Adrenaline's inaugural event came to us all live from the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois on June 14, 2008. On the docket was a main event between Mike Russow and Jason Guida, which served as somewhat of a disappointment after Jeff "The Snowman" Monson was forced to step out of his bout with Russow due to injury. That said, Rory Markham, Bart Palaszewski, and Terry Martin were all on the card as well, providing some familiar faces.
By the way, things didn't exactly start off well with the HDNet Fights telecast, as commentators Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice couldn't be heard above the introduction music. That said, no one would care about something like that if the event turned out to be a great one.
"Tough guy, young, he's very skilled," said Joe Jordan regarding his opponent Ryan Williams before the first televised fight of the night.
By the way, you can still hardly hear Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten speaking, a problem that would persist throughout the telecast.
Wiliams threw a low kick early on that was caught by Jordan. Moments later, the less experienced Williams was thrown to the canvas for his efforts and punched a few times before getting back up. For the majority of the rest of the round, the two traded strikes. Williams landed more strikes from a distance with low kicks, straight rights, and jabs. Further, during the rare instances when the two clinched, he landed some nice knees. Jordan seemed to land more of the harder strikes, but connected far less. Beyond that, just before the bell Williams took his opponent down.
Ryan Williams won the first stanza.
The second round saw Jordan land several hard punches to his opponent's body and face. Still, the crowd booed both a lack of action and Jordan's showmanlike maneuvers?he kept dropping his hands and mocked Williams on several occasions by whirling his arms around.
A clear stanza for Jordan. Thus, the third would likely decide the winner.
The third saw Jordan hit home with both the harder strikes and more of them. Further, he opened up a cut over his adversary's eye. As the final round came to an end, as had been the case for the majority of the fight, the crowd was booing.
Never can stand the booing, even if this wasn't necessarily the most exciting bout ever.
Joe Jordan wins via unanimous decision.
Jameel Massouh and Clay French went at it in the next fight. "I don't think his wrestling is that good," said French beforehand.
French came out aggressive, landing a nice front kick. However, French also landed some nice lefts inside early on. From there, he looked for the takedown.
And he got it.
However, Massouh's rubber guard made it difficult for French to do much from the top position for awhile before finally landing some short punches. Then, however, he moved to his opponent's half guard. Massouh got up for a moment, but French did a very good job of nailing him with a hard left on his way to another takedown. From there, he delivered some strong ground and pound until Massouh got up with about 45 seconds left.
The round ended with French landing some hard lefts and then achieving another takedown.
A decisive round for Clay French.
Early in the second, Massouh connected with some nice kicks, prompting French to rush forward and clinch with him. From there, came another French takedown and improved positioning on his part. Soon after, he took Massouh's back.
It was only a matter of time then.
Clay French wins via rear naked choke in the second round.
Next up was a match between Rory Markham and Jay Ellis. "I'm winning this fight. I'm winning this fight standing up," said an angry Ellis beforehand. Of course, Markham was a native son that had put in significant time training with some of the best at Miletich Fighting Systems, so was it all bravado?
Ellis came flying out of the gate with a very impressive looking flying knee. That said, it only grazed Markham and thus ended up leaving him on the canvas with his opponent over him.
That is, until Ellis turned him over.
But here's the thing for all of you new MMA fans out there. A guy like Markham can quickly end a fight from his back; and as Ellis continued to try and connect with some ground and pound, Markham concentrated on the position of his legs.
Soon after, the triangle choke was sunk in.
Rory Markham wins via triangle at 57 seconds of round number one.
Next up was a match up between Bart Palaszewski and Jeff Cox. "I prefer the ground and pound," said Cox coming in. Of course, Palaszewski was not a guy easy to do that to.
Still, early on Cox tried to utilize his 'preference' by taking his opponent down and starting his version of ground and pound on him. Palaszewski continually tried to sit up along the cage wall and get up, but Cox was having none of it. Along with this, his ground and pound starting getting stronger and stronger.
That's when, inexplicably, the referee stood them up for lack of action.
Huh?
Regardless, one very hard right by Cox later and Palaszewski fell to the canvas again. Cox once again started grounding and pounding him along the cage wall. That's how the round, one that Cox clearly won, ended.
After some exchanging on their feet in the second, Palaszewski tried to turn the tables on Cox by taking him down. However, the better wrestler shirked his attempt. The two landed some hard punches with a couple of unsuccessful takedown attempts by Cox mixed in. From there, Palaszewski really started landing low and body kicks, mixing in strikes inbetween.
