GLADIATOR CHALLENGE 9 ROCKS  THE COLUSA CASINO
Feb 10th 2002-When attending a Gladiator Challenge card, one thing is certain; expect lots of action! The ninth edition of this popular event proved to be no different as a standing-room only crowd packed into the event center to see fifteen thrilling bouts featuring some of the top young talent in the Mixed Martial Arts world.

The main attraction of the evening pitted hometown hero Jeremy Edwards against Buck Greer for the 205-pound, Light Heavyweight championship belt. Early on, Greer moved in for a takedown, but found himself stuck in a tight guillotine. Refusing to panic though, Greer took his time and methodically found his way out of trouble. When the fight did go to the ground, the fast-paced action continued with the two undefeated warriors trading blows and submission attempts. The closely contested first round ended with the fighters each attempting ankle locks. In the second round, Greer’s experience and superior skill began to become evident. When the two went to the ground, Greer systematically moved into position to attain a mount, then captured the back of the rolling Edwards. At this point, with Greer raining down blows, the referee was forced to intervene and call a halt to the action at 3:00 of the frame. With each match, Greer continues to show improvement and should be moving into position to compete in a major event in the very near future. For his part, Edwards showed a lot of heart and ability and will certainly be a force to contend with as he gains more combat experience.

The co-feature matched former UFC veteran Cal Worsham and 280-pound behemoth Dave Fox, who was coming off a gusty victory in Gladiator Challenge 7 against Ross Clifton. Wisely, Worsham decided to keep the fight standing and used movement and long-range strikes to pepper Fox from the outside. However, midway through the round in the midst of a clinch, Fox landed an inadvertent low blow that floored his smaller foe. Worsham was given five minutes to recuperate and used the time wisely to regain his wind. After the break, Worsham had new life and landed a vicious uppercut that dropped Fox and forced a halt to the action at 4:02 of Round One.

The third main event featured the return of the Lion’s Den’s Joe Hurley squaring off with the curiously named Rousko "The Russian". Hurley, ever the aggressive type, wasted little time getting things going with a quick shoot and takedown. From here, he promptly took Rousko’s back, but was thwarted in his submission attempt, as his challenger rolled to safety. Undaunted, Hurley next went for the armbar, that produced a win in only 2:16 of Round One. After the match, Hurley took the mat and apologized to the crowd for his lack of striking and attributed it to a broken hand he had suffered in training. While he certainly wasn’t matched with an opponent that could challenge him, Hurley did show that he would be a force to be reckoned with at the lighter 155-pound weight class.

In a bout for the 125-pound Flyweight championship, Shawn "The Gladiator" Ramage faced off against Shane Cabiles. In the first round, Ramage used his wrestling ability to bring the fight to the mat, and then followed up with a non-stop attack of punches, elbows, and knees to clearly dominate the action. To his credit, Cabiles tried to slip in a couple sneaky triangle attacks, but was deftly fended off by Ramage. In the second round, disaster nearly struck for Ramage, who lost his balance after backpedaling into the referee. As he tumbled to the mat, Cabiles seized the opportunity to take Ramage’s back. However, Ramage patiently defended his opponent’s superior position and soon freed himself from danger. Shortly thereafter, Ramage continued his assault and turned the tables on Cabiles with his own triangle submission attempt. Trapped, Cabiles was forced to submit at 2:58 of the round to the powerful choke. All in all, Ramage had one of the most impressive showings of the night.

The feature bouts of the evening were highlighted by a wild affair between Jermain Taher-Watts and Albert Hill. Taher-Watts entered the ring clad in a gi and straw hat and endured a hearty amount of pre-fight trash talking from his rugged opponent. However, Hill’s over-enthusiasm proved to be his downfall. Taher-Watts started quickly and scored a takedown, but after regaining his footing, Hill was soon trapped in a vise-like standing guillotine and had no choice but to tap at the 1:05 mark. At this point, it was Taher-Watts who did all the jawing as a visibly upset Hill had to be escorted out of the cage by members of the promotion. A short, but energetic bout.

