Here we are again Sucker Punch fanswow, it feels like we were just doing this a couple days ago! Oh, wait, we were! But now its Welterweight time baby! Im Hare Rumplerand Im excited to bring you this event preview with our analyst, Donkey Dan, and Suzy Sucker Punch, our determined and outgoing media corresondent.
Our upcoming card this week features two bonus sparring match test fights, along with our planned 8 fight kickoff for the first round of the Welterweight Cockshot Sorter Series tournament! This tournament will be used to establish rankings as the division gets underway and will also belt our first champion for the Welterweights! Very exciting stuff, I cannot wait to see how some of these guys look tonight.
The welterweights and middleweights always tend to intrigue and excite me. Because while your lighter guys tend to come out with a ton of energy, go for some subs and generally go high aggression and accuracy (although dont tell our Featherweights from over the weekend that!), and your heavier weights are those beasts who love to throw down and put the power on displaythese guys leave you really guessing which way theyre going to go with things. Hey, if there are ever divisions that are just made to surprise you with a good kick to the balls, the Welterweight division is one of them! Haha. And for me, thats really exciting and should create a heck of a challenge for Donkey with his picks!
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Now, let's get to it!
Bonus Sparring Session #1
Havar Bjornbak (0-0-0) v Kauko Johan Talo (0-0-0)
Once again, our upcoming card will start out with a one round, three minute sparring session test fight. These two young guns will be looking to prove they have what it takes to not only keep a spot on their managers roster and be worthy to train alongside the rest of the stable, but to also show that they may be the future superstars of that very same stable!
Bjornbak is currently managed and trained by Optimal, a member of the populous Legion of Doom alliance. Hell come into this one with a slight advantage in muy thai over his opponent, babyface (not really) Kauko Johan Talo. Talo is trained and managed by Marky Mark of the Funky Buncher, I mean, FinnFighters alliance! Talo holds an advantage in wrestling, so there really is no clear cut winner here.
Talo should have the advantage on the ground and, due to his grappling skills, may also be able to hold his own in the clinch which could be problematic for Bjornbak who would likely want to get there and exploit his MT advantage. While there isnt a significant height difference, just 4 cm for Bjornback, Talo does give up over 30 lbs to him! Will that help or hinder?
Donkey, what do you think about thisready to kick off your picks for the evening?
Donkeys Pick: Talo via TKO (Strikes)
This is a sparring match, so there is a high likelihood these two will go out there and simply try to remain healthy while showing their managers what they have. But putting a pick out there going by my normal standards, Id have to give the advantage to the heavier man in this short 3 minute match as hell probably not have enough time to get worn down and gassed. That, and the grappling comes in handy in so many ways early in a career like this, so that gives him several areas of help during the match. Ill say he takes Bjornbak to the ground and does that wholewhat is itHulk, smash! thing once there.
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Bonus Sparring Session #2
Douglas Cardozo (0-0-0) v TJ Kool (0-0-0)
Our second entry on the card features another of Optimals young fighters. Clearly hes hoping to come out of this with a few diamonds in the rough so he can put a cap on his newest generation of fighters for a bit!
Optimals own Cardozo will face off with TJ Kiwi Kool, trained and managed by Milo Paris out of the famous Paris & Sons Training Yard in London! I hear that while this guy may be confused about where his Fight Gear is located, hes definitely not confused about what hes looking for in a potential fighter and how to use him to kick somebodys balls in! Ouch, well thats one shot that definitely ended up Down Undah even if the threads arent there!
Kool comes into this one having been created about 2k ahead of Cardozaso while it appears they may have been brought up in life in a very similar fashion, Kool has a slight developmental advantage on top of their matching brown belts in BJJ. Hes also the lighter of the two by about 13 lbs. That wont matter a bunch in this match, being that its only going to lastmaybe3 minutes.
Donkey, I know youve probably got something to say?
Donkeys Pick: Cardozo via Submission (Armbar)
Two fresh faces on the scene, we dont have a lot to go buy here. Normally Id go with the logical pick and as you say, Kool has an advantage in development at this point that should be considered significant. But Im a gambling man, and I just feel like going out on a limb here, so Im going to go with the heavier guy again in this one, trust that he can get this thing to the ground and then after laying on him a bit, swing into a nice armbar to finish it. Hows that for detail oriented guesswork there Hare?
