GAMMA - WMMA3 Dynasty

[duff88]

It is Monday January 6th 1998 and I have just been hired by the Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts to be the new president of the biggest North American MMA organization. As we speak, GAMMA and its Japanese competitor ALPHA-1 are fighting for the world MMA supremacy.

The sport has grown tremendously in the last few years and it is now at a turning point in North America. There are talks about TV Stations being interested in weekly shows and maybe some PPV deals coming as well. Hopefully I can now lead the company towards the international credibility it is striving for.

Rules of GAMMA
- Fights take place inside of an hexagonal cage
- Non title bouts consist of 3 five minutes rounds, which extends to 5 five minutes rounds in championship fights
- Fights that reach the limit will go to a decision by three independant judges' scorecards who rate the fight on control, damage and aggression
- Soccer kicking or knees to the head of a grounded opponent are forbidden. Elbows are allowed.
- The referee has the right to halt the bout if there is too little action to bring the fighters back to standing position.

GAMMA has five fighting categories which will be covered individually in the upcoming posts.

[duff88]

HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION (206-265lbs)


Champion - James Foster - 31 years old - USA

GAMMA TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) James Foster (32-4-1) (GAMMA Heavyweight Champion)
2) Tim Boyer (24-3-2)
3) Raul Hughes (14-2)
4) Jeff Carlton (32-7)
5) Tony McCall (32-10)
6) Rick Stanley (28-14)
7) Fatuma Roy (20-8)
8) Duke Aiona (13-3)
9) Leon Banks (31-10)
10) Tank Manu’a (17-5)

OTHER GAMMA HEAVYWEIGHTS
Jack Cobblepot (38-9-3), Gary Sampson (16-5), Randall Donnelly (12-5), Frank Sheedy (20-9), Norbert Vinkus (2-0)

BEST HEAVYWEIGHTS OUTSIDE GAMMA
Hassan Fezik [ALPHA-1] (25-0), Kunimichi Kikuchi [ALPHA-1] (25-3), Armen Sarkisian [ALPHA-1] (22-2), Mason Archer [ALPHA-1] (15-3), Stafford Alois [BCF] (26-8), Ari Peltonen [ALPHA-1] (23-7), Terron Cabal [SIGMA] (11-0)

[duff88]

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT DIVISION (186-205lbs)


Champion - Spencer Rubenstein - 27 years old - USA

GAMMA TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) Spencer Rubenstein (13-4) (GAMMA Light Heavyweight Champion)
2) Linfield Ballard (20-7)
3) Junior Patinkin (14-1)
4) Marlon John (11-0)
5) Anthony LeToussier (12-0)
6) John Rivero (12-2)
7) Mark Cohen (34-7-1)
9) Ricky Heath (13-4)
10) Derek South (13-3)
11) Lawrence Herringbone (12-1)

OTHER GAMMA LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS
Christian Mountfield (12-3), Bill Cumming (27-12), Mike Watson (9-0), Bryan Van Den Hauwe (15-4), Ken Peters (8-0), Kendall Tracey (8-1)

BEST LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS OUTSIDE GAMMA
Tadamasa Yamada [ALPHA-1] (21-1), Zvonimir Asanovic [ALPHA-1] (27-2), Jin Kantou [ALPHA-1] (17-0), Affonso Villar [FLB] (22-2), Niko Soldo [SIGMA] (14-1-1), Aleksei Chekhov [SIGMA] (19-3), Roberto Aldez [FLB] (42-11), Sho Kitabatake [ALPHA-1] (13-0), Hyun-Shik Lim [N/A] (10-0)

[duff88]

MIDDLEWEIGHT DIVISION (171-185lbs)


Champion - Matthew Dean - 28 years old - USA

GAMMA TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) Matthew Dean (31-5) (GAMMA Middleweight Champion)
2) Dexter Darling (17-2-1)
3) Neil Napier (15-0)
4) Maarten De Vries (15-6)
5) Stuart Strange (16-2)
6) Petey Mack (10-2)
7) Patrick Thomas (16-3)
8) Patrick Grenier (24-5)
9) Buddy Garner (13-0)
10) Ashley Ballard (10-0)

OTHER GAMMA MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Mac Fuller (32-8), Thomas Smith (11-1), Osmosis Benn (14-0), Sutton Ripley (13-2), Woody Fierstein (10-2), Adam White (7-0)

BEST MIDDLEWEIGHTS OUTSIDE GAMMA
Braulio Moura [FLB] (19-2-1), Joaquim Fontes [FLB] (21-3), Bambang Sriyanto [ALPHA-1] (22-6-2), Heiji Endo [ALPHA-1] (12-1)

[duff88]

WELTERWEIGHT DIVISION (156-170lbs)


Champion - Julio Regueiro - 27 years old - Spain

GAMMA TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) Julio Regueiro (20-0) (GAMMA Welterweight Champion)
2) Nathan Chambers (16-1)
3) Rufus Stephens (16-1)
4) Josh Aldarisio (15-1)
5) Darin Blood (13-4)
6) Jack Humphreys (22-6)
7) Alan Kendall (12-3)
8) Jim Carpenter (49-9-2)
9) David Allen (14-2)
10) Bobby Brubaker (10-3)

OTHER GAMMA WELTERWEIGHTS
Yevgeni Sipatov (28-7), Dana Delaney (8-2), Dan Halvorsen (35-11-2), Tyler Lass (5-0), Peter Bracewell (20-7)

BEST WELTERWEIGHTS OUTSIDE GAMMA
Noach Van Der Capellen [SIGMA] (22-3), Ichisake Miyagi [ALPHA-1], Carlos da Guia [ALPHA-1] (15-0), Manuel Silva [FLB] (13-0), Vikram Sithalayan [BCF] (16-2), Claudio Palacios [FLB] (22-6), Templeton Crumb [SIGMA] (17-3), Gabriel Gallego [FLB] (15-4), Syed Tan [ALPHA-1] (13-2-1), Fukusaburu Hirano [ALPHA-1] (10-0-1)

[duff88]

LIGHTWEIGHT DIVISION (146-155lbs)


Champion - Sean Morrison - 30 years old - USA

GAMMA TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) Sean Morrison (27-3) (GAMMA Lightweight Champion)
2) Brandon Sugar (24-4)
3) Truck Gleeson (21-4-1)
4) Beau Gorshin (36-8)
5) Brian Carrier (15-7)
6) Yan Corbeil (10-3)
7) Bud Brockett (7-0)
8) Luke Hilton (7-0)
9) Nicolas Bretton (10-3)
10) Aaron McBroom (8-2)

OTHER GAMMA LIGHTWEIGHTS
Benoit Lavoie (8-0), Henry Baldwin (7-2), Ian Linderman (7-1), Moss Gilbert (5-0)

BEST LIGHTWEIGHTS OUTSIDE GAMMA
Sukarno [KDM FC] (23-0), Luis Basora [SIGMA] (19-3), Jake Keane [BCF] (22-4), Motoki Hojo [ALPHA-1] (15-3), Branco [FLB] (16-5), Fumiaki Hayashi [ALPHA-1] (16-4), Helio [FLB] (14-1), Fiyero Lermontov [SIGMA] (11-0), Seth O'Breen [BCF] (12-0), Atep of Indonesia [KDM FC] (8-0)

[duff88]

The plan right now is to sign around 10 more fighters for every division in the coming weeks. That will require shelling some cash out, but we're ready to do that if we are going to get bigger. Furthermore, as of right now, most of our fighters are making salaries well below their worth so it's our chance to get some good up-and-comers and some journeymen before having to re-sign the bigger names. We have a very strong Middleweight division, but at the same time the Lightweight and Light Heavyweight divisions are somewhat weak.

We are going to enter discussion to get a TV show for some of our younger guys to shine before going on PPV, and for some of our fighters to regain confidence after a few losses. We will also try to get a PPV deal with one of the smaller providers. Our first show of the new era, GAMMA 22, should come towards the end of January. From then on, we expect to have a show every three to five weeks.

