Highland Games - Official Thread

[bjornmma1]

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/1/1b7.jpg

 

Mitchel Thompson

I made a big mistake by not fighting the way I normally do. I'm gutted , but hats of to my opponent. He certainly is a good fighter. I wish him all the best.

[clydebankblitz]

http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/manager_avatars/1422834865callum.png

Callum McGregor

Thompson looked solid in the clinch at the start, but the experience of Lazaro took over later in the fight.

[Sassano]

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/42/42b8.jpg

Gianluca Balotelli

135lbs fighter

​ "ADDICT YO. You do not even deserve to be in my cage with me. I fight you tomorrow, after just one days rest... nothing is going to stop me on my journey to the title, especially not you."

[clydebankblitz]

Apologies for the lack of write up or poster for this event. I have a preview of the last three fights so I'll post tthat even though the event is done and try my best to sort tomorrow out.

[markyosullivan]

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/0/14094981823877.png

Lee Kagawa
26 year old
135lbs
7-4

" I am not impressed. I was looking forward to reading about how Lee Kagawa is a fan favourite in your preview Mr McGregor. "

[Tycooner]

Mib "MR.HG" Louie

http://mmatycoon.com/gallery/1/1w26.jpg hope you are ready Jason Barrett Batter up.

[PaleMan]

http://i67.fastpic.ru/big/2014/1217/47/2798efb50ff83e0ad257843592f6fe47.png
http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/belt/20140926172750titlebelt.png
LHW

I find this lack of coverage (Barney adventures, Gotlieb losing his belt in non-title fight and previews) disturbing

[clydebankblitz]

Aye sorry been a cnt of a week for me to get on. Had a few nights out over the last few days so I've either been wasted or hungover. There's going to be a massive write up for the final show (will hopefully get LHW an opponent after tonight's card) and then a big write up review of the entire season.

 

After the season ends I'm going to try and get two writers hired to do 2 events a week. I'll keep doing other things like the fighter spotlight on top of them.

[clydebankblitz]

HG 53 was the last event updated. Just posting so I'll remember for later tonight.

[clydebankblitz]

http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/posters/1424730514Sample.png

HIGHLAND GAMES 63 PREVIEW

This is it guys. The last event of the season. I've loved absolutely every minute of this season and hope as many of you wish to continue with us as possible. Just so you guys know, the org is going to move to London after the tournament and will only be available to people over 25 years old and adhering the 257k ID restriction. Tonight, the goal is to break the Island's ratings record, currently held by Legendary Fighters Championship at 363.99. Tonight, Highland Games aims to break it, making history once again!

Keijo Virtanen (7-1) Vs Pedro Lazaro (10-2) – Heavyweight
Keijo has been submitting everyone for a while now, picking up three bonuses for doing so. He’s on a 3 fight winning streak in the organisation, and could well have been talked about to challenge for the title had the season not been reaching its close. There’s only one smudge on Virtanen’s record; to Pedro Lazaro. Keijo is absolutely determined to right that wrong before the season ends, and now the chance is his.
Pedro was a typical decision fighter. He’d fight in the clinch, he’d avoid exchanges, and essentially he was an unimpressive fighter. None the less, a 6 fight win streak earned him the opportunity to challenge Barney Gumble for the title, which of course he was unsuccessful in. He bounced back by stopping two highly talented fighters, proving that he’s no longer the lacklustre fighter he once was. Now, once again on a solid streak, he had to make lightning strike twice over Keijo once again.

 

Massimo Benvenuti (14-2) Vs Arnavut Sevket (7-2) – Middleweight
Benvenuti is ACTUALLY on the second fight on the card. Are you kidding me? Massimo B is an absolutely incredible competitor. He is the only two time champion in Highland Games history with a win list which would actually be hard for me to complete by the time of the event. The huge upset loss to Grant Morrison has put the Italian in a foul mood, and now he is focused on unleashing his fury here tonight.
Arnavut, The Bird Man, has been a solid addition to the Middleweight division for a decent amount of time. His 5 fight winning streak was halted by Massimo B over a 15 minute fight before, and since then he’s failed to put two together in a row. Arnavut has the ability to strike, wrestle and grapple, but none the less he has a lot to overcome here in this contest.

