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ENNIS'S KING OF THE CAGE VENGEANCE ON HDNET REPORT 2/12: Mike Kyle vs. Travis Wiuff headline encouraging event
Feb 14, 2010 - 9:17:23 PM ENNIS'S KING OF THE CAGE VENGEANCE ON HDNET REPORT 2/12: Mike Kyle vs. Travis Wiuff headline encouraging event

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By Shawn Ennis, MMATorch Senior Columnist

KING OF THE CAGE: VENGEANCE
FEBRUARY 12, 2010
MESCALERO, N.M - INN OF MOUNTAIN GODS CASINO
LIVE ON HD NET

Not that it has anything to do with fights, mind you, but remember all that snow that's been falling everywhere? Well, it's stopping flights even in California. You see, I was scheduled to cover these here fights on Friday when they actually happened, but I got stuck in San Diego because of the whole airlines/weather fiasco. Not that it's terrible to be stuck in San Diego, mind you. I'm just sayin. But enough of the excuses. Let's get to the fights, shall we?

How great is it that King of the Cage has a national stage now? These guys have been around forever – one of the most proven proving grounds in all of MMA. We've got five fights on the card today, so let's check it out.

FIRST FIGHT: QUINN MULHERN vs. RICH CLEMENTI (Welterweight)

ROUND ONE
They come out swinging with no one connecting early. High kick followed by low kick by Clementi, and Mulhern goes for a Thai clinch. Clementi will have none of it and trips Mulhern, landing in his full guard. Mulhern has a clear height advantage here, but looks very green compared to the veteran Clementi. Clementi looks to pass but stays in full guard. Mulhern looks for rubber guard and transitions to an omoplata. Clementi looks to spin out, but in the process he almost gets caught by the omoplata. He continues working for the escape but Mulhern lands in mount. Clementi pushes off the cage and almost escapes out the back door. He grabs a leg lock from a crazy position – Mulhern basically has a reverse mount with Clementi having an upside-down guard locked in. He's still looking for the leg lock, but Mulhern won't be caught. I have to correct myself about Mulhern's green-ness. He's definitely more seasoned on the ground than he looked standing. Finally Clementi spins out and takes a front headlock. He pulls guard and has an arm-in guillotine, but Mulhern rolls and defends perfectly. He rolls directly into a leglock position, and somehow the ref stands them up. That was very odd. Immediately Mulhern shoots and is thwarted. Clementi starts working for a guillotine but the round ends. I'd give that one to Clementi, but Mulhern is more than game on the mat.

ROUND TWO
They clinch against the fence early, and Mulhern grabs the plumb, landing some knees to the head. Clementi grabs a bodylock and looks to slip around and take Mulhern's back, but Mulhern shucks him off and lands in the half guard. He lands some elbows to the head and Clementi is cut. Mulhern passes to side control into mount. Punches from the mount by Mulhern. Clementi pulls him into half guard, and Mulhern postures up, landing a few punches. They scramble for a second, and they're back into the reverse mount position from last round. Mulhern spins out and works from the guard again. He passes back into mount and lands a few short elbows. Clementi spins and almost give up his back, but Mulhern starts landing some hard shots with Clementi stuck on his side. Big punishment by Mulhern, and the fight is stopped. Wow.

RESULT: Quinn Mulhern by TKO at 3:09 of round two.

STAR RATING: (***) Good stuff, and it gets a little extra for the upset.

NOTES: That was Mulhern's biggest fight by far, and he picks up his ninth win. That should get him a look from some of the bigger orgs. Clementi reprises his post-UFC role as game veteran that can be prone to upsets.

SECOND FIGHT: ABEL CULLUM (CHAMP) vs. JOE COCA (KOTC Flyweight Title Fight)
We last saw Cullum (or at least I last saw him) last May in Dream when he had an awesome fight with Hideo Tokoro at featherweight, which he lost by submission. Also, a note: if you've never seen King of the Cage, there are just a couple of differences here from what you're used to: the cage is a little smaller, and the cageside officials are bodybuilders. Seriously, these guys are monsters. Also, for some reason they call 135 pounds flyweight instead of Bantamweight. Cullum's grandmother is cageside, and she is way more excited than my grandma would be if I were fighting.

ROUND ONE
They touch gloves briefly and Cullum tags Coca immediately thereafter. He charges against the fence and Coca looks for a hip toss. Cullum slips off and gets Coca in his guard. He throws his legs up and gets a triangle choke almost locked in. He throws a barrage of elbows to the head of Coca and follows up with more punches. He looks to cinch up the triangle, followed by an armbar. Coca escapes and almost gets caught in another armbar, but he gets back to the feet. Cullum stands and they trade blows for a second before Cullum grabs a double-leg and takes Coca down. Coca looks for a kimura, probably to sweep. He lets it go, and Cullum immediately spins into a kimura of his own, which he wrenches tight and turns it into an almost Aoki-esque hammerlock. Coca's arm is backwards, and he is forced to tap. Beautiful submission for Cullum.

RESULT: Abel Cullum by submission at 2:09 of round one.