BLURCAT.com Company Rankings - First Quarter 1998
1. ALPHA-1: Japanese Mixed Martial Arts - Low Level National - Japan
2. Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts - Low Level National - America
3. Signature Martial Arts - Mid Level Regional - Europe
4. British Cage Fighting - Mid Level Regional - UK
5. Fight League Brazil - Low Level Regional - South America
6. Xtreme Cage Combat - Low Level Regional - America
7. KDM FC - Low Level Regional - Asia

BLURCAT.com Top 15 Pound-for-pound - First Quarter 1998
1. Hassan Fezzik - Heavyweight - 25-0 (ALPHA-1)
2. Julio Regueiro - Welterweight - 20-0 (GAMMA)
3. Tadamasa Yamada - Light Heavyweight - 21-1 (ALPHA-1)
4. Li-Kong Ho - Featherweight - 18-0 (KDM FC)
5. Zvonimir Asanovic - Light Heavyweight - 27-2 (ALPHA-1)
6. Philip Ziskie - Featherweight - 17-1-1 (XCC)
7. James Foster - Heavyweight - 32-4-1 (GAMMA)
8. Sean Morrison - Lightweight - 27-3 (GAMMA)
9. Sukarno - Lightweight - 23-0 (KDM FC)
10. Jim Katou - Light Heavyweight - 17-0 (ALPHA-1)
11. Tomohiro Takeuchi - Featherweight - 16-2 (KDM FC)
12. Matthew Dean - Middleweight - 31-5 (GAMMA)
13. Noah Van Der Capellen - Welterweight - 22-3 (SIGMA)
14. Affonso Villar - Light Heavyweight - 22-2 (FLB)
15. Ichisake Miyagi - Welterweight - 21-3 (ALPHA-1)

[duff88]

It was announced today that Matthew Dean (31-5) will defend his Middleweight Title against Patrick Thomas (16-3) at the upcoming GAMMA 22 - Rebirth in Las Vegas on January 24th 1998. Patrick Thomas had earned the right to face Dean by defeating Mac Fuller by 1st round TKO at GAMMA 18 back in September.

The Co Main-Event will feature Nathan Chambers (16-1) on a come back fight after his first career loss to Dexter Darling at GAMMA 19. This will be Chambers' first fight at Welterweight, as he is set to face Alan Kendall (12-3). Chambers has already started running his mouth for the fight, saying he would regain his form in the weak 170 division before moving back to Middleweight and teaching Dean a lesson.

The event will also feature a fight between Rick Stanley (28-14) and Leon Banks (31-10) at Heavyweight. Both Heavyweights have lost their last bout and will try to show they still belong among the top names in GAMMA.

GAMMA 22 will mark the first GAMMA event held outside Atlantic City.

[duff88]

GAMMA has announced that the company has signed 45 new fighters to exclusive contracts. Terms of the deals were not disclosed, but the president was said not to be too happy about losing on two highly sought fighters, Jonathan Huang and Hyun-Shik Lim.

The most high profil addition is Thai Heavyweight boxer Khru Duangjan (11-1), who is known as one of the most dangerous strikers in the sport due to his power, speed and intensity. It will be interesting to watch how other heavyweights fare against his aggressive style and his world-class chin. The other notable veteran additions are seen as mostly journeymen:

Russel McPhee - Heavyweight - 16-6
Laerte Portinari - Lightweight - 14-6
Matsuta Satou - Middleweight - 16-8
Christopher Sharp - Heavyweight - 34-12
Carl Ratcliffe - Middleweight - 16-4
Callum Henson - Welterweight - 18-7
Glenn Pimm - Light Heavyweight - 30-11
Phil Ball - Welterweight - 11-5

-

I'm especially proud of the young new talent the company has added. I pride myself for my eye for talent, and I think we have added a couple of solid prospects. D.J. Diggle, Kei Maki, Datuk Ong Ka Ding, Ethan Sutton, Ramon da Silva Ramos, Toby Sorkin, Silvio Leite, Gustavo Spagnol, Jutaro Honma and Julio Correa will be names to remember. Sure, most of them might fade into oblivion in the coming months, but a few of them could make it out as great GAMMA fighters.

[duff88]

GAMMA 22 - REBIRTH
Live on January 24th 1998 from the Mandala Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas


Patrick Thomas (16-3) vs. Matthew Dean [c] (31-5) for the GAMMA Middleweight Title



Matthew Dean '31-5' [c] (185lbs) vs. Patrick Thomas '16-3' (185lbs)
Nathan Chambers '16-1' (170lbs) vs. Alan Kendall '12-3' (170lbs)
Rick Stanley '28-14' (235lbs) vs. Leon Banks '31-10' (226lbs)
Junior Patinkin '14-1' (205lbs) vs. Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-4' (205lbs)
Mac Fuller '32-8' (185lbs) vs. Osmosis Benn* '14-0' (191lbs)
Marlon John '11-0' (205lbs) vs. Kendall Tracey '8-1' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Benoit Lavoie '8-0' (155lbs) vs. Ian Linderman '7-1' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Yan Corbeil '10-3' (155lbs) vs. Henry Baldwin '7-2' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Julio Correa '6-0' (230lbs) vs. Randall Donnelly '12-5' (239lbs) (PRELIM)

*Osmosis Benn came in 6lbs overweight and will have to forfeit half of his salary for the fight

[duff88]

If there's anybody reading, I'm taking predictions on every card (copy/paste card with the predicted winner in bold).

That's if someone out there is reading.

EDIT: Just noticed the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino wasn't open in January 1998, but let's say it is already up and running in my fictional universe.

[BYU 14]

You know I will be following an MMA diary....BTW Benn is going to drive you crazy with his chronic weight issues

Matthew Dean '31-5' [c] (185lbs) vs. Patrick Thomas '16-3' (185lbs)
Thomas is not ready for Dean yet.

Nathan Chambers '16-1' (170lbs) vs. Alan Kendall '12-3' (170lbs)
Black Superman via 2nd round TKO

Rick Stanley '28-14' (235lbs) vs. Leon Banks '31-10' (226lbs)
Thin Stanley is just a bit worse.

Junior Patinkin '14-1' (205lbs) vs. Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-4' (205lbs)
early stoppage

Mac Fuller '32-8' (185lbs) vs. Osmosis Benn* '14-0' (191lbs)
Look for Benn's undefeated streak to end

Marlon John '11-0' (205lbs) vs. Kendall Tracey '8-1' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Nice battle of prospects, John is better overall

Benoit Lavoie '8-0' (155lbs) vs. Ian Linderman '7-1' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Toss up

Yan Corbeil '10-3' (155lbs) vs. Henry Baldwin '7-2' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Decision, probably pretty close

Julio Correa '6-0' (230lbs) vs. Randall Donnelly '12-5' (239lbs) (PRELIM)
Correa is a star in the making

[duff88]

GAMMA 22 - REBIRTH
Fight recaps

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Julio Correa '6-0' vs. Randall Donnelly '12-5'
Correa came out striking and landing with pin-point accuracy. He dominated Donnelly for more than three minutes, landing 46% of his 39 thrown punches before knocking him out cold with a vicious punch.

Yan Corbeil '10-3' vs. Henry Baldwin '7-2'
It was a scrappy fight all-around. Baldwin dominated the first round with his striking while Corbeil couldn't answer. Corbeil took Baldwin down in the second with an impressive takedown, but there was little action in that round. Baldwin tried wrestling with Corbeil in the third but to no avail as he couldn't succeed in any of his takedown attempts. It went to a decision, where two judges scored the bout for Corbeil, one other for Baldwin.

Benoit Lavoie '8-0' vs. Ian Linderman '7-1'
Linderman wasn't very impressive in this fight. Lavoie had the upper hand standing up, he had no problem taking him down, he hit him at will on the ground and finally ended it by submission with a armbar in the middle of the second round.

Marlon John '11-0' vs. Kendall Tracey '8-1'
John dominated the first round with his ground and pound, before ending the fight in the second round by referee stoppage after knocking Tracey down. Tracey wasn't a treat for the whole bout as he was unable to hit John with anything worthwhile.

MAIN CARD
Mac Fuller '32-8' vs. Osmosis Benn* '14-0'
It was a good close fight that went to a decision between Benn and Fuller. Both fighters had their moments standing up, but it was mainly the ground and pound from both fighters at their respective moment that made this a good fight. Osmosis Benn took the split decision and might have won it by scoring two impressive take downs.

Junior Patinkin '14-1' vs. Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-4'
The fight started slowly, but on the third try Patinkin was finally able to take Van Den Hauwe down. From then on, Patinkin pounded away on Van Den Hauwe until the referee stoppage.

Rick Stanley '28-14' vs. Leon Banks '31-10'
After a first round without much action where Banks looked better with his stand up game, Stanley was quickly knocked down in the second round by his opponent. The referee jumped in soon after as Banks was striking on a defenseless Stanley.

CO-MAIN EVENT
Nathan Chambers '16-1' vs. Alan Kendall '12-3'
This bout was not about Kendall looking bad as much as it was about Chambers putting on a dominant demonstration. "Black Superman" showed his world class wrestling by taking down his opponent, gaining mounted position with a few transitions and pounding his way to victory.

