Saturday, July 17, 2010
Liveblog: Take On Muay Thai Part 4
Time for another non-tournament bout, and it's Marcus Fisher of Pittsburgh Muay Thai taking on Sitan's King Opaku. (Yes, he is actually a king, and his servants carry him in on his throne.) Round 1 has Opaku scoring a knockdown and Fisher trying to find an opening. That opening comes in Round 2, although it ends up being a knee right into 0paku's junk. They resume after the Sitan fighter takes some much-needed time to recover. The king is still very much in the fight, however, and towards the end of Round 3, when the two clinch, he lands a short hook to completely stuns and disorients Fisher and puts him on the canvas. Round 4 is pure slugfest, and in the final round Fisher just comes out and bangs Opaku up. Is it enough to convince the judges? Well, it's enough to convince the judges the bout is a draw. A semifinal bout is on deck, and it's Ahmed against Gulati. Based on their earlier performances, I'd have to give the edge to Ahmed - he's a slightly more concise striker, and seems just as dynamic as Gulati. The opening round is all about Ahmed stalking Gulati like a predator and the Sitan rep scoring in the exchanges, while in Round 2 Ahmed punishes the hell out of Gulati's lead leg and sweeps him repeatedly. Round 3 is more of the same, and when the ten-second clapper sounds, they don't even bother continuing, as Gulati's knows who the better fighter is. Instead, Gulati bows, and Ahmed takes the unanimous decision. Semifinal #2 is Hasanov vs. Hill, and I give the edge in speed and hands to the Bellmore Kickboxing rep. True to form, Hill comes out and overwhelms Hasanov with a flurry in the corner. Hasanov recovers after a standing-eight count, but he gets dropped again in similar fashion in Round 2. Hasanov just cannot match Hill's speed and accuracy, and after he gets dropped yet again in the third, it's clear who's meeting Ahmed in the finals. Hill takes the unanimous decision.
Liveblog: Take On Muay Thai Part 3
Tourny bout #3 is Sheldon Gaines of MTA facing Strout Fight Team's Turan Hasanov. Yikes. Gaines comes out moving at about three speeds faster than Hasanov, and wastes no time blooding him and laying into his ribs with knees. Showing a lot of heart, Hasanov comes out in Round 2 and keeps working, eventually catching Gaines in a corner and showering him with fists. Gaines survives, though, and it's a scrap in the final frame that has both men hurting the other. In the end, the majority decision goes to Hasanov. Last of the quarterfinal tournament bouts and it's Bellmore Kickboxing's Terrence Hill against Gabriel Varga of Varga Muay Thai. If there's one thing a Bellmore Kickboxing rep knows, it's how to throw a punch, and Hill comes out a starts lighting up Varga like a Christmas tree. But Varga sports a height advantage, which he uses to repeatedly clinch and throw Hill to the canvas. Round 2 sees Varga land more kicks and open a cut over Hill's eye with another trip to the floor. The final round is brutal - neither man is keen on slowing down and they simply tear into each other. When time runs out, Hill is awarded the unanimous decision, which doesn't sit well with the crowd despite Hill being a local guy. Oh well. Never leave it in the hands of the judges. Anyhow, Varga talks a stroll around the ring and gets an ovation, so that's got to count for something. Next up is a non-tournament bout between Aby Rulloda of World Team USA and Sitan's Peelo Deonarain. Deonarain starts off chasing Rulloda and walking into punches, and that behind continues into Round 2, with Rulloda feeding her the same right cross over and over again. To her credit, Deonarain never goes down, but she never stops that cross from tagging her, and when the final bell sounds Rulloda is given the unanimous decision.
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