For this week’s look at the continuing careers of UFC, PRIDE, and Bellator veterans, we turn first to Russia, where Absolute Championship Berkut put on its 41st event, featuring a fight between heavyweight talent Denis Goltsov and former UFC heavyweight title challenger Paul Buentello.
Buentello began his MMA career with a lengthy stint on the American Southwest circuit, during which time he fought Dan Severn, Ricco Rodriguez, and late UFC champion Evan Tanner. He debuted in the UFC in 2005 with a first-round knockout of Justin Eilers and would quickly find himself in a title fight with Andrei Arlovski. He was felled in a mere 15 seconds. Buentello rebounded with a knockout of then-undefeated Gilbert Aldana, but failed contract negotiations would nevertheless see him and the UFC part ways. Only a year later, “The Headhunter” again found himself contending for a major title, fighting Alistair Overeem for the vacant Strikeforce strap, but he would again succumb to strikes. More recently, Buentello has enjoyed a successful run in the UAE-based Abu Dhabi Warriors, where he’s picked up (T)KO wins over Bellator vet Eric Prindle and former Top 10 talent Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou.
In the main event of ACB 41, however, Buentello faced a beast of a different order in Denis Goltsov. Goltsov spent the opening minutes of the fight working a stiff jab that left Buentello confounded and out of range. Then, three minutes into the round, Goltsov threw a right kick that landed flush on the jaw, sending the stiffened Buentello crashing to the mat. This make’s for Goltsov’s thirteenth straight victory, eleven of which have come by knockout or submission; the streak includes wins over Brett Rogers, Mike Kyle, and James McSweeney, whom he also knocked out with a headkick. Buentello, meanwhile, slips to 6-3 since his last major appearance: a fight with Cole Konrad in Bellator.
Check out Goltsov vs. Buentello here. Trigger warning: after all these years, commentators are still pronouncing Buentello’s name “Buen-uh-tello.” Get it together, you goofs.
Also on the card, TUF: The Smashes alum Ben Alloway (17-7, 1-2 UFC) looked to extend a recent winning streak to four in his fight with Sharaf Davlatmurodov (9-0-1). The power of Davlatmurodov would prove too great, though, with Alloway catching a kick to the body that left him crumpled along the fence. It’s the first time in his professional career that Alloway has lost by TKO; he’s 4-2 since returning to regional competition in 2014.
Watch Davlatmurodov vs. Alloway here.
Fellow TUF: The Smashes contestant Mike Wilkinson (9-3, 2-2 UFC) also suffered a loss that night, dropping a unanimous decision to ostensible underdog Soso Nizharadze (3-2-0). It was Wilkinson’s first fight since he was cut from the UFC earlier this year.
And earlier that evening, Michal Andryszak (17-6-0) put away Tim Hague (21-13, 3-0 WSOF, 1-4 UFC) some 30 seconds into Round 1. Hague eagerly attempted to fight at close-quarters, and with good reason–a quick kick to the head sent the UFC veteran to the mat, where he clutched at his face as the referee waved off the fight. Hague is 1-4 in his last five; off of his losses have come by (T)KO. Andryszak has won three straight.
You can watch Andryszak vs. Hague here.
Meanwhile, in Minnesota, Chico Camus (16-7-1NC, 3-4-1NC UFC) improved to 2-0 in his post-UFC career with a unanimous decision win over Czar Sklavos (12-5-0). Camus halts Sklavos’s two-fight winning streak.
And at Shooto’s latest event in Tokyo, Keita Ishibashi (7-5-1) scored an upset win over Tatsuya Ando (5-2-0) thanks to a rear-naked choke in Round 2. Ando was featured on Road to UFC: Japan, in which he lost in the opening round to eventual finalist Teruto Ishihara. Ando is 2-2 since appearing on the show.
Other Results
Cage Rage at the Diamond 2
– Ed West (20-10, 4-4 Bellator, 0-3 IFL) defeats Chris Hernandez (3-3-0) by triangle choke half a minute into Round 1. West, who fought in the IFL as part of Don Frye’s Tucson Scorpions, is 2-0 since a TKO loss in WSOF.
Victory FC 52
– Dakota Cochrane (25-10, 0-2 Bellator) defeats Jason Witt (7-3-0) by rear-naked choke in Round 2. Cochrane is 7-2 since appearing in Bellator.
Hardrock MMA 81
– Billy “Mojo” Horne (16-4, 1-0 Bellator) defeats Anthony Trotter (4-4-0) by rear-naked choke in Round 1. Horne has won six in a row, which includes an appearance in Bellator.
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