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STRIKEFORCE CHALLENGERS 14
FEBRUARY 18, 2010
LIVE FROM CEDAR PARK, TX
Mauro Ranallo introduces the show, and passes to Stephen Quadros to talk about the main event, and then to Pat Miletich to discuss the role of Strikeforce Challengers. Mauro needs a shave, but at leat unlike Gus Johnson, he doesn't need cold cream to get the lipstick and blush off of his face...
FIGHT ONE: DAVID DOUGLAS vs. NICK GONZALEZ (150 lb. Catchweight)
ROUND ONE: Douglas has a huge size and reach advantage here. Douglas has massive power, as he can bench press 465 pounds. Right as Miletich talks about Gonzalez' Dominick Cruz style head movement, Douglas blasts him. Douglas pounds him down, gets his back, and chokes him unconscious. Well, that was impressive.
WINNER: David Douglas via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 1:05 of Round 1.
POST FIGHT: Douglas tells Ranallo that his best weight class is 155. Mauro asked him to call out somebody, but Douglas demurs. Between fights, they run a video package recapping the HW Grand Prix.
STAR RATING: (**) Too much of a physical mismatch for the impressive performance to be memorable.
FIGHT TWO: ERIK APPLE vs. RYAN LARSON (Welterweight)
ROUND ONE: Apple stuffs a takedown after 30 seconds of feeling out. 45 seconds of standing grappling. Larson lands a head kick, gets a take down, and into side control 90 seconds in. Larson locks in a Salaverry, and the cameraman focuses on the referee's ass for 5 seconds. Thanks for that, Mister Showtime Director. Apple's defending as well as he can, as Larson isn't able to land as much as you'd expect from a crucifix position. Looking for a kimura now, and back into the crucifix. Couple short elbows form Larson; Cain vs. O'Brien this aint. North-South position now, takes his back. Winds up in half guard, and Apple reverses and gets a knee bar attempt. Nothing comes from it, and Larson on top in half guard. Scramble, dueling heel hooks. Larson loses his heel hook, then Apple loses his.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Larson. Fun round. Apple is the better stand up fighter, as was demonstrated the first minute of the fight. Lason got dominant positions, but didn't do much with them. Well defensed by Apple.
ROUND TWO: Quick takedown by Larson. Goes for full mount, gets half guard. 90 seconds later he gets the mount, and Apple gives up his back. Larson's going for ground and pound more than the choke. Gets mount, which Apple didn't like much either. Larson gets an inverted triangle. Apple manages to spin, but can't escape. Larson wins by triangle. Impressive grappling display.
WINNER: Ryan Larson via Submission (Triangle Choke) at 3:14 of Round 2.
POST FIGHT: Larson tells his hometown crowd that this was a dream come true for him. He credits high-alitude training for his win.
STAR RATING: (**+) Larson looked great, no two ways about it. He clearly wanted nothing to do with Apple on the feet, and was able to get it down to the mat, where he dominated.
FIGHT THREE: RYAN COUTURE vs. LEE HIGGINS (Lightweight)
ROUND ONE: Couture has a gigantic 76" reach on his 5'10" frame. Miletich is complimentary to Couture's footwork. not much action in the first minute, and the fans are booing already. Pretty rough of them. Couture's switching stances frequently here. About 2 minutes in Higgins attacks, but Couture evades most of it. Very little action so far. Halfway through, and nothing has happened here. Couture looks comfortable on the outside. He's mixing things up, landing a few leg kicks here and there. 90 seconds left. The crowd is starting to get on the fighters a little more, and now it's more justified than before. Couture lands a body kick, Higgins catches it, down to the ground, and Couture goes for a guillotine. Whoops. Higgins survives the guillotine, but can't get the fight get back up to standing. while scrambling, Couture lands a tight D'Arce with 10 seconds left. Higgins manages to survive.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Couture. He was landing the occasional leg kick, and had two nice chokes. the D'Arce was might have finished him if the round went 30 seconds longer, but Higgins certainly knew how to defend it well.
ROUND TWO: First minute of the round sees Higgins get inside and gets it to the cage. couture lands a nice knee as they separate. Couture's got better technique, even if he's not doing any damage. Halfway through they clinch again, and Couture drops Higgins with a right hook as he released the plum. Higgins got right back up, and Couture took him down, side control. Now full mount for Couture. Higgins rolls onto his side while mounted, and couture is trying to lock in an arm triangle choke. He's got it, but Higgins is defending very well, again. Couture has his back now, while on his back, like Randy v. Sylvia, round one. Higgins is defending the RNC better than Couture is able to implement. Full body triangle, so it's not like Higgins is a happy camper here or anything.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Couture. Much better round for Couture, and the fans as well. Couture's better standing, and he's better on the ground. Higgins is hanging in with his solid BJJ defense, but he needs to do more than defend chokes if he wants to win.
