Photo’s by Etienne Simard of www.combatultime.com

All the festivities at the Pierre Charbonneau Center started off at around 6:30pm with a live band playin’ and pumpin’ up the small crowd in hand. Colonel Moutarde entertained the hundreds of fans (under a thousand) in attendance with their rock covers and after a few songs, we were treated to a Karate demonstration by a young girl and a Jiu Jitsu demonstration by two young boys. After that introduction, the fans were really ready for some action in the ring.

At ring side, the commentating was provided by none other than Stephan “The Fight Professor” Quadros himself along with the help of Frank Trigg and Joe Ferraro. Everyone was now waiting for the first experience of Apex and most of our answers would be answered in the following hours.

First Bout: Mandela Kponou vs. Marcus Celestin

In the first bout, Mandela Kponou came right on Marcus Celestin with knees but was quickly taken down and was able to get away from an armbar and triangle attempt by Celestin. Back on their feet, Kponou continued with knees kicks and a takedown. He had a side mount, turned it into a full mount, and was able to land a few knees and punches that hurt Celestin, but eventually lost position on his own. At the end of this first round, Kponou showed great sportsmanship by helping his opponent get up from the ground.

At the start of the second round, Kponou was able to land a few good knees in the clinch. They both exchanged punches but Celestin rocked Kponou with a left of his own and a few seconds later, Kponou secured a guillotine and was slammed to the mat by Celestin. His grip was good enough for him to keep it on and Celestin had no choice but to tap out at the 0:50 mark. Mandela Kponou wins by submission (guillotine choke) at 0:50 R2.

FIrst Fight: Mike Rogers vs. Lance Cartwright

The next bout was a heavyweight clash between Mike Rogers and Lance Cartwright who was cornered by his good friend, Joe Doerkson. This match was not a fan friendly affair to say the least. It was long and boring and went to a tedious decision. The first round was owned by Rogers with his numerous single leg and double legs takedowns but he didn’t do much in Cartwright’s guard and the bout was brought back up at least three times by the referee.

The second round started with a much more aggressive Cartwright who came in with kicks, unfortunately, Rogers brought it back to the mat very quickly. Joe Doerkson implored his friend to bring it back up as soon as possible and In the last three minutes of this round, we finally had some great action. Cartwright was able to land a flying knee, and followed with knees and Rogers found himself on his back. From his feet, Cartwright tried to jump on his opponent and get a full mount but he jumped right over Rogers. The match closed with a good uppercut and right from Rogers and ended with Cartwright connecting with a knee. Mike Rogers wins by unanimous decision over Lance Cartwright after two rounds.

Third Match: Ulysses Rocha vs. Matt Martin

The third match of the evening was a walk in the park for Ulysses Rocha. The Fabio Holanda protégé showed quick hands and found himself in Matt Martin’s guard very quickly. From there, Rocha moved like a veteran and passed the guard and attempted a side choke. Seconds later, he got the full mount and went for the armbar and Martin had no choice but to tap. Rocha looks to be a very poised young featherweight with a great future ahead of him. I look forward to seeing him against better opposition. Ulysses Rocha by submission (armbar) at 1:06 of R1

Forth Match: Brad Blackburn vs. Steve Legault

Everyone was expecting a submission lesson by the Denis Hallman’ pupil, Brad Blackburn over Steve Legault, but to our great surprise, Blackburn connected with his first punch, a right hook and sent Legault right to his back. Blackburn jumped in on his fallen opponent for a last shot but the referee jumped in immediately, much to Legault’ dismay. Brad Blackburn wins by TKO (punch) over Steve Legault at 0:14 of R1.

Fifth match: Ryan Shultz vs. Jason Dent

The fifth match and the final two rounder of the night was the Ryan Shultz show. The SuperBrawl 36 tournament winner showed us all why he should be taken seriously and as I expected, Ryan schooled Jason Dent, both on the feet and on the ground. Cornered by none other than Matt Lindland, Shultz stormed on his opponent with three straight rights followed by a classic takedown. From there, he followed with a flurry of punches while attempting a guillotine. On a few occasions, he left the ground to stand at the feet of Jason Dent, who was trying to survive on his back while receiving vicious kicks. Dent had the opportunity to get back on his feet but not for long as Shultz got the single leg takedown and followed with a series of knees and punches. The referee immediately stepped in and ended the match to prevent a slaughter. The crowd was really excited with Shultz’s performance and it looks like we haven’t seen the last of this young Team Quest fighter. Ryan Shultz wins by TKO (punches) over Jason Dent at 3:00 of R1.

