DAN DOWNES FIGHTING AT NAFC: MAYHEM

The UFC is soon to have Strikeforce fighters inside their Octagon, so why can’t a UFC fighter find himself a bout in an outside promotion? Such is the case of Chicago’s Dan “Danny Boy” Downes, the UFC lightweight that trains out of Roufusport in Milwaukee.

When we spoke to Downes in February on our pilot for ‘Chicago’s MMA Radio‘, Downes told us that he had not been given a timetable as to when he might fight in the UFC. His last fight was in December, 2010 at the last WEC, where he defeated Tiequan Zhang by unanimous decision.

Downes will be fighting this Friday night — but not for the UFC. He will fight at NAFC: Mayhem, the event promoted by his trainer Duke Roufus. His opponent will be Tory Bogguess. This was all worked out between him and the UFC. But Downes told Pro MMA Now that it is a risky decision.

“I’m always willing to fight anywhere and Duke with my management worked it out with the UFC.”

While the fight may not have been booked by Joe Silva, the result could still impact on the UFC lightweight division as Zuffa contracts allow the organization to cut fighters should they lose a fight.

While unsure about the contractual niceties, Downes admits if he was to lose to Bogguess he couldn’t blame the organization if they cut him.

“There’s a risk of this fight costing me my UFC chance.” However, he believes that fighters have to take risks to succeed. “This is a risky business by its nature and trying to avoid risk is not going to do you much good.”

Tory Bogguess is 10-7 as a pro and lost his two first pro fights to local fighters Mike Lindquist and Chase Beebe. Bogguess has lost 2 of his last 3 fights and hasn’t been out of the first round since 2008.

CHASE BEEBE VS STEVE KINNISON [VIDEO]

Chase Beebe takes on Steve Kinnison at Chicago Cagefighting Championship 3.

h/t: HD NET

PULVER WINS DESPITE BROKEN FOOT

Veteran Jens Pulver wins a split decision over downstate Illinois fighter Wade Choate at Chicago Cagefighting Championship III in Villa Park.  The fight was standup match which saw Pulver pressing forward most of the night and Choate circling from the outside and selectively picking his times to trade. Pulver revealed in the post-fight interview he had broken his foot in the first round of the contest. This makes two wins in a row for Pulver since hooking up with Team Curran.

In the night’s other main event Chase Beebe from Gilbert Grappling/Midwest Training Center put his wrestling skills on display and ground and pounded his way to a unanimous decision win over veteran Jiu Jitsu player Steve Kinnisen. Beebe spent most of the night working from top position and made a couple kimura attempts from inside Kinnisen’s half guard.

Felice Herrig bounced back from a loss in January to finish Andrea Miller by TKO in the first round. After a brief exchange on the feet Herrig took the fight to the mat and worked herself to the mount and hit Miller with a flurry of punches  till the referee stopped it.

The highlight of the night goes to Team Top Notch’s Giovanni Moljo who caught Carson Beebe, the younger brother of Chase, in an inverted triangle choke early in the first round.

Chicago Cagefighting Championship promoter Joe Smith is planning to produce another professional show later this year in October, and is also looking to throw an event for June.

RESULTS

• Jens Pulver def. Wade Choate via Split Decision
• Chase Beebe def. Steve Kinnisen via Unanimous Decision
• Felice Herrig def. Andrea Miller via TKO(ref stoppage) @ 3:30 of 1st Round
• Mike Pitz def. Dan Bolden via Triangle Choke @ 4:38 of 1st Round
• Giovanni Moljo def. Carson Beebe via Inverted Triangle Choke @ 52 of 1st Round
• Eric Kriegermeier def. Mike Santiago via Rear Naked Choke @ 3:48 of 2nd Round
• Christian Reynoso def. Wayne Grindstaff via Arm Bar @1:09 of 2nd Round
• Chris Haney def. Joey Diehl via Triangle Choke @ 3:39 of 2nd Round
• Will Brooks def. Guillermo Serment via Rear Naked Choke @ :45 of 2nd Round
• Jason Graves def. BJ Cajigas via Rear Naked Choke @ :31 of 1st Round

CHICAGO CAGEFIGHTING RELEASES MARCH 5TH CARD

Chicago Cagefighting Championship just released the card for their March 5th show, and it looks excellent. Besides Jens Pulver and Chase Beebe, fans get to see the return of Dan Gilbert. Gilbert has fought only sporadically since 2004, but he is a veteran of Shooto, XFO, Ironheart Crown and Brawl at Bourbon Street. He has fought big names like Hayato Sakurai and Frank Trigg. Now he’ll make his first appearance in the cage since 2009. Check out our interview with Dan Gilbert from November of 2009, where he tells us how he and his brother, UFC vet Joey started Gilbert Grappling.

