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.
There are some who will tell you fighting off of your back is a lost art, or at the very least, a suboptimal way to win a modern MMA bout. It’s hard to impress the judges or mount any significant offense when you have a Division-I wrestling reject sitting in guard peppering you with halfhearted hammerfists.
So, this week, it was nice to see the bottom man win out for once.
(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.)
Gabriel Peinado vs. Santiago Gonzales
From (deep breath) Empire Championship Series: Reign of Champions in Las Cruces, N.M.:
Amateur bantamweight Gabriel Peinado found himself having to fight off of his back and he made the most of the situation and then some, improvising like a jazz musician and clobbering Santiago Gonzales with double fists to the sides of his dome.
The last time I saw something like this was Chris Leben going full Donkey Kong against Yoshihiro Akiyama and it seemed incredibly ineffective, though Leben did eventually win with a triangle so maybe it softened “Sexyama” up? Perhaps there’s something to this forbidden technique?
Maybe Max Holloway should have done this to Charles Oliveira!
That’s the beauty of low-level MMA right there. Just try your little heart out and don’t worry about a thing because nobody knows how to properly defend themselves.
Lucas Cortes vs. Paul Carson
We had some great regional action on UFC Fight Pass this past weekend, so let’s dive in, starting with Cage Fury FC 151 where… wait, there was another finish off the back?
Sadly overshadowed by Peinado’s effort, Lucas Cortes’ elbow knockout of Paul Carson was arguably even more impressive. This finish was beautifully set up by Cortes controlling posture and then unleashing elbows directly into Carson’s face. This wasn’t a fluke, Cortes capitalized on a mistake in devastating fashion.
Justin Longoria vs. Royce Butler
Colton Loud vs. Jacobo Martos
Cody Freeman vs. Tony Toro
Anthony Wint vs. Jamahl Tatum
Over in Houston, we had a flurry of notable finishes at Fury FC 117.
Justin Longoria put Royce Butler away with some beautiful boxing, first ripping up his insides with a right to the body and then dusting him with the big left hand.
Colton Loud silenced his opponent in a different way, securing a D’Arce choke that Jacobo Martos failed to tap out to in time.
Cody Freeman gave Tony Toro the Olé! treatment, sidestepping a charge and scoring a knockout with a slick counter.
And in the main event, Anthony Wint claimed the Fury FC heavyweight title with a 37-second romp against Jamahl Tatum.
Renato Canuto vs. Dylan Aparis
Add Renato Canuto to the list of distinguished Brazilian jiu-jitsu champions that have fallen in love with just banging it out in the cage.
Canuto faced Dylan Aparis at a Tuff-N-Uff event in Las Vegas and rather than take him to the ground, he chose to slug it out, with entertaining results.
He hasn’t completely abandoned what brought him to the dance as he scored an armbar win this past January, but he also made headlines with a nasty soccer kick knockout before that, so don’t expect Canuto to ever focus solely on grappling when he can mix the martial arts instead.
Jorge Gurgel, Gregory Rodrigues, Kody Steele, welcome this man to the club.
Oh, and in case you missed it, make sure you watch poor AJ Hotchkins dancing his way into the cage… and then immediately falling out of it.
Marcus Nash vs. Israel Aquino
No longer on Fight Pass, but still delivering the goods, here’s an LFA highlight featuring Marcus Nash smoking Israel Aquino with an uppercut and walking it off in style.
Aquino just never looked steady there and when Nash saw the opening, he didn’t hesitate.
Amil Tutic vs. Dorde Ivicic
At an ARMMADA event (full fights available on YouTube) in Bor, Serbia, Amil Tutic showed the best way to deal with an overly aggressive opponent.
Dorde Ivicic came in hot, but Tutic let loose with a right hook that changed his energy real fast.
Anastasia Nikolakakos vs. Victoria Souza
At ONE Fight Night 41 this past weekend, we saw the return of undefeated strawweight Anastasia Nikolakakos. The 36-year-old Canadian last fought in December 2023, and I’m not exactly sure why (she was embroiled in a foul controversy some years ago and she was apparently signed to GFL in 2025, so… yeah) but I’m glad she’s back.
Especially when she’s doing stuff like this.
Straight-up KOs from inside an opponent’s guard are rare and the fact that Nikolakakos did it with one second left in the opening round makes it that much sweeter.
Satoru Enomoto vs. Tomoki Otsuka
Satoru Enomoto, send us out on a high note, good sir.
Thank you very much, Mr. Enomoto.
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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