Legends sweeps with wins at Combat Fight League

The combined Legends MMA - Bond Squad MMA team went undefeated at CFL's Halloween Fight Fest in Oxnard.

The treats came a day early for Chris Reilly and Amir Rahnavardi’s four-man squad over Halloween weekend, as amateur fighters from Legends MMA and Bond Squad MMA swept Combat Fight League’s ‘Halloween Fight Fest’ on October 30^th at West Coast Jiu Jitsu in Oxnard, CA.

Reilly and Rahnavardi brought Bond Squad brothers ‘Pistol Pete’ and Andrew ‘Worst Case Scenario’ Mostowa, protégés of Rahnavardi’s, along with Legends MMA’s Dustin Mueller and Alan Jouban. Mueller and Peter walked away with decision victories, while Jouban and Andrew both finished their opponents in late in the first round.

“Everybody did real well. My brother’s fight went real well. Probably as good as anyone could have guessed or wanted it to go. Dustin, his fight, he did a lot of good things in it. And then Alan, he’s undefeated . . . that sort of keeps that ball rolling. With us all winning, it just made it a great night,” said Pistol Pete.

“Just knowing that they’re Amir’s guys, you feel like you’re part of the same team. Because Amir is just everybody’s boy. It’s camaraderie,” Jouban said of his teammates for the night.

As one part of the main event, Jouban wasn’t able to watch their matches until seeing video footage after the event, but their continual victories throughout the night helped keep his spirits high and focused during his warm-up backstage.

“When everyone’s winning, that energy, feeding off of it . . . It always puts you at ease when you see them happy and laughing.”

Andrew Mostowa concurred, saying that his older brother’s win helped set the tone for his own debut: “It helped a lot. It was like ‘alright, we have one win under our belt. Let’s make it another one.’ We’re pretty close, so it’s just one of those things.”

155 lbs. – Pete Mostowa (Bond Squad MMA) def. Carlos Sanchez (West Coast Jiu Jitsu) via decision

Pistol Pete’s previous match, at the first Combat Fight League event, was a lopsided affair in which West Coast Fight Academy favorite Francisco “Turtle” Estrada overwhelmed the then-debuting young gun. In this return match, however, Pete was more composed and relaxed.

Sanchez caught Pete with several shots and a takedown early in the first round. After some scrapping, Pete ended up on bottom and worked to set up a triangle or armbar. When Sanchez stood up, Pete slapped on a tight kneebar which had Sanchez close to tapping. Round two saw similar action. Pete had a mount on Sanchez, who flipped him over. Pete was able to set up an oma plata, but was too crowded against the cage to finish. Round three showcased both men’s stand-up skills. Pete pushed Sanchez against the cage and landed several knees before round’s end.

Judges awarded Pete Mostowa the victory