-2-1)
Ah yes. This fight. You probably already know how this one ends, but we’ll recap it anyways.
Silva is a veteran of PRIDE and most recently has been fighting for Cage Rage, where he is the World Middleweight Champion. Okami has also fought in PRIDE, as well as Pancrase and GCM.
Round 1
Our referee is Troy Mandaloniz. Silva hits an outside leg kick, followed by another. Okami shoots in but comes up empty. Silva lands another leg kick and Okami misses with a jab. Okami shoots in but Silva pushes him off and Okami lands on his back. Silva stands and stalks him, throwing some nice leg kicks. Mandaloniz stands Okami up and Silva presses forward with a combination. Okami checks a high kick and shoots in again. Silva pushes him down and lands a leg kick. Mandaloniz stands Okami back up. Okami presses forward and ties up but Silva pushes him off. Okami shoots in again and grabs a single, finally getting him down into guard. Silva tries for a triangle but Okami quickly pulls out. Okami stands and Silva catches him with an upkick. Okami jumps into Silva’s guard and throws a few punches. Okami postures up and Silva NAILS him with a kick to the head. Okami is OUT and Mandaloniz quickly steps in to stop it. I happen to have a gif of this, so if you haven’t seen it before check it out:
Since Okami was on his knees the kick is illegal, and Okami can’t continue so that’s it.
Following his performance here Silva would have one more fight in Cage Rage before he jumped to the UFC. He would then proceed to demolish the middleweight ranks and is currently ranked as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Okami would eventually make his way to the UFC as well, and is currently in line for a rematch with Silva.
MATCH FIVE: WELTERWEIGHTS - Jake Shields (12-4-1) vs. Dave Menne (40-12-2)
Shields has competed in Gladiator Challenge, SHOOTO, and Pancrase. Menne has been all over the place, in the UFC, Extreme Challenge, Rings, and HOOKnSHOOT. He is best known as the first UFC Middleweight Champion, although he lost the belt in his first defense against Murilo Bustamante.
Round 1
Troy Mandaloniz gets us started. Menne lands an inside leg kick, then fakes a shoot and tags Shields with a big right hand. Shields immediately drops down with a double leg and gets Menne pressed down against the cage. Menne works for a guillotine but Shields gets to side control and pops his head out. Shields starts dropping some big knees to the head and body, followed by some punches to the head. Menne tries for a sweep but Shields keeps him down and stays on top in the half-guard. Shields quickly passes to side control and throws more punches before transitioning to the full mount. Menne is keeping a hold of the body to avoid any big damage and tries to buck Shields off, but Shields is staying heaving. Menne sweeps and reverses to land on top in Shields’ guard. Shields powers up and eats a knee to the head, but he keeps a hold of the leg. They press up against the cage and Shields gets him down again. Menne keeps his legs locked to hold Shields in half guard, but Shields gets out and passes to side control. Shields throws some short elbows to the head, followed by a big knee. Shields passes to the full mount again, and he tries to posture up but Menne holds him tight. Menne tries to sweep but Shields stays on top in the mount and starts really unloading with punches. Menne tries to buck him off but Shields starts to transition to an armbar right as the horn sounds. If the first round would’ve been 5 or 10 seconds longer I think it would’ve been over there. Total domination from Jake Shields, and 411mania easily awards him the round 10-9.
Round 2
Menne throws a big overhand right but Shields immediately shoots in. Menne sprawls to avoid and tags him with a right, but Shields pulls guard. Shields pulls his legs up and locks up a triangle choke, but Menne pulls out. Shields grabs a hold of his leg and takes him down into half guard, but Mandaloniz calls a timeout to replace Shields’ mouthpiece. They restart back on the ground and Menne tries for a guillotine, but Shields easily pulls out. Shields drops some short punches and elbows, followed by a nice knee to the head. Shields passes to side control and unloads some more short elbows, mixing in knees to the head and body. Menne gives up his back and sweeps Shields off, but Shields jumps right back into Menne’s guard. Shields lands more punches to the head and body, and Mandaloniz calls another timeout to replace Shields’ mouthpiece. They restart on the feet this time and Shields immediately shoots in, but Menne grabs him and lands a nice knee to the head. Menne gets him down and works from the guard, but he can’t get much done there so he decides to stand up. Back on the feet, Menne presses forward with a left uppercut. Shields ducks under that and goes for the takedown, but Menne is showing a good sprawl and he lands another knee to the head. They tie up briefly then split apart, and for the first time in the fight both guys exchange on the feet. Menne misses an overhand right and Shields hits him square in the gut with a kick. Shields tags him with a high kick and eats a left hook, then he drops down to get Menne down again. Menne keeps him locked up in half guard as the round comes to a close. Menne looked better in this round, but it was pretty much all Shields again. 411mania awards Jake Shields round two, with a score of 10-9.
