Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.
I don’t want to jinx it, but I have to say it: MMA (or more broadly, combat sports) has been fun lately!
The fighting landscape is far from perfect, believe me, and there are always plenty of reasons to be crabby, but frankly all of the goof-ass ideas that everyone from Renato Moicano to Dog Wild Tournament to Adin Ross have been throwing at the wall have served as a healthy reminder that there is no right or wrong way to MMA.
Certainly, YMMAMMV (Your MMA Mileage May Vary), but I’m confident at least one or two moments from the past couple of weeks brought a smile to your face. I mean, it’s Dog Wild Tournament!
(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)
Mohamed Toure vs. Alberto Dominguez vs. Israel Campano vs. Bruno Villanova vs. Ander Sanchez
Yes, you’re reading that correctly. Five fighters, one cage, last man standing wins.
What you’re seeing above is the conclusion of DWT’s headlining battle royale, which worked out a lot better than you might expect. There are some obvious disadvantages to the format, mainly that if fighters decide to team up there’s not a lot the other guys can do about it, but overall it turned out to be a pretty damn fun experiment.
The numbers game, though? Worked out really badly for Israel Campano, who was brutally knocked out by a blindside shot from Mohamed Toure. After that, it just turned into a normal, one-on-one, with Toure eventually submitting Alberto Dominguez for the win.
You can watch the whole shebang in its entirety for free on YouTube.
If you’ve watched any of the previous DWT events before, you know to expect chaos, and this time around they also had intergender tag team MMA, sumo vs. boxing, phone-booth fighting, and much more.
What are you waiting for? Jump in!
And in case you missed it, Renato Moicano also launched a new combat sports endeavor this past weekend, Money Moicano MMA 1, and you can catch up on all of that craziness here, courtesy of our own Guilherme Cruz.
Mansur Soltamurado vs. Ramazan Musaev
Oh, did you check out the NFL action in Russia? Confused? Obviously, I’m talking about the National Fight League!
I understand if there’s a mix-up, though, because Mansur Soltamurado apparently thought he was auditioning for the other NFL, showing off his kicking skills with this All-Pro punt on Ramazan Musaev.
Wicked accuracy, serious power, definitely got his squad some good field positioning with that one.
Leandro Gomes vs. Mamadou Bah
The actual best kick of the week might have been delivered by Leandro Gomes.
This feels like one of those happy accidents to me, because Gomes would have to be psychic to time that question mark kick and have it land as perfectly as it did. One of those “you could do this 1000 times in practice and never have the same success” moments. Regardless, a truly beautiful finish for the Portuguese bantamweight.
Way of Warrior 30 is available for replay on UFC Fight Pass.
Artur Vinicius vs. Samuel Santos
Eriquis Camilo vs. Lucas Cardoso
Artur Vinicius could have claimed our Kick of the Week award… had he gotten away with this illegal maneuver.
At Coliseu Extreme Fight 15 in Maceio, Brazil, Vinicius attempted to time a kick as his opponent Samuel Santos was flailing on the ground. It did not work. Santos was ruled as grounded and despite being concussed, managed to leave with a harmless no-contest on his record. Better luck next time, Artur.
This next highlight, I want to show for the sake of contrast.
Eriquis Camilo gradually chipped away at Lucas Cardoso, causing him to become frustrated and carelessly step into the path of a finishing blow.
Nutsalkhan Umakhanov vs. Maxim Korotitskiy
Over at a BetCity Fight Nights event in Moscow, Maxim Korotitskiy also attempted to methodically break down his opponent, but Maxim Korotitskiy wasn’t having it.
Korotitskiy said I see your low kicks and raise you a shin to the chin.
Clayton Lee vs. Easton Edmond
Richie Miranda vs. Robert Varricchio
At LFA 233 in Salamanca, N.Y., Clayton Lee had his man slipping and sliding with an overhand left on the button.
Lee wasn’t exactly on balance himself when he launched that power shot, but this is the kind of fun KO you get when you have two dudes making their pro debuts. Generated some fantastic replies, too:
The event also featured two title fights, including LFA lightweight champion Richie Miranda scoring a lovely club-and-sub in the co-main event.
Miranda clocked Robert Varricchio with a solid left, then put the finishing touches on his performance with a bulldog choke. That’s two straight successful title defenses for Miranda, who is surely UFC bound this year.
If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on X — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.
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