Rodrigo Gracie (10-3) Vs Eirikur Adalsteinn (8-4) – Light Heavyweight
It’s bizarre seeing names like these so low on the card, but it just goes to show how stacked tonight’s contests are.
We have Rodrigo Gracie, grappling genius, final AFL 205 Champion and one time challenger in Highland Games. He’s been submitting opponents left right and centre, and since maturing as a competitor, his only losses are to Jake Theodorou and LightHeavy Weight, both as essentially as good as it gets in the Light Heavyweight division.
Eirikur Adalsteinn, or GoldBeard as everyone prefers to refer to him, has a claim to fame in that he’s the only man to defeat LHW. This is quite unfair, because while this was an amazing accomplishment, Adalsteinn has been stopping some very talented competitors for quite some time. Talon Axel just suffered a superman KO loss from Adalsteinn, and he vows to end the season with yet another incredible knockout finish.

 

Carl Sheppards (10-3) Vs Zoran Jolevi (9-1) – Lightweight
Sheppards made most of his name in AFL, in which he had a reasonably spotty career. He had never put together more than a 2 fight winning streak in the promotion, losing in some reasonably unimpressive bouts. When he joined Highland Games, it was appearing as if he was going to be used as a gatekeeper within the division.
How wrong could I be? He’s managed to stop all 4 of his opponents in the first round, 2 by TKO and 2 by submission, and has some tough opponents scattered through. If you had to pick an underdog for this season’s tournament, my bet would be this guy, but he has a very tough challenge ahead of him here tonight.
Zoran really should be getting more column inches as a competitor. He’s defeated some very tough guys, challenged for the AFL title and shown that he’s an extremely diverse opponent for anyone to face. In his last fight, Zoran was able to submit Ryan Beltshazar in the very first round, which might be even more impressive when you consider that Ryan is now fighting for the World Combat Featherweight Title.
Zoran wants to prove that his only loss, a decision against Gottlieb, was a fluke, and now he’s improved to become a very dangerous threat to the tournament’s names.

 

Nelson Frazier Jr (8-3) Vs Clinton Offley (10-2) – Heavyweight
Nelson is as good as it gets in non-title fights at 265. Stoppage wins over Mib Louie, Andrei Alexeyev, Ali Mouba, Christian Long and Mitchel Thompson don’t even tell the story of how dominant Nelson can be. His bread and butter is the clinch game, inside which he’s been able to absolutely destroy almost everyone he’s came up against.
I know personally that he’s absolutely devastated about his two title fight losses to the Island’s greatest fighter Barney Gumble, and has considered retirement a few times now. A win here, followed by an impressive showing in the end of season tournament, could well be the revitalization his career desperately needs.
Offley is a submission specialist, winning 9 by tapping opponents out. His only losses have been in his lone title fights, which really has to be a major source of discouragement for Offley considering that no one else has been able to match him. Wins over some very impressive competitors like Long, Louie, Nesquik and Barrett have really proven his abilities, but this might be his toughest non-title fight to date.

 

Renato Laranja (10-2) Vs Neil Drake (10-4) – Bantamweight

Laranja was at once stage touted as the most talented 135er on the planet. He had just defended his AFL Bantamweight title, and was the final UltimateXC Champion in the same weight class. Unfortunately, a loss to Darth Vader set him back, but his gaze towards the top was unbroken. He faced Neil Drake, his opponent tonight, in his next fight. It was a close fight, with Laranja taking the first and Drake taking the second. It was the final round which told the story however, and Renato managed to walk away with the victory in what was essentially a jiu jitsu bout.
Since changing his management and joining Highland Games, Renato has proved to be as good as ever. A loss to the unbeaten kingpin Serge Ibaka set him back, but Renato Laranja can beat almost any fighter in the world.
Drake is the only man in the world who has been able to hang with Laranja on the floor, which shows that he is just as capable as his opponent when it comes to grappling. ‘The Snake’ has won every one of his professional victories by way of submission, specialising in armlocks. He also has 4 submission of the night awards to his name, all taking place in Attack Fight League, of which Drake had 11 fights. In addition to his long list of impressive wins, Neil Drake finished AFL as their final Bantamweight Champion, arguably their best weight class, scoring a gigantic win over one of the best Bantamweights on The Island; Darth Vader.