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #8 vs. #9
Chaz Campbell (2-1-0) v Darren Thomson (3-4-0)
We move into the first of our seeded bracket matches for the Welterweight Sorter Series tournament here as Campbell and Thomson are scheduled to duke it out! Being our #8 and #9 seeds, these two should be very evenly matched, making for a great way to challenge Donkey as he tries to get rolling with these picks of his!
Five years the senior in this pairing, Campbell matches up really well with Thomson despite the age advantage and having been brought into MMAT around the same time ID wise. Were starting to get into that time frame where the youngsters will start to catch their older counterparts in development, and this contest right here should be a great indication of whether thats truly happening yet or not!
Campbell has the boxing advantage while Thomson has both a MT and BJJ advantage over his older dance partner here. These two do not lack for experience coming into the Sucker Punch org and this tournament, as between them they have 10 fights under their belts already. That gives us a bit to go by, and should make this a little easier for Donkey Id think than most 8-9 seeds are to pick!
Donkey, where do you think this one goes?
Donkeys Pick: Campbell via TKO (Strikes)
Campbell has a really nice granite chin and won his first two fights, showing that he can go for the finish or win via decision. He lost his most recent fight, and clearly showed that he does not like being in the clinch, eventually succumbing to an overwhelming amount of punishment while in there. However, that was against an extremely well developed 20 yo at the time who had a 2k ID advantage over him. Thomson on the other hand has done well when he can take the fight to the ground. When that happens, hes typically finished the fight quickly via submission. Heres the problem Harehe tends to cut. And in every single fight so far where he has failed to take it to the ground, hes bledand shortly after he does, he gets finished via TKO or KO. Soa tendency to cutand quite possibly, a lack of heart or confidence hiding behind there once he does. Im really torn on this onebut Im going to go with Campbell. I was leaning towards Thomson, believing hed get this one down quickly. But unfortunately for him, it seems hes a little low on energy and morale, and I never bet on the guy whos low on both. This is going the other wayprobably with a lot of bleeding followed by the questions, Whats your name? How many fingers am I holding up? Where are you?.
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #7 vs. #10
Ronnie Bass (3-0-0) v Tik Tok (3-1-0)
Im seeing a trend here, and so far its that the Welterweight Sorter Series bracket is starting out with a couple classic standup versus ground game battles! I love this!
Bass has a big advantage in both boxing and MTwhile Tok has a huge advantage all around in grapplingand, I assumedancing! These two both boast excellent records, with Tok holding the only loss between them in 7 total fights. Not bad!
Bass has won all three of his prior QFC matches via KO or TKOand big surpriseappears to have some KO power! And he is not a fan of dragging these things out, having earned his check and hit the bar (after hitting his opponent, hardsorry, I had to) in under one round each time.
Tok has been just about as effective, winning his last three matches via submission after taking a solo TKO loss in his very first fight. Ever since that first loss, he has been very effective, and very fast, at initiating a takedown in each round, limiting the chances for his opponent to take advantage of a striking game. I hear Tok also has a special move just for the Sucker Punch fansits called the Tik Tok, knee to your, erwait, I better not go there.
Donkey, what say you sir...?
Donkeys Pick: Bass via KO (Punch)
Ronnie Bass has not been truly tested so far in his career by an opponent who wants to take him down. So we dont yet know if he can defend against it or not. This one is very simpleif he canhe wins. If he cant, hes getting submitted most likely by a quick and talented Tik Tok, just a matter of time. And if I get this pick wrong, I hope to hell we get a dance out of it! Hes had just a little more time than Tok to develop, which doesnt really mean a thing, but Im going to bet on his defense in this one. Its a 51/49 bet at most!
Suzy, you were over at the gym with Bass and his trainers earlier this week, did they have anything to say?
Suzy Sucker Punch: I did stop, yep, to get the promotional materials together for the upcoming event this week. Ronnie Bass seemed to be in a pretty good mood, and grabbed me right as I finished with his manager, Andrew Wittig. He had this to say
Ronnie Bass: This is a bad match for me if he gets it to the ground. There's no sunshine anymore, then I lose my super powers. But if I can connect with a good shot, I'll turn his sun off and watch him sleep. I hope he puts that all over Tik Tok, I want to put him to sleep just like someone should do to that shitty app.
