GF
A 17 2/11/2012
Tonight mixed martial arts comes to Youngsville, Louisiana with Global Fighting Alliance 17. On the card there are 11 fights, 10 amateur and a professional fight featuring John De Jesus making his professional debut from American Top Team against Aaron Phillips of Tim Credeur's Gladiator Academy. While getting ready for the fights to start I had a chance to talk with Coach Baga from ATT, and the main event should prove to be a real treat for fight fans. Both De Jesus and Phillips are young, hungry fighters who are well rounded, and like to stand and trade. De Jesus came in to the fight 5 pounds over the 135 pound limit and so had to forfeit 20% of his purse to Phillips. As usual, amateur fights are 3 three minute rounds, while professional fights are 3 five minute rounds.
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Fight 1 135 lbs
Devin Jones (2-1) vs Trey Blaylock (0-1)
Round 1
Blaylock throws the first punches. Jones lands a left. Blaylock shoots...no luck. He then front kicks and eats a right counter. Jones lands a one-two. Blaylock is wild with his defense and is getting picked apart. Jones shoots in and Blaylock sprawls. Blaylock takes the opening and goes for standing guillotine. He drops into guard. Jones gets out and starts dropping serious shots on Blaylock. Blaylock's face is now busted up. He pushes Jones off and stands up against the cage. The round ends. Blaylock drops his hands every time he throws anything, and Jones is more than happy to stay in the pocket and counter. The ref gives Blaylock a lot of time to decide whether he wants to continue, and this draws some criticism from the crowd.
Round 2
Blaylock bull rushes in straight away, but the obvious attempt is easily denied. Blaylock throws a low kick. He appears to be fighting scared. Jones pushes to cage with a solid connection to Blaylock's head. Now against the cage Jones digs to the body. They stay in the clinch and trade knees with quite a few low blows in the mix. Finally the ref restarts with ten seconds left. This round was fairly uneventful as it was spent largely against the cage. Blaylock seemed out of ideas and quite desperate.
Round 3
Blaylock bull rushes again. They are against the cage trading knees again. Jones is landing some good knees. Blaylock is just trying to survive at this point. Blaylock goes for a standing choke again. It looks tight, but Jones escapes to the applause of the crowd. After one final flurry, the round ends.
Winner: Devin Jones by unanimous decision.
Fight 2 145 lbs
Jordan Brouillette (Global Fitness) (2-2) vs Robin White (1-3)
Round 1
Brouillette leads with a high kick that glances. White shoots and gets the first takedown. He advances to side control. White shows good position skill, but Brouillette reverses. They make it back to standing. Brouillette looks to land some thai knees from the plom. White pushes to the cage and gets the takedown, landing in the mount. Some light ground and pound follows, but nothing damaging. White moves to side control. Brouillette stands up, gets the thai clinch, and blasts White in the face with knee shots. White hangs in there and gets another takedown. He is in his opponent's half guard. The round ends. A very good round. Brouillette was very dangerous on the feet, but White was tenacious in his takedowns...and tough. There were some very good skills displayed. White has a gash in his forehead.
Round 2
Brouillette is showing signs of fatigue. White clinches up and pushes to the cage. He works and gets the takedown. Brouillette has him in full guard. White lands some light ground and pount to the body. Brouillette makes it to his feet. He then clinches and lands two good knees to White's head. White pushes Brouillette to the cage. Brouillette lands some more good knees, and White is a bloody mess. White pushes to the cage again looking for the takedown. They hit the ground, and the round ends. White is getting the takedown's, but his face is paying the price for them.
Round 3
Brouillette opens the round with a high kick. White pushes to the cage after taking some big shots. He gets the takedown and passes Brouillette's guard. Immediately Brouillette rolls out and escapes. Brouillette disengages to rest. White is battered. Brouillette eats a hook while backpedaling. White pushes to the cage again. After a struggle, he finally gets the takedown. Brouillette goes for a triangle armbar, and White passes to side control. Brouillette rolls to his feet and stands. The round ends. This was a great fight that saw both fighters leaving it all in the cage. White got beat up, but there is no questioning his toughness! Had Brouillette more conditioning he could very well have finished the fight in this round.
Winner: Robin White by split decision. The crowd booed like crazy when the decision was read. This decision is mystifying. Brouillette won the fight easily, but the refs scored it a wrestling competition...unfortunate.