Also on the card are Team Curran’s Joey Diehl, Felice Herrig and Eric Kriegermeier, MTC’s Mike Pitz and Dennis Dombrow, Hackney’s Jeff Lavallee and Gilbert Grappling’s Carson Beebe.

CHICAGO CAGEFIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS MARCH 5

Chicago Cagefighting returns on March 5th with a stacked card. Jens Pulver will fight in the main event, with Chase Beebe in the co-main event. The card will also feature Eric Kreigermeier, Mike Pitz, Jeff Lavallee, Dennis Dombrow, Christian Reynoso, Mike Santiago, Joey Diehl and Felice Herrig.

Diehl is coming off an impressive win in his pro debut at XFO 38, and Pulver beat Mike Lindquist there. Lavallee is coming off a unanimous decision win at APFC: Aftershock. Pitz dominated at XFO 37, and Dombrow spoiled the pro debut of Ray Grindstaff at the last Chicago Cagefighting Championship by submitting him in the 1st round. Beebe made quick work of the talented Jared McMahan on that card.

JENS PULVER, CHASE BEEBE HEADLINE CHICAGO CAGEFIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP

Chicago Cagefighting Championship returns with their 3rd MMA event on Saturday, March 5th at the Odeum in Villa Park. An all-pro fight card will feature ex-UFC Champion Jens Pulver in the main event and ex-WEC champion Chase Beebe in the co-main event. The under-card showcases many local up and coming MMA fighters. The event will be shot in HD and streaming live on the web. Also, HDNet will have a camera crew at the event to shoot highlights that will be televised the following week on “Inside the MMA”.

Ticket prices will remain the same and go on sale Monday January 24th. General admission tickets will be 25% off from January 24-30th. Updates are being made to www.chicagocagefighting.com, so keep checking the website for a special preview of the television commercial that will run for 5 weeks prior to March 5th on Spike and Versus during UFC shows and various sporting events.

Check out the CCC Facebook page for a trivia giveaway contest each Monday with prizes such as tickets, t-shirts, MMA gear, gift cards and more.

The last event from Chicago Cagefighting Championship was on October 16th. Mike Lullo submitted Tyler Combs in his last fight before heading to the UFC and Chase Beebe submitted Jared McMahan in the main event.

WEC 32: MIGUEL TORRES VS. CHASE BEEBE

Two of the best MMA fighters to ever come out of the Chicagoland area did battle for the WEC Bantamweight title back in February of 2008. Here is the fight between Miguel Torres and Carson Beebe at WEC 32.

RUCKUS IV RESULTS

Results from Ruckus IV in Addison on November 24, 2010.

Tyrone Deal vs. Rob Sandoval

The first amateur bout of the night got the event off to a quick start. Deal was doing work with strikes, attacking Sandoval and stalking him across the cage. But then Sandoval got the fight to the ground, and that’s where it stayed. He looked for subs all the while pounding on Deal. Eventually he got the mount and threw bombs until the ref stepped in to end it. Rob Sandoval TKO-Strikes/Ref. Stoppage at 2:29 of round 1.

Bob Ritchie vs. Ro Herrera

Two big heavyweights were up next. Herrera came out with conviction in his plan — throw all kinds of strikes and throw a lot of them. He connected with some loud right hands and kicks that landed square on Ritchie’s face. Ritchie just kept coming until the end of the round when it looked like he had enough. He actually turned away from Herrera, walked to the other side of the cage and covered up, seemingly a clear sign to stop the fight. But the ref let the action continue and Ritchie survived the round. Round 2 began and Herrera began his onslaught again. Ritchie dropped his mouthpiece again and that’s when the ref stopped in and stopped it. Very odd stoppage that should have been done in the first round. Ro Herrera TKO-Ref Stoppage Round 2.

Pj Cajigas vs. Inkidto Shamoon

Top Notch’s PJ Cajigas has been very active of late, fighting in DeKalb at APFC and then in October at Chicago Cagefighting Championship. This was his 3rd fight in just over 50 days. Cajigas pushed the action early in the first and caught Shamoon with some solid strikes. Shamoon returned them in kind. Then Cajigas shot in on Shamoon and secured the takedown, but Shamoon grabbed his neck and quickly locked in a very tight guillotine. Cajigas had to tap. Inkidto Shamoon wins via Submission – Guillotine at 2:30 of Round 1.

