The nostalgia was in the air the second I entered the National Guard Armory in Jersey City. The Armory, as I said in my preview of this event, was home to many legendary boxing matches and icons of the “sweet science”. Friday night though…it wasn’t boxers that entered the hallowed halls of this building. It was the pugilists of a different era and a much different sport. The athletes of MMA were out to make their own history this night. And that’s exactly what they did…every one of them. From the opening bell to the last moments of the main event…these gladiators put everything they had into their respective fight…blood, sweat, and tears. And the amped up NJ crowd let them know they respected and appreciated what they all did. I was fortunate enough to be one of those fans.
The main event saw local favorite Dante Rivera, a top Ricardo Almeida student and TUF alum, face off against Team Iron Horse standout, Ryan Contaldi. These two came out swinging from the get go as they both appeared to respect the other’s ground game and avoided it all costs. Several shots were traded but none of them did much damage. The majority of the first round was spent feeling each other out and figure out the other fighter’s timing. In the second round…the fight wound up on the ground with both men scrambling frantically to gain the better position. Rivera was fortunate enough to get a hold of Contaldi’s neck and sunk in a very tight guillotine, which he then stood up with. The crowd winced in sympathy for Contaldi’s apparent loss of air and we all anticipated the tap out. It never came. Somehow Ryan escaped this choke hold and after more scrambling and as brief display of some world class Jiu-Jitsu…Rivera again gained a dominant position. This time it was the North South position. Dante locked in the North South choke and this time got the results he was looking for…a tap out from Ryan Contaldi. Rivera looked sharp in this fight…like the Rivera of old. This was a big win for the BJJ Black Belt. He’ll fight again in a few weeks at the MMA Mayhem fundraiser event at Six Flags Great Adventure. Let’s see if Dante can keep the win streak going.
The co-main event was a war of epic proportions…to say the least. This battle was for the UCC Lightweight Championship and I recall stating that this fight would not go all 5 rounds. I love when I’m right! Although it was closer to going the distance than I thought…Hitalo Machado and John Cholish came to fight…that was clear. The majority of this fight also took place standing up with Machado seemingly getting the better of the striking, rocking Cholish on more than one occasion. Midway through round 3, Cholish saw the opening to throw some devastating leg kicks that immediately had an effect on Machado’s balance and timing. Cholish kept this attack going throwing kick after kick and mixing in severl “Superman” punches that seemed to catch the already in pain Machado off guard. This went on for the remainder of round 3 and Cholish was relentless in his attack in round 4 as well. After landing more leg kicks and more strikes…he caught Machado with a big punch that rocked him and after going to the canvas, John was able to finish off his opponent and claim his spot at the top of the Lightweight division. This fight was a great one to watch. Both these fighters kept the pace fast and furious and the crowd let them know they approved and appreciated it.
Another NJ native was also on this card…Mike Medrano used his overwhelming strength and ground and pound attack to keep Sam Jackson at bay. (Side note – Medrano was supposed to take on Mike Dolce, but Dolce couldn’t get overseas from the UK so Jackson was a last minute and suitable replacement.) Medrano used takedown after takedown to score points and rained down some very heavy punches from the grounded position. The fight was tougher than he anticipated though, as a game Jackson wasn’t about to let this fight slip away and took advantage of the striking battle while the fight was on its feet and scrambled quite well when on the ground. However…despite Medrano telegraphing every takedown, he was still able to get the fight to the ground and do damage while he was there. Mike was just too strong for Jackson. This fight may not make any highlight reels, but it was an impressive performance from Medrano that saw him gain the victory by decision.
Complete results are as follows:
Dante Rivera def. Ryan Contaldi by submission (North/South Choke) in Rd 2.
John Cholish def. Hitalo Machado by TKO (strikes) in Rd 4 for Lightweight Championship.
Mike Medrano def Sam Jackson by unanimous decision
Josh Rave def. Sean Santella by unanimous decision.
Willie Johnson def. Mike Dunaj by ref stoppage due to strikes in Rd 1.
Alexandre Moreno def. Carlos Brooks by submission (guillotine) in Rd 1.
Jason Mclean def. James Meals by unanimous decision
*Jimmy Rivera could not make weight and therefore this fight did not take place. He was also suspended for 90 days for not making weight twice this year.
So in closing…I not only got to attend this fight as a fan, but also as a journalist for TheGarv.com. This was my first time covering a live event and I was caught up in the moment. I was thrilled to be doing something that I love and I appreciate this opportunity more than words can say. I got to meet some great and fascinating people Friday night and also saw some intense, action packed competition in the cage from closer than I’ve ever been before. Every one of these fighters worked their tails off to put on a great show. I felt like they accomplished that and the UCC should be proud of the show they put on. Their fighters are top notch and their staff did an amazing job as well. For example, there was some technical difficulty at the beginning of the show and the National Anthem wouldn’t play so the ring announcer improvised and sang it! Hats off to that guy! Everyone was so personable and professional. I, for one, hope these guys are here to stay. Not only is it great for NJ, but being that they are so close to NY…which still is not regulated yet. It gives the fight fans across the river in NY a place where they can.
Saturday, 15 May 2010 06:55 | Written by Shawn Baran, TheGARV.com
