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New Champions Crowned at
4th Annual Rock N Rumble
 (PRESS
RELEASE) -- The NAAFS Nation was treated to a night that will be
remembered for a long time to come, as the Nautica Pavilion was the
site for an evening that combined the raw emotion of an NAAFS event
with the high energy of a live concert in what could only be aptly
named Rock N Rumble.
The main event pitted two of the promotions mainstays against one
another as Nick “The Savage” Duell (16-4-1) defeated Mickey Hughes
(8-6) to become the new Interim Pro Series Welterweight Champion.
The victory is Duell’s 16th win over all and his 6th win as a
professional. Hughes came out on the offensive early on scoring with
a takedown, but Duell was able to reverse positions and take a mount
of his own. Mickey then recovered and countered a Duell head kick
with right hand to become on the first person to drop Nick Duell
twice in his career. The rounded ended with a fury of punches from
both men. As round two began, Duell completely regained his
composure and connected with a powerful punch that dropped a very
tough Mickey Hughes. Duell continued the onslaught of punches until
referee Rick Fike stepped in and called a stop to the action
declaring Nick Duell the new champion at 14 seconds in the second
round. Afterwards, a humble Nick Duell thanked everyone who had
helped him achieve his goal.
The co-main event of the evening saw Dan “Dragon” Spohn (12-4)
continue his dominance of the Pro Series Light Heavyweight division
by defeating Pro Series Heavyweight Champion “Big” John Hawk
(10-2-1) by Unanimous Decision. Hawk came out early on looking to
establish his dominance, connecting with knees that led to a
takedown. Hawk had control early on, but Spohn rebounded to
establish his pace. He scored a takedown of his own and was able to
open Hawk up with an elbow shot. Hawk came out late in the final
round with an impressive takedown, but ultimately it wasn’t enough
as the judges awarded the Unanimous Decision victory. Dan Spohn
improves to 12-4 overall and 3-0 as professional, with wins over
Josh Stansbury, Thad Schlichter, and now John Hawk. After the fight,
a very humble Dan Spohn thanked everyone and said he is looking
forward to returning to the NAAFS.
A new Pro Series Featherweight Champion was crowned when Donny
“Eagle Eye” Walker (15-7) finally captured his elusive NAAFS gold
with a Unanimous Decision victory over Mike Nesto (13-7) in a battle
that was more akin to a chess match than an MMA fight. The fight
went back and forth, including Nesto having a deep arm bar sunk in
at the end of the first round which almost saw Walker forced to tap
out. However, Walker showed the perseverance of a champion by
holding on until the bell signified the end of the round. After
being checked by the doctor, Walker returned with a vengeance in the
second in the round. He reversed Nesto’s takedown attempt, scoring
with a takedown of his own and maintaining control. For the duration
of the fight, Donny Walker seemed to have a counter for all of
Nesto’s wicked submission attempts. When the final horn blew, the
NAAFS Nation had witnessed two warriors leave it all inside the
cage. After the judges scores were tallied, Donny Walker had finally
fulfilled his personal destiny by capturing his first taste of NAAFS
gold. Donny Walker addressed the rumors of WEC call up by saying he
is ready and just wants to keep on fighting.
The NAAFS Nation was treated to a dream fight at the 4th Annual Rock
N Rumble as former Interim Pro Series Lightweight Champion Frank
“The Tank” Caraballo (13-6) defeated Terry Blackwell (5-1) by
Unanimous Decision. Both fighters started off with a feeling out
process, throwing a variety of punches and kicks. Blackwell ended
the first round with a standing guillotine attempt, taking the round
on the scorecards. The second round was more of stand up battle,
which played perfectly into Caraballo’s game. He dictated the pace,
even throwing a spinning back fist into the mix at one point. The
final round saw both men bring everything they had left in the
arsenal. When the dust had settled, Frank “The Tank” Caraballo was
declared the winner by Unanimous Decision.
