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WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING 11 LIVE RESULTS: Penick's round by round report for NBC event
Jul 5, 2014 - 4:40:13 PM WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING 11 LIVE RESULTS: Penick's round by round report for NBC event

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING 11
July 5, 2014
LIVE FROM DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA

-After a brief intro, Guillard and Cavalcante are already in the cage. Right to the fights, I like it.

FIGHT ONE: MELVIN GUILLARD VS. GESIAS "JZ" CAVALCANTE (CATCHWEIGHT)

ROUND ONE: Guillard caught a kick early and Cavalcante fell to his back, but he quickly got to his feet. Guillard missed a right hand and ate a left. They traded strikes. There wasn't an intro to the commentators, so not sure yet who is with Bas Rutten, but he's pronouncing Melvin's last name "Gillard." (Note: It's Kenny Rice. Not having AXS TV means his voice isn't as familiar to me. Suppose it's still better than Todd Harris). Both fighters threw out a few combinations that were catching air. Both were blocking strikes as well. Cavalcante caught Guillard low with a kick and there was a slight delay before time was called. Lots of missed strikes thus far in this round. Guillard finally connected on a good right hand and a kick. He moved in with a good combination, landing a knee in a brief clinch with a few more strikes behind it. Cavalcante clinched up to get a breather. Cavalcante went high with a kick but it was blocked. Guillard got in a couple of kicks, and both missed more strikes. Cavalcante faked a shot and landed a left hook. He did it again and connected. Guillard connected on a right. He missed a few follow ups. Cavalcante missed several more strikes. Guillard swung and missed at the horn.

Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Guillard. Barely. Lots of strikes thrown, not a lot landed from either of them.

ROUND TWO: Guillard scored a couple of nice counter combinations early as Cavalcante moved in. Cavalcante ducked under a punch for a takedown. Guillard worked to his feet, and held off another takedown attempt at the cage. He got separation. Guillard hurt him bad with a right hand. Cavalcante was in rough shape as Guillard landed a knee. He brought the attack to the cage. He was setting up strikes and Cavalcante was barely covering up. The ref stepped in after another big strike for the standing TKO. That was the right call, Cavalcante was still standing, but looked out of it.

WINNER: Guillard via TKO at 2:36 of the second round

STAR RATING: (**) Guillard's always been fun to watch when he's in violence mode, and he managed that in this one. The first round wasn't all that great as both were swinging and missing a ton, but Guillard turned things on in the second, finding his accuracy and finishing the fight. Good debut in the WSOF for Guillard.


FIGHT TWO: CODY BOLLINGER VS. PABLO ALFONSO (BANTAMWEIGHT)

ROUND ONE: Alfonso went for an early cartwheel kick which was blocked. He moved in through a few strikes and scored a takedown. Alfonso attacked from his back for a triangle. Bollinger lifted him up and slammed him to break free. He almost got countered and Alfonso went for a guillotine, but Bollinger got out and to the side. Bollinger then went for his own guillotine, but Alfonso snuck out. Bollinger nicely got right off his back and transitioned to take Alfonso's back. He put on a body triangle and then went for the rear naked choke. Alfonso tried to fight out but Bollinger locked it on tight. Nice win after some real fun ground exchanges.

WINNER: Bollinger via submission (rear naked choke) at 2:37 of the first round

STAR RATING: (**+) Some entertaining ground work in a short fight. Nice work overall from Bollinger.

-With time to kill, they finally do a sort of introduction with announcers Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten. They discuss the main event before cutting to another commercial break before Fitch-Hallman.


FIGHT THREE: JON FITCH VS. DENNIS HALLMAN (MIDDLEWEIGHT)

ROUND ONE: Fitch landed a counter right as Hallman tried to walk in. Hallman threw out some kicks. Fitch landed a right hand and clinched. Bas Rutten questioned it, because he's obviously never paid attention to a Fitch fight. Hallman got in a knee and circled. Fitch landed a leg kick that caught Hallman off balance. Fitch dropped down into his guard. Fitch stayed busy enough in the guard, but wasn't really looking to pass. Hallman got his back to the cage and tried to set up a choke. Fitch posted up and got his head free. Hallman went for an armbar but Fitch escaped easily. He got to half guard in a scramble and landed an elbow. Fitch landed a few strikes from the top. Hallman attacked for a knee bar, but Fitch easily got out, and dropped down some more strikes from the top. Hallman again tried to grab a guillotine, but Fitch popped out and landed more strikes from the top, but more to keep busy than do damage.

Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Fitch. About what you'd expect from Fitch.

