Missed Fists: ‘Brazilian Conor McGregor’ Jonas Bilharinho returns with fantastic flying knee KO

Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.

We begin with a look at Future FC 9 from this past Saturday in Sao Paulo, which had so many filthy finishes that it probably could have been given its own feature.

Jonas Bilharinho vs. Junior Duarte
Guilherme Dos Santos vs. Thiago dos Santos
Jose Alexandre vs. Lucas Oliveira
Alan Gabriel vs. Lucas Rocha
Rodrigo Lidio vs. Evandro Barbosa
Guilherme Costa vs. Felipe da Silva

AL: Hey, remember Jonas Bilharinho? He’s the guy Jose Aldo brought in to prepare for Conor McGregor back in the day, earning him the creative nickname “Brazilian Conor McGregor.” Well he’s back from a three-year hiatus, and in fine form, demolishing dudes with flying knees.

JM: Honestly, Aldo could’ve done a lot worse at finding a guy to emulate McGregor. Bilharinho really does have some similar movements to his game. Shame it didn’t end up mattering in the slightest. Maybe Aldo was over-prepared? Because I’ve never seen Conor throw a jumping knee like that. Is it possible Bilharinho is actually better than Conor and that’s why Aldo got bolted? Aldo was ready for the wild stuff but Conor just came with a backstep counter. I think we’re onto something here.

JM: Speaking of “onto something,” it appears Future FC fighters are onto something with this knee stuff.

AL: We see guys get dropped by knees to the body in the clinch all the time, but here, Guilherme “Senegal” fires one off in the middle of a flurry and the results are sweet. Well, sweet for those watching, rather sour for his opponent.

JM: Speaking of rather sour, how do you think Lucas Oliveira is feeling about getting baptized by “Ze Reborn?”

AL: Thirty-eight seconds. That’s all it took for Jose Alexandre to ground and pound this man into a fine powder. Lucas Oliveira was actually on a nice run having won three straight and five of his last six fights, but Future FC is the kind of promotion where win streaks go to die.

JM: It’s also apparently the place where humans go to be destroyed by knees. Alan Gabriel added another knee destruction to the list this week.

Sure, he knocks out Lucas Rocha with a left hand, but it was the Muay Thai knees that did the damage.

AL: None of that looked like any fun for Rocha, who loses for the first time as a pro.

JM: This did not look like much fun either.

AL: Look at the timing on that uppercut. The only thing that would have made this better is if Rodrigo Lidio caught Evandro Barbosa before he fell and gently laid him down on the canvas like a baby.

JM: Rounding out Future FC, we have one of the strangest things I’ve seen in some time.

Did Felipe da Dilva just pull a hammy and then get his head stomped in?

AL: Thanks to referee Anderson Ulysses, da Silva did not get his head stomped in, but it wasn’t for lack of trying on the part of Guilherme Costa. This man saw the slightest sign of weakness and immediately went for one of the most dangerous attacks that he could probably imagine.

I’m not sure whether I should be upset with Costa or impressed.

Future FC 9 is available to replay for free on the promotion’s YouTube channel.

Zhasulan Akimzhanov vs. Migran Arutyunyan

AL: Back to some more wholesome MMA action, here’s Zhasulan Akimzhanov blasting Migran Arutyunyan with a spinning kick at Gorilla Fighting Championship 19 in Sochi, Russia (available on YouTube):

Shades of Uriah Hall-Gegard Mousasi 1!

JM: Ooof. My head hurts just watching that. We’re only two organizations in and already the actions has been brought. Now, granted, those are two of the premier fun fight orgs in the world but still. It was a violent week.

David Barkhudaryan vs. Erkinbek Inzhel

Case in point, from Fight Nights Global 95 on Saturday:

That combo had some zip on it.

AL: That’s one of the tastiest three-pieces you’ll ever see, courtesy of middleweight David Barkhudaryan. Remind me never to order fast food in Sochi.

Luis Felipe Dias vs. Adercino de Jesus

From Shooto Brasil 97 in Rio de Janeiro, here’s Luis Felipe Dias hitting Adercino de Jesus with all of the moves.

JM: I think this is my favorite KO of the week because it has a little bit of everything.

Vicious body shot that folds de Jesus up, flying knee to the defenseless de Jesus, and some follow up shots. The Big Lebowski taught me that nobody f*cks with de Jesus but it appears Dias has not seen that film.