The most controversial match up of the evening featured Marty Armandarez out of the Cesaer Gracie camp against Brandon Segon. The first round was relatively uneventful as the two jostled for control in the clinch, but Armandarez probably did enough to take it on the strength of a couple takedowns. The second round featured a similar pattern through the first half until Armandarez began to visibly tire. At this point, Segon began to land some effective strikes from long range against his retreating foe. With ten seconds left in the round, Armandarez mistakenly thought the fight had ended and dropped his hands. Segon quickly took advantage of Armandarez’ confusion and landed a solid combination of punches that effectively TKO’ed his foe, just before the actual bell. Controversy reigned and promoter Tedd Williams was called to the ring. After a short discussion, it was determined that the two would engage in a third, two-minute round. Early on in the third, Segon landed a few good strikes, but in the second-half of the round Armandarez regrouped to get a few takedowns. After the bout, Armandarez was awarded a controversial decision win that had the crowd booing vehemently in disagreement.

Another featured bout pitted the always-entertaining Brian Sleeman against Kung Fu stylist Ahmad Hempstead. The phenomenally chiseled Hempstead knew that his strength would come from the standup and did all he could to keep the battle there. Sleeman exerted a lot of energy early on by trying to take the fight to the floor, but Hempstead diligently countered each attempt and looked for openings to strike in-between. In the second round, Hempstead came out more aggressively and blasted Sleeman with a stunning hook, then moved in for more punishment on his fallen foe. To his credit, Sleeman weathered the storm and was able to make it through the round. However, there was no doubt that on this night, Hempstead was the superior fighter as he earned a clear-cut decision win.

The final feature bout matched big men, Mike Kyle and Nate Russak in a battle of strikers. Russak’s biggest problem here though was his decision to fight in a gi. Now the gi may be a capable weapon for ground fighters, but not a striker. With that being said, Kyle used Russak’s gi to control his foe’s movement and eventually chopped him down in only 2:39 of the first round.

The packed undercard featured plenty of entertainment as well. In one of the evening’s quickest bouts, Tommy Osborn wasted little time in scoring a takedown on Nick Ertl, but quickly paid the price as he was trapped in a slick armbar by the Gracie Jiu-jitsu stylist in only :46 seconds. Another interesting bout had Dan Quinn taking on Rick Vardel, whose claim to fame was as an arm wrestling champion who was featured in the film "Over the Top." Vardel started quickly and attempted to use his strength to rough up Quinn and took the fight to the mat. However, Quinn defended well and waited for the referee’s restart to get things back standing where he was able to utilize his superior boxing skills. As the round wore on, Vardel began to tire badly and this allowed Quinn the opening he needed to land a booming right hand. The dazed Vardel quickly crumbled to the mat and Quinn wasted no time in following up with a barrage of punches that forced a stoppage at 4:57 of the first round.

All in all, Gladiator Challenge 9 delivered a hearty offering of bouts that any fan of the sport could appreciate.

GLADIATOR CHALLENGE 9 RESULTS

Dan Quinn over Rick Vardel by TKO at 4:57 of R1
Jamual Perkins over Marvin Sloan by tapout from strikes at :46 of R1
Sammy Sleezerl over Levi Thornbrue by TKO at :58 of R1
Nick Ertl over Tommy Osborn by armbar at :46 of R1
James Fanshier over Pete Werve by 2R Decision
Jamie Hants over Mike O’ Hagan by tapout from strikes at :49 of R2
Mike Kyle over Nate Russak by tapout from strikes at 2:39 of R1
Rob Snyder vs Noah Schible 2R Draw
Ahmad Hempstead over Brian Sleeman by 2R Decision
Marty Armandares over Brandon Segon by 3R Decision
Jermaine Watts over Albert Hill by guillotine choke at 1:05 of R1
Flyweight Championship Match
Shawn Ramage over Shane Cabiles by triangle choke at 2:58 of R2
Joe Hurley over Rousko ’The Russian’ by armbar at 2:16 of R1
Cal Worsham over Dave Fox by TKO at 4:02 of R1
Light Heavyweight Championship
Buck Greer over Jeremy Edwards by TKO at 3:00 of R2

-MMARR-

 
 
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