Stipe Miocic (8-0) of Strong Style Fight Team continued his
dominance at the 4th Annual Rock N Rumble with an impressive KO
victory against the previously unbeaten “Pain Train” Jeremy Holm
(9-1) of Gastonia, NC. Both fighters started off with a feeling out
process, circling around the cage. In short order, Miocic connected
with a straight punch that went right down the pike to drop Holm for
a thunderous knockout at 1:36 of the first round to the delight of
the capacity crowd. Miocic’s continued improvement has many saying
it’s not a matter of IF, but WHEN we see him competing on a global
stage.
In Pro Series Featherweight action, Billy Vaughan (8-5) picked up
the biggest win of his career against the previously unbeaten Ryan
Lang (4-1) of Team Rickson Gracie at 45 seconds of the first round.
Vaughan had Lang’s wrestling pedigree well scouted and it showed
with a quick submission win at the 4th Annual Rock N Rumble. Vaughan
won’t be celebrating for too long, as he returns to action in his
hometown of Columbus on Friday September 24th against Brandon
“X-Man” Hance at Caged Vengeance 8.
2009 National Amateur Featherweight Champion Doug Kulbis (9-1) of
Evolve MMA picked up his first professional victory when he defeated
Brandon Inskeep (8-3) by Rear Naked Choke at 1:17 of the second
round. Kulbis looked very comfortable competing back in front of his
hometown crowd, erasing any jitters that might have come from his
first loss. The win puts Kulbis right back in the mix of what is
becoming a crowded Pro Series Featherweight division.
2009 National Amateur Middleweight Champion Kevin Zalac (9-0-1) made
a successful pro debut at the 4th Annual Rock N Rumble, defeating
Niko Boscarino (9-10) by Tapout from Strikes in the first round.
Zalac had to recover from quick shot at the glove touch, but was
able to do so and take control of the fight himself. He showed the
same dominance that brought him amateur gold, forcing Boscarino to
tap out from strikes at 4:12 of the first round.
The fans at intermission were treated to a variety of happenings. DJ
Mike Czech of the nationally syndicated Skratch N’ Sniff radio show
performed on stage alongside Jon Connor of NAAFS Fight Music fame.
Meanwhile, MMA standouts Dan “The Handler” Hornbuckle of Bellator
and Matt “The Immortal” Brown of the UFC were at the merchandise
stand signing autographs for the fans. In addition, Wish Bone of the
mega group Bone Thugz N Harmony sat cageside enjoying a night of
NAAFS action.
In a battle between two of the best nicknames in all of MMA, Chase
“Y U Doem Like That?” Owens improved to 6-2 with a win over Zac “Bad
News at 11” Gobel (6-2) by Unanimous Decision. The victory puts
Owens in line for a slot in the National Amateur Middleweight
division semifinals.
In National Amateur Light Heavyweight action, Jeff “Lights Out”
Hughes (6-1) retained his top ranking with Unanimous Decision
victory over John “Chaos” Reed. The win cements Hughes top billing
in the four man tournament to close out the Light Heavyweight
division in the 2010 NAAFS season.
In what may have been a last chance to make a good impression, Joe
Goyette (4-1) of Team Air-Gadfly defeated Andrew Jordan (4-1) of
Kick MMA by Split Decision in an impressive back and forth battle.
The close win may be enough to catapult Goyette to the final open
slot in the semi finals of the National Amateur Lightweight
division.
Evolve MMA’s Bhrandon “Bad Intentions” Poindexter (6-3) picked up a
much needed win against a very tough Manuel Villenuva (4-2) of
Fearless Fight Team by Rear Naked Choke at 35 seconds of the final
round. The win snapped a two fight losing streak and reestablished
Poindexter’s confidence, who stated afterwards that he still has his
sights on winning gold.
