If you don’t remember the first part of this article, you can find it here.
In September 2010, we looked at non-elite fighters who had been ranked for two years, and consistently won fights, but had become stagnant.
Revisiting the Top 5
1. Nick Penner (9/1/10 Rank: #77 vs. 9/1/08 Rank: #72 | [5-0-0 2yr])
Current Rank: Inactive (*)
We must have put the hex on Mr. Penner. He did the exact opposite of what we were looking for, which is go completely inactive.
Bellator Fighting Championships 30
April 2, 2011
Uncasville, Connecticut, United States
Bellator Lightweight Championship
Lightweight (155 lbs)
Eddie Alvarez (22 – 2 – 0) won a unanimous decision over Pat Curran (13 – 4 – 0). Alvarez stays ranked at [#5] with this victory. Alvarez is on a 7 fight win streak, and is regarded as one of the top lightweights in the world. Pat Curran drops 7 spots from [#38] to [#45]. Although he lost, Curran proved a lot by going the distance with Alvarez. Curran, who is 4 – 1 in is last 5, hinted at a possible move down to 145 lbs after this loss.
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Semifinal
Welterweight (170 lbs)
Rick Hawn (11 – 0 – 0) defeated Lyman Good (11 – 2 – 0) by a razor thin split decision. Hawn jumps 13 spots forward from [#60] to [#47]. He will face the winner of Jay Hieron vs. Brent Weedman in the finals of the season 4 welterweight tournament. Lyman Good drops 3 spots from [#54] to [#57]. Good, who has now lost 2 of his last 3, is still a top welterweight prospect inside the Bellator cage.
Bellator Lightweight Tournament Semifinal
Light Heavyweight (155 lbs)
Patricky Freire (9 – 1 – 0) blasted Toby Imada (29 – 16 – 0) and won by TKO due to a huge flying knee and punches at 2:53 into round 1. Freire, who bounds 80 spots forward from [#132] to [#52], has to be the odds on favorite to win the lightweight tournament now. Freire is on a 5 fight win streak, stopping 4 of his last 5 opponents. Toby Imada falls 31 spots from [#42] to [#73]. Imada, who hasn’t suffered a TKO loss since 2006, will have to go back to the drawing board and come back strong. He has been in this position before, and has proven capable to return from demoralizing defeats.
In Episode 2, Keon Caldwell left the competition as he couldn’t stand to be separated from his family. His replacement will be announced in the next episode.
In the second opening round fight, Team Lesnar’s Chris Cope defeated Team Dos Santos’ Javier Torres by a unanimous decision (29-28 on all scorecards) after an overtime round.
The current win tally is 1 Team Dos Santos, 1 Team Lesnar.
Here’s who remains:
[#113] Anthony Ferguson
[#179] Myles Jury
episode 1: forced to withdraw due to an injury
[#200] Ryan McGillivray
[#247 LW] Ramsey Nijem
[#289] Chuck O’Neil
episode 1: alternate taking place of Miles Jury
[#321] Charlie Rader
[#364] Shamar Bailey
episode 1: moved on to quarter-finals with a 20-18 unanimous decision win over Nordin Asrih
[#387] Clay Harvison
[#441] Chris Cope
episode 2: moved on to quarter-finals with a 29-28 overtime unanimous decision win over Javier Torres
[#475] Len Bentley
[NR] Nordin Asrih
episode 1: lost a unanimous decision (20-18) to Shamar Bailey
[NR] Michael Bowman
[NR] Keon Caldwell
episode 2: withdrew from competition
[NR] Zachary Davis
[NR] Javier Torres
episode 2: lost an overtime unanimous decision (29-28) to Chris Cope
Featherweight (145 lbs)
Janailson Kevin Pereira Lima (8 – 12 – 0) defeated Marcos Vinicius (7 – 1 – 0) by split decision. Lima, who was previously unranked, breaks into the featherweight “Top 250” at [#161]. Lima has won 3 of his last 4 (not counting one No Contest). Vinicius drops 64 spots from [#117] to [#164].