Micaias Urena vs. Elias Faustin

AL: And now one more quick stop in the Dominican Republic for Titan FC 57 (available on UFC Fight Pass), where Micaias Urena left poor Elias Faustin staring into the abyss.

JM: I don’t know if this stuck out to you but that KO looked like a mirror image of when Tommy Spear got slumped against the cage by Anthony Johnson. Remember when he was a welterweight? Good times..

AL: That is eerily similar. And I still have nightmares about 170-pound “Rumble.”

Do Gyeom Lee vs. Rolando Dy
Juares Dea vs. Nawras Abzakh

Speaking of former UFC fighters, let’s check in on Rolando Dy, who was defending his featherweight title in Abu Dhabi for the main event of UAE Warriors 8 (free replay available on FITE TV). Dy is 3-0 since we last saw him in the Octagon and going for his first defense against Do Gyeom Lee.

Oh. Oh dear.

JM: So uhhhh, guess he’s 3-1 now. That’s a rough outcome for Dy who could’ve been looking at a return to the big leagues with a win there but now he’s lost his title and probably his shot at getting back with a major MMA organization.

You know who else has (hopefully) lost that same chance? The referee of this entire debacle.

What the hell happened here?!?

AL: That’s right, it’s time to discuss the only major officiating controversy from last weekend that I’m aware of.

According to esteemed MMA historian @Grabaka_Hitman, Juares Dea, the fighter who appeared to be all but finished in the above clip, was complaining about being poked in the eye at some point while Nawras Abzakh was styling on him. That apparently was enough to convince the referee to pause the action and allow Dea’s corner to come into the cage to help him.

The bout would be restarted and eventually end in—what else—a majority draw.

JM: I just don’t understand. If that’s the case, how do you possible choose THAT MOMENT to stop the fight??!?! If you thought it was an illegal low blow I can at least understand. It would be bad reffing, but it would make sense. Stopping it when Dea is on the verge of done just makes zero sense. This sport can be so vexing sometimes.

AL: As usual, the best way to sum up a situation like this: MMA.

Lukasz Klinger vs. Adam Bieganski

That may be the best way to explain our remaining clips actually, including this righteous and blatantly illegal kick by Adam Bieganski.

Instant KO, instant DQ.

JM: I see nothing wrong with what he did there. Soccer kicks should be legal, full stop.

It’s all a matter of optics and people feel queasier about allowing soccer kicks because they look brutal, especially on a person who is already only semi-conscious. But that’s no reason to ban them and if the guy is trying to get up lazily then they definitely should be legal. Protect yourself at all times, my guy, then you won’t get kicked in the face.

Free Adam Bieganski.

AL: And finally… look, I don’t like to let our readers know how the sausage is made, but I’m going to pull back the curtain for this one.

Jed is solely responsible for bringing this clip to my attention. I’m still gathering my thoughts, so please, respected colleague, explain to our readers what in the hell we are looking at here.

JM: Not sure exactly who respects me but nonetheless:

What we’re looking at here is arguably the most fascinating bout in MMA this year.

AL: Come on.

JM: Kirill Tereshin is a Russian bodybuilder who is fascinating because by “bodybuilder” I mean he literally built his body. Tereshin spent years injecting his arms with synthol, a mixture of oil and alcohol that will almost immediately give the appearance of huge muscles where injected. As you can see, Tereshin is not especially jacked other than his cartoonish arms, a fact which has earned him the nickname “Popeye.”

Synthol is legal to buy and a thing that, apparently, bodybuilders have actually used for some time to supplement to their physiques but more absurd uses of it have been popping up in recent years, case in point, ol’ bazooka arms here.

AL: I’m just picturing someone attempting an armbar on him and one of those biceps exploding now. Ugggggggggh.

JM: For more proof that synthol injections are quite literally all sizzle, no steak, just look at how this fight goes. Oleg Mongol, a blogger in his 40s, bulldozes Tereshin and—I can’t tell for sure—it looks like he submits him with a forearm choke? Though it’s possible he just squeezes Tereshin’s oil-filled arms until Popeye can’t take anymore.

Regardless, this is peak MMA.

AL: I need to get this image out of my head. Only happy thoughts from here on out.

Until next week, remember always stay refreshed:

And that it’s never a bad time to party down:

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If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on Twitter – @JedKMeshew and @AlexanderKLee – using the hashtag #MissedFists.