Suzy Sucker Punch: Clearly Ronnie Bass is not a fan of the ground game, not a fan of Tik Tok, you decide if thats just the app or both the app AND the fighterand possibly not a fan of sunshine. Well have to find out if hes a fan of fish, musical instruments or just legacy college football players! At this point, Im thinking he may just be a fan of not being a fan! Back to you guys!
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #6 vs. #11
Igor Nox (1-3-0) v Pietro Marchionni (1-0-0)
Igor Nox has had a rough run of fights in the QFC up to this point, with a sole win via decision sitting alongside three losses via TKOs and a submission. But, he comes into this Sorter Series as the six seed and the favorite to win in Round 1! So perhaps his fortunes are about to take a turn for the better! I will say this right now though, its going to be hard to turn things around and get those spirits up if the morale stays low, and nothing pushes morale down like a few losses and then being told by your manager that your punishment will be wearing the same stinky assed clothes around for the next month or two! Peeeyoooo!
Marchionni comes into this 7 years the junior of Igor up there (who smells like that stale urine smell in an old age home btwdid I mention he needs new clothes?!?). So yeah, I know that technically he has a skill disadvantage at this point due to the age advantage Nox has over him. But hes young, hungry and intelligentand might I add, Downy fresh! He holds a wrestling advantage, while Nox has both the boxing and MT advantage in this matchup.
Donkey, I know what I think, but what about you?
Donkeys Pick: Marchionni via Submission (Armbar)
I know you Hare, and despite the morale thing, you probably want to go with the bigger guy in this one, and thats definitely Nox. Let me guess, via KO (Odor)? Hes 20 cm taller but doesnt have any advantage in weight. Hes a stick. A very intimidating stick. But that morale worries me despite the age and height difference, and I think Marchionni showed enough on the ground in his single fight so far that I believe he can get it to the ground and finish it. And my reasonIm not sure that once down, Nox is going to have the confidence and morale to not give up.
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #5 vs. #12
Hugh Saber (1-1-0) v Andrey Nikonov (1-1-0)
At this point in the bracket, were starting to get some separation in the seeds. But honestly, Im really looking forward to this one because on paper at least, it looks like a fantastic matchup! This thing could truly go in any directionup, down, sideways, you name it! Both of these guys come in with a 1-1 MMA recordand when they walk out of here, one will have taken a step forward, the other, will have more motivation to come out and prove himself as he works his way back up the ladder!
Nikonov comes in as the twelve seed and has the MT and wrestling advantage. However, his MT skillset is still sub-standard, so despite that advantage he may still decide hed rather be on the ground where hes had some success previously in his sole MMA win.
Hugh Saber has a definitive boxing advantage and has shown himself to have a big right hand, which will also only encourage Nikonov to want to get this to the ground. Saber does technically have the BJJ advantage over Nikonov, so there could be some danger on the ground as well for Andrey, but it may be the lesser of two evils. Hell want to get this one down there, try to control and dictate the action and get his shots or sub in when he can, being very opportunistic!
Donkey, you have a pick for us in this one?
Donkeys Pick: Saber via TKO (Strikes)
I love that both of these young fighters are coming in with full gas tanks and an upbeat, confident attitude! Thats the makings for a great fight right there. I do like Nikonovs chances on the ground despite being at the technical disadvantage belt wise. However, Sabers overall advantage of being able to win via standup or potentially on the ground if things go right tilts the odds in his favor some. Can you tell Im having a really tough time deciding on this one? Youd kill me if I called for a split decision given this is tournament play, wouldnt you? HAHAHA! Ok, Im going to go with the guy who seems to have more tools as finishing options at this point in his career, so itll be Saber by TKO (Strikes), but Im refusing to call it standing or on the ground! Ha!
Suzy Sucker Punch: Boss Lors, thanks for taking a few minutes with me this week as we head into the event this weekend for the Welterweights. Your boy Hugh Saber goes into this thing the #5 seed I believe. But Hare and Donkey have been reporting that this division and the seeds are much tighter than anybody would ever expect. How do you feel about Hughs chances of living up to the seed and moving on to Round 2?
Boss Lors: Saber is ready for this fight 100%. The camp is expecting a 1st round finish Via KO or Submission. Nikonov should have forfeited the fight, Saber is a beast.
Suzy Sucker Punch: Wow, those are huge words out of Sabers camp in such a tightly contested division! Apparently Boss believes his fighter will follow through on Donkeys prediction for a finish. I wonder what Nikonov will feel about this and if this is going to put a fire in his gut?!
