Chris Johnson secures a guillotine choke at XFO Outdoor War. (Photo Credit: XFO/Tomba Images)
by Matt Lo Cascio
Welcome back, XFO. The Xtreme Fighting Organization (XFO) made a triumphant return last Saturday at Sideouts in Island Lake, hosting its first event since 2019. It was like they never left.
A sold-out crowd got rowdy early and often as the XFO returned with its signature event – Outdoor War. Non-stop action with submission grappling, kickboxing, and MMA bouts made it a return to remember, and the first belt of the new era was claimed in a thrilling main event. There’s always been something about this event that kicks up the level of performance.
“Outdoor War is something special! The atmosphere, the timing smack dab in the middle of summer – it just seems to bring out the dog in every fighter,” XFO analyst Mike Finch said. “They feel the adrenaline. The crowd feels it too. As far as live fights go – it’s hard to beat the XFO’s Outdoor War.”
From the opening match to the main event, Outdoor War 16 lived up to its legacy, electrifying fans with incredible action from some of the best local fighters. “Every single grappling match ended via submission. Every kickboxing bout was a war. And the MMA fights? Some of the most action packed, up-down, back and forth warfare I’ve seen in six years!” Finch said. Let’s recap the big return.
Cloe Wins XFO Middleweight Title
Austin Cloe dominated a very game Jaime Martinez (2-3, Team Top Notch) in the main event to win the XFO middleweight title. Cloe mixed in some big hooks with a terrifying, suffocating grappling game. Standing too straight? Takedown. Throw a kick? Snatched, takedown. How about a flurry of punches, quick level change, and a takedown? My favorite: ‘Naked blast double because I can’ takedown. Cloe landed every takedown he attempted and pushed a crazy pace, especially considering it was an outdoor fight on a very humid night.
“It was a wild fight. Dude is tough as nails. I thought I did enough to finish him there in the fourth round,” Cloe told Chicago’s MMA.
Cloe was indeed very close to finishing Martinez in round four but had no problem taking it to the fifth, dominating that round en route to a 50-44 unanimous decision win, along with the XFO middleweight title.
“Winning the first title of the new XFO era means a lot to me. Growing up all the local fighters I looked up to and trained with all fought out of the XFO and some even through to the UFC. I always knew one day I was going to fight on a XFO card, and I finally got my chance. And as a main event, in a big way. To me it’s my biggest win to date.”
Cloe won a title for the second time in less than two months. He won the Elite Fight Night title in June, needing just :10 to beat Trent Kriha and grab the belt. The new XFO middleweight champ has plenty of offers to consider as he plans what’s next.
Martinez utilized good footwork early on to get off the cage and prevent some shots from Cloe. He landed a front kick in the fifth round that sprang a leak near Cloe’s mouth. Cloe shook it off, landed one more big takedown, and ended up in top position as his blood poured all over Martinez. Martinez is clearly skilled and extremely game, but Cloe’s wrestling was unstoppable.
Cloe trains with One Touch Fight Team, and some of his coaches were fighters in the XFO. Brett Brendel and Vince DiCicco had much success in the XFO. Brendel fought at Outdoor War 4 and went 4-0 in the XFO. DeCicco went 5-2 and fought for the welterweight title at XFO 49. Now they’re leading the next generation of XFO fighters, and they already have a champ in Austin Cloe.
XFO Outdoor War Notes
Ian Mullen was making his MMA debut, but he looked like a veteran in the XFO cage against the always-tough Mykel Lundy from Team Colon. Mullen was poised and patient in working his grappling early and ended up finishing Lundy in round 3.
Mike Finch was on the call for the video broadcast and loved what he saw. “Ian Mullen was one of my standout performances of the night. He displayed high fight IQ with technical wrestling and finished with a clean strangle to get the win,” Finch said.
The night began with four submission grappling matches. All eight combatants continually hunted for subs, and every match ended with a tap. Perhaps the most impressive was Chris Johnson from Team Top Notch and his jumping guillotine finish:
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The flight from Florida to fight for the XFO was well worth it for Kamen Wilmington. The American Mixed Martial Arts fighter got to display all his weapons and next-level speed in his unanimous decision win over Blaine Bounds.
Northern Illinois Combat Club’s Brandon McGee weathered some early pressure from Alan Espinoza in their heavyweight fight. McGee found his range in round 2 and landed some crisp, accurate shots to put Espinoza away.
Two teams really made their presence known at the Outdoor War. Avila Combat Laboratories went 4-0 on with three finishes. One Touch Fight Team took home a belt with Austin Cloe’s big win, and Marco Delgadillo put on a show by finishing Anthony Stengel in the second round.
XFO Outdoor War Results
MMA
Austin Cloe (One Touch Fight Team) def. Jaime Martinez (Team Top Notch) – Unanimous Decision, 50-44 x3. Cloe wins the XFO Middleweight Championship.
Ian Mullen (Avila Combat Laboratories) def. Mykel Lundy (Team Colon) – Submission, RNC, 1:06 Round 3
Marco Delgadillo (One Touch Fight Team) def. Anthony Stengel (Round 4 Gym) – TKO-Strikes, 1:13 Round 2
Joe Lewis (Ind.) def. Andre Brown (RMMA) – Unanimous Decision
Cole Hanson (Avila Combat Laboratories) def. Jesus Alonso (Mango Combat Sports) – Submission, RNC, :51 Round 2
Kamen Wilmington (American Mixed Martial Arts) def. Blaine Bounds (Team Colon) – Unanimous Decision
Brandon McGee (NICC) def. Alan Espinoza (Ind.) – TKO-Strikes, 2:54 Round 2
Kickboxing
Michael O’Dell (Avila Combat Laboratories) def. Oliver Inciomg (Mango Combat Sports) – Unanimous Decision
Mike Haskel (Team Haanpaa) def. Steven Baker (Ind.) – Split Decision
Alex Balas (Avila Combat Laboratories) def. Manuel Ruiz (Team Top Notch) – TKO-Strikes, 1:32 Round 3
Grappling
Ian Hilliard (RMMA) def. Syed Omer (Team Top Notch) – RNC
Chris Johnson (Team Top Notch) def. Ilia Tomov (Fusion Academy) – Flying Guillotine
Logan Szostek (RMMA) def. Fabian Serrano (Team Top Notch) – Heel Hook
Matt Gawlik (Team Top Notch) def. Rasul Choma (RMMA) – RNC
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