Match 6: Steve Berger vs. Fritz Paul

Apex had a tough time finding an opponent for Steve Berger, but Hurricane Frances made Fritz Paul available. For one reason or another, Fritz didn’t shake Berger’s had at the start of the bout. Both fighters clinched and exchanged knees with Fritz having the better of it. The local fighter seemed much stronger and took Berger down. Unfortunately for him, he was unable to keep the position and he was overturned on his back and received a few rights for his efforts. The fight was brought back up and after a second Fritz’s takedown, Berger got a double leg that dropped him in a side mount. He was going for a neck crank but changed his mind and went for a leg key lock on the right arm which made Fritz tap out. Steve Berger wins by submission (legs keylock) over Fritz Paul at 4:46 of R1.

Seventh Fight: Matt Horwich vs. Anthony Rea

Last week, Matt Horwich accepted a match on fifteen minutes notice, and this weekend, Apex offered him a tough opponent in Anthony Rea, a striker from Team Lebanner on short notice. Cornered by Hallman and Lindland, Horwich got a classic single leg sweep to bring the fight to the ground where at one point he even took Rea’s back. Nothing came of it, and they both switched position and Horwich found himself on his back on the receiving end of Rea’s punches. The fight was brought back up by the referee and it was here that Rea had his best moments, he connected with vicious kicks and punches that sent Horwich to the mat. I’m pretty sure the ref almost thought of ending the match, but luckily for Horwich, let it go. Horwich grabbed a leg and brought the fight down to the mat, where he attempted a Kimura that Rea rolled out of. The first round ended strongly for Horwich and he had survived the Frenchman’s strikes, but showed he had little notion of a standup game.

Rea started the second round with kicks and punches, looking to end it up on his feet as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, he got taken down again by a single leg sweep and right away, Horwich was in a full mount and delivering some wild punches and great elbows. They were so effective that Rea turned his back, only to get caught in a rear naked choke. Rea couldn’t believe what had just happened, while Horwich was crying out in joy. When everything was said and done, Matt Horwich showed everyone he had no standup, but that he could take a beating and keep on coming. We can expect great things from this young man, but he will have to develop some boxing skills if he wants to get to a higher level of competition. Matt Horwich wins by submission (rear naked choke) over Anthony Rea at 1:13 of R2.

Eighth Match: Anthoney Fryklund vs. Chris Myers

The next match is the one that electrified the crowd for the first time in the night, all of it courtesy of the Freak himself, Tony Fryklund. The Miletich fighter came out gunning like we’ve rarely seen in Montreal. The onslaught lasted 4:25, and we witnessed the heart of the tough Chris Myers. The Freak showcased a vicious arsenal while playing and pumping the crowd along the way. At one point, the referee asked Myers if he had enough of those vicious kicks and punches when he found himself falling down on his back while Fryklund was still entertaining the crowd. Not long after, Myers accidentally kicked Fryklund in the groin. The ref gave him five minutes to recuperate, but the Freak didn’t want any time, time which would have benefited Myers. With under a minute left in the round, the Freak let go a left hook that sent Myers down once again and jumped on his opponent to finish things off with vicious blows. At this point, Myers was tapping out but the referee was on the other side and did not see the tap and seconds later, the ref stepped in. Chris Myers showed guts as a last minute replacement and he even had the chance to open up a gash on the Freak during this one sided war. Tony Fryklund wins by TKO (punches) over Chris Myers at 4:25 of R1.