Chase Beebe vs. Josh Kasee

The first fight of the pro card featured the biggest name at the event. Beebe wasted little time taking Kasee down and treating him to a barrage of ground and pound that seemed to last for an eternity. The fight did make it back to standup, but just briefly. Beebe locked in a standing guillotine, dropped to the ground and Kasee tapped. Chase Beebe wins via Submission – Guillotine at 4:56 of Round 1.

Jake Murphy vs. Jeremy Czarnecki

This fight was on the ground for almost the entirety of the match. In the first, Czarnecki did catch a rear naked choke, but Murphy was able to survive. The next 2 rounds were all Murphy, repeatedly taking Czarnecki to the ground and scoring points. Jake Murphy wins via Unanimous Decision.

Romon Barber vs. Mike Santiago

Barber was a late addition to the card, and he fights out of Matt Hughes’ Hit Squad camp. Santiago overpowered him from the bell. Santiago got the crowd out of their seats with a highlight reel slam that thundered throughout the venue. From there he dominated with efficient ground and pound until it was stopped late in the first. Mike Santiago wins by TKO-Ref Stoppage at 4:01 of Round 1.

Bill Hill vs. Joe Bunch

Bill Hill is a venerable, durable fighter who has fought in the area for a long time. But this night belonged to Joe Bunch. Bunch had Hill on his back for all 3 rounds, and Hill had no answers with a passive guard. He didn’t seem to work hard enough to get back to his feet, or Bunch is that dominant on the ground. Hill is usually the one doing the bullying in the cage, but tonight he was the victim. Joe Bunch wins via Unanimous Decision.

Carson Beebe vs. Randy Fuentes

The main event of the night pitted Gilbert Grappling’s Carson Beebe against The Hit Squad’s Randy Fuentes. Much like his older brother Chase, Carson worked quickly to get the fight to the ground in round 1 to unleash some ground and pound. In round 2, Beebe was up for more of the same, but this time Fuentes latched onto an arm and caught a very tight arm bar. You could see it in Beebe’s shoulder that it was locked in. But Beebe escaped and resumed with his GnP attack. Fuentes proved game in round 3, looking for subs, but Beebe was just too much for him on the ground. The judges all scored it 30-27. Carson Beebe wins via Unanimous Decision.

RUCKUS IV: SPEND WEDNESDAY WITH THE BEEBES

Wednesday night at Venuti’s in Addison, both Carson and Chase Beebe will be fighting on the Ruckus IV card.

Chase Beebe will be fighting Wisconsin’s Josh Kasee, who is coming off a big win at the Combat USA Wisconsin State Finals in September. Chase is coming off a very impressive performance against Jared McMahan at Chicago Cagefighting Championship in October, and has won 3 straight since his loss to Yoshiro Maeda at Dream 12 last year. He is also the Ruckus Bantamweight Champion.

Carson Beebe will be taking on Randy Fuentes, looking to improve on his perfect professional record of 5-0. Carson has already fought twice in Ruckus, beating Gustavo Rodriguez at Ruckus III and Nate Williams at Ruckus II.

Chase Beebe vs. Josh Kasee
Carson Beebe vs. Randy Fuentes
Eric Kriegermeier vs. Mike Santiago
Robert Menigoz vs. Giovanni Moljo
Jake Murphy vs. Jordan Hinman

Amateur Bouts:
Johnny Odisho vs. TBD
Hoyt Grossman vs. Rob Johnson
Inkidto Shamoon vs. Dave Harris
PJ Cajigas vs. Eric Jackson

Get tickets at Ruckus Entertainment

RESULTS: CHICAGO CAGEFIGHING CHAMPIONSHIP 10/16

Results from Chicago Cagefighting Championship on October 16th at the Odeum in Villa Park.

Rick Johnson vs. James Gleissner

Gleissner showed great wrestling and had a few catches. But after a takedown in the 2nd round, the 6’6″ 260lb. Johnson reversed position and pounded out Gleissner. Johnson via TKO- Ref Stoppage due to strikes, 1:25 round 2.

Colton Martin vs. PJ Cajigas

Cajigas landed an early knee to the body and had a takedown in round 1. They slugged it out from there and Martin had a late takedown. Cajigas won the round. In round 2, Martin landed two heavy right hands that somehow didn’t faze Cajigas. Cajigas unleashed a barrage of strikes and eventually took down Martin, mounted him and got him in the crucifix position. He pounded on him until the ref stepped in to stop it at 1:23 of round 2

Kris Blainey vs. Nate Patrick

Patrick picked up where he left off when we last saw him in DeKalb at the Body Lock/APFC “No Mercy” event. Patrick tapped gloves with Blainey then slammed him to the ground to start the fight. He immediately got side control and spent most of the round improving his position, hunting for subs and landing strikes. It was all Patrick in round 1. Round 2 began the same as round 1 — Patrick slammed Blainey and got full mount. He unleashed about ten unanswered strikes before the ref stepped in and stopped it at 1:24 of round 2.

