"March Mayhem" Sells Out!
Friday March 20, 2009, 1 Zero 8 and Title Boxing Club delivered what they promised. Thirteen high caliber fights along with a classy show that appeased the sold out crowd. Starting off, Andrew Tyson and Romon Barber fought three grueling rounds that went back and forth, with strong support from Tyson's home crowd. Tyson took the unanimous decision but Barber showed his toughness early in the first round locking a tight guillotine choke on Tyson for the first two minutes.
Barber appeared to secure the choke fairly tight, and it looked as thoughTyson can tap any second. To Tyson's credit, he never tapped and was able to get back on his feet once he worked his way out of the choke. Not to make the same mistake twice, Tyson avoided getting caught with submissions the second and third round.
Using his superior wrestling skills, Tyson shot in for takedowns and worked on side control and mounting once they were on the canvas. Barber, however, made Tyson pay for his shots by throwing some uppercuts and right hands as Tyson worked for the takedowns. Eating some heavy blows from Barber, Tyson was not to be denied and continued taking his opponent down. That was enough to get the judges' nods after the three round battle. It was a great fight to start the night, getting the crowd on their feet!
Another nail biter that went back and forth was Jett Jones vs. Heath Finkemeier. Jones always promises an exciting fight when he steps in the ring, and this one was no different. Both combatants quickly turned it to a stand up war from the get go. Throwing huge right hands and landing hard kicks to the body, you can't help to think how long this fight will last. On several occassions, it looked like Finkemeier was going to get knocked out by Jones' crushing right hooks to the head and knees to the body.
Not to be outdone, Finkemeier dropped Jones with some devastating right hands himself. The fight kept going back and forth until Jones appeared he was going to end the fight when it hit the mat and was able to take Finkemeier's back. Locking in his hooks, Jones sunk in a rear naked choke that looked pretty deep. Both fighters exhausted, Finkemeier was able to hang on until the end of the first round.
Blasting out from his corner in the second round, Finkemeier's heart and determination perservered as he refused to go down. Jones gave it everything he had but Finkemeier proved to be a tough opponent. Both fighters appearing exhausted, continued to land heavy shots that had the crowd on their feet. Finkemeier landed a perfectly timed spinning back fist but Jones shook it off and kept pressing forward. Jones momentarily dropped his hands from fatique as Finkemeier landed a huge right hand that dropped him.
Quickly following through with the right hand, he hovered over Jones and dropped more bombs as Jones had no choice but to cover up, which prompted the referee to step in and call the fight. Scoring a TKO victory over Jones, Finkemeier looked impressive against a very worthy opponent. Give both these fighters credit for putting on a gut wrenching and exciting fight. Impressive debut for Finkemeier who beat a very competent opponent. I see a great future in MMA in both these guys.
The undercard also featured Horacio Escobar who looked impressive with a TKO victory over James Fuller. Escobar was much more technical in this fight, taking down his opponent and dropping heavy leather before the referee stepped in to save Fuller from anymore punishment. It's just as exciting to watch the emotional Escobar celebrate after his fight. Celebratory but not disrespectful, Escobar has just as much fun inside the ring as he does outside. He's definitely a guy that likes a battle.
One Zero Eight also had four title fights on the line tonight. Starting with heavyweights Trevor Thornton and Rob "Big Chief" Haney. "Big Chief" entered the ring with his usual blue grass/country folk music behind the sold out crowd chanting "Chief, Chief, Chief". Thornton, on the other hand, walked into the ring with nothing but his gameface and two fists that are ready to explode on someone.
Thornton has the clear height and reach advantage in this fight. Towering over Haney, it'll be interesting to see if he can use his height advantage in this battle. The bell sounds and the fighters engage. A hometown favorite, Haney surprised everyone when he abandoned his game plan and immediately went for the takedown seconds into the first round. Haney showed his strength when he picked up six feet four, two-hundred and fifty-pound Thornton and slammed him to the canvas. Dropping a few punches but not doing much damage.
Unable to get any action on the ground from both fighters, referee Rusty Sullivan stood them up. That's when things went from bad to worse for Thornton. Haney, landed a couple jabs until he threw a monstrous looping right hand that laid out Thornton. The thud of Haney's right hand hitting Thornton's face can be heard all they way from the Balcony seats. It was the knockout of the night as Thornton immediately crumbled to the canvas.