 

Derrick Jon (9-1) Vs George Moshington (7-0) – Lightweight Championship

George Moshington came from absolutely nowhere. 3-0 when he joined HG, with his wins being over some mediocre fighters, he joined as a ‘prospect’. He submitted veteran Dick Castle in his debut, but even Dick isn’t really a competitor in the division. The key fight for Moshington was against Bhola Djin Djin. Bhola had established himself as a strong competitor in the division, with 4 straight in Highland Games and a potential title shot waiting around the corner for him. Moshington walked out there and spectacularly, needed just 21 seconds to stop his foe. No one say that coming, so although the anticipated Fight of the Night bonus never fit into the equation, George walked away with an effortless Knockout of the Night. He next took on JJ Lycka. JJ was a highly touted veteran, coming off of a decision victory over Word Combat Champion Mamad Mouba. Lycka was an experienced and talented competitor and it really showed in a 3 round war. Lycka had the ground game under control, but Moshington was scaring him with submission attacks the entire time. In the third round, George caught JJ, staggering him before finishing him on the round. Now, after an undefeated 7 fights, George Moshington faces the biggest challenge of his career.
One unfortunate thing is that this will be Derrick Jon’s final Highland Games fight, that is unless he is still competing by the time he turns 25 years old. The 20 year old won’t pass the rules of the organisation, but that doesn’t stop him in this fight. None the less, Derrick Jon has been extremely impressive since joining Highland Games. After a brief back and forth rivalry with Mamad Mouba which saw him take the first loss of his career, Derrick bounced back by taking on KR AD and Jack Stick in Highland Games. It was then that the up and comer got his title changed to become a contender, as he challenged Gottlieb Hiebknecht for his new 155 belt. Contender? Nah, that’s not good enough, so Jon once again upped his status, dominated 5 rounds to become the brand new champion. This is the first defence of his title, and let’s hope that sometime in the future, he’ll be back to compete once again.

Grant Morrison (12-3) Vs Massa Hurmaaja (11-2) – Middleweight Championship
This is a rubber match for the ages. These two men are split at one a piece, and both have been Highland Games Middleweight Champion before. This might be the biggest 185 encounter we will ever see in Highland Games, and its right here on HG 63.
Massa Hurmaaja might be the most talented fighter on The Island not holding a championship belt. Massa has done it all inside the cage.
Early independent victories over Jace Phillips and Ben Pulse really set the standard, and in his 5^th professional fight Massa took on Grant Morrison for Grant’s 185 Ultimate XC Championship. Despite a strong early showing, Hurmaaja was showing some bad wear and tear from a cut he suffered early, and the referee was forced to step in. Determined not to let this get the best of him, Massa tightened up his striking defence and got right back into action. A win over veteran scrapper Piotr Wyspianski in AFL set up his Highland Games debut. Massa was victorious in his first fight, securing the opportunity to rematch Grant Morrison for the number 1 contendership. This time, Massa managed to take the fight to the floor, slapping on a Triangle Choke in the very first round, winning the fight and tying the score. He would then defeat Massa Benvenuti for the title before dropping it in his next fight to Razor Muay Thai. A highly impressive 3 fight rebound has saw him dispose of the likes of Jonah Sorentino, Arnavut Sevket and Renato Gracie, and now he’s got back to this stage in one of the most epic encounters we’ll ever see.
What a spectacular story and road it was been for the Scotsman Grant Morrison. He was the last reigning UltimateXC Champion and soon challenged for the title in HG against his longtime rival Massimo Benvenuti. For the second time, Benvenuti was able to easily stop Morrison by strikes. It was then that Morrison lost to Massa Hurmaaja, a man he’d previously defeated. Two rivalries were set up then and there, and it’s interesting to see how they have shaped through the months.
Following his two straight losses and failure to capture HG gold, Morrison went on a rampage. Wins over Massimo Paterno, Jonah Sorentino, Rodrigo Rojas and Wirbel Schwein set him up for a third fight against Massimo Benvenuti. Essentially, it was not a fight I wanted to see. Morrison had already lost twice to Massimo B, easily, so the third fight was just a case of him being a legitimate contender against Massimo who had no options at the time. Man, was I wrong. Grant goes out there and actually knocks Massimo B out, capturing his dream of becoming the new Highland Games Champion.
This should be an all-out war and no one can know who the favourite in this one will be.