MAIN EVENT: GAMMA MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Matthew Dean '31-5' [c] vs. Patrick Thomas '16-3'
Thomas came out strong in the opening minutes, imposing his stand up style on Dean who didn't seem to know how to answer to the big strikes from Thomas. Around two minutes in, Dean shot for the takedown and immediately started striking on Thomas. Quite a few good shots went through and the referee stopped the bout on the TKO. Matthew Dean retained his GAMMA Middleweight Championship.

[duff88]

GAMMA 22 - Rebirth
Saturday, January 24th 1998
3,904 - Las Vegas, Nevada
N/A on PPV

PRELIM - Julio Correa (7-0) beat Randall Donnelly (12-6) by KO (Punch) in 3:32 of round 1 (GREAT)
PRELIM - Yan Corbeil (11-3) [#6 LW] beat Henry Baldwin (7-3) by Split Decision [29-28; 28-29; 29-28] (VERY POOR)
PRELIM - Benoit Lavoie (9-0) beat Ian Linderman (7-2) by Submission (Armbar) in 2:52 of round 2 (AVERAGE)
PRELIM - Marlon John (12-0) [#4 MW] beat Kendall Tracey (8-2) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:17 of round 2 (DECENT)
Osmosis Benn (15-0) beat Mac Fuller (32-9) by Split Decision [28-29; 29-28; 29-28] (GOOD)
Junior Patinkin (15-1) [#3 LHW] beat Bryan Van Den Hauwe (15-5) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:57 of round 1 (DECENT)
Leon Banks (32-10) [#9 HW] beat Rick Stanley (28-15) [#6 HW] by TKO (Strikes) in 0:52 of round 2 (DECENT)
Nathan Chambers (17-1) [#2 WW] beat Alan Kendall (12-4) [#7 WW] by TKO (Strikes) in 3:55 of round 1 (DECENT)
Matthew Dean (32-5) [c] beat Patrick Thomas (16-4) (#7 MW) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:53 of round 1 to retain the GAMMA Middleweight title (GREAT)

Fight of the Night: Matthew Dean vs. Patrick Thomas
KO of the Night: Julio Correa
Submission of the Night: Benoit Lavoie

Critical Success: Good
Commercial Success: Great

Marlon John sustained a stomach injury that will sideline him for 2 months

[duff88]

BYU 14: 8/9 - Great performance, I was surprised by Chambers' dominance and Tracey's subpar fight. Your only wrong pick was Fuller, who should probably have by unanimous decision to Benn on that one.

All-in-all, it was a nice first event but I was a bit let down by some of the fights. I thought John-Tracey and Stanley-Banks would offer a better show. Chambers might have been too utterly dominant. At least, Thomas had a very good showing in the main event as he really did give Dean quite a scare.

I'm also happy about Correa's KO of the night. I am not sure his ground game is quite good enough to make him a star at Heavyweight, but he will certainly be a dangerous player. He's only 23 though, so I'm not going to rush him into a main event any time soon.

Heavyweight is probably the division where I have the least exciting prospects right now. Besides Correa, I only have Efren Luat and Jutaro Honma that I currently consider solid prospects. Khru Duanjang is 27 and just hitting his prime, so you could add him to the list. I've narrowed it down to a couple prospects I'd like to add to the roster: Explosive wrestler Chuck Dooley, Norwegian grappler Emil Karlsson, ground-and-pound specialist Nate MacReary and Chinese wrestler Pai Cheng.

[duff88]

GAMMA has announced a PPV deal with with Public Access Select in order to broadcast their GAMMA events in the USA and in Canada. PAS is a small PPV provider who will contribute in extending the popularity of the company. GAMMA 23 - Glory Road will be the first PPV broadcast, and will take place on Saturday February 14th in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

GAMMA will also debut a new TV show on Friday February 20th. "Young Guns - Fighting the World" will be broadcast on National Pride TV every two weeks, late Friday evenings. Every show will feature four fights from young up-and-comers and will be broadcast live at the GAMMA Gym in Las Vegas.

Promising American prospect Toby Sorkin(3-0) will face Neville Granville (1-0) in the Light Heavyweight division in the main event.

[duff88]

Sean Morrison (27-3) will headline the GAMMA 23 - Road to Glory event in Atlantic City. "The Man with no Nickname" will defend his GAMMA Lightweight title for the sixth time, facing 37-years-old Truck Gleeson (21-4-1). This will mark a first championship fight for "The Madman from Michigan", who is a heavy underdog coming in because of Morrison's dominating ground game, but who will certainly not back out from the challenge.

Fans will also get to see Raul Hughes (14-2) take on Jeff Carlton (32-7) in a fight to set the number one contender for Heavyweight champion James Foster. Carlton will want to establish his ground and pound against the dangerous stand-up fighter that is Raul Hughes, who might want to add Carlton to his impressive KO of the Night list.

The event will also feature Linfield Ballard, Patrick Grenier and the GAMMA debut of Thai boxer Khru Duangjan.

[duff88]

GAMMA 23 - GLORY ROAD
Live on February 14th 1998 from the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City


Truck Gleeson (21-4-1) vs. Sean Morrison [c] (27-3) for the GAMMA Lightweight Title



Sean Morrison '27-3' [c] (155lbs) vs. Truck Gleeson '21-4-1' (155lbs)
Raul Hughes '14-2' (212lbs) vs. Jeff Carlton '32-7' (256lbs)
John Rivero '12-2' (205lbs) vs. Linfield Ballard '20-7' (205lbs)
Carl Ratcliffe '16-4' (185lbs) vs. Patrick Grenier '24-5' (185lbs)
Khru Duangjan '11-1' (211lbs) vs. Duke Aiona '13-3' (238lbs)
Luke Hilton '7-0' (155lbs) vs. Laerte Portinari '14-6' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Ken Peters '8-0' (205lbs) vs. Ricky Heath '13-4' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Phil Ball* '11-5' (177lbs) vs. Tyler Lass '5-0' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Steve Mason '5-0' (242lbs) vs. Wilson Franklyn '5-1' (246lbs) (PRELIM)

*Phil Ball came in 7lbs overweight and will have to forfeit half of his purse for the fight

[BYU 14]

Sean Morrison '27-3' [c] (155lbs) vs. Truck Gleeson '21-4-1' (155lbs)
Truck is not well rounded enough to win, though he is still dangerous

Raul Hughes '14-2' (212lbs) vs. Jeff Carlton '32-7' (256lbs)
Carlton is the Alistair Overeem of this game, don't be fooled by the losses

John Rivero '12-2' (205lbs) vs. Linfield Ballard '20-7' (205lbs)
Could be a close fight, but I think Rivero gets the KO/TKO

Carl Ratcliffe '16-4' (185lbs) vs. Patrick Grenier '24-5' (185lbs)
Another solid matchup

Khru Duangjan '11-1' (211lbs) vs. Duke Aiona '13-3' (238lbs)
going with the better prospect IMO

Luke Hilton '7-0' (155lbs) vs. Laerte Portinari '14-6' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Luke stays undefeated

Ken Peters '8-0' (205lbs) vs. Ricky Heath '13-4' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Ditto Peters

Phil Ball* '11-5' (177lbs) vs. Tyler Lass '5-0' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Fatass Phil gets blasted, serves him right for training at the Buffett

Steve Mason '5-0' (242lbs) vs. Wilson Franklyn '5-1' (246lbs) (PRELIM)
Franklyn is a dangerous striker, but his cardio is not impressive at all

[duff88]

GAMMA 23 - GLORY ROAD
Fight recaps

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Steve Mason '5-0' vs. Wilson Franklyn '5-1'
Franklyn was the more active fighter from the get-go, landing a few power punches. Mason was rocked by a huge punch that knocked him down less than two minutes into the first round, and the referee stopped the bout as Franklyn was landing at will on his downed opponent.

Phil Ball '11-5' vs. Tyler Lass '5-0'
Phil Ball took a lot of criticism for showing up overweight, but his preliminary fight with Tyler Lass might be a candidate for fight of the year. Lass dominated the first two rounds on the ground, passing guard and even going for a submission but to no avail. In the third round, both fighters started trading power shots standing up and Ball caught Lass with a solid strike that knocked him down. The referee stopped the bout at 2 minutes of round 3 as Ball handed Lass his first career loss by TKO.

Ken Peters '8-0' vs. Ricky Heath '13-4'
Peters showed his great wrestling skill as he took Heath down and passed his guard for the mount. It took two and a half minute before Peters' dominant ground-and-pound forced the referee to stop the fight.

Luke Hilton '7-0' vs. Laerte Portinari '14-6'
Hilton kept his undefeated streak going by taking care of Portinari in the final preliminary fight. Portinari didn't offer much of an opposition as Hilton made it out of the bout pretty much without getting hit. The results was a TKO midway into the first round.

