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WSOF 26
DECEMBER 18, 2015
LIVE FROM LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
The new Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan venue in Las Vegas has seen a bunch of action this past week, and it continues tonight with the return of the World Series of Fighting. A five fight main card is set for NBCSN, headlined by a Featherweight Championship bout between Champ Lance Palmer and challenger Alexandre de Almeida. We'll have round by round coverage of tonight's televised fights, so follow along throughout the event right here!
Fighters are in the cage to start us off tonight as Todd Harris welcomes people to the broadcast. Bas Rutten back on the call tonight.
FIGHT ONE: CLINTON WILLIAMS VS. JAKE HEUN (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Williams threw out some kicks as Heun tried to stalk early. Williams landed a couple more from the outside. Heun threw in a short combination. Heun countered a winging overhand right with a left hand of his own. Heun landed a nice right hand as he stepped in, and backed away from a spinning kick. Williams landed a couple strikes. Heun moved in again with a couple leg kicks of his own. Heun caught a kick and Williams went to the ground. Heun dropped down into side control. Williams worked up to his feet and ate a kick on the way up, while Heun somersaulted backwards before popping up. Williams was given time as he grabbed his head, which was odd as he hadn't suffered any illegal blow. As they reset Williams came forward with some strikes. He connected on a right hand. He landed an inside leg kick as Heun tried to walk him down. Heun landed a couple big strikes and stuffed a late shot.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Heun. Decent enough round. Heun had enough success throughout to take it.
ROUND TWO: Heun landed a right hand early. He covered up as Williams threw a spinning back fist. Heun went for one of his own. Heun went for a jump kick, but it was caught and he wound up on his back with Williams in his guard. Heun eventually scrambled out and worked to his feet. Heun continued advancing, and they sporadically traded strikes. Heun then hurt Williams and pounced. He got in several strikes from the top, then moved to mount. Williams managed to defend well enough to get to the end of the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Heun. Even clearer round in his favor, but not 10-8 domination
ROUND THREE: Very little action early in the final frame to begin. Both went tentative for quite some time. Eventually Heun went for a takedown but got held off in the clinch. So very litle happening; Heun threw out some minor strikes. They clinched up again, this time with Willians scoring a slame takedown. He got in a few ground strikes to finish out strong.
Penick's Scorcard: 10-9 Williams. So very little happened in that fight.
WINNER: Heun via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
STAR RATING:(*) Plodding, tentative, uninteresting fight.
FIGHT TWO: JOSH HILL VS. BEKBULAT MAGOMEDOV (BANTAMWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Hill circled in and out early, popping in with strikes. They clinched up two minutes into the round and Hill landed a knee before they separated. Hill landed a strike. Magomedov shot in but got stuffed and turned around before Hill separated. Hill landed a hard inside leg kick. Magomedov got in a kick. Hill sprawled and landed a knee on the way up. They traded grazing strikes. Hill shot in fast and scored a quick takedown, but Magomedov popped up. Hill held the clinch for a bit and they traded at the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hill. Not a good round. Neither engaged much at all.
ROUND TWO: Magomedov missed a kick, and Hill ran forward with a kick to the body. Hill went for a takedown and was stuffed. Magomedov held center but wasn't doing anything. Hill circled around. Neither was throwing much, just like the first round. Hill shot in and got stuffed. They clinched. Magomedov stuffed a brief shot and landed a knee to the head. Magomedov landed a punch, then they traded knees in a brief clinch. Hill landed a kick to the body. They clinched and Magomedov landed a left hook as he separated. He landed one more strike before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Magomedov. Landed slightly more. This fight is bad.
ROUND THREE: Magomedov pressed forward and threw a couple jabs. Hill shot in and scored a takedown, but couldn't keep Magomedov down. Magomedov got separation out of the clinch and landed a right hand. Magomedov pressed in and shot, but Hill sprawled and separated. Hill went for a jumping punch, eating one from Magomedov to the body. Hill landed a jab. He checked a kick. Hill clinched, but ate a couple knees as he drove Magomedov to the cage. Magomedov avoided damage and circled out. Hill landed a jab. Neither did much for the next minute. Hill pressed in, missed several strikes. Magomedov threw a kick, but it was caught, and he was taken down. He turned to his knees and Hill took his back. He held position to the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hill. The takedown and back control was the only thing of consequence in the whole fight.