9th FIght: Wes Sims vs. Ricardo Francois

The next bout featured another freak, Wes Sims who had planned to start S.W.A.T, the Sims Whoop Ass Tour of 04. The first recipient on his Tour was to be Ricardo Francois, a 6’6 200 pounder from the Charles Ali NestorTeam. With Mark Coleman in his corner, “The Project” seemed confident as always, which was not the case for his smaller opponent. For the most part of the first round, both fighters were rolling around in the clinch in Sim’s corner. During an exchange on their feet, Sim’s got rocked by a wild punch. A few moments later, will they were still rolling around in the corner, Sims rolled out head first over the top rope. Back on his feet, Wes almost passed out, but continued, with an angry Coleman behind him. The action restarted with a front kick by Francois, followed by a slam. After the restart, Ricardo started connecting with punches and started dancing like Mohamed Ali, and at the sound of the bell, Wes fell down on the mat. He was pissed at the referee for the previous restart on their feet where Ricardo didn’t go in his corner. Coleman jumped in the ring and angrily brought his pupil to his corner.

At the start of the second round, Francois connected with a spinning kick right to the liver. Sims was falling down in pain and Francois finished things off with a few punches before the referee stopped the Freak Show. In his post fight interview, Stephen Quadros asked Wes Sims if the spinning back kick hurt. Wes responded in typical fashion saying ’’He kicked like a mule’’ Quadros followed with the following : ’’Ouch, and mules kick hard’’ On a side note, Francois called out Chuck Liddell at the end of in his interview with Quadros. Ricardo Francois wins by TKO (spinning back kick) over Wes Sims at 0:26 of R2.

Tenth Fight: Ivan Menjivar vs. Ryan Ackerman

The main event of the night was a bout between local hero, Ivan Menjivar and Ryan Ackerman. Ackerman came in as a highly regarded opponent, but this night belonged to Menjivar and In the first round, we witnessed an MMA clinic, courtesy of Ivan Menjivar. We were treated to great boxing, high kicks, spinning back fist and knees from the clinch which opened Ackerman up really quickly. Even in his guard, Ackerman was hit with vicious blows and foot stomps. At one point, the doctor had to check the cut on Ackerman but the round finished with superb leg kicks and high kicks from Menjivar.

Menjivar opened up the second round with a fabulous combination, starting off with left hook, followed by a high kick, leg kicks and finishing with a spinning back fist. In the clinch, they exchanged foot stomps and Menjivar finished things off in the clinch with vicious elbows and knees on the bloodied Ackerman who could no longer defend himself.

During the ring interview, Quadros asked Menjivar if he had left out any moves and he had rarely seen anything like that. As a show of respect for the entertainment he had witnessed, Quadros kneed in front of Menjivar. Ivan Menjivar wins by TKO (ref stoppage) over Ryan Ackerman at 2:02 of R2.

Full Results were as follows

Middleweight -- Marcus Celestin vs. Mandela Kponou Kponou by submission at 0:50 of Round 2.
Heavyweight -- Mike Rogers vs. Lance Cartwright Rogers by Unanimous Decision after 2 rounds.
Featherweight -- Ulysses Rocha vs. Matt Martin Rocha by submission at 1:06 of Round 1.
Welterweight -- Steve Legault vs. Brad Blackburn Blackburn by TKO at 0:14 of Round 1.
Lightweight -- Ryan Schultz vs. Jason Dent Schultz by TKO at 3:00 of Round 1.
Middleweight -- Fritz Paul vs. Steve Berger Berger by submission at 4:46 of Round 1.
Light Heavyweight -- Antony Rea vs. Matt Horwich Horwich by submission at 1:13 of Round 2.
Middleweight -- Tony “The Freak” Fryklund vs. Chris Myers Fryklund by Referee Stoppage at 4:25 of Round 2.
Heavyweight -- Wes “The Project” Sims vs. Ricardeau Francois Francois by TKO at 0:26 of Round 2.
Featherweight -- Ivan Menjivar vs. Ryan Ackerman Menjivar by TKO at 2:02 of Round 2.

In all, I went 7 out of 8 for my prediction. Only Wes Sims failed me as well as many of the MMA pundits around the world. Before everybody left the building, Stephen Quadros announced that the next show in Montreal would be in January 2005.

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