Fight 3 125 lbs
Will Hastings (0-1) vs Eugene Broussard (1-0)
Round 1
Hastings throws some leg kicks, and Broussard flurries with punches that force Hastings back. Broussard lands a nasty midkick. He has really fast kicks. Hastings tries his hand at a kick, but Broussard catches it, and they clinch up. They separate. Now Hastings catches a kick, and Broussard pulls guard against the cage. Broussard works a high guard, but Hastings doesn't leave any openings. The round ends. This round was was pretty close. Broussard looked to be the better, faster striker.
Round 2
Broussard throws a one-two and clinches against the cage. He digs to the body a couple of shots. Hastings knees to the legs. They separate. Hastings with a front kick, and Broussard answers with a stiff combo that scores. Broussard throws a wheel kick that misses and clinches. Hastings gets him against the cage and looks to knee. Broussard gets the takedown and gains side control. He lands some good shots to Hastings' head. Broussard mounts, and Hastings rolls him over into guard as the round ends. Another close round. By looking to clinch up so early Broussard played into Hastings's strength.
Round 3
They clinch again, but Broussard throws punches to get out of it. He sticks and moves a bit. Then he lands a good hook. A few more shots are thrown, and Hastings grabs his head. Up against the cage he looks to land some knees. Some of these conect, and Broussard looks hurt. Broussard drops to a knee, and Hastings takes his back. He's looking for the choke. It's close a couple of times. The round ends. This was a really close fight.
Winner: Eugene Broussard by split decision. This decision really could have gone either way, as round 2 was razor thin. This was Broussard's first fight.
Fight 4 135 lbs
Devin Cannon (Global Fitness) (1-0) vs Jace Bridwell (1-1)
Round 1
Right away Bridwell slips. Cannon quickly jumps on him and in the scramble takes his back. Bridwell reverses position and winds up in Cannon's guard, but Cannon slips a triangle on him. Bridwell moves to the side to try to alleviate the pressure, but eventually is forced to tap. The ref doesn't see the tap and Bridwell goes out. This mistake was made worse as Bridwell convulsed several times before he was attended to. After regaining consciousness, it was clear that Bridwell had hurt his ankle during the fight.
Winner: Devin Cannon by submission at :56 Rd 1.
Fight 5 185 lbs
Jarett Doyle (0-1) vs Seneca Joseph (2-1) (Gladiator Academy)
Round 1
Doyle throws the first punch, and Joseph clinches up to the cage. Joseph tries for a judo throw, but Doyle slips out behind him and takes Joseph's back. Joseph rolls, and Doyle gets the full mount. Joseph reverses position and ends up on top in Doyle's guard. Joseph postures up and lands some big punches. He then passes and lands some hammerfists from the side. The round ends. Joseph made a rookie mistake with the attempted throw, but he reversed quickly and took over the round.
Round 2
Joseph with a looping hook. Doyle rushes in, and Joseph goes for the choke. He pulls guard, but only manages to secure half-guard. This allows Doyle to escape. The lack of action at this point gets them restarted on the feet. Doyle connects with a punch as Joseph rushes in to clinch. They fall and Doyle ends in the mount, but he doesn't really do anything. He looks gassed. The round ends.
Round 3
Joseph clinches up against the cage, and he gets the takedown. He quickly gains side control and begins raining down hammerfists into Doyle's side. Doyle offers no defense, and the ref stops the fight. Joseph has some green around the edges, but there is no denying his power and ground skill. This kid looks beastly.
Winner: Seneca Joseph by TKO at :58 Rd 3
Fight 6 145 lbs
Cody James (1-0) vs Duece Domengeaux (0-1) (Gladiator Academy)
Round 1
Domengeaux opens up with some big kicks. James gets in tight and goes for a front choke. Domengeaux escapes. Then they just start trading. Both fighters are landing shots. James falls, and Domengeaux pounces on top. James attempts a triangle, but Domengeaux defends it well. He stands out of James' guard, then leaps in with a big punch. There is a scramble, and James gets back control. Domengeaux rolls, and James lands some good shots while maintaining a dominant position. The round ends. James looks to the be better, more aggressive grappler, and Domengeaux is a little too reckless on his feet.
Round 2
They start trading, and Domengeaux eats a punch. They clinch up, and James lands a beautiful throw. Domengeaux rolls onto his knees and gets in James' guard. James wastes no time and attempts a gogoplata, and it looks sunk. Domengeaux struggles but makes a great escape. Once out he finds himself in a triangle. James locks his legs, and it is tight. James grows impatient and switches to an armbar, which gets the tap. James' ground game looked plain sick. His guard was extremely active...and effective.