MAIN CARD
Khru Duangjan '11-1' vs. Duke Aiona '13-3'
Khru Duangjan really made a name for himself in his first bout with GAMMA. He knocked Duke Aiona out cold toward the end of the first round of their fight with a vicious punch in what was a fantastic brawl.

Carl Ratcliffe '16-4' vs. Patrick Grenier '24-5'
After three unsuccessful tries, Patrick Grenier finally won by submission with an armbar on Ratcliffe with ten seconds to go in their fight. It was a one way fight, but it seems Grenier didn't want to go to a decision.

John Rivero '12-2' vs. Linfield Ballard '20-7'
Ballard was winning the fight midway into round 2 with solid a solid stand-up game and vicious kicks. That's when Rivero caught his arm and beat him by submission with an armbar.

CO-MAIN EVENT
Raul Hughes '14-2' vs. Jeff Carlton '32-7'
In the shortest fight of the night, Raul Hughes only threw power shots at Jeff Carlton and landed with authority. He won by TKO a minute and a half into round 1.

MAIN EVENT: GAMMA LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Sean Morrison '27-3' [c] vs. Truck Gleeson '21-4-1'
The main event went exactly as expected. Gleeson had a nice showing for most of the first round, staying on his feet and dominating the stand up game with a solid mix of punches and kicks. Around three and a half minutes in, Morrison shot for the takedown and from then on, he put a clinic on Gleeson. He passed his guard without much problem and punched him from the mount until the referee stopped the bout with 10 seconds to go in the round.

[duff88]

GAMMA 23 - Glory Road
Saturday, February 14th 1998
3,521 - Atlantic City, New Jersey
156,923 buys on PPV

PRELIM - Wilson Franklyn (6-1) beat Steve Mason (5-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:46 of round 1 (GOOD)
PRELIM - Phil Ball (12-5) beat Tyler Lass (5-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:08 of round 3 (FANTASTIC)
PRELIM - Ken Peters (9-0) beat Ricky Heath [#9 MW] (13-5) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:44 of round 1 (GREAT)
PRELIM - Luke Hilton [#8 LW] (8-0) beat Laerte Portinari (14-7) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:37 of round 1 (DECENT)
Khru Duangjan (12-1) beat Duke Aiona [#8 HW] (13-4) by KO (Punch) in 3:13 of round 2 (FANTASTIC)
Patrick Grenier [#8 MW] (25-5) beat Carl Ratcliffe (16-5) by Submission (Armbar) in 4:50 of round 3 (DECENT)
John Rivero [#6 LHW] (13-2) beat Linfield Ballard [#2 LHW](20-8) by Submission (Armbar) in 2:48 of round 2 (GREAT)
Raul Hughes [#3 HW](15-2) beat Jeff Carlton [#4 HW] (32-8) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:32 of round 1 (GOOD)
Sean Morrison [c] (28-3) beat Truck Gleeson [#7 MW] (21-5-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:50 of round 1 to retain the GAMMA Lightweight title (GOOD)

Fight of the Night: Phil Ball vs. Tyler Lass
KO of the Night: Khru Duangjan
Submission of the Night: Patrick Grenier

Critical Success: Fantastic
Commercial Success: Great

Steve Mason sustained a hand injury that will sideline him for 2 months

[duff88]

BYU 14: 5/9 - It was a bit more of a difficult card to predict as two of the undefeated prospects lost their 0. Hughes made quick business of Carlton, it'll be interesting to see if anybody can resist him.

I'm very happy at the results after this event though, a critical success of fantastic is very satisfying. It will be hard to provide such good shows on a constant basis though, this could very well go down as one of our best cards looking back in the coming years.

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, February 20th 1998
1,334 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

MW: Tuck Durdell (2-0) beat Ramon da Silva Ramos (3-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:59 of round 1 (GREAT)
LW: D.J. Dingle (4-0) beat Matt Horowitz (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:32 of roun 2 (DECENT)
WW: Delroy Rhodes (7-0) beat Tristao Bosi (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 0:51 of round 3 (GOOD)
LHW: Toby Sorkin (4-0) beat Neville Granville by submission (armbar) in 1:55 of round 1 (GOOD)

Fight of the Night: Tuck Durdell vs. Ramon da Silva Ramos
KO of the Night: Tuck Durdell
Submission of the Night: Toby Sorkin

Critical Success: Good
Commercial Success: DECENT

[duff88]

GAMMA has announced the two upcoming events that will be held in late March and early April.

GAMMA 24 - Warriors will feature a Welterweight championship fight between Julio Regueiro (20-0) and challenger Josh Aldarisio (15-1). "Spanish Silk" is one of the top Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitors in MMA, but his opponent will be a world class wrestler who won't back down against Regueiro's ground game. Dexter Darling (17-2-1) will face Stuart Strange (16-2) in the co-main event in the Middleweight division. The event will be held Saturday March 21st in Denver.

GAMMA 25 - Invincible will feature a Light Heavyweight championship fight between Spencer Rubenstein (13-4) and top contender Anthony Letoussier (12-0). The fight promises to be a high-energy brawl between two excellent stand-up fighters who love putting on a show. This will be Rubenstein's second title defense since beating Linfield Ballard at GAMMA 9. Tim Boyer (24-3-2) and Tony McCall (32-10) will fight in the co-feature in the Heavyweight division. The event will be held Saturday April 11th in Cincinnati.

The next edition of Young Guns - Fighting the World will be held on Friday March 13th and will feature a Light Heavyweight showdown between undefeated fighters Marcos Maciel (4-0) and Jerry Bogdonovich (5-0)

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, March 13th 1998
1,217 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

WW: Stian Agdestein (2-0) beat Gus Fitzpatrick (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:08 of round 2 (DECENT)
LW: Nuno Valentino (3-0) beat Zac Bacall (1-1) by Submission (Kneebar) in 3:36 of round 2 (AVERAGE)
HW: Sylverster Collins (4-0) beat Zsolt Hargitay (3-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:01 of round 1 (GREAT)
LHW: Marcos Maciel (5-0) beat Jerry Bogdonovich (5-1) by Unanimous Decision [30-27; 30-27; 30-27] (AVERAGE)

Fight of the Night: Sylvester Collins vs. Zsolt Hargitay
KO of the Night: Sylvester Collins
Submission of the Night: Nuno Valentino

Critical Success: Decent
Commercial Success: Decent

[duff88]

After signing multiple young fighters to new contracts, GAMMA now features 148 athletes in five weight categories. The Middleweight and Welterweight divisions are probably the deepest, while there have been huge improvements on the Lightweight division with the addition of a few promising young prospects. There are also talks about adding a Featherweight division by the end of the year, although these are still preliminary.

Meanwhile, following their inability to make weights in their previous bouts, Phil Ball and Osmosis Benn have been instructed to prepare for their upcoming fights in a different weight class. Ball will now fight at Middleweight, while Benn will fight at Light Heavyweight.

[duff88]

GAMMA 24 - WARRIORS
Live on March 21st 1998 from the Mammoth Gardens in Denver, Colorado


Josh Aldarisio (15-1) vs. Julio Regueiro [c] (20-0) for the GAMMA Welterweight Title



Julio Regueiro '20-0' [c] (170lbs) vs. Josh Aldarisio '15-1' (170lbs)
Dexter Darling '17-2-1' (185lbs) vs. Stuart Strange '16-2' (185lbs)
Fatuma Roy '20-8' (236lbs) vs. Gary Sampson '16-5' (251lbs)
David Allen '14-2' (170lbs) vs. Jim Carpenter '49-9-2' (170lbs)
Petey Mack '10-2' (185lbs) vs. Tora Mizwar '19-6' (185lbs)
Derek South '13-3' (205lbs) vs. Lawrence Herringbone '12-1' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Brian Carrier '15-7' (155lbs) vs. Moss Gilbert '5-0' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Adam White '7-0' (185lbs) vs. Drew Jenks '5-1' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Dana Delaney '' (170lbs) vs. Datuk Ong Ka Ting '' (170lbs) (PRELIM)

[BYU 14]

Julio Regueiro '20-0' [c] (170lbs) vs. Josh Aldarisio '15-1' (170lbs)
Dexter Darling '17-2-1' (185lbs) vs. Stuart Strange '16-2' (185lbs)
Fatuma Roy '20-8' (236lbs) vs. Gary Sampson '16-5' (251lbs)
David Allen '14-2' (170lbs) vs. Jim Carpenter '49-9-2' (170lbs)
Petey Mack '10-2' (185lbs) vs. Tora Mizwar '19-6' (185lbs)
Derek South '13-3' (205lbs) vs. Lawrence Herringbone '12-1' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Brian Carrier '15-7' (155lbs) vs. Moss Gilbert '5-0' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Adam White '7-0' (185lbs) vs. Drew Jenks '5-1' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Dana Delaney '' (170lbs) vs. Datuk Ong Ka Ting '' (170lbs) (PRELIM)

[duff88]

GAMMA 24 - WARRIORS
Fight recaps

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Dana Delaney '8-2' vs. Datuk Ong Ka Ting '5-0'
"The Savage" Datuk took Delaney down within a minute, and ended the fight in quick fashion with an armbar three and a half minutes into the first round.