That's when Cox started to retreat ever so slightly and Palaszewski threw a high right kick.
Game over, as Rutten says, "beautiful."
Bart Palaszewski wins via KO at 3:07 of round two. This was a very entertaining fight.
Next up was a fight between Brian Gassaway and Forrest Petz "I know he's a pretty well-rounded fighter and he's been around the game for awhile," said Petz, showing respect for his opponent coming in. That is what MMA is about, after all.
That and the fights, anyway. Speaking of the fights. . .
There was a long feeling our process early in the initial round. However, later in the stanza Gassaway landed a big time left uppercut that dropped Petz, and from there he unleashed a terrible beating on him. Standing over him, mounting him, and even taking his back, the assault continued. Somehow, the tough Petz survived.
Good job by the referee not stopping the fight. That said, this may have been a two point round for Gassaway.
Petz landed a hard left hand early on in the second and was aggressive. However, after purposefully clinching with Gassaway he was taken down.
From there with Gassaway, operating from the top position, not much occurred; in fact, it seemed as if Petz connected with more strikes than his opponent from his back and even tried for a guillotine unsuccessfully.
This prompted the referee to rightfully stand the two up. While standing, Petz connected with some hard shots, coming forward the whole time. Gassaway was looking gassed. Then, with about 50 seconds left in the fight, Petz took him down along the cage wall. From there, he tried to improve his position and executed some ground and pound until the bell.
This one went to Petz. However, if Gassaway got a two pointer in the first, Petz has to win the third just to tie. If not, the final stanza will determine the winner.
The final round saw Gassaway sticking and moving and Petz coming forward, both landing some punches, initially. But then Petz took Gassaway down. Though his opponent was able to achieve the guard position rather quickly after Petz took side control, Petz still executed ground and pound until about the 20 second mark when the referee stood the two of them up. Not much happened until the bell from there.
Petz won two rounds. However, was the first stanza a two pointer?
Answer: No.
Forrest Petz wins via unanimous decision. This was a good fight.
Next up was a fight between Daiju Takase and Terry Martin. "I want knockout," said Takase before the bout. Of course, Martin, a hometown hero, probably did as well.
A hard right by Martin left Takase on the canvas on his back early in the first. Martin stepped back, and the referee stood the two of them up. Then a hard left by Martin sent Takase back into the cage. Takase landed some jabs and then a nice high kick.
Another hard right by Martin left his opponent on the canvas one more time. When the referee beckoned him back to his feet, Martin continued the onslaught. Takase was looking dizzied, even though he recovered enough to hit home with a low blow on Martin later in the stanza.
After Martin took his allowed rest, the stanza ended with some punches after the bell.
A clear round for Martin.
Takase started things off looking for another takedown to no avail in the next stanza. However, he did connect in a stick and move format several times.
Then Martin landed a very hard right to the face, which was soon followed by another kick to the groin by Takase. Martin is getting a little angry. For this, the referee rightfully deducts a point as the groins strikes are so clear they almost look purposeful.
Takase connected with some low kicks and jabs after Martin took his allowed break. Martin sprawled out of another takedown attempt and then landed some very mild shots on the ground before purposefully standing. While on their feet, Takase connected with a nice punch and kick before Martin answered with a hard right to the body.
Then came another groin shot. That's when the referee stopped the fight, and deservedly so.
Terry Martin wins via disqualification.
Next came the main event of the evening. "I think it's gonna be a great fight," said Jason Guida, regarding his upcoming bout with Mike Russow, a Chicago police officer. "I think it's gonna be a lot of blood. I'm going to make sure it's coming out of his head." Of course, Russow likely had other plans.
Russow came in looking for the takedown, but Guida did a good job of defending along the wall initially. But Russow wouldn't be denied, eventually grabbing a leg and bringing the fight to the canvas.
However, Guida scrambled to his feet with his brother, Clay Guida, shouting instructions outside the ring. But then along the wall Russow sunk in a rather devastating neck crank/ guillotine, forcing Guida to tap.
Mike Russow wins via neck crank/ guillotine choke at 2:13 of round one.
In the end, this version of Adrenaline had some good moments and bad ones. On one hand, the fights between Brian Gassaway and Forrest Petz and Bart Palaszewski and Jeff Cox were entertaining. Further, Mike Russow made a nice statement, and the Chicago crowd, once they got into it, were loud.