Round 3
Menne hits a few inside leg kicks and then lands a left hook. Shields shoots in but Menne sprawls out of it. Menne lands another leg kick and Shields shoots in again. Menne grabs a hold of the left arm, working for a kimura. Shields presses him against the fence and Menne lets go of the arm. Shields gets him down into side control and then quickly jumps into the full mount. Menne escapes and lands on top in side control. Menne throws a few punches to the head, but he backs up and lets Shields up. Menne measures him and misses a big overhand right, and Shields shoots in and gets him down against the cage. Shields passes to side control and hits a knee to the head. He throws some punches to the head followed by more knees. Menne tries to push him off but Shields stays on top in side control. Menne rolls and gives up his back, and Shields gets his hooks in. Menne is controlling the wrists to avoid the choke, and Shields gets a body lock. Shields tries for a choke but he doesn’t have the arm under the chin, and instead he throws some punches to the head as the round ends. Simply put: Jake Shields put on a clinic. 411mania awards him the third round 10-9, and the fight 30-27.
Winner: Jake Shields, Unanimous Decision (30-27 across the cards)
Shields would go on to beat Okami en route to winning the welterweight tournament, and would eventually make his way to EliteXC where he recently became their first Welterweight Champion. Menne got a chance to return to the UFC, where he went 0-2 against Josh Koscheck and Luigi Fioravanti.
MATCH SIX: WELTERWEIGHTS - Carlos Condit (13-2) vs. Renato “Charuto” Verissimo (5-2 1 NC)
Condit has been in a wide number of organizations, and most recently fought in Pancrase before coming to Rumble On The Rock. Verissimo is coming off an unsuccessful run in the UFC where he suffered back-to-back losses against Matt Hughes and Frank Trigg.
Round 1
Larry Landless is our referee. Charuto presses forward with a combination, but Condit grabs his head and delivers a VICIOUS knee. Charuto goes down and Condit immediately starts unloading. Charuto turtles up and Condit delivers a few more knees to the head before Landless steps in to stop it.
Winner: Carlos Condit, TKO (strikes), round 1, :17
Condit would lose to Jake Shields in the tournament finals, and would then go back to Pancrase before joining the WEC in early 2007. He is the current WEC Welterweight Champion and most recently he defended the belt against Hiromitsu Miura earlier this month. Verissimo was last seen in EliteXC, where he lost to Shields late last year.
MATCH SEVEN: WELTERWEIGHTS - Ronald Jhun (22-16-2) vs. Frank Trigg (12-4)
Trigg is a veteran of several organizations, and most recently fought in the UFC. He went 2-3 there (including two losses to Matt Hughes for the welterweight title) and is coming off a loss to Georges St. Pierre. Jhun has competed in Super Brawl, SHOOTO, King Of The Cage, and he even had a cup of coffee in the UFC.
After seeing his bald dome for several years now, I must say that it’s a little weird seeing Trigg here with a full head of hair.