Nic Thompson vs. Matt Hong

Just moments before the fight, Hong’s cornerman leans in and tells us, “I don’t even know this guy. I just met him about 10 minutes ago.” Nevertheless, Hong showed himself to be extremely game. He took some serious right hands from Thompson and kept going. They were huge strikes that would have felled most fighters. Later in the round Thompson cracked Hong again with a right, but Hong countered with his own right hand that sent Thompson to the ground. Hong rushed in, but Thompson tied him up, reversed and secured the mount. From there he punished Hong with strikes and bloodied his face. Hong hung in there until the ref stepped in to stop it at 2:09 of round 1.

Bryan Fielder vs. Adam Ward

Bryan “The Hostile Pentacostal” Fielder was initially supposed to fight Mike Santiago. Santiago had to withdraw and Gilbert Grappling’s Adam Ward took the fight on just about two weeks notice. And Ward was just too much for Fielder on this night.

Ward caught a rear naked choke early and worked it the entire round. His grappling and position held Fielder on the ground for almost the entire first round. In round 2 Ward was again extremely aggressive with his wrestling and it paid off. Fielder had no answer for the takedowns of Ward. Round 3 they slugged it out a bit, but Ward dominated those exchanges and again had Fielder on his back. Fielder is left a bloody mess, and Ward wins via unanimous decision.

Ray Grindstaff vs. Dennis Dombrow

Grindstaff was making his pro debut and started out aggressively. But Dombrow worked him to the ground and repeatedly looked for triangles. He locked one in late in the round and also took Grindstaff’s arm. Grindstaff eventually tapped, but he should have done so sooner. He lay on the ground writhing in pain for a few minutes after the end of the bout. Thankfully, he was able to stand for the official announcement and left under his own power.

It was also Dombrow’s pro debut. The 145-pounder out of MTC in Schaumburg notches his first pro win at the Chicago Cagefighting Championship just a few months after competing as an amateur in the same promotion. He displayed a slick ground game, securing a heel hook early in the round and then finishing with the devastating sub at 4:46 of the first.

German Reyes vs. Frank Pizzirulli

Reyes was making his first appearance back in the cage since 2007. That’s a long layoff but you never would have known it watching him fight against Pizzirulli. Reyes exuded extreme calm and had his way with “The Strength”. He spent nearly all of round 1 on top of Pizzirulli. Round 2 was also all Reyes, with Pizzirulli seemingly not wanting to engage. His corner, including Strikeforce fighter Louis Taylor, seemed discouraged that Pizzirulli would not bring it to Reyes. Round 3 saw Pizzirulli work harder, but Reyes eventually landed a triangle at the end of the round. Pizzirulli survived, but Reyes won a unanimous decision in a very impressive performance.

Ryan Williams vs. Ryan Bixler

XFO welterweight champion Ryan Williams looked great in all aspects of his game on this night. Williams dominated the first round, both in striking and on the ground. Round 2 was closer with Bixler providing more of an attack, but Williams still won the round. I thought that Bixler might have taken round 3, but all the judges scored it 30-27 in favor of Williams. It was an impressive performance or Williams against a very experienced fighter in Bixler. It was the second straight victory for Williams.

Nick Rossborough vs. Jason Guida

This was a battle of two very experienced fighters. Guida had the home crowd cheering relentlessly for him. But Rossborough was relentless in his pursuit of Guida. “Leatherface” controlled the pace of the fight and commandeered the cage, working Guida for three rounds. Rossborough’s length and quickness were too much for Guida. Guida, of course showed his gameness, and brought it all three rounds. But in the end Rossborough took the victory via unanimous decision.

Mikey Lullo vs. Tyler Combs

The co-main event of the card, and it lived up to its billing with some thrilling action and frantic pace. Combs had no answer for Lullo in this fight. Lullo won the majority of the exchanges and was able to take down Combs when he wanted to. A slick rubber guard kept Combs in the fight. But in the 3rd round Lullo locked up Combs arm and he had to tap. A very impressive performance by Lullo, who looks like he improves with every bout. Lullo wins by submission via armbar at 1:17 of the 3rd round.

Jared McMahan vs.Chase Beebe

Making his 3rd fight in just over 30 days didn’t prove to be a problem for former WEC champ Chase Beebe. Beebe was just too quick and powerful for McMahan. Beebe floored McMahan with a right and violently turned him into a guillotine that left McMahan out on the floor. Beebe needed just over a minute to beat McMahan.

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