WINNER: Hill via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (*) Another dull, inconsequential fight with almost no action whatsoever. Bad start to the night.
FIGHT THREE: ROBBIE PERALTA VS. SHEYMON MORAES (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Both threw several punches and kicks early in a number of first minute exchanges in the center of the cage. Moraes landed to the body. Peralta fired back. They both landed hard kicks to the body. Moraes landed a jab, then a body kick. They traded again to the body. Moraes pressed Peralta back with a punch. Peralta landed a hard inside leg kick that tripped Moraes down, though Moraes popped back up. Moraes landed a right hand to the body. He countered a strike nicely. Peralta tossed out a couple kicks. Moraes landed a hard kick high on Peralta. He got in to the body once again as he pressed in. He landed one to the other side of the body. Moraes avoided damage and came back ahead. He ate a side kick to the body, then shot in late, but got stuffed in the clinch. The clinch battle brought them to the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Moraes. He got in some big exchanges to the body, and seemed to have a bit more pop on his attacks.
ROUND TWO: Peralta opened with a kick. Moraes tried to walk in and they traded kicks. Peralta circled as Moraes worked from inside. Peralta landed a nice body punch. Peralta landed a solid counter as Moraes shot in. Peralta kept busy from the outside. He ate a right hand with a left behind it. Moraes pressed forward and landed a few strikes. Moraes continued to pressure, and landed some more hard body strikes near the cage. Peralta landed a jab. Moraes got in to the body. Moraes avoided a couple punches, then walked him down. Moraes landed several strikes in a row. He ducked down, missed a right hand, and then took Peralta's head off with a vicious left hook. He landed another brutal strike on the ground to get the finish. Huge win for Moraes, and a really rough loss for Peralta, who suffers the first striking stoppage loss of his career.
WINNER: Moraes via TKO at 3:21 of the second round
STAR RATING: (**+) Great finish from Moraes. He was getting the better of the exchanges prior to the finish, but it was an excellent left hook to put Peralta down, and nice instincts from Moraes to finish it off. Big win for him.
FIGHT FOUR: OZZY DUGULUBGOV VS. NIC HERRON-WEBB (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Dugulubgov threw out a couple nice front kicks early. He threw a side kick to the leg, then connected on a spinning back kick to the body. Dugulubgov threw a strike and missed, but grabbed a leg, then used it to score a trip into Herron-Webb's guard. Dubulubgov continued to work from the top, though he didn't do much in the position. He pressed him over to the cage, and nearly got swept, getting saved by the cage and keeping position. They were then stood up. The ref halted things to check on Herron-Webb's cut. Dugulubgov landed a few more hard kicks in the final 30 seconds to add to what he'd done in the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Dugulubgov. Had he done more on the ground it'd have been closer to a 10-8 frame. One-sided regardless.
ROUND TWO: Dugulubgov continued to work well on the outside. He missed a strike a minute in and got taken down, though he quickly worked up the cage to his feet. He went for a takedown of his own. Herron-Webb went for a guillotine, but didn't have it, and wound up with Dugulubgov in his guard. Dugulubgov remained content to hold position, throwing the occasional strike before finally getting stood up again with two minutes left in the world. Dugulubgov landed another kick, then scored a trip takedown. He continued to just hold position with almost zero offense. Herron-Webb tried to attack off his back. He tried to go for a gogoplata, but it failed and he ended frame off his back.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Dugulubgov. Still not doing anything on the ground, but it's a lot more than Herron-Webb can get done here.
ROUND THREE: Dugulubgov landed a solid straight kick. He popped a couple more jabs. He stayed on the outside as Herron-Webb tried to move in close. He landed a hard combination, then got poked in the eye. Things were halted to have a doctor check on it, but he continued. Dugulubgov landed a hard spinning back kick up high, then scored a takedown as Herron-Webb tried to come back ahead. He again failed to do much on the ground other than smother, and was eventually stood up yet again. Dugulubgov landed yet another takedown after resetting, and he held that until the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Dugulubgov. Sweep here's the only correct card.