Adam White '7-0' vs. Drew Jenks '5-1'
White took care of Jenks with a lot of ease. After a double leg takedown midway into the first round, White passed guard and pounded away on Jenks for the victory.

Brian Carrier '15-7' vs. Moss Gilbert '5-0'
Brian Carrier dominated the first round after a takedown and some solid ground game. Wanting to continue where he left off, he shot for another takedown early in the second round only to be met by a vicious punch from Gilbert which knocked him senseless.

Derek South '13-3' vs. Lawrence Herringbone '12-1'
Herringbone had a great showing on South, who was rumoured to come into the fight with a virus. After three solid rounds, Herringbone was able to finish South with a rear naked choke with less than a minute to go.

MAIN CARD
Petey Mack '10-2' vs. Tora Mizwar '19-6'
Mizwar won the first round by being the more active fighter, but from then on it was all Petey Mack's fight. "The Mack Attack" dominated the second round after a takedown, and knocked Mizwar down in the third with a barrage of punches. He couldn't finish the job though, but still managed to win the bout by unanimous decision with three 29-28 scorecards.

David Allen '14-2' vs. Jim Carpenter '49-9-2'
Jim Carpenter managed to pull out his 50th career win by unanimous decision on David Allen (30-27, 29-28, 29-28). Carpenter won the first two rounds with his solid ground game, and managed to survive the third round in which Allen tried two unsuccessful armbars.

Fatuma Roy '20-8' vs. Gary Sampson '16-5'
Sampson took quick care of Roy in this Heavyweight fight. "The Pitbull" knocked Roy down with heavy right hands thirty seconds into the fight before finishing the job with huge strikes from the ground.

CO-MAIN EVENT
Dexter Darling '17-2-1' vs. Stuart Strange '16-2'
In a fight that was welcomed by boos from fans, Stuart Strange defeated Dexter Darling with strikes from the mount in the second round. Strange had started the second round with an impressive slam after a very uneventful first round.

MAIN EVENT: GAMMA WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Julio Regueiro '20-0' vs. Josh Aldarisio '15-1'
"The Spanish Silk" made a strong case for his pound-for-pound ranking. In an impressive display, Regueiro out-wrestled the wrestler by taking him down after some grappling against the cage and then submitting with an armbar. Regueiro was very gracious in victory, congratulating Aldarisio for a solid performance and telling him he will be ready for a rematch whenever Aldarisio feels he is ready. He also called out Nathan Chambers, telling "The Black Superman" that his cockiness wouldn't help him and that he's in for quite a fight.

[duff88]

GAMMA 24 - Warriors
Saturday, March 21st 1998
3,334 - Denver, Colorado
138,864 buys on PPV

PRELIM - Datuk Ong Ka Ting (6-0) beat Dana Delaney (8-3) by Submission (Armbar) in 3:41 of round 1 (GREAT)
PRELIM - Adam White (8-0) beat Drew Jenks (5-2) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:27 of round 1 (DECENT)
PRELIM - Moss Gilbert (6-0) beat Brian Carrier (15-8) [#5 LW] by KO (Punch) in 1:29 of round 2 (GREAT)
PRELIM - Lawrence Herringbone (13-1) [#10 LHW] beat Derek South (13-4) [#9 LHW] by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) in 4:15 of round 3 (DECENT)
Petey Mack (11-2) [#6 MW] beat Tora Mizwar (19-7) by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 29-28] (DECENT)
Jim Carpenter (50-9-2) [#8 WW] beat David Allen (14-3) [#9 WW] by Unanimous Decision [30-27; 29-28; 29-28] (AVERAGE)
Gary Sampson (17-5) beat Fatuma Roy (20-9) [#7 HW] by TKO (Strikes) in 1:14 of round 1 (GOOD)
Stuart Strange (17-2) [#5 MW] beat Dexter Darling (17-3-1) [#2 MW] by TKO (Strikes) in 3:39 of round 2 (POOR)
Julio Regueiro [c] (21-0) beat Josh Aldarisio (15-2) [#4 LW] by Submission (Armbar) in 2:53 of round 1 to retain the GAMME Welterweight title (GREAT)

Fight of the Night: Moss Gilbert vs. Brian Carrier
KO of the Night: Moss Gilbert
Submission of the Night: Julio Regueiro

Critical Success: Good
Commercial Success: Good

Tora Mizwar suffered a foot injury that will sideline him for two months

[duff88]

BYU 14: 7/9 - Good performance, the show itself might have been a letdown though and looking back there were a few matchups I shouldn't have made.

Roy's loss might just be the final blow for his career with GAMMA. He has one fight left on his contract, and I'm not sure yet if he's going to get it or if I'm just going to let his 5 months expire. If he does fight, he will need a great showing because as of right now I have no intention of keeping him.

Darling's loss is a setback, but I'm still confident he has what it takes to be a champion. Strange is not the most exciting fighter out there but he won, so he's going to get the bigger fights in the short term. In the mean time, Darling is a very marketable guy and this loss is not going to just make him a pushover.

[duff88]

APRIL RANKINGS UPDATE

GAMMA HEAVYWEIGHT TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) [DNC] James Foster (32-4-1) (GAMMA Heavyweight Champion)
2) [+1] Raul Hughes (15-2)
3) [-1] Tim Boyer (24-3-2)
4) [+5] Leon Banks (32-10)
5) [NEW] Khru Duangjan (12-1)
6) [-1] Tony McCall (32-10)
7) [NEW] Gary Sampson (17-5)
8) [NEW] Julio Correa (7-0)
9) [-5]Jeff Carlton (32-8)
10) [NEW] Christopher Sharp (34-12)

GAMMA LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) [DNC] Spencer Rubenstein (13-4) (GAMMA Light Heavyweight Champion)
2) [+1] Junior Patinkin (15-1)
3) [+1] Marlon John (12-0)
4) [NEW] Osmosis Benn (15-0)
5) [+1] John Rivero (13-2)
6) [-1] Anthony LeToussier (12-0)
7) [+3] Lawrence Herringbone (13-1)
8) [NEW] Ken Peters (9-0)
9) [-7] Linfield Ballard (20-8)
10) [-3] Mark Cohen (34-7-1)

GAMMA MIDDLEWEIGHT TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) [DNC] Matthew Dean (32-5) (GAMMA Middleweight Champion)
2) [+3] Stuart Strange (17-2)
3) [+3] Petey Mack (11-2)
4) [+5] Patrick Grenier (25-5)
5) [-2] Neil Napier (15-0)
6) [-2] Maarten De Vries (15-6)
7) [+2] Buddy Garner (13-0)
8) [+2] Ashley Ballard (10-0)
9) [NEW] Thomas Smith (11-1)
10) [-8] Dexter Darling (17-3-1)

GAMMA WELTERWEIGHT TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) [DNC] Julio Regueiro (21-0) (GAMMA Welterweight Champion)
2) [DNC] Nathan Chambers (17-1)
3) [DNC] Rufus Stephens (16-1)
4) [+4] Jim Carpenter (50-9-2)
5) [DNC] Darin Blood (13-4)
6) [DNC] Jack Humphreys (22-6)
7) [NEW] Callum Henson (18-7)
8) [-4] Josh Aldarisio (15-2)
9) [-2] Alan Kendall (12-4)
10) [NEW] Datuk Ong Ka Ting (6-0)

GAMMA LIGHTWEIGHT TOP 10 RANKINGS
1) [DNC] Sean Morrison (28-3) (GAMMA Lightweight Champion)
2) [DNC] Brandon Sugar (24-4)
3) [+1] Beau Gorshin (36-8)
4) [+4] Luke Hilton (8-0)
5) [+1] Yan Corbeil (11-3)
6) [-3] Truck Gleeson (21-5-1)
7) [NEW] Benoit Lavoie (9-0)
8) [NEW] Moss Gilbert (6-0)
9) [+2] Bud Brockett (7-0)
10) [-1] Nicolas Bretton (10-3)

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, April 3rd 1998
1,245 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

