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.
Alexander K. Lee is on a well-deserved vacation this week, so I, Jed Meshew, am taking over these hallowed pages. And I intend to have fun. Starting with our lead, which proves one thing: some dudes’ knees are just built different.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Conor McGregor made his return to MMA last week after a five-year layoff, fighting Max Holloway at UFC 329. Well, sort of.
McGregor technically fought Holloway, but the whole bout lasted just over a minute as “Notorious” blew out his knee after throwing a jumping switch kick just moments into the fight and landing awkwardly. It was not a good scene.
And obviously, that’s not how it’s supposed to work! McGregor’s coach, John Kavanagh, said they trained that technique for months, but really, they should have just worked with Noah Starowicz, because this young man knows how to pull it off.
Starowicz has a solid amateur MMA career to his name, but made his professional debut last week at Ultimate Battlegrounds 29 in North Carolina, and you could hardly hope for a better debut, as he flattened Jahrael Cromartie with the very technique McGregor attempted.
In McGregor’s defense, had he successfully done that to Max Holloway on Saturday, it would’ve been the biggest story in sports.
Sabrina Van Damm vs. Liliya Platova
The runner-up to lead things off this week took place over at Open Fighting Championship 67 in Moscow, where Sabrina Van Damm moved to 2-0 in her professional career with a 90-second triangle choke win over Liliya Platova. It was Platova’s first professional loss, but she unfortunately added another just moments later as, after waking up from the submission, Platova started fighting referee Dmitry Valuevich. And I’m not talking about a simple takedown attempt; Platova tried to wrestle this man for nearly 10 seconds before her team pulled her off Valuevich.
That’s how you know you went to SLEEP sleep.
Luke Modini vs. Jay Cutler
Anyone who followed the NFL in the 2010s probably had the same strange discovery as I did: former Vanderbilt QB and NFL star Jay Cutler was NOT the most famous Jay Cutler. In fact, there was a very accomplished bodybuilder named Jay Cutler, who won Mr. Olympia a few times and had legs the size of a midsize sedan.
Well, can I interest you in a third Jay Cutler? This one gets punched in the head at International Brawling Championship 3 in Australia.
Sadly, in the Jay Cutler power rankings, I think the Australian Jay Cutler is firmly in last place at the moment.
But you know what isn’t in last place? That square cage. Give me more of that.
You can watch the full ICB 3 event here.
Ethan Hatcher vs. Wayne Baker
We’ve got a bit of a weird one over at Combat Night Gainesville in, you guessed it, Gainesville, FL. Ethan Hatcher appears to knock out Wayne Baker in just three seconds (according to the promotion), and the video sure suggests that’s exactly what happens. But Tapology lists it as a 2:55 finish for this amateur KO.
For the record, I count it at five seconds when the referee jumps in. Also, credit to Baker, who gave Hatcher props in the comments.
And don’t sleep on that ref. Man has style.
Cooper Simon vs. Max Cannon
Keeping with amateur MMA, I couldn’t find Tapology pages on either guy because I think this is the thing E. Casey Leydon once did, where you train for an MMA fight in just a few months. Sadly, a name like Max Cannon might be too good for the fight world, as he got bombarded in this one like a 1700 merchant vessel.
I hope the young man is OK, because that is not the outcome you’re looking for when you’re first dipping your toes into the MMA waters.
Luke Bracey vs. George Wheeler
And one last one from the amateur MMA ranks, because this might be my favorite finish of the week. Luka Bracey knocked out George Wheeler at Fusion FC 46 in England, in what can only be described as weirdly adorable fashion. Just a little “boop” to the chin with a front kick, and down goes Wheeler, just seven seconds into the second round.
Elijah Woodroof vs. Cory Dulaney
One last KO this week to discuss, and it comes from Frodo Baggins himself — seriously, Woodroof’s nickname is “Spooky,” which seems like a huge missed opportunity. Over at Legends Fight Series 2 in Ohio, Woodroof moved one step closer to getting a 500 professional record when he landed a NASTY knee against Cory Dulaney just 30 seconds into their fight.
It’s honestly hard to see how clean the knee lands, but it obviously does, because Dulaney faceplants harder than I do when I try to hit on a 7 at the bar.
Now, if the man could just make it to Mount Doom, we might all be saved.
Zhan Beleniuk vs. Haim Gozali
This isn’t really some incredible highlight, but I did want to highlight (see what I did there) a pretty cool thing that happened over the weekend. Zhan Beleniuk, who won gold, silver, and bronze Olympic medals in Greco-Roman wrestling, made his MMA debut and beat the pants off Bellator and BKFC veteran Haim Gozali.
Sure, Gozali is in his 50s, but still. This is a legit wrestler making the move into MMA. Always worth keeping an eye on someone like that.
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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