WINNER: Dugulubgov via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
-No fighter announcements tonight, they've just been rushing them to the cage, and they're doing the same for the main event.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT FIVE: LANCE PALMER VS. ALEXANDRE DE ALMEIDA (FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)
ROUND ONE: Palmer circled around the outside as the much taller Almeida took the center. Almeida closed distance and Palmer took him down. Almeida attacked for a triangle, Palmer stood to break it, and Almeida got back up to his feet. Almeida came forward and landed a few strikes. Almeida scored a few strikes. Palmer countered and Almeida tried to goad him into a brawl. Palmer ran in and scored a strike. Palmer caught a kick and slammed Almeida to the ground. He tried to pass to mount, but Almeida escaped to half guard and then guard quickly. Almeida tried for a straight armbar from the bottom, then kept looking for openings. He landed a couple elbows, then locked Palmer down. He attacked the arm again just before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Almeida. Despite Palmer's two takedowns, all the offense belonged to Almeida.
ROUND TWO: Almeida landed a knee and Palmer fired off a strike. Almeida got in another combination. Almeida landed a nice right hand. He got in a knee as Palmer shot in and stuffed the attempt. Almeida went for a throw of his own but Palmer had nice balance to stay up. Almeida landed a hard kick. They clinched and Almeida shot in after a knee. Palmer held Almeida off, but ate a big knee to the body. They came to a stalemate in the clinch and were separated. Palmer rushed and got in a left hand. Palmer went for a high kick but it was blocked. Almeida landed a body kick, but Palmer caught it and took him down. Almeida scrambled up, but Palmer grabbed a head lock and landed a knee before separating. Almeida stepped in with a straight right. He landed another body kick and Palmer caught it and countered. Almeida landed a front kick to the body. Palmer landed a left. Almeida came forward with a combination. He threw another kick that was blocked and he got taken down. However, he scrambled back to his feet and separated. Neither landed anything before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Almeida. Challenger a lot more active and effective thus far.
ROUND THREE: Palmer got in a hard kick to the body. After a few feints, Palmer walked in again and landed the overhand strike. Almeida scored a nice right hand strike. Palmer landed a big left hand. Almeida tried to walk hi down and missed a couple strikes. Palmer landed an inside left. Almeida tried to walk Palmer down, then stuffed an attempt as Palmer shot in. He went back to stalking and landed a right hand. Almeida landed a nice combination on the cage and Palmer took him down. Almeida forced him back up and got back to his feet. They circled each other for the next 40 seconds or so. Almeida landed another big combination against the cage. He landed again before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Almeida. Less overall action that round, but the challenger continues to get the better of everything.
ROUND FOUR: Almeida continued to press forward, while Palmer still tried to move around the cage. Almeida landed a hard left hand in counter. Almeida beat Palmer to the punch in another exchange to connect on a hard right hand. They traded punches, Almeida again landing better. Almeida landed another short combo. Palmer again missed and ate the right hand. Almeida landed a knee as Palmer shot in. His attempt got stuffed initially, but Palmer finally got him down. Almeida tried to escape, but Palmer stuck with him to nearly get on mount. Almeida quickly escaped, putting Palmer back in his half guard. He got him back into guard. Palmer just laid in his guard as Almeida held tight, then attacked for a straight arm late.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Almeida. Again, the takedown just not enough given the offense Almeida had.
ROUND FIVE: No urgency from either in what could be a close fight depending on how the takedowns have been scored. Extremely tentative opening minute. Palmer shot in and scored a takedown. Almeida kicked him off but got to his feet. Palmer landed a nice left hand to separate. Nothing thrown in the next 40 seconds. Palmer shot in again and scored another takedown. This time he did something with it, landing a few hard strikes up against the cage. He tried to stay busy with a few punches and elbows. He did some damage and continued to hold on. Almeida scrambled back to his feet again with over a minute and a half left. Palmer shot in again and scored another takedown. Almeida's lack of offense this round costs him this frame, and it comes down to how the judges scored Palmer's takedowns in the previous four rounds.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Palmer. I think it's too little too late, but given how judges often score takedowns, he could retain with an unjust call in his favor here.
WINNER: Almeida via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)
STAR RATING: (**) That first round probably went in Palmer's favor for the two takedowns, but he did so very little in the middle of the fight that this result shouldn't be surprising. It is because so often takedowns are given more weight than warranted when nothing else is done with them, but I think they actually got it right here.
-That's event one of two for the weekend out of the way! Thanks for joining us for our report tonight, we'll be back tomorrow with full coverage of UFC on Fox 17 from Orlando!
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
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