Heavyweight (265 lbs)
Leonardo Guimaraes (5 – 0 – 0) defeated Cassio Jacare (4 – 2 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 1:11 into round 2. Guimaraes, who was previously unranked, breaks into the heavyweight “Top 250” at [#165]. Guimaraes has stopped all but 1 of his opponents. Cassio Jacare, who remains unranked, has gone 2-2 in his last 4 fights.
Women’s Bantamweight (135 lbs)
Vanessa Porto (12 – 4 – 0) defeated Kalindra Carvalho Faria (1 – 3 – 1) by armbar submission at 3:57 into round 1. Porto, who was previously unranked, breaks into the women’s bantamweight “Top 15” at [#9]. Porto won 5 of her last 6, 4 by armbar submission. Faria remains unranked.
Iron Man Championship 4
March 31, 2011
Pan Amazon,
Belem, Para, Brazil
Heavyweight (265 lbs)
Dirlei Brundestuki (3 – 1 – 0) weathered the opening storm and upset the much larger Geronimo “Mondragon” Dos Santos (21 – 13 – 0) by TKO due retirement at 4:15 into round 2. Brundestuki remains unranked. Dos Santos, who was previously ranked at [#151], fell off the rankings. Dos Santos is 4-2 in his last 6, losing both fights by TKO due to retirement.
Welterweight (170 lbs)
Marinho Rocha (3 – 4 – 0) won a suspect split decision over Luis Sergio da Fonseca Melo. (22 – 8 – 3). Rocha, who remains unranked with his victory, broke a 4 fight losing streak with this win. Melo, who drops 72 spots from [#108] to [#180], is 5-1-1 in his last 7.
Middleweight (185 lbs)
Andre Lobato (11 – 2 – 0) defeated Alexandre Goncalves Alves Jr. (5 – 4 – 0) by submission due to heel hook at 0:34 into round 1. Lobato, who jumped 26 spots forward from [#277] to [#251], has won 6 of his last 7 all by 1st round submission. Alves Jr, who remains unranked, has lost 3 of his last 4.
Welterweight (170 lbs)
Rafael Bastos (35 – 14 – 1) won a unanimous decision over Jamil Silveira (20 – 12 – 0). Bastos, who jumps 108 spots from [#415] to [#307], is on a 4 fight win streak, stopping 2 of his opponents. Silveira, who remains unranked, has lost 5 of his last 7 all via unanimous decision.
Middleweight (185 lbs)
Maurilio de Souza (4 – 4 – 0) upset Paulo Henrique Garcia Rodrigues (12 – 6 – 0) by guillotine choke at 0:27 into round 1. De Souza, who remains unranked, is on a 2 fight win streak, stopping both of his opponents in under 30 seconds. Rodrigues, who was ranked at [#259], has fallen off the middleweight “Top 350.” Prior to two losses, Rodrigues was on a 4 fight win streak, all by armbar.
Lightweight (155 lbs)
Jose Ivanildo Lopes Souza (6 – 5 – 0) defeated Carlos Heide (9 – 6 – 0) by guillotine choke submission at 1:30 into the 1st round. Lopes, who was previously unranked, enters the lightweight “Top 500” at [#447]. Lopes has won 5 of his last 6 fights. Heide, who remains unranked, is 4-2 in his last 6.
Middleweight (185 lbs)
Marcio Henrique Castanheira (6 – 1 – 0) defeated Edilson Florencio (8 – 11 – 0) by TKO due to retirement at 1:42 into the 1st round. Castanheira, who was previously unranked, enters the middleweight “Top 350” at [#275]. Castanheira has won all 6 of his fights by stoppage. Florencio, who remains unranked, is 4-2 in his last 6.