2009 National Amateur Finalist Jason Butcher (6-1) returned to NAAFS
competition with a major statement, defeating Tony Dipiero (5-4) by
Anaconda Choke in just 51 seconds! The Huntington, WV native has
always had some of the most impressive BJJ skills in all the NAAFS
and at the 4th Annual Rock N Rumble, everybody was witness as to
why.
The show opened with a pair of debuting fighters, as Kyle Dunn (1-0)
of Team Blackout defeated Chris Moore (0-1) of Team Playland by TKO
at 1:39 of the second round.
The NAAFS would like to thank everyone who was in attendance at the
Nautica Pavilion for the 4th Annual Rock N Rumble and all those fans
who watched the event live on Ustream. A special thank you also goes
out Intimidation Clothing, Mr. John P. Lennon, Bud Light, Thomas
Limousines, 98.5 WNCX, Hard Rock Café, American Commodore Tuxedos,
BetonFighting.com, United States Army, XS Energy Drink, Bloody Buddy
Fight Gear, HexLinc.com, Tim Lally Chevrolet, and SportsTime Ohio
for their continued support of Rock N Rumble and the NAAFS!
4th Annual Rock N Rumble Quick Results
Saturday August 28th, 2010 * Nautica Pavilion * Cleveland, OH
Featured Pro Bouts
170 lbs TITLE – Nick “The Savage” Duell 16-4-1 (Strong Style/Ohio
BJJC) over Mickey Hughes 7-5 (H2O MMA/ Main Street MMA) by TKO @ :14
of Rd 2
145 lbs TITLE – Donny “Eagle Eye” Walker 15-7 (Team GriffonRawl)
over Mike Nesto 13-7 (Shrader’s MMA) by Unanimous Decision
205 lbs – Dan “Dragon” Spohn 12-4 (Cambridge Martial Arts) over
“Big” John Hawk 10-2-1 (Strong Style Fight Team) by Unanimous
Decision
155 lbs – Frank “The Tank” Caraballo 13-5 (Fearless Fight Team) over
Terry Blackwell 5-1 (Instigator Fight Team) by Unanimous Decision
265 lbs – Stipe Miocic 8-0 (Strong Style Fight Team) over “The Pain
Train” Jeremy Holm 9-1 (Team R.H.E.K.) by KO 1:36 of Rd 1
145 lbs – Billy Vaughan 8-5 (Buckeye MMA) over Ryan Lang 4-1 (Team
Rickson Gracie) by Guillotine Choke @ :45 of Rd 1
145 lbs – Doug Kulbis 9-1 (Evolve MMA) over Brandon Inskeep 8-3 (The
Den Hammer House) by Rear Naked Choke @ 1:17 of Rd 2
185 lbs – Kevin Zalac 9-0-1 (Next Level Jiu Jitsu) over Niko
Boscarino 9-10 (Walker MMA) by Tapout From Strikes @ 4:12 of Rd 1
Preliminary Amateur Bouts
205 lbs – Jeff “Lights Out” Hughes 6-1 (Instigator Fight Team) over
John “Chaos” Reed 4-2 (Dragons Den WV) by Unanimous Decision
185 lbs – Chase “Y U Doem Like That?” Owens 6-2 (CO MMA) over Zac
“Bad News at 11″ Gobel 6-2 (Dragons Den WV) by Unanimous Decision
155 lbs – Joe Goyette 4-1 (Team Air-Gadfly) over Andrew Jordan 4-1
(Kick MMA) by Split Decision
150 lbs – Bhrandon “Bad Intentions” Poindexter 6-3 (Evolve MMA) over
Manuel Villenuva 4-2 (Fearless Fight Team) by Rear Naked Choke @ :35
of Rd 3
205 lbs – Jason Butcher 6-1 (Team Jorge Gurgel) over Tony Dipierio
5-4 (Rising Dragon Fight Team) by Anaconda Choke @ :51 of Rd 1
155 lbs – Kyle Dunn 1-0 (Team Blackout) over Chris Moore 0-1 (Team
Playland) by TKO @ 1:39 of Rd 2
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