Round 1
Troy Mandaloniz gets us underway. Trigg throws the jab and Jhun hits a leg kick. Jhun throws a big right but Trigg ducks under and tries for a takedown. Jhun ties him up against the cage and throws some big shoulder shrugs. Trigg drops down and gets the double leg, then gets the big takedown. Trigg works in the half guard and lands some short punches. Trigg works him towards the cage and lands some big punches. Jhun tries to use the legs to push him off but Trigg presses right back down. Jhun pushes him away but Trigg grabs the head and lands several knees to the head. Jhun pulls guard and before long Mandaloniz stands them up. Jhun misses a right hand, then throws a big left. Trigg ducks under and gets the takedown. Trigg throws some short punches from the guard, then postures up and starts delivering some punches to the body. Trigg stands and lands a big left, but he eats an upkick from Jhun. Trigg gets back in and Jhun grabs his left arm, working for an armbar. Jhun keeps his arm locked up and Trigg lands a big knee to the head. Jhun continues to work for the armbar but the round comes to a close. Good action so far. Trigg got the takedowns and maintained control for most of the round, so 411mania awards him round one 10-9.
Round 2
Trigg throws a high kick and Jhun checks it. Trigg follows it up with a leg kick that hurts Jhun. Jhun presses forward with a nice combination but Trigg shoots in and takes him down. Trigg gets in guard but Jhun won’t let him pass. Trigg stands up and throws some punches to the body, and Jhun tags him with an upkick. Trigg gets back down into half guard and Jhun is working for a kimura on the right side. Jhun is holding the arm tight but Trigg isn’t letting him get his hips free. Mandaloniz decides to stand them up. Trigg quickly shoots in but Jhun ties up and keeps it standing. Trigg breaks away with a few short elbows, and Jhun tags him with a left. Trigg drops down but he quickly gets back to his feet and ties up with Jhun. Jhun pulls away and Trigg presses forward. Jhun catches him with a right and Trigg misses a high kick. Trigg shoots in and grabs a single, taking Jhun down and landing in guard. Trigg presses Jhun towards the cage and lands a nice left. Jhun keeps him close and Mandaloniz stands them up. Trigg lands an inside leg kick. Trigg presses forward with a combination that misses. Jhun throws some punches but he can’t quite connect as the round ends. Jhun got the better of the stand-up, but he never really had Trigg in trouble. Trigg did get the takedowns so 411mania awards him round two 10-9.
Round 3
Trigg throws the jab and lands an inside leg kick. Trigg misses with a high kick and Jhun tags him with a left. Jhun lands a few more punches and Trigg hits another leg kick. Trigg presses forward and gets the takedown, working in the half guard. Trigg throws some rapid fire shoulder shrugs. Trigg stands up and eats an upkick, but he comes in with a nice left. Trigg jumps back in and Jhun gets his leg locked up to keep him in half guard. Trigg starts to work for a head and arm choke, but Mandaloniz steps in and stands them up. Trigg gives him the look of death, but what can he do? Jhun lands a nice left hook, and Trigg answers back with the jab. Trigg throws a big high kick but Jhun checks it. They have a nice little exchange on the feet, with neither man really getting the better of the other. Jhun lands a kick to the body, followed by a nice left-right combination. Trigg immediately shoots in, and SLAMS him down. Trigg lands on top in side control and throws some short elbows to the head. Trigg hits him with a big knee to the head and Jhun starts throwing knees to the head from his back. Jhun tries to sweep but Trigg postures up and really starts unloading with punches right as the horn sounds. This was probably the closest round so far, but that big slam and the flurry of punches at the end probably sealed the deal for Frank Trigg. 411mania scores round three 10-9, and the fight 30-27 for Trigg. In any case this was one of the best fights of the show, and a great performance from both men.
Winner: Frank Trigg, Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Trigg went on to lose to Carlos Condit in the next round of the tournament, followed by stints in ICON Sport, PRIDE, and most recently HDNet Fights. He continues to provide color commentary on several shows (most recently he was a part of Affliction: Banned), and he hosts an internet radio show called TAGG Radio. Jhun has bounced around all over the place, and is currently on a 10 fight losing streak.
MAIN EVENT: HEAVYWEIGHTS - Wesley “Cabbage” Correira (16-8) vs. Eric “Butterbean” Esch (1-1-1)
Cabbage is best known for his brief stint in the UFC, and is currently on a three fight win streak. Butterbean is a well-known boxer, who is just beginning his MMA career.
It’s worth noting that Cabbage is not a small man, but Butterbean outweighs him by over 130 pounds.