ROUND THREE: Couture pushes Higgins into the cage right away, and is landing short knees against the cage. Higgins manages to spin, hoping to get Couture down, but fails. They separate, and 2 minutes in both fighters are in the center of the cage. Quadros points out that Higgins isn't throwing any jabs, and can't check leg kicks. nice right hand by Higgins. They lock up, Higgins gets his back standing. Couture escapes, and takes him down, near the cage. Couture gets his back, way high, though, can't get both hooks in. Couture rolls him over, and has the hooks. Higgins is desperately trying to keep Couture's arm from getting under his chin, and he pops Couture's out from under his chin. Nice hand control, he was in pain there. Was a cross of RNC and neck crank. Couture's going for another RNC, Higgins defending for all he's worth, but has to tap with about 20 seconds left.
WINNER: Ryan Couture via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:41 of "The Very Third round", as Alex Gibbs described it to the live audience.
POST FIGHT: Miletich jokingly states that Ryan's muay thai is better than Randy's (I hope he's joking, anyway). Ryan credits his right hand, and then commended Higgins' hand control.
STAR RATING: (**+) This was the perfect fight for Couture's development. He made a couple mistakes and paid for them, and he had to fight hard for 14 minutes before getting the finish. Couture might have a future in this sport.
FIGHT FOUR: CARLO PRATER vs. BRYAN TRAVERS (160 lb. Catchweight)
ROUND ONE: Both guys flashing the jab early, and Prater takes him down, looking for a D'Arce. He's got it, Travers is sleeping.
WINNER: Carlo Prater via Submission (D'Arce Choke) at 0:38 of Round 1
POST FIGHT: Prater is crying a little during the interview, commenting about how hard his career has been. He'll be back in the gym on Monday. He said it wasn't a Brabo choke, but was actually a version of the Anaconda Choke. He then thanked Texas, and Yves Edwards.
STAR RATING: (***) Wow. He was looking for the D'Arce from the instant they went to the ground. Bonus points for a choke you don't see every day. Prater's next fight could very well be on the big show.
FIGHT FIVE: LYLE BEERBOHM vs. PAT HEALY (Lightweight)
ROUND ONE: Immediate head kick by Beerbohm, and follows up with a double leg. There's something you see every day... Beerbohm pushes him into the cage. Beerbohm has Healy up against the cage, can't take him down, and they separate. Now Healy catches a leg kick and knocks Beerbohm down. Beerbohm powers back up, and has Healy up against the cage. Healy can't do anything with his back up against the cage. Beerbohm picks him up and powerslams Healy, but Healy is back up within 5 seconds. Healy's back against the cage yet again. Beerbohm lands some good punches against the cage, and as they separate. Back to the same position yet again. Beerbohm is the smaller guy, but sure seems stronger. Scramble, and Beerbohm is riding Healy's back. Nice reversal, and Healy has Beerbohm's back. And loses it as the horn blows.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Beerbohm. Healy is bigger, but Beerbohm sure seems stronger. Grapple Grapple Grapple Grapple.
ROUND TWO: Healy starts out aggressively, which just means his back is against the cage even faster than in round 1. Grappling along the fence for position. This is a grueling war of attrition for both guys, but Beerbohm is staying lower and landing better shots. Smaller but stronger, clearly. During the scrambling, Healy tries for a triangle, but Beerbohm escaped and they're against the cage again. 2 minutes left.Mauro says something has got to give in this war of attrition. Beerbohm is starting to get tired, as he took a couple strikes to the jaw as they separated. They're down, inverted triangle for Healy, into a keylock. Healy still has the inverted triangle, and this is a bad spot for Beerbohm. Trying for a kimura again from the inverted triangle, but decides to pound on Beerbohm's head until the round ends.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Healy. Beerbohm gassed, Healy took advantage. First 3 minutes of round 2 was a repeat of round 1, but Beerbohm gassed, and Healy dominated the end of the round.
ROUND THREE: Healy comes out aggressive with the jab, and he pushes Beerbohm against the fence for a change. Beerbohm defended the takedown, but winds up with his back against the cage again. Healy takes him down, trying for the back, and he's got an RNC attempt on Beerbohm, but doesn't have his body controlled. Beerbohm escapes as a result, and now he's going for Healy's back. A little too aggressive by Healy, going for the choke before getting even one hook in. Healy's on top now in side control. Healy controlled posture, and Beerbohm lost side control as a result. 90 seconds left. Nice transition and Healy has control now. rolling kneebar attempt by Healy. Failed, but fun to watch. Healy going for another choke but again doesn't have Beerbohm locked up. Now Beerbohm in control. 90% of this round has been on the mat. Back to standing with 30 seconds left. Stand and bang in the middle of the cage. Beerbohm shoots, Healy sprawls. Fight ends with both guys swinging.
Hansen's Scorecard: 10-9 Healy. This was a really fun round. Healy's submission attempts weren't close because he didn't have the hooks in, but they were definitely enough to take the round. There were several transitions in round 3. Awesome round.
WINNER: Pat Healy via Unanimous Decision (29-28, x3)
POST FIGHT: Healy is open to a rematch. Says he outworked and outhustled his opponent. healy wants the winner of Evangelista and Masvidal, because both guys beat his brother in fights past. Healy then gives credit to BJ Penn for some of the techniques he used.
STAR RATING: (***-) As fun as round 3 was for someone who likes grappling, scrambles, and transitions, the first 8 minutes were standing grappling against the cage. Each round was more entertaining than the round before it.
Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/strikeforceevents/article_8524.shtml
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