 

LightHeavy Weight (12-1) Vs Scott Mcginty (7-2) – Light Heavyweight Championship
Highland Game’s most controversial figure, LHW steps in to defend his belt for an unbelievable 7^th time, taking on a knockout specialist who’s been on a hell of a roll; Scott Mcginty.
Despite losing his first fight to a guy I remember being impressed by in the early days of the promotion, Amir Rutten (whom was subsequently retired by LHW), Mcginty bounced back to knock out his next 4 opponents, all being Highland Games fighters. If there’s one thing Mcginty and his training partner James Helm have taught us, it’s that Jimmy Himen’s fighters know how to throw a punch, and Mcginty has done that time and time again.
After the four fight streak, Mcginty would take on fellow striker Eirikur Adalsteinn, in what was expected to be a number one contender fight for Scott. Unfortunately, he came up short, being stopped in the second round. It was a harsh lesson for Mcginty about humility, one he has learned to perfection. Since then, Scott has earned himself 3 straight Knockout of the Night bonuses, spending just 1 minute 23 seconds in the cage, all he needed to stop Helio Gracie, Momo La Brute and Saintly Fish.
This is no doubt Scott’s biggest test, and although it may be a puncher’s chance, those odds always sit well with this challenger.
A man who has not been described as a challenger for several months is the polarizing LightHeavy Weight. On a stunning 9 fight winning streak, LHW has been in there and disposed of everyone he has been faced with. An early blemish to Adalsteinn has since been heavily washed away under a current of blood, emanating from the faces of his opponents. It’s no secret what LightHeavy Weight wants to do. He wants to tie up, put your back on the cage, and use his razor-like elbows to slice you opened and put you on the shelf for several weaks. Fighters like Rodrigo Gracie, Jake Theodorou, Eirikur Adalsteinn, Ludko Struja, Rice Aroni, Wo Fi and Joel Nicola have all fell at the hands, or elbows, of LightHeavy Weight. It’s really hard to see what an opponent can do to beat him.
It’s been a long time since LHW clashed with a Jimmy Himen fighter, back at Highland Games 6 when he destroyed Timothy Segura in the very first round.
LightHeavy Weight knows how to win fights and has his strategy fully locked down. It will be interesting to see if Scott Mcginty has an alternative gameplan for this fight, but the smart money is definitely being placed firmly on LHW’s head by all reputable bookmakers.

 

Barney Gumble (14-0) Vs Mase Force (9-2) – Heavyweight Championship
It’s Time! The Island’s greatest ever competitor, long time reigning Highland Games Heavyweight Champion, brand new World Combat Heavyweight Champion and certified finishing expert, Barney Gumble will defend his belt against a new challenger who has been knockout out opponents left right and centre in Highland Games, going on a 5 fight tear to earn this opportunity; Mase Force.
Mase didn’t have the greatest start in HG. After a first career loss to Andrei Alexeyev in his last fight, he was defeated by 4-0 submission specialist Stefan Struve. Whenever someone loses their HG debut, especially when it wasn’t the biggest fight in the world, it’s easy to tune out of their abilities. Previous wins over Mitchel Thompson and Timi Timi were blocked out by the losses and Force went unnoticed. He rebounded by wins over fairly solid fighters Dimentio Boychello and Sailele Lealofi, but his first huge test since being defeated came in the form of Chiyono Fuji. While Fuji has a succeptibility to cuts, he’s a straight up killer with his striking and Force went out there, tore it up with him, and won the fight due to cuts in the second round, both men picking up Fight of the Night for their efforts. With only big fights ahead of him, Mase Force stopped two really tough opponents in Amine Nesquik and Benny Askren to put himself in this position. Force is an excellent striker with some really impressive wrestling as well. It would seem that he has a strong weakness to submissions, but unless Barney Gumble does something we’ve never even dreamt of him doing, I really can’t see that being a factor in this fight. Based on the styles, I believe Force could be the toughest test to the belt yet.
And now, we will look at the champion. The Island’s greatest competitor to this point has been synonymous with one man; General Tso. Tso went 10-0 before joining the end of season tournament, walking home with the honours and retiring at 16-0. During his run, he also won 6 title fights. Now compare this to Barney Gumble. 14-0 before the tournament with the potential to go 21-0 when it’s all said and done. A staggering 10 title fights and two separate 265 titles, I think it’s safe to say that if Barney Gumble goes unblemished, he will be decidedly the greatest Island fighter there ever was, and probably ever will be. Do I even need to run through his list of opponents again? Diamond Andy, Thor Heyerdahl, Mib Louie, Richard Riddick, Andrei Alexeyev, Pedro Lazaro, Clinton Offley and Nelson Fraizer Jr (x2) have all fallen at the hands of Gumble. Only two men have ever even heard the bell to signal the end of the first round against him.
Usually, the champion has the most written about him, but I don’t have anything to say about Gumble. He has no weaknesses. His clinch could be called a strength, but he doesn’t even need it and has proved his striking several times. Gumble is the real deal, and a win here tonight over the big underdog would set up Gumble for what everyone’s waiting for; the end of season tournament.