MW: Ethan Sutton (5-0) beat Ragnar Gunnlaugsson (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:58 of round 1 (GREAT)
LW: Kei Maki (4-0) beat Cesar Granda (4-2) by Split Decision [28-29; 30-27; 29-28] (POOR)
HW: Nate MacReary (3-0) beat Sahan Ozbek (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:23 of round 1 (GREAT)
LHW: Stephan de Winter (3-0) beat Bill Brown (2-1) by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 29-28] (POOR)

Fight of the Night: Nate MacReary vs. Sahan Ozbek
KO of the Night: Nate MacReary
Submission of the Night: -

Critical Success: Decent
Commercial Success: Average

Ragnar Gunnlaugsson suffered a elbow injury and will be out for around 2 months

[duff88]

GAMMA 25 - INVINCIBLE
Live on April 11th 1998 from the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio


Anthony LeToussier (12-0) vs. Spencer Rubenstein [c] (13-4) for the GAMMA Light Heavyweight Title



Spencer Rubenstein [c] '13-4' (205lbs) vs. Anthony LeToussier '12-0' (205lbs)
Tim Boyer '24-3-2' (253lbs) vs. Tony McCall '32-10' (232lbs)
Buddy Garner '13-0' (185lbs) vs. Maarten De Vries '15-6' (185lbs)
Beau Gorshin '36-8' (155lbs) vs. Bud Brockett '7-0' (155lbs)
Norbert Vinkus '2-0' (262lbs) vs. Frank Sheedy '20-9' (257lbs)
Yevgeni Sipatov '28-7' (170lbs) vs. Bobby Brubaker '10-3' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Alex Cole '7-0' (185lbs) vs. Sutton Ripley '13-2' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Guillermo Morales '7-0-1' (205lbs) vs. Jon Silvers '6-0' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Aaron McBroom '8-2' (155lbs) vs. Yagi Jokichi '4-0' (155lbs) (PRELIM)

[DaddyTorgo]

I'll prolly check out the demo for this over the holidays...paying attention to your dynasty for sure though.

[BYU 14]

Spencer Rubenstein [c] '13-4' (205lbs) vs. Anthony LeToussier '12-0' (205lbs)
Tim Boyer '24-3-2' (253lbs) vs. Tony McCall '32-10' (232lbs)
Buddy Garner '13-0' (185lbs) vs. Maarten De Vries '15-6' (185lbs)
Beau Gorshin '36-8' (155lbs) vs. Bud Brockett '7-0' (155lbs)
Norbert Vinkus '2-0' (262lbs) vs. Frank Sheedy '20-9' (257lbs)
Yevgeni Sipatov '28-7' (170lbs) vs. Bobby Brubaker '10-3' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Alex Cole '7-0' (185lbs) vs. Sutton Ripley '13-2' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Guillermo Morales '7-0-1' (205lbs) vs. Jon Silvers '6-0' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Aaron McBroom '8-2' (155lbs) vs. Yagi Jokichi '4-0' (155lbs) (PRELIM)

counting on a title change here and Boyer should roll, Gorshin worries me, as does McBroom, but I feel good about the rest of my picks.

[duff88]

GAMMA 25 - INVINCIBLE
Fight recaps

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Aaron McBroom '8-2' vs. Yagi Jokichi '4-0'
It might have been a good thing the McBroom-Jokichi fight was the first one of the night and that the arena was empty, because it would have likely been welcomed with a chorus a boos. While Jokichi wanted to use his masterful counter-punching, McBroom was very hesitant in throwing anything at him. The result was a boring decision victory for Jokichi, who didn't make much of a case for another PPV appearance in the short term.

Guillermo Morales '7-0-1' vs. Jon Silvers '6-0'
The big question coming in was wether Silvers was going to be able to stay on his feet. He didn't stay there very long, and once Morales got him on his back, it was only a matter of time before "T-Bone" stopped the fight with his ground striking. A TKO win for Morales in 3:18.

Alex Cole '7-0' vs. Sutton Ripley '13-2'
Alex Cole was able to take Ripley down on his second attempt in the first round, but wasn't able to successfully apply a rear naked choke as Ripley made it out of the round. With Cole having won the first round and being fairly successful early in the second round, it was a huge shock when Ripley countered a jab with a right hand combo that knocked Cole down. Ripley finished the job with ground striking much to the crowd's delight in what could very well go down as the fight of the night.

Yevgeni Sipatov '28-7' vs. Bobby Brubaker '10-3'
In the standard undercard match between two journeymen, Sipatov showed he still possessed a great ground game despite his three consecutive losses. The Russian defeated Brubaker by TKO on strikes at 3:28 of the third round.

MAIN CARD
Norbert Vinkus '2-0' vs. Frank Sheedy '20-9'
The crowd pleasing former footballer Norbert Vinkus showed an improved standup technique in his fight with Sheedy, in which he dominated "The Baby Bull" until a referee stoppage three minutes into the third round.

Beau Gorshin '36-8' vs. Bud Brockett '7-0'
That might go down as the worst fight of the year. Gorshin tried submission after submission and showed a very inconsistent ground game while Brockett showed solid wrestling but was then inactive on the ground. The unanimous decision went to Brockett, but the crowd made sure to let them know that the entertainment was lacking.

Buddy Garner '13-0' vs. Maarten De Vries '15-6'
The crowd might have been still ticked off by the subpar card up to now, as they once again booed this fight. It was not that bad of a fight though, but De Vries was unimpressive on the stand-up and Garner quickly went for the takedown to establish his elite Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. With around 15 seconds to go, De Vries was caught in a Kneebar and had no other choice but to tap.

CO-MAIN EVENT
Tim Boyer '24-3-2' vs. Tony McCall '32-10'
It was a close, violent fight that ended in a split decision. McCall barely edged Boyer on two of the three judges' scorecards, who probably thought McCall's more active striking was more impressive than Boyer's devastating knees and pit fighting. The main event better deliver, because this show has been a huge letdown.

MAIN EVENT: GAMMA WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Spencer Rubenstein [C] '13-4' vs. Anthony LeToussier '12-0'
The fight started well with a lot of physicallity. During the first round, Rubenstein pinned LeToussier against the cage and delivered a few very solid shots that seemed to rock LeToussier. LeToussier started the second round well with good counter punching, but he was then hurt by a good body kick and solid combinations from Rubenstein who managed to once again pin him against the cage and hit him with a vicious elbow towards the end of the round. In his most dominating round yet, Rubenstein was able to cut LeToussier early in the third with a vicious elbow from the Muay Thai clinch. LeToussier was a bloody mess from the gash just above his right eye, but the ringside doctor allowed the fight to continue. The fourth round was slightly slower with both fighters exerting less energy in the cage, but Rubenstein still using his inside fighting and dirty boxing effectively. The message was clear for LeToussier in his corner, he needs to win the 5th round decisively if he wants to win this fight. It didn't go as planned though, as he was immediately met with a stunning right head kick that knocked him out cold. Spencer Rubenstein retains the GAMMA Light Heavyweight title in dominating fashion!

[duff88]

GAMMA 25 - Invincible
Saturday, April 11th 1998
3,719 - Cincinnati, Ohio
135,660 buys on PPV

PRELIM - Yagi Jokichi (5-0) beat Aaron McBroom (8-3) by Unanimous Decision [30-27; 30-27; 30-27] (VERY POOR)
PRELIM - Guillermo Morales (8-0-1) beat Jon Silvers (6-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:18 of round 1 (DECENT)
PRELIM - Sutton Ripley (14-2) beat Alex Cole (7-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:34 of round 2 (FANTASTIC)
PRELIM - Yevgeni Sipatov (29-7) beat Bobby Brubaker (10-4) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:28 of round 3 (DECENT)
Norbert Vinkus (3-0) beat Frank Sheedy (20-10) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:28 of round 3 (DECENT)
Bud Brockett (8-0) [#9 LW] beat Beau Gorshin (36-9) [#3 LW] by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 30-27] (AWFUL)
Buddy Garner (14-0) [#7 MW] beat Maarten De Vries (15-7) [#6 MW] by Submission (Kneebar) in 4:43 of round 1 (POOR)
Tony McCall (33-10) [#6 HW] beat Tim Boyer (24-4-2) [#3 HW] by Split Decision [29-28; 28-29; 29-28] (DECENT)
Spencer Rubenstein [c] (14-4) beat Anthony LeToussier (12-1) [#6 LHW] by KO (Kick) in 0:25 of round 5 to retain the GAMMA Light Heavyweight title (DECENT)

Fight of the Night: Sutton Ripley vs. Alex Cole
KO of the Night: Spencer Rubenstein
Submission of the Night: Buddy Garner

Critical Success: Average
Commercial Success: Good

Buddy Garner could be out for two to six months after suffering a stomach injury in his win against Maarten De Vries.
Yagi Jokichi has sustained a hand injury and will be out of competition for two months.