On the other hand, the commentators were hard to hear throughout the telecast. And, of course, there was Takase and the groin strikes. Hopefully, they clear up the issue with the telecast for next time.
By the way, things didn't exactly start off well with the HDNet Fights telecast, as commentators Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice couldn't be heard above the introduction music. That said, no one would care about something like that if the event turned out to be a great one.
"Tough guy, young, he's very skilled," said Joe Jordan regarding his opponent Ryan Williams before the first televised fight of the night.
By the way, you can still hardly hear Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten speaking, a problem that would persist throughout the telecast.
Wiliams threw a low kick early on that was caught by Jordan. Moments later, the less experienced Williams was thrown to the canvas for his efforts and punched a few times before getting back up. For the majority of the rest of the round, the two traded strikes. Williams landed more strikes from a distance with low kicks, straight rights, and jabs. Further, during the rare instances when the two clinched, he landed some nice knees. Jordan seemed to land more of the harder strikes, but connected far less. Beyond that, just before the bell Williams took his opponent down.
Ryan Williams won the first stanza.
The second round saw Jordan land several hard punches to his opponent's body and face. Still, the crowd booed both a lack of action and Jordan's showmanlike maneuvers?he kept dropping his hands and mocked Williams on several occasions by whirling his arms around.
A clear stanza for Jordan. Thus, the third would likely decide the winner.
The third saw Jordan hit home with both the harder strikes and more of them. Further, he opened up a cut over his adversary's eye. As the final round came to an end, as had been the case for the majority of the fight, the crowd was booing.
Never can stand the booing, even if this wasn't necessarily the most exciting bout ever.
Joe Jordan wins via unanimous decision.
Jameel Massouh and Clay French went at it in the next fight. "I don't think his wrestling is that good," said French beforehand.
French came out aggressive, landing a nice front kick. However, French also landed some nice lefts inside early on. From there, he looked for the takedown.
And he got it.
However, Massouh's rubber guard made it difficult for French to do much from the top position for awhile before finally landing some short punches. Then, however, he moved to his opponent's half guard. Massouh got up for a moment, but French did a very good job of nailing him with a hard left on his way to another takedown. From there, he delivered some strong ground and pound until Massouh got up with about 45 seconds left.
The round ended with French landing some hard lefts and then achieving another takedown.
A decisive round for Clay French.
Early in the second, Massouh connected with some nice kicks, prompting French to rush forward and clinch with him. From there, came another French takedown and improved positioning on his part. Soon after, he took Massouh's back.
It was only a matter of time then.
Clay French wins via rear naked choke in the second round.
Next up was a match between Rory Markham and Jay Ellis. "I'm winning this fight. I'm winning this fight standing up," said an angry Ellis beforehand. Of course, Markham was a native son that had put in significant time training with some of the best at Miletich Fighting Systems, so was it all bravado?
Ellis came flying out of the gate with a very impressive looking flying knee. That said, it only grazed Markham and thus ended up leaving him on the canvas with his opponent over him.
That is, until Ellis turned him over.
But here's the thing for all of you new MMA fans out there. A guy like Markham can quickly end a fight from his back; and as Ellis continued to try and connect with some ground and pound, Markham concentrated on the position of his legs.
Soon after, the triangle choke was sunk in.
Rory Markham wins via triangle at 57 seconds of round number one.
Next up was a match up between Bart Palaszewski and Jeff Cox. "I prefer the ground and pound," said Cox coming in. Of course, Palaszewski was not a guy easy to do that to.
Still, early on Cox tried to utilize his 'preference' by taking his opponent down and starting his version of ground and pound on him. Palaszewski continually tried to sit up along the cage wall and get up, but Cox was having none of it. Along with this, his ground and pound starting getting stronger and stronger.
That's when, inexplicably, the referee stood them up for lack of action.
Huh?
Regardless, one very hard right by Cox later and Palaszewski fell to the canvas again. Cox once again started grounding and pounding him along the cage wall. That's how the round, one that Cox clearly won, ended.
After some exchanging on their feet in the second, Palaszewski tried to turn the tables on Cox by taking him down. However, the better wrestler shirked his attempt. The two landed some hard punches with a couple of unsuccessful takedown attempts by Cox mixed in. From there, Palaszewski really started landing low and body kicks, mixing in strikes inbetween.
That's when Cox started to retreat ever so slightly and Palaszewski threw a high right kick.