Winner: Cody James by submission in Rd 2
Fight 7 Heavyweight
Adrian Stafford vs Billy Brown
Brown comes out looking very wild and sloppy. He throws pawing shots at Stafford to no effect. He falls/goes for a leg. Stafford defends it easily and starts blasting big shots to Brown's face. Brown covers up and waits for the stoppage. Stafford showed composure and poise in being patient and looking for his openings against a clearly less skilled fighter.
Winner: Adrian Stafford by TKO at 1:11 Rd 1
Fight 8 145 lbs
Donald Goff (4-2)(Global Fitness) vs Mike Bruno (2-1) (Gladiator Academy)
Bruno comes out very aggressive. He shoots, and Goff wizzers. Bruno tries to roll through it and finds himself caught in a reverse triangle. Goff adjusts it into a straight triangle, and Bruno taps. It looked like Bruno was just caught off guard, and Goff showed great awareness capitalizing on the brief opening.
Winner: Donald Goff by submission at :53 Rd 1
Fight 9 135 lbs
Clay Burns (Global Fitness)(5-4) vs Justin Dixon (2-0)
Round 1
They both throw punches, but nothing really connects. Dixon with a front kick. Burns throws a combo, but Dixon does a nice job slipping it. Dixon throws a leg kick. Burns lands a thundering uppercut that almost knocks out Dixon's mouthpiece. Dixon immediately shoots, and Burns defends against the cage. Burns sneaks a couple of punches underneath. Dixon finally gets the takedown. The round ends. Both fighters showed good movement and were evenly matched, with the defining moment of the round being the uppercut landed by Burns.
Round 2
Dixon shoots immediately and gets the takedown. Burns gets the guard. He makes a play for Dixon's neck but doesn't get it. Dixon works the body a little bit. There is not much action, and they get restarted. Dixon shoots again, and gets the takedown. He is in half-guard this time. Dixon works the body while he looks to pass. Burns rolls, and Dixon goes for the back. Burns defends pretty well. He gets back to his feet with Dixon behind him. Burns somersaults as the round ends. It is clear that Dixon has no interest in the stand up after tasting Burn's power. He needs to press any advantage he gets on the ground to win this fight.
Round 3
Dixon throws a leg kick, and then he shoots for an ankle pick. He gets the takedown. Burns gets halfguard. Burns works to his feet, they scramble, and Dixon takes his back. Burns spins, and they go to the ground. Burns gets to his feet and gives his back yet again. He spins, and Dixon works for a single leg. He gets it and falls into a guilotine by Burns. The round ends as he escapes to guard. This is a case of wrestling being the deciding factor. Dixon landed no damage, but his positional advantages in rounds 2 and 3 proved to be the difference in the way this fight played out.
Winner: Justin Dixon by unanimous decision.
Fight 10 145 lbs
David Bosnick (Global Fitness)(1-0) vs Zach Cothren (5-2)
Round 1
Bosnick leads with a stiff jab. He follows it with a good one-two that sounds off nicely. Cothren lands a sloppy mid kick. Bosnick throws a high kick that grazes. Cothren throws a nice leg kick. They clinch. They then joust at the cage. Bosnick lands some knees inside. They separate. Bosnick shoots and gets a big takedown, but Cothren stands up and goes for the guillotine. Bosnick defends well. At the bell Cothren sinks in a deep choke. Bosnick literally crawls back to his corner. He is indicating he was hit low at the bell, and he is being given extra time to recover.
Round 2
They start off trading. They clinch and trade knees. Cothren gets a leg. He then presses against the cage. He lands some good knees, and Bosnick is hurt. They separate, and Bosnick is angry. He drops his hands in defiance and wants Cothren to drop his. Cothren doesn't go for it. Bosnick is bleeding from the eye. Bosnick lands a nasty leg kick. A good combo rocks Cothren. He goes down, and Bosnick mounts. Cothren is scrambling to stay alive and is saved by the bell. Bosnick really took control of the round after the separation from the clinch. Cothren seemed to fade noticeably. This was a very good round for Bosnick.