Strikeforce – Challengers 15
April 1, 2011
Stockton, California, United States
Lightweight (155 lbs)
Justin Wilcox (11 – 3 – 0) continued his march towards a Strikeforce lightweight title shot as he disposed of Rodrigo Damm (9 – 5 – 0) by stopping the bout due to doctors stoppage at the end of round 1. Rodrigo Damm looked like he had little to offer Wilcox, who dominated the Brazilian with powerful head kicks and ground and pound including precision elbows (thanks to Strikeforce adopting the unified rules and allowing elbows). In the post fight interview, Wilcox stated that he has his eye on the gold. It is hard to argue against him after the performance he showed on Friday night. Other than a title fight with the winner of [#4] Gil Melendez and [#9] Tatsuya Kawajiri (taking place on April 9th), a bout with [#13] Jorge Masvidal would prove telling for Justin “The Silverback” Wilcox. Wilcox jumps 12 spots forward, from [#40] to [#28] with this victory, and now on a 6 fight win streak. Rodrigo Damm is in a tough spot , losing 4 of his last 5. Perhaps scraps between he and [#78] Billy Evangelista, who is coming off the first loss of his career to Jorge Masvidal, or [#89] Carlo Prater would be worthwhile. Damm drops 29 spots from [#92] to {#121].
Notable Info
SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 2011
Knockout Entertainment – MMA: The Reckoning
April 2, 2011
Orillia, Ontario, Canada
Welterweight (175 lbs)
[#46] Josh Burkman (21 – 8 – 0) vs. [#58] Jordan Mein (20 – 7 – 0)
Lightweight (155 lbs)
[#174] Chris Horodecki (16 – 3 – 0) vs. [#175] David Castillo (9 – 2 – 0)
This Saturday, some very important fights are going down at Bellator 39. Champion Eddie Alvarez will look to further cement his status atop the Bellator lightweight division in a title defense against Pat Curran. Along with welterweight and lightweight semifinals bouts taking place, Zuffa veterans Ben Saunders, Dave Jansen, Dan Cramer and Matt Veach will be fighting on the card.
Bellator Fighting Championships 39
April 2, 2011
Uncasville, Connecticut, United States
Bellator Lightweight Championship
Lightweight (155 lbs)
[#5] Eddie Alvarez (21 – 2 – 0) vs. [#38] Pat Curran (13 – 3 – 0)
Eddie Alvarez is regarded as one of the top lightweights in the world. He is on a 6 fight win streak, stopping all 6 opponents. Alvarez is looking to continue his rise up the ranks outside the UFC. He knows that if he is ever to be regarded as the top lightweight in the sport, he will have to fight in the UFC. Pat Curran stunned Bellator fans last season when he won the Lightweight tournament in season 2 of Bellator. Curran, who is the younger cousin of featherweight fighter Jeff Curran, is on a 4 fight win streak. His last fight was a contentious split decision victory over Tobey Imada in the finals of the aforementioned tournament. If Curran is able to defeat Alvarez, it would be a tremendous upset.
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Semifinal
Welterweight (170 lbs)
[#54] Lyman Good (11 – 1 – 0) vs. [#60] Rick Hawn (10 – 0 – 0)
After losing the Bellator welterweight championship in a 5 round unanimous decision to Ben Askren, Lyman Good is looking to blaze through his second tournament to earn another title shot. Good advanced to the semi finals after beating Chris Lozano by unanimous decision at Bellator 35. Now the undefeated former Olympic judoka Rick Hawn stands in his way. Hawn won his way into the semis by besting “Judo” Jim Wallhead with a unanimous decision victory. Whoever comes out on top in this bout will most likely be viewed as the favorite to win the tournament.
In Episode 1, Miles Jury was forced out of the competition when he tore his ACL in training. Jury was replaced on Team Lesnar by [#289 WW] Chuck O’Neil.
In the first fight, Team Dos Santos’ first pick Shamar Bailey defeated Team Lesnar’s last pick Nordin Asrih by a unanimous decision (20-18 on all scorecards).
The current fight tally is 1 Team Dos Santos, 0 Team Lesnar.
Here’s who remains:
[#113] Anthony Ferguson
[#179] Myles Jury
injured in training
[#200] Ryan McGillivray
[#247 LW] Ramsey Nijem
[#289] Chuck O’Neil
alternate taking place of Miles Jury
[#321] Charlie Rader
[#364] Shamar Bailey
moves on to quarter-finals with a win over Asrih
[#387] Clay Harvison
[#441] Chris Cope
[#475] Len Bentley
[NR] Nordin Asrih
lost a unanimous decision to Shamar Bailey
[NR] Michael Bowman
[NR] Keon Caldwell
[NR] Zachary Davis
[NR] Javier Torres