Game over, as Rutten says, "beautiful."
Bart Palaszewski wins via KO at 3:07 of round two. This was a very entertaining fight.
Next up was a fight between Brian Gassaway and Forrest Petz "I know he's a pretty well-rounded fighter and he's been around the game for awhile," said Petz, showing respect for his opponent coming in. That is what MMA is about, after all.
That and the fights, anyway. Speaking of the fights. . .
There was a long feeling our process early in the initial round. However, later in the stanza Gassaway landed a big time left uppercut that dropped Petz, and from there he unleashed a terrible beating on him. Standing over him, mounting him, and even taking his back, the assault continued. Somehow, the tough Petz survived.
Good job by the referee not stopping the fight. That said, this may have been a two point round for Gassaway.
Petz landed a hard left hand early on in the second and was aggressive. However, after purposefully clinching with Gassaway he was taken down.
From there with Gassaway, operating from the top position, not much occurred; in fact, it seemed as if Petz connected with more strikes than his opponent from his back and even tried for a guillotine unsuccessfully.
This prompted the referee to rightfully stand the two up. While standing, Petz connected with some hard shots, coming forward the whole time. Gassaway was looking gassed. Then, with about 50 seconds left in the fight, Petz took him down along the cage wall. From there, he tried to improve his position and executed some ground and pound until the bell.
This one went to Petz. However, if Gassaway got a two pointer in the first, Petz has to win the third just to tie. If not, the final stanza will determine the winner.
The final round saw Gassaway sticking and moving and Petz coming forward, both landing some punches, initially. But then Petz took Gassaway down. Though his opponent was able to achieve the guard position rather quickly after Petz took side control, Petz still executed ground and pound until about the 20 second mark when the referee stood the two of them up. Not much happened until the bell from there.
Petz won two rounds. However, was the first stanza a two pointer?
Answer: No.
Forrest Petz wins via unanimous decision. This was a good fight.
Next up was a fight between Daiju Takase and Terry Martin. "I want knockout," said Takase before the bout. Of course, Martin, a hometown hero, probably did as well.
A hard right by Martin left Takase on the canvas on his back early in the first. Martin stepped back, and the referee stood the two of them up. Then a hard left by Martin sent Takase back into the cage. Takase landed some jabs and then a nice high kick.
Another hard right by Martin left his opponent on the canvas one more time. When the referee beckoned him back to his feet, Martin continued the onslaught. Takase was looking dizzied, even though he recovered enough to hit home with a low blow on Martin later in the stanza.
After Martin took his allowed rest, the stanza ended with some punches after the bell.
A clear round for Martin.
Takase started things off looking for another takedown to no avail in the next stanza. However, he did connect in a stick and move format several times.
Then Martin landed a very hard right to the face, which was soon followed by another kick to the groin by Takase. Martin is getting a little angry. For this, the referee rightfully deducts a point as the groins strikes are so clear they almost look purposeful.
Takase connected with some low kicks and jabs after Martin took his allowed break. Martin sprawled out of another takedown attempt and then landed some very mild shots on the ground before purposefully standing. While on their feet, Takase connected with a nice punch and kick before Martin answered with a hard right to the body.
Then came another groin shot. That's when the referee stopped the fight, and deservedly so.
Terry Martin wins via disqualification.
Next came the main event of the evening. "I think it's gonna be a great fight," said Jason Guida, regarding his upcoming bout with Mike Russow, a Chicago police officer. "I think it's gonna be a lot of blood. I'm going to make sure it's coming out of his head." Of course, Russow likely had other plans.
Russow came in looking for the takedown, but Guida did a good job of defending along the wall initially. But Russow wouldn't be denied, eventually grabbing a leg and bringing the fight to the canvas.
However, Guida scrambled to his feet with his brother, Clay Guida, shouting instructions outside the ring. But then along the wall Russow sunk in a rather devastating neck crank/ guillotine, forcing Guida to tap.
Mike Russow wins via neck crank/ guillotine choke at 2:13 of round one.
In the end, this version of Adrenaline had some good moments and bad ones. On one hand, the fights between Brian Gassaway and Forrest Petz and Bart Palaszewski and Jeff Cox were entertaining. Further, Mike Russow made a nice statement, and the Chicago crowd, once they got into it, were loud.
On the other hand, the commentators were hard to hear throughout the telecast. And, of course, there was Takase and the groin strikes. Hopefully, they clear up the issue with the telecast for next time.
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