STAR RATING: (***) You can't pack much more than that into two minutes. Back and forth action the whole time topped off with a great submission.

NOTES: Following this fight and the Tokoro fight in Dream, I'd love to see this guy in the WEC at some point. He's 17-3, with two losses coming at featherweight (Tokoro and Wilson Reis,) and his third loss coming four years ago (which he avenged in December last year.) Coca, to his credit, could be someone to watch as well.

Next we get a nice video hightlight of the history of King of the Cage. Over 300 events, 3000 fights, a million spectators, etc. This is a great way to build up the brand name of a new HDNet franchise. And with all those fights, you know they have some crazy highlights, which are in the reel.

THIRD FIGHT: TONY LOPEZ (CHAMP) vs. TYLER EAST (KOTC Heavyweight Title Fight)

This is a rematch of Lopez's last title defense, which he won by controversial split decision. East is 19 years old, while Lopez is 36 and also owns the KOTC Light Heavyweight Title. East is a big, big dude at 6'6" and 240 pounds. He's only been fighting for a year, and he's 6-2. Yes, eight fights in a year. Lopez, for his part, apparently owns a 15-fight win streak, which according to Schiavello is the fourth-longest current win streak in MMA. Fedor is first, then Megumi Fujii, then Lyoto Machida, then Tony Lopez. That's pretty cool. East is definitely the crowd favorite here.

ROUND ONE
High kick out of the gate from East, and Lopez follows with a push kick. Two more high kicks from East, and he grabs a Thai clinch for a second, throwing a couple of knees to the body. Leg kick by Lopez and East counters with a right-left combo. Nice body kick by East, and a high slapping kick by Lopez to follow. Another hard body kick by East, and a sloppy flying knee. East comes in with some more punches, but backs off. Another high kick by East. Low kick by Lopez, and a push kick from East. Lopez is throwing little kicks without much power here. East comes in with a punching combination, but he backs off again. Lopez lands a few punches and pushes East away with a front kick. Knee to the body by East, who had a single leg for a second, but abandoned it. High kick by East. East looks to be fading just a big. Superman punch by East. Lopez is moving really slowly here. Back kick by Lopez. Body kick followed by a hard right hand by East. East catches a kick and lands in Lopez's guard. He lands a couple of punches and moves down close to Lopez. Lopez throws his legs up and grabs an arm, but East pulls it out. Lopez transitions to a triangle and lands some shots from the bottom. There's 16 seconds left, and Lopez cinches the choke tight, causing East to tap. Lopez was much more impressive from the bottom on the ground than standing, though it looked as if East's leg was a bit red from the kicks.

RESULT: Lopez by submission at 4:54 of round one.

STAR RATING: (**+) Not a barnburner by any means, and East is still very young and green, making some rookie mistakes, but the choke was pretty nice.

NOTES: East might have a bright future if he can devote more time to training between fights, rather than fighting seven times in eight months. Lopez is in the right place. He can beat lower level fighters, but he'd get destroyed in the UFC. Strikeforce might be an option, though.

FOURTH FIGHT: DONAL D SANCHEZ (CHAMP) vs. VICTOR VALENZUELA (KOTC Bantamweight Interim Title Fight)

Bantamweight here is 145 pounds, which is Featherweight everywhere else. I think KOTC might have a 165 pound division, which is where the confusion could come from. Sanchez is the hometown boy, making him the crowd favorite.

ROUND ONE
Leg kick early by Sanchez. Nice right hand stuns Valenzuela briefly, and they clinch. Victor throws a knee to the body, and Sanchez takes him down with a single. Butterfly guard by Victor. Sanchez passes into half guard, and he tries to move into side control, but Victor grabs a headlock, which he uses to transition back to standing. They clinch, and Sanchez looks for a trip, but Victor stuffs it. Sanchez looks for some big overhand shots, but misses. Low kick by Sanchez. Victor misses with a wide right hand. Jab by Victor. They circle for a while and exchange jabs. Low kick by Sanchez. Nothing much going on here while they feel each other out. Front kick by Sanchez. Jab lands for Sanchez. Valenzuela is definitely wary of possible takedown attempts, and he's keeping his distance. Sanchez validates those fears with a double attempt, but he's stuffed. Body kick by Sanchez. The feeling out continues with no one landing anything much for the last bit of the first round. First round goes to Sanchez.

ROUND TWO
More of the same to start out – they exchange leg kicks early. Sanchez looks like he's getting a little more bold here, closing the distance. Sanchez feels it and gets a quick takedown. Sanchez moves into half guard and Victor grabs a kimura to try and sweep. Sanchez escapes and passes again into side control. Short elbow lands for Sanchez. Sanchez looks for mount, but Victor scrambles and almost escapes. Sanchez gets back into half guard and traps Victor's left arm briefly, landing some right hands. Sanchez continues to land little peppering shots. He postures up briefly and lands a couple of punches. Back down to the half guard and he looks for a kimura briefly. Sanchez traps the arm again briefly and lands a couple of punches. He continues to look for a pass into side control, but he remains in half guard. He's landing shots to the head, but nothing too damaging.