ROUND TWO: Fitch landed a few jabs, then scored a right hand before ducking in and taking Hallman down. More ground and pound from Fitch, though he wasn't looking to advance past the guard at all. Staying just busy enough to be clearly ahead, but really not doing much of anything. Lots of body strikes with relatively little damage. Hallman's just stuck on his back. Fitch stood up and landed some hard punches, then Hallman tried to grab a heel hook. Fitch escaped and moved into side control. Fitch tried to move to a mounted crucifix, but couldn't get there. He stayed busy enough and kept throwing strikes. Hallman brought him back to half guard before the fight.

Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Fitch. These are the types of fights Fitch has had on a number of occasions that completely justify the criticism he's received for his style. He's capable of more, and he's been more entertaining in the past, but the grinding top control with only a little bit of offense doesn't make for a fun fight.

ROUND THREE: Fitch had no trouble scoring an early takedown, and he hammered down some hammerfists and strikes before Hallman went for a leg. He easily escaped and started working from half guard. Fitch started opening up with some bigger strikes. Hallman threw a few strikes as things slowed down a bit, then Fitch returned a few more. Hallman got to full guard, and Fitch went back to minor ground and pound. He stood up and dropped a hard right hand, and it would be nice to see more of that type of ground and pound out of Fitch. Instead, it's back to staying just busy enough in guard without much damage. He got in a couple of elbows and punches to the face. He stood again and dropped a left. He postured up again and landed a few strikes, but dropped back in again. He stood and dropped into half guard with a few strikes before the horn. Wasn't pretty, but easy win for Fitch.

Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Fitch. Wasn't all that enjoyable to watch, but no questioning the fight for Fitch here.

WINNER: Fitch via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

STAR RATING: (*) Just not much fun to watch at all. Fitch grinding guys out and staying just busy enough is kind of why he's in the WSOF and not the UFC to begin with. This wasn't any better.


MAIN EVENT FIGHT FOUR: JUSTIN GAETHJE VS. NICK NEWELL (LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)

ROUND ONE: Gaethje opened up with a leg kick and stalked. Newell tried to close the distance. He missed a looping right. He avoided a couple of strikes and landed a strike. Newell got in a knee. Gaethje fired a couple of strikes. Newell threw out a combination. Newell countered nicely with a right. Newell landed a nice combination again. Gaethje getting a bit caught off guard by Newell's striking here. Newell landed another hard kick to the body. Newell landed a big combination started by a knee. Gaethje connect inside with a leg kick. Newell shot in. Gaethje sprawled and landed a few strikes. Newell stayed on the single leg attempt. Gaethje threw a jumping knee with Newell holding the left. Newell landed a right. Gaethje got in a big knee to the body. He landed another one as Newell stayed on the takedown attempt. Gaethje backed out. Gaethje unleashed several big strikes and Newell shot in. Gaethje landed an illegal knee but the ref didn't call it. He stood up and made Newell get up. He landed a right hand and Newell was hurt. Newell fired out a couple of strikes. Gaethje landed two hard strikes and Newell shot in again, only to get sprawled. Gaethje backed off. He made him stand. Newell jumped in with a knee. Gaethje threw some hard strikes as he tried to work from the back. Newell attacked for an ankle lock but Gaethje got out. He landed another combination at the bell.

Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Gaethje. Newell started off strong, taking Gaethje a bit off guard with how well he was striking. Gaethje's power made the difference in the second half of the frame, though.

ROUND TWO: Gaethje opened up with some big strikes and he had Newell hurt. He landed another combination and sprawled. He let Newell up after backing off. He landed a brutal body shot. Newell flopped down and Gaethje made him stand. No wasted energy from Gaethje here, picking his spots smartly. He landed another uppercut. Gaethje gave a look like he was surprised Newell's still sticking around. He landed another big combination. Newell grabbed his leg, but Gaethje landed some more strikes. The cut over his eye was opened badly, and he was bleeding real bad, so the ref stopped the action to bring the doctors in. They should just stop this; Newell too tough for his own good. They allowed it to continue. Gaethje landed a hard right hand. He went high with a kick. Newell landed a kick. Gaethje landed a big body kick. He then knocked Newell down with a right hand and the ref stopped it. Newell tried to stand up, but then had to sit back down and drop to his back. He was done well before that knock down, but give him credit for his toughness.

WINNER: Gaethje via TKO at 3:09 of the second round

STAR RATING: (**+) Gaethje is an absolute bright spot outside of the UFC. The power he puts into his strikes, the way he sets up his combinations and mixes things up to the body and head, and just breaks people down. He's still a very young fighter, but the time's got to come soon that we see him in the Octagon, because he's as legitimate a prospect to come along as any. The way he wins fights will capture the attention of fight fans the more they get to see him.

-Solid debut effort for the WSOF on NBC. The main event could have turned some casuals off in the middle of a Saturday afternoon, but for the most part this card provided some mid-day entertainment, with a few good performances showcased. We'll be back in a couple of hours for live UFC 175 coverage, so stick with us here tonight!