Round 3
Cothren shoots and takes Bosnick's back. Cothren drags him down and looks for the choke. Bosnick escapes and reverses position to get in guard on top. At this the crowd cheers. Bosnick postures up and lands some shots. He passes to side control. Then he moves to north south. Cothren rolls onto his knees to stand. Bosnick lands some big blows to close out the round. Cothren kept it interesting for most of the fight, but Bosnick had spurts of total dominance. He needs to tap into his raw aggression more.
Winner: David Bosnick by unanimous decision
Fight 11 Main Event 135 lbs Professional
John DeJesus (0-0) (ATT) vs Aaron Phillips (2-0) (Gladiator Academy)
Round 1
The house is buzzing for this one.
De Jesus comes out aggressive, and pushes phillips to the cage. Phillips lands a big knee that backs up De Jesus. Phillips then connects with a big kick to the body. He follows this up with a smooth trip takeown. Once on the ground he passes to side control. De Jesus is moving a lot trying to recover guard, but Phillips rolls into a D'Arce choke. It looks tight. De Jesus defends it well, but it still looks tight. With all the rolling around Phillips lets it go to establish side control. Phillips lands some good punches. De Jesus recovers guard and almost instantly Phillips is in an armbar. De Jesus tries to extend, but Phillips escapes and lands a punch. He postures up. Before any real damage can be delivered De Jesus pushes off and stands up. Phillips comes right back and lands a big knee to the body. Then he misses with a highkick. De Jesus answers with a midkick of his own. Phillips slips, and De Jesus follows him into guard. Phillips is very busy from the bottom with elbows to De Jesus' temple. The round ends. This was a really great round. Phillips showed great grappling from both the top and bottom, and De Jesus showed the BJJ skills that ATT is known for, and a willingness to trade. De Jesus also has a significant reach advantage, but Phillips used his Muay Thai skills to get in close and score with knees and kicks.
Round 2
Phillips opens with a leg kick, and then he lands a stiff cross. De Jesus pushes him to the cage and does a nice takedown into side control. De Jesus is being patient, and Phillips is able to attain guard and goes for a triangle. De Jesus escapes. He answers with an elbow that Phillips blocks. They get restarted. They clinch, and De Jesus pushes to the cage dropping for a leg. Phillips reverses, and De Jesus switches for a kneebar. Phillips defends and moves to take his back. De Jesus rolls and stands up. Just overall great scrambling and they get back to their feet. Phillips lands some big body shots that seem to hurt De Jesus. Phillips digs another hook to the body, and De Jesus pushes him to the cage. Phillips lands some big shots from the Thai clinch, and De Jesus is slowing down. De Jesus manages to surge forward and lands several clean punches as the round closes. These guys are definitely closing out the show. De Jesus is getting the worse of the stand up, but he is not giving an inch.
Round 3
Before the round starts Phillips is standing in his corner staring at De Jesus looking like he is ready to go 5 rounds. They take the center, De Jesus jabs, and Phillips throws a body kick. De Jesus lands some combos, and Phillips answers with a big knee to the body. Phillips is getting tagged but doesn't seem to care. His hands are low and is just walking through punches looking for the big kick or knee. Phillips scores to the body. He looks like he is stalking De Jesus around the cage while De Jesus lands punches. Phillips pushes to the cage and lands another knee. De Jesus throws an elbow. As Phillips closes the distance De Jesus keeps pushing him away. Phillips throws a flying knee that De Jesus catches. He tries to capitalize on this opportunity, but Phillips reverses and lands on top throwing lots of punches and hammerfists. De Jesus stays calm and gets halfguard. Then he smoothly makes a nice reversal into north south. Phillips rolls, and De Jesus spins for his back. He sinks his hooks in. He's looking for the choke. Phillips defends well. De Jesus stretches him out and lands punches to the head to close out the fight. What an incredible showing by both fighters, and the crowd roars their approval of the combatants' efforts. This was a very hotly contested fight with both fighters having the advantage at different point. Phillips Muay Thai seemed to dictate the stand-up, and although they were very evenly matched on the ground, Phillips had more effective striking when he had the dominant position.
Winner: Aaron Phillips by unanimous decision.
Despite the number of fights going to a decision, this card delivered some really amazing contests. It was the ground fighting on display that won the night for several fighters. To close the night we had a main event that could have easily fit on a televised card. It was that good! Though coming up short in the decision, De Jesus showed that he can compete with the very best of the area, and Phillips showed that he has the fortitude to win a grueling war of attrition. With this question answered, the next one may just be how high his star can rise in the sport.