ROUND THREE
One-two combo and a leg kick by Sanchez. Another inside leg kick. Victor comes in with a left hook, and Sanchez pulls him back down to the ground. Back in the half guard is Sanchez. Sanchez has the arm pinned again and lands a few shots to the head. Nothing too heavy at this point. Sanchez looks for mount from half guard, and he almost gets it. He's got Victor against the fence here, but he moves away from that position. Back into half guard for Sanchez, and he's peppering the head and body of Valenzuela. Sanchez looks for a straight armbar, but can't cinch it. That's a tough thing to pull off. Sanchez is not looking to pass guard here, but he's landing punch after punch from the half guard. Sanchez stands up and Victor has him in position for a heel hook briefly. Sanchez shrugs it off and takes mount. Victor gives up his back and then spins back into being mounted. Sanchez lands some heavy shots as the round ends. There was no offense there for Victor, and I'm giving Sanchez a 10-8 round there.

ROUND FOUR
More rudimentary standup here, and Sanchez lands an overhand right. Sanchez comes forward with a combination and lands an inside leg kick. Body kick by Sanchez, and he shoots for a double. Victor stuffs it, but Sanchez grabs a single and drives, then transitions back to a double leg and gets it to the ground. Sanchez transitions directly to mount and begins to pound. Victor is offering no defense at all, but Sanchez is not raining down blows. Victor spins and Sanchez looks for a rear naked choke briefly before continuing to pound on Valenzuela. Valenzuela has his hands up, but he's not defending enough and Herb Dean stops it.

RESULT: Donald Sanchez by TKO at … of round four.

STAR RATING: (**+) Not much to it, really. Valenzuela didn't have much to offer the younger Sanchez.

NOTES: I don't know how much Valenzuela has to offer outside this promotion. He had a brief run in EliteXC, but hasn't done much outside of that. Sanchez might have something, but it's hard to tell from this fight. This was pretty procedural for him, but I'd like to see what he can do against someone a little tougher.

FIFTH FIGHT: MIKE KYLE vs. TRAVIS WIUFF (Heavyweight)

I don't know whose idea it was to make this the main event, but it could have been the opening bout if you ask me. Really the Abel Cullum fight should have been here. But whatever.

ROUND ONE
Big overhand right misses for Wiuff to start. Kyle comes in with a one-two and a leg kick. Wiuff misses another right. Kyle moves backward and loses footing briefly. Wiuff lands a jab, and Kyle answers with another combination. Right hand misses for Kyle. Right hand lands for Kyle and Wiuff gets a double leg takedown, landing in the guard. Wiuff looks to pass briefly but Kyle keeps him in the guard. Wiuff lands a few punches and elbows from the guard. Body-head combo by Wiuff, and Kyle lands an elbow from the bottom. Wiuff takes the opportunity to move into half guard, but isn't mounting much offense. He begins to land some short elbows, then Kyle bucks and gets caught in a guillotine. It doesn't look too tight though, and Kyle is moving into the hold. Wiuff lets it go and Kyle stands while Wiuff remains on the ground. Kyle throws some downward strikes as the round ends. Wiuff may be a bit tired here, but he won the round.

ROUND TWO
Nice right hand lands for Kyle, and Wiuff is stunned. Wiuff shoots and is stuffed. Knees to the head by Kyle, and a big body kick. Wiuff is completely exhausted and his hands are at his waist. Leg kick by Kyle, and a jab. Kyle is definitely the more fresh of the two. Kyle lands a leg kick but Wiuff catches it for the takedown. Wiuff takes a rest for a second then lands a few elbows. Wiuff postures up and lands a couple more punches, and Kyle is almost able to escape but is dragged back down. Wiuff remains in that position without doing much. Kyle lands an elbow from the bottom, and Herb Dean stands them up. Left hook by Kyle staggers Wiuff, and a knee to the body puts him down as he shoots halfheartedly. Kyle defends and lands some body shots. Dean separates them and they stand back up. Uppercut misses for Kyle, and they slap hands as if they're having a great fight. The bell rings, and Kyle catches Wiuff with a big uppercut that puts him down hard. It looks like the shot landed a split second after the bell, but they're not calling it a DQ finish. Good call—it wasn't intentional and Kyle was definitely on his way to winning the fight. Wiuff wanted to go back out for the third round, since technically the fight wasn't stopped during the second, but the doctor rightfully nixes that idea.

RESULT: Kyle by TKO (doctor stoppage) between rounds two and three.

STAR RATING: (**+) Certainly not a technical masterpiece with these two, but Kyle's striking actually looked pretty good.

NOTES: I don't know that this changes anything for either of these two guys. They're both pretty much journeymen who take on middling competition in different organizations or are fed to up-and-comers in bigger orgs. Kyle says he wants to make it a big year, so we'll see if he's able to do so.

Final Thoughts: This was an encouraging show for King of the Cage. I'm always glad to have more MMA on TV, and especially when it's a promotion that knows what they're doing. That's certainly the case with these guys. They've been around forever, and HDNet's production continues to improve the more shows they put on. I would have liked to know why the Bantamweight (145 lb) title was in interim status, but otherwise the production and commentary were really good.