Buffer announces that this “super-fight” has special rules. There are no submissions, and if the fight should go to the ground they are only allowed 15 seconds before they’ll be stood up.
Round 1
Our referee (and smallest man in the cage) is Larry Landless. Cabbage throws a high kick that misses. Butterbean throws some punches that don’t really connect. Cabbage lands a leg kick, then misses with a second. Butterbean presses forward with a leg kick (the hell?) then starts to unload with left and rights. Cabbage ties up but Butterbean continues punching him in the head. Cabbage presses him against the fence and Butterbean throws some knees inside. Cabbage gets the takedown and starts unloading with punches and elbows. The fifteen seconds are up and Landless brings them back to the feet. When he gets up it’s clear Cabbage is in pain, as he’s visibly wincing. He presses forward though and Butterbean misses with a big overhand right. Cabbage lands a few leg kicks and Butterbean smiles at him. Cabbage lands a few more leg kicks, then tags Butterbean with a left. Butterbean tries to answer back but Cabbage backs out of it. Butterbean connects with a jab, then throws a big overhand right. Cabbage grabs the head and delivers a big knee. They tie up against the cage and Butterbean throws some knees to the legs. Cabbage reverses and has Butterbean pressed up now, and he lands a knee to the body followed by a short elbow to the head. Butterbean takes out his mouthpiece and spits something out. Ryan Bennett says that he thinks Butterbean just lost a tooth. Cabbage presses forward again and starts to mix up shots to the head and body (and let’s face it, he’s got a lot of area to work with). They slug it out against the cage and Cabbage ties up. Landless quickly splits them up and Cabbage ties up again. He lands a couple of nice elbows followed by a big uppercut. Cabbage starts to unload but Butterbean answers back. Cabbage ties up again and throws a nice knee to the head followed by some punches as the round ends. We knew it would be a slugfest, and they didn’t disappoint. Cabbage seemed to get the better of it though and 411mania awards him round one 10-9.
Round 2
Cabbage lands a few leg kicks and Butterbean misses with the jab. Cabbage tags him with some quick lefts. Butterbean comes forward with a big right that barely tags Cabbage. They circle a bit with Cabbage landing some leg kicks before Butterbean is all, “Fuck this shit” and charges forward swinging wildly. He connects with a few big punches and Cabbage ties him up, landing a knee to the body. Cabbage presses him towards the cage and lands a few knees to the leg. Cabbage pulls away and Butterbean starts to unload again. Cabbage ties him up again and Landless steps in to separate them. When they separate Cabbage is visibly hurt, and doubling over. The fight is still on though and Butterbean charges forward throwing punches. Cabbage ties up and Butterbean lands some shots to the body. Cabbage is wincing badly, but he still lands some knees to the inside. Landless breaks them up again and Cabbage is still in pain. Butterbean presses forward again with some punches and Cabbage ties up. Cabbage lands some foot stomps and the crowd starts chanting “Butterbean.” Kinda surprising considering we’re in Cabbage’s home state. Cabbage lands a knee in the little Butterbeans, and Landless steps in to warn him right as the round ends. Between rounds the doctor says that Cabbage can’t continue, so that is it.
Winner: Eric “Butterbean” Esch, TKO (doctor’s stoppage), round 2, 5:00
During the post-fight interviews Cabbage says that he broke his arm throwing the elbows in the clinch. Butterbean reveals that he actually did lose some chunks of his teeth in the first round.
Following this fight Cabbage has gone 2-5, including a loss to Antonio Silva in EliteXC last year. Butterbean would go on to fight in PRIDE and Cage Rage, and was most recently seen as a part of this year’s worst MMA show: YAMMA Pit Fighting.
The 411: This DVD collection features five full fight cards, and I feel fairly comfortable saying that this is the best one of the set. Jake Shields and Frank Trigg both showcased some dominant wrestling, Anderson Silva, Carlos Condit, and Ross Ebanez all had great, aggressive performances (although in Silva’s case it didn’t quite go to plan). The main event delivered the slugfest that we expected, although it would’ve been a bit better to get that big KO finish. In any case this show gets an easy recommendation, and the entire set is a definite must-have for any MMA fan.