[duff88]

BYU 14 : 3/9 - No surprise in the low score, this was a weird card all around. Rubenstein truly had a dominating performance over LeToussier, even though I was holding my breath all along because LeToussier has the skills to score a flash knockout on counters. It was a surprise to see Cole lose his 0, but at least it happened to be the only good fight of the night.

So this is the second event in a row that has gone terribly, not really in the results as much as in the matches themselves. I'm looking at GAMMA 26 and GAMMA 27 right now, and I'm hoping the fights I've booked will be more exciting.

[duff88]

The marketing team is out in full force for GAMMA 26 - Foster/Hughes, which was announced today to take place in late May in Sacramento, California. There is a lot of hype surrounding this fight for the Heavyweight title. This will be a fourth defense of the title for James Foster (32-4-1) since winning the title from Mark Cohen in April 1995. Meanwhile, Raul Hughes (15-2) will fight for the second time already this year after a quick demolition of Jeff Carlton at GAMMA 23. Foster is the face of MMA in North America, but his chin has been exposed before and Hughes is known as "The Demolition Expert". Still, if Foster can take him down, he should be able to retain his title.

The undercard promises to be an upgrade over recent events, with a co-feature Light Heavyweight first contender fight between Junior Patinkin (15-1) and Marlon John (12-0). This should prove to be a world class wrestling fight between "The Iron Man" and "The Punisher". Other fights on this card include Dan Halvorsen (35-11-2) facing Jack Humphreys (22-6) and Mac Fuller (32-9) facing Patrick Thomas (16-4). Benoit Lavoie (9-0) has also been confirmed and will be facing an opponent to be announced on a later date.

The card for GAMMA 27 - Chosen Ones also promises to be very solid. Although it will not feature a championship fight, names that are being put forward for the possible main event are Rufus Stephens, Mike Watson, John Rivero and the Ballard brothers. No official statement has been released yet, but the event will be held in Boston in the last week of June.

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, April 24th 1998
1,672 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

LW: Heiko Pander (2-0) defeats Nigel Collett (2-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:34 of round 1 (GREAT)
HW: Pai Cheng (4-0) defeats Wally Bryant (1-1) by KO (Punch) in 1:55 of round 3 (GOOD)
LHW: William Harrison (4-0) defeats Joseph King (8-7) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:00 of round 1 (GREAT)
MW: Isiah Monroe (4-0) defeats Tuck Durdell (2-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 2:55 of round 1 (GREAT)

Fight of the Night: Isaih Monroe vs. Tuck Durdell
KO of the Night: Pai Cheng
Submission of the Night: -

Critical Success: Great
Commercial Success: Decent

During the main event, it was confirmed that Khru Duangjan (12-1) will move down to the Light Heavyweight division to be a part of the main event of GAMMA 27 - Chosen Ones. The Thai boxer, who made a noteworthy entry with GAMMA by defeating Duke Aiona with a fantastic KO at GAMMA 23, will be facing undefeated Canadian kickboxer Mike Watson (9-0). This promises to be an exciting main event with two explosive stand-up fighters.

Although the show will not feature a main event championship fight, the main card will put forth five very promising matchups. In the co-feature, Chosen Ones will pit a Welterweight fight between Rufus Stephens (16-1) and Darin Blood (13-4)

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, May 14th 1998
1,534 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

HW: Ozzy Bintley (2-0) beat Jutaro Honma (1-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:12 of round 1 (GOOD)
LHW: Gustavo Spagnol (4-0) beat Adrian Swall (3-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:32 of round 1 (GOOD)
LW: Gene Oakley (2-0) beat Britt Dickering (3-1) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:08 of round 3 (GREAT)
MW: Dwayne Alleyne (5-0) beat Chesney Brightman (1-1) by Submission (Armbar) in 4:43 of round 1 (GOOD)

Fight of the Night: Gene Oakley vs. Britt Dickering
KO of the Night: Gene Oakley
Submission of the Night: Dwayne Alleyne

Critical Success: Good
Commercial Success: Decent

The TV Show has been extended for a further 6 episodes.

[duff88]

GAMMA 26 - FOSTER/HUGHES
Live on May 29th 1998 from the ARCO Arena in Sacramento, California


Raul Hughes (15-2) vs. James Foster [c] (32-4-1) for the GAMMA Heavyweight Title



James Foster [c] '32-4-1' (222lbs) vs. Raul Hughes '15-2' (212lbs) for the GAMMA Heavyweight Title
Junior Patinkin '15-1' (205lbs) vs. Marlon John '12-0' (205lbs)
Mac Fuller '32-9' (185lbs) vs. Patrick Thomas '16-4' (185lbs)
Dan Halvorsen '35-11-2' (170lbs) vs. Jack Humphreys '22-6' (170lbs)
Benoit Lavoie '9-0' (155lbs) vs. Henry Baldwin '7-3' (159lbs)
Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-5' (205lbs) vs. Glenn Pimm '30-11' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Russell McPhee '16-6' (208lbs) vs. Jack Cobblepot '38-9-3' (265lbs) (PRELIM)
Nicolas Breton '10-3' (155lbs) vs. Brian Claremont '4-1' (155lbs) (PRELIM)
Toby Sorkin '4-0' (205lbs) vs. Ricky Heath '13-5' (205lbs) (PRELIM)

[BYU 14]

James Foster [c] '32-4-1' (222lbs) vs. Raul Hughes '15-2' (212lbs) for the GAMMA Heavyweight Title
OK, I am sure Foster loses this one...

Junior Patinkin '15-1' (205lbs) vs. Marlon John '12-0' (205lbs)
This is a great match up

Mac Fuller '32-9' (185lbs) vs. Patrick Thomas '16-4' (185lbs)

Dan Halvorsen '35-11-2' (170lbs) vs. Jack Humphreys '22-6' (170lbs)

Benoit Lavoie '9-0' (155lbs) vs. Henry Baldwin '7-3' (159lbs)

Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-5' (205lbs) vs. Glenn Pimm '30-11' (205lbs) (PRELIM)

Russell McPhee '16-6' (208lbs) vs. Jack Cobblepot '38-9-3' (265lbs) (PRELIM) - Jack is horrible, but his size will be too much

Nicolas Breton '10-3' (155lbs) vs. Brian Claremont '4-1' (155lbs) (PRELIM)

Toby Sorkin '4-0' (205lbs) vs. Ricky Heath '13-5' (205lbs) (PRELIM)
Sorkin is a great young prospect

[duff88]

GAMMA 26 - FOSTER/HUGHES
Fight recaps

PRELIMINARY BOUTS
Toby Sorkin '4-0' vs. Ricky Heath '13-5'
After a slow first round that was barely edged by Sorkin with a final seconds takedown, Sorkin went in full aggression in the second round. After failing to lock in a Kimura and an Armbar, Sorkin finally made Heath tap with a textbook Americana with less than a minute to go in the second round.

Nicolas Breton '10-3' vs. Brian Claremont '4-1'
Breton's strategy was clear from the get-go; to take Claremont down and dominate him with solid BJJ. It didn't go as planned in the first round as Bretton's two takedown attemps were met with devastating punched from Claremont, one of which even knocked down the Canadian. After being significantly hurt in the first round, Bretton was quickly taken care of by Claremont in the second round, losing by TKO less than a minute into the round.

Russel McPhee '16-6' vs. Jack Cobblepot '38-9-3'
In short, Cobblepot won the first round by taking down McPhee and dominating on the ground. McPhee learned his lesson and was able to stay on his feet the rest of the fight. The result is a 29-28 unanimous decision for McPhee, and a poor show for the fans.

Bryan Van Den Hauwe '15-5' vs. Glenn Pimm '30-11'
Van Den Hauwe went for the takedown early, and made Pimm lose a lot of energy with a lot of physicality against the cage from the top control. He eventually mounted and ended the fight with a long series of punch, none too devastating but against an opponent who wasn't answering the call anymore.

MAIN CARD
Benoit Lavoie '9-0' vs. Henry Baldwin '7-3'
After a slow first round where both fighters were tentative from the standup, Lavoie went with an early takedown in the second round but to no avail. With a close fight going on, Lavoie was told to be more aggressive on the takedowns between rounds and it showed with a quick takedown in the third round. He immediately went for the triangle, locked it in but Baldwin wouldn't quit and was able to set his head free only to find his arm stuck in a arm triangle. Once again, Baldwin showed great heart and technique and was able to set it free as well. Lavoie tries twice again until the end of the round but isn't able to make Baldwin submit. The result is three identical 29-28 decisions for Henry Baldwin.