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #4 vs. #13
Sean MacCarthy (0-0-0) v Kahdi Mandinos (0-0-0)
A really, really even matchup between MacCarthy and Mandinos, this is not what I would have expected at this seeding! That just tells you that at least up through the fourth ranked in this division, its going to be a tight as hell, balanced affairwhich means great fights for us Donkey!
Mandinos has about 10 lbs on MacCarthy and will need to cut to make weight, while MacCarthy is already there and wont have to waste any energy getting down to 170 and has a 5 cm height advantage. MacCarthy also has the advantage in MT, but not by a ton. Mandinos has the advantage of a purple belt over blue in BJJ.
But both of these young warriors have shown a preference to take it to the ground in prior fights. Now, that doesnt mean that MacCarthy couldnt put a wrinkle in this and change it up, trying to use the little advantage he has in the clinch in this one. I guess well find out!
Donkey, what are you thinking?
Donkeys Pick: Mandinos via Submission (Armbar)
If I was MacCarthy, I think Id go with my height and clinch advantage and try to make something of it. Even if you want to be on the ground and go for the ground game, I think Id probably try to use that advantage to wear Mandinos down a bit, while also stuffing some takedown attempts if I can to further gas him out, being that Mandinos is the heavier contestant and will already be susceptible to fatigue if the fight doesnt end quickly. That might be the advantage that MacCarthy needs to get opportunities to finish. On the other hand, Mandinos will want to be successful early with the takedownsand hope that his purple belt in BJJ is advanced enough over MacCarthys defensive techniques to make some body parts go in directions theyre not supposed to for MacCarthy! The question iswill adjustments be made, or will the status quo continue from prior fights? I think probably status quo. So Im leaning towards Mandinos advantage on the ground.
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Welterweight CSS Round 1: #3 vs. #14
DJ Costune (1-0-0) v Kris Nedman (0-0-0)
We are quickly approaching the top of our card here now, as we get to our #3 seed in the tournament, DJ Costune, along with his opponent, Kris Nedman! I have to admit, Im a bit shocked at this point that the skill separation between the seeds is STILL miniscule. Id love to take credit for that, but its just the way this division is working out that seeds can be this far apart, seeded by skill estimate, and still be so close together. Donkey is definitely going to have a rough go with this division when it comes to picks!
Nedman comes into this one looking like he may be mostly pure striker, with a bit in BJJ for defense. Thats hard to say though, as this will be his first professional fight! Go get em young man! He has a considerable height advantage of 16 cm over Costune, but weights about the same. So, without knowing more about him and not having a lot to go by, Im going to assume he will stand, at distance, and try to strike this one out and use a reach advantage!
Costune holds an advantage in both MT and wrestling, and has shown in prior fights that hes not opposed to using bothboth on the feet and on the groundand many times using the clinch and grappling to get to the ground. Once down there, hes used about a balance of striking and sub technique, with some limited success. Im not sure if his game plan has quite been worked out fully yet, but one thing is for sure, hell certainly make progress with that over the next several fights!
Donkey, what do you have?
Donkeys Pick: Costune via Submission (Kimura)
Costune has shown a willingness to try out all the tools at his disposal during a fight. We also know he has a lot of power in that right hand of his. I think hell use it to do some tenderizing in this one, and once Nedman is distracted lock in a sub for the second time in his career, the first in MMA. However, as Hare noted, this is a very, very closely skilled matchup, and if Nedman can escape being taken down, and if we find he has some nice hiddens in there, he could very well finish this thing on the feet and give us and the fans that huge finish we love to see! So yeah, I just hedged my bets folks, non-commital seems to be my middle name today.
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Co-Main Event
Welterweight CSS Round 1: #2 vs. #15
Rayne Dame (3-0-0) v John Fuller (0-0-0)
Ahhhhhh yeah! Now here we go, our Co-Main Event of the evening featuring our #2 seed Rayne Dame and our #15 seed John Fuller. And againand yes, I sound like a broken record herethese two really are not worlds apart in skill! I absolutely, friggin love it!
Pain comes into this one with an excellent 3-0 record from QFC fights to date. He holds an advantage in this contest in boxing and BJJ. Its an interesting combination so far, because one might assume that his purple belt is mostly defensivebut he has a submission victory under that purple belt of his from his very first fight! So this is a man who clearly
I really admire the work and time you invest to make this Organization fun as much as possible Hare.
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