Not allowing Thornton to take anymore punishment, Referee Rusty Sullivan quickly stepped in to end the fight. With the crowd going wild, Haney's cornerman lifts him up in the middle of the ring as he is crowned 1 Zero 8's first heavyweight champion. To Thornton's credit, he put up a good fight until he got caught with a huge right hand. He didn't back down the entire fight and was able to leave the ring on his own. A great guy who in his own words, "loves to fight", will definitely be back.
The second title fight featured Mathew Gragg and Bill Folsum. Both weighing in at 185 lbs., this fight had fireworks written all over it. Chiseled and ready to go, both fighters entered the ring locked and loaded. With the beats rocking the crowd, the fighters gave each other a good staredown before the bell. Gragg, with excellent submission skills appeared to want this fight to go to the ground. With a quick takedown, Folsum reluctantly went to the mat with Gragg but was in trouble the minute he went down. Executing a rubber guard on Folsum, Gragg worked for a gogoplata that looked like it could work. A tough opponent, Folsum had none of it and miraculously worked his way out of the submission only to find himself in another. Gragg successfully submitted Folsum in the first round and is hailed 1 Zero 8's new 185 lbs. Champion. Congratulations to Gragg and his team.
Next title fight featured Richard "Boo" Bouphanouvong and opponent Caleb Calanbro for the right to wear the 170 lbs. championship belt. A crowd favorite, "Boo" brings an impressive 6-0 undefeated record. Not to be outdone, Calanbro rolls into the fight with a win streak that featured the sickest last second armbar submission you'll ever see. Standing face to face, Calanbro's got at least five inches over "Boo" who stands around 5' 7".
This is an interesting matchup because Calanbro would rather take the fight to the ground and Boo's a knock out artist looking to unleash his power. At the ring of the bell, Calanbro quickly charges Boo with a straight front kick. Boo slips out of the way but Calanbro follows with another one. This time, Boo has nothing of it and quickly takes him down catching the kick in midair. Quickly moving from side control to mount, Boo traps Calanbro against the bottom ropes and drops bombs. Trapped between the ropes and Boo, Calanbro's got no choice but to go on the defensive mode. Unable to intelligently defend himself, referee Rusty Sullivan steps in and calls the fight. Richard Bouphanouvang wins in the first round with a TKO. Richard Bouphanouvang is 1 Zero 8's 170 lbs. Champion.
Impressive work by Bouphanouvang. There's no doubt he's the real deal. He may be holding the belt for awhile because I don't see anyone taking it away from him. To Calanbro's credit, he fought a very tough opponent and tonight just wasn't his night to have the gold.
The last fight of the evening featured Kyle Carver and Eddie Granado. Carver who's no slouch, walks into the ring with two championship belts already under his waist. Granado is not the least bit intimidated as he rolls into the ring with his winning record and confidence.
Both fighters have their gameface on as the referee goes over the rules. They touch gloves and the bell sounds. Carver shoots for the takedown but Granado does an excellent job of stuffing it. Looks like Granado wants to keep the fight standing while Carver would rather take it to the ground. Granado is able to land a few jabs but nothing devastating. The latter half of the first round and into rounds 2 and 3, Carver starts to find his rythmn as he's able to take Granado down at will. Carver successfully stuffs some takedowns and counter with some offense of his own but it wasn't enough to convince the judges. Carver ultimately gets the decision over Granado and is 1 Zero 8's 145 lbs. champion. Granado fought a good and intelligent fight but wasn't able to shake off Carver's takedowns. Both fighters deserve high marks because they fought hard. It's always tough to lose a championship via unanimous decision but Carver appeared to score with his takedowns. It'll be interesting to see who can challenge Carver for the belt. He's another legitimate title holder.
One Zero Eight Promotions would like to congratulate all the title holders and victors in tonite's event. Win or lose, every fighter showed up and laid it on the line. Not to sound corny, but everyone is a winner when they show up and fight!
One Zero Eight would also like to thank all the fans that showed up and had a good time. It was a sellout and hopefully everyone got their money's worth. Our next show is slated to be on Saturday May 30, 2009. We hope to continue to serve the Kansas City Metro area with classy shows and entertaining fights. Thank you again for making all this happen. We look forward to serving you with high caliber mixed martial arts and an enjoyable night to remember.
108 Promotions L.L.C.