Dan Halvorsen '35-11-2' vs. Jack Humphreys '22-6'
Two great wrestlers were at work in that fight. Exchanging dominant position, grappling and wrestling against the cage in a physical matchup. The first takedown finally happened in the third round with Humphreys reversing an attempt by Halvorsen and finishing in his half guard. From there, Humphreys' ground-and-pound was too much for a gassed Halvorsen. The fight started with a lot of promise, but both fighters were way too tired by the end which made for a long and boring exercice.

Mac Fuller '32-9' vs. Patrick Thomas '16-4'
Patrick Thomas wears his nickname "The Titan" well out there tonight; he looks huge next to Fuller despite giving up two inches, and it's a wonder how he was able to make weight for that fight. The weight advantage might not have been a positive though as Thomas was completely overwhelmed in the first round and Fuller landed a few very dangerous shots, coming up just shy of ending the fight at the end of the round in full mount after knocking Thomas down with a vicious punch. That was quite a missed opportunity for Fuller, as Thomas came back completely changed after the break and ended it by completely destroying Fuller in 17 seconds. A truly fantastic fight that got a standing ovation from the crowd here in Sacramento!

CO-MAIN EVENT
Junior Patinkin '15-1' vs. Marlon John '12-0'
A promising fight turned into a violent first round, in which John was dominant while Patinkin showed the heart of a warrior. After landing some solid leg kicks to start the fight, John evaded a takedown attempt to land some big strikes on Patinkin who was left on his knees. John was able to take him in a crucifix and for three straight minutes he hit him with vicious elbows, opening a small gash below the left eye of "The Iron Man". Patinkin was still able to make it out of the first round, that surely went 10-8 for John. Trying to change things around in the second round, Patinkin shot for an early take down but John turned it into a clinch, from which he did an impressive slam on Patinkin. John was able to pass guard into a mount and to keep pounding away on Patinkin until the referee jumped in to stop a great fight.

Between the two fights, Syed Tan (15-2-1) was officially unveiled as a new member of the GAMMA roster. The 29-years-old Malaysian was brought over from Alpha-1, where he had fought twice this year. He will be fighting in the Welterweight division.

MAIN EVENT: GAMMA WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
James Foster [c] '32-4-1' vs. Raul Hughes '15-2'
Foster tried establishing his jab early, but was met with a superb combination of three body punches and a great left cross in the counter from Hughes. Foster didn't change his strategy though, but the next counter from Hughes was a barrage of hard left hands that put Foster down on his back, although the champion was able to quickly get back on his feet. Trying to come to the inside, Foster was once again met with a big left hand. Finally, after two minutes, Hughes was finally able to pull a two legged takedown and Hughes had to pull guard. Showing dominance on the ground, Foster quickly passed to side control and started pounding away on Hughes who got rocked and stopped defending himself. The referee stopped the bout at 2:40 of round 1 for the winner by TKO and still GAMMA Heavyweight Champion, "The King of Ground and Pound" James Foster.

[duff88]

GAMMA 26 - Foster/Hughes
Saturday, May 29th 1998
4,250 - Sacramento, California
194,880 buys on PPV

PRELIM - Toby Sorkin (5-0) beat Ricky Heath (13-6) by Submission (Americana) in 4:08 of round 2 (DECENT)
PRELIM - Brian Claremont (5-1) beat Nicolas Bretton (10-4) [#10 LW] by TKO (Strikes) in 0:52 of round 2 (GOOD)
PRELIM - Russel McPhee (17-6) beat Jack Cobblepot (38-10-3) by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 29-28] (POOR)
PRELIM - Bryan Van Den Hauwe (16-5) beat Glenn Pimm (30-12) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:49 of round 1 (AVERAGE)
Henry Baldwin (8-3) beat Benoit Lavoie (9-1) [#7 LW] by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 29-28] (AVERAGE)
Jack Humphreys (23-6) [#6 WW] beat Dan Halvorsen (35-12-2) by TKO (Strikes) in 1:46 of round 3 (POOR)
Patrick Thomas (17-4) beat Mac Fuller (32-10) by TKO (Strikes) in 0:17 of round 2 (FANTASTIC)
Marlon John (13-0) [#3 LHW] beat Junior Patinkin (15-2) [#2 LHW] by TKO (Strikes) in 3:14 of round 2 (GREAT)
James Foster [c] (33-4-1) beat Raul Hughes (15-3) [#2 HW] by TKO (Strikes) in 2:40 of round 1 to retain the GAMMA Heavyweight title (GREAT)

Fight of the Night: Patrick Thomas vs. Mac Fuller
KO of the Night: James Foster
Submission of the Night: Toby Sorkin

Critical Success: Great
Commercial Success: Great

Henry Baldwin has sustained a knee injury and is going to be out for two months
Glenn Pimm has suffered a thigh injury and will miss two to six months of action

[duff88]

BYU 14: 2/9 - Just goes to show how unpredictable this sport can be at times. Claremont is a solid enough prospect who is one of the most exciting strikers, and he is only 21 years old. Lavoie ended his undefeated streak, showing a lack of finishing abilities and some problems on his feet. Finally, Foster really showed he can be a dominant force once he get his opponent on the ground, and he still stand at the top of the Heavyweightdivision.

Our attendances are still lower than those of Alpha-1 in Japan, but we are slowly building our reputation and I think we could reach Mid-Level National by the end of the year, just like Alpha-1 did earlier in the year.

[duff88]

Young Guns - Fighting the World
Friday, June 5th 1998
1,509 - Las Vegas, Nevada
Broadcast live on National Pride TV

LW: Patrik Pedersen (3-0) beat Matt Horowitz (1-2) by TKO (Strikes) in 4:06 of round 2 (GREAT)
HW: Emil Karlsson (2-0) beat MacGregor Dare (1-1) by Unanimous Decision [29-28; 29-28; 29-28] (VERY POOR)
MW: Ramon da Silva Ramos (4-1) beat Julio Gutierrez (1-1) by Unanimous Decision [30-27; 29-28; 30-27] (AVERAGE)
MW: Wes Hersch (2-0) beat Tristao Bosi (1-2) by TKO (Strikes) in 3:36 of round 1 (GOOD)

Fight of the Night: Patrik Pedersen vs. Matt Horowitz
KO of the Night: Patrik Pedersen
Submission of the Night: -

Critical Success: Decent
Commercial Success: Decent

[duff88]

GAMMA 27 - CHOSEN ONES
Live on June 26th 1998 from the Fleet Center in Boston, Massachusetts


Khru Duangjan (12-1) vs. Mike Watson (9-0) in the Light Heavyweight division

Khru Duangjan '12-1' (205lbs) vs. Mike Watson '9-0' (205lbs)
Rufus Stephens '16-1' (170lbs) vs. Darin Blood '13-4' (170lbs)
Ashley Ballard '10-0' (185lbs) vs. Thomas Smith '11-1' (185lbs)
Osmosis Benn '15-0' (205lbs) vs. Linfield Ballard '20-8' (205lbs)
Tank Manu'a '17-5' (265lbs) vs. Christopher Sharp '34-12' (255lbs)
Callum Henson '18-7' (170lbs) vs. Woody Fierstein '10-2' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Julio Correa '7-0' (230lbs) vs. Steve Mason '5-1' (242lbs) (PRELIM)
Carl Ratcliffe '16-5' (185lbs) vs. Matsuta Satou '16-8' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Manoel Cabral '4-0' (155lbs) vs. Ian Linderman '7-2' (155lbs) (PRELIM)

[BYU 14]

I can't believe Foster has not lost yet, he is not doing this odd in any other diary for WMMA3, of course that doesn't explain my other 6 misses, LOL.

Khru Duangjan '12-1' (205lbs) vs. Mike Watson '9-0' (205lbs)
Rufus Stephens '16-1' (170lbs) vs. Darin Blood '13-4' (170lbs)
Ashley Ballard '10-0' (185lbs) vs. Thomas Smith '11-1' (185lbs)
Osmosis Benn '15-0' (205lbs) vs. Linfield Ballard '20-8' (205lbs)
Tank Manu'a '17-5' (265lbs) vs. Christopher Sharp '34-12' (255lbs)
Callum Henson '18-7' (170lbs) vs. Woody Fierstein '10-2' (170lbs) (PRELIM)
Julio Correa '7-0' (230lbs) vs. Steve Mason '5-1' (242lbs) (PRELIM)
Carl Ratcliffe '16-5' (185lbs) vs. Matsuta Satou '16-8' (185lbs) (PRELIM)
Manoel Cabral '4-0' (155lbs) vs. Ian Linderman '7-2' (155lbs) (PRELIM