The buzz surrounding last night’s CFA 11 card was the continuing story of transgender fighter Fallon Fox fighting for the third time professionally in WMMA. It’s fair to say that strictly down to the interest in Fox, the Championship Fighting Alliance were able to go from ustream to AXS.TV (formerly HDNet). Fox was the heavy odds favourite, up to -2000 on some books, but she did not destroy opponent Allanna Jones in the first round like many had expected.
Jones, a now 2-2 pro WMMA fighter, hung in there with Fox and showed no fear or hesitation, but it was Fox’s grappling skill that dictated the fight for the most part. Scoring takedowns and working from top at will, Fox still struggled with controlling Jones until she was able to use a unique North-South submission that was a shin assisted NS choke to illicit the tap. From a technical standpoint, Fox risks being bridged and reversed by a better opponent, but she gets credit for unique troubleshooting at the least. If she manages to win that submission more often, perhaps it could be nicknamed ‘The Fox Trap’. Considering this fight wasn’t a complete blowout may put some of Fox’s critics at ease that other WMMA fighters in her weight class can be more competitive with her, though Fox is going to court controversy for the rest of her career regardless.
In the main event, Mike Kyle left no doubt he was the superior fighter when he annihilated Travis Wiuff in just 21 seconds into the first round. As I mentioned in the preview, this was actually a rematch from 2010 that ended in a No Contest when it had been determined Kyle had TKO’d (doctors stoppage) Wiuff with shots landed after the bell. Kyle had originally retired after his loss to Gegard Mousasi in his final fight for Strikeforce, which is probably why he wasn’t brought into the UFC once Strikeforce had ceased operations. While he might not be that much of an asset to the UFC, he could make Heavyweight or Light Heavyweight a lot more interesting for a promotion like Bellator of World Series Of Fighting.
Showing it’s not just the Heavyweights who can end fights viciously and suddenly, Bellator Lightweight veteran Luis Palomino starched Robert Washington over 3 minutes into the first round after what began as a measured feeling out process from the opening bell. Palomino fired off a textbook jab-straight combo with the second punch ending the night of Washington. He even did some mid air cartwheels to celebrate.
Another Bellator vet Alexis Vila won his first fight at Flyweight by taking a unanimous decision over Czar Klavos, though it wasn’t easy as Klavos dropped Vila with a left hook, only for Vila to recover and land a similar blow himself. Vila’s timing and athleticism is still impressive for a man the wrong side of 40, though you would think this is his last chance to make a real go at his career at Flyweight. Assuming he’s no longer signed with Bellator, and despite his age, he’d make a welcome addition to UFC’s barely there Flyweight division.
Quick main results:
Mike Kyle def Travis Wiuff by KO R1 0:21 (Heavyweight)
Fallon Fox def Allanna Jones by Submission (north-south shin choke) R3 3:36 (Womens Featherweight)
Luis Palomino def Robert Washington by KO R1 3:26(Lightweight)
Sean Soriano (C) def Elvin Leon Brito by Unanimous Decision (Interim Featherweight Title)
Alexis Vila def Czar Sklavos by Unanimous Decision (Flyweight)
Eddie Gordon def Oscar Delgado by Submission (rear naked choke) R2 1:32 (Middleweight)
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