[Bwang]

"Tonight, the goal is to break the Island's ratings record, currently held by Legendary Fighters Championship at 363.99. "

 

430 - nicely done!!

[clydebankblitz]

Cheers mate. REALLY surprised the attendance was so low, but I guess that's just about money. We knocked the rating out of the park, and now Highland Games hits an all time high of 10th in the world.

[clydebankblitz]

And I just need to say, what a fucking event. I'm going to write a review, but Keijo and Arnavut with HUGE upset victories, Neil Drake with not only a comeback win over Laranja but a submission, George Moshington getting battered for loads of his fight then pulling off a 4th round submission, Grant Morrison finally proves himself over Massa with a stunning spinning back fist and Barney Gumble and Mase Force have an absolutely incredible fight where the champ was pushed to his absolute limits before pulling off a stoppage in the last 15 seconds.

 

WOW.

[gwad12345]

Sevket is an absolute beast and did not surprise me in the slightest by defeating Benvenuti. He would easily be 9-1 if not for a massive slider mistake against Hurmajaa.

 

As for the so-called lightweight title fight, what a joke. We all know who the real lightweight champion is,his name is Zoran and he is the top lightweight on the island. They are about to sweep their Tourneys.

[clydebankblitz]

It's unfortunate that Zoran only joined so late because he really did look awesome.

 

I always underrated Sevket. He was a "solid" guy, but really this was just a "Massimo B needs an opponent for the last card". Sevket proved himself here. Hopefully you stick with both after the reason so we can see them continue to reach the top..

[PaleMan]

http://i67.fastpic.ru/big/2014/1217/47/2798efb50ff83e0ad257843592f6fe47.png
http://www.mmatycoon.com/images/belt/20140926172750titlebelt.png
LHW

Two weeks before the fight vs McGinty I finished reading Sir's Arthur Conan Doyle "Valley of Fear"
So when I received that fight offer I was stunned - I must face bodymaster McGinty himself!
But I proved to be Birdy Edwards!

[clydebankblitz]

Barney Gumble - 71st in the World.

LHW - 96th in the World.

[Tycooner]

well world combat went to # 18 and i was like dam thats good and then i see HG is #10 all i can say is wow ! great job it has been a great season !

[clydebankblitz]

I thought WC would have went higher since you guys were like 22 before and nearly hit 300. 18's still solid all the same. We went from 25 here.

[Guest]

 

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/1/1b7.jpg

Mitchel Thompson

I would even fight him injured boss. First I'm going to try and put on a show against Lazaro and when I win, I'll be aiming to KO Gumble, even if my eye socket is broken, I only have one leg and my dick fell off. If I win my next fight, I'll step into that octagon and take on the mighty champ.

LOL fight Gumble ? You couldn't fight sleep!

[bjornmma1]

LOL fight Gumble ? You couldn't fight sleep!

 

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/1/1b7.jpg

 

Mitchel Thompson

I made a bad decision with my gameplan and really fucked up against Lazaro, but even then he couldn't finish me. Hell yeah I would fight Gumble tomorrow and KO him.

[clydebankblitz]

Tournament time is right around the corner. Let's hope Mitchel's done enough to enter and we'll find out.

[Tycooner]

I thought WC would have went higher since you guys were like 22 before and nearly hit 300. 18's still solid all the same. We went from 25 here.

WC is #14 HG is #10 not to bad for 2 island orgs !lol

http://www.redbirdsnest.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/ihm-congratulations.png

Callum McGregor and all the fighters here at Highland Games !

[clydebankblitz]

Cheers mate. TIME FOR THE TOURNAMENT!!!

[tiankriel]

 

http://www.mmatycoon.com/gallery/0/14094981823877.png

 

Lee Kagawa

26 year old

135lbs

7-4

" I am not impressed. I was looking forward to reading about how Lee Kagawa is a fan favourite in your preview Mr McGregor. "

http://mmatycoon.com/gallery/24/24w23.jpg

Devin Jaqquard (6-1-0)

 

I still have that bitter taste of defeat still left in my mouth from our last encounter. Still obsessing about it most nights. If fate would have our paths meet again in the tournament, I'll make sure it will be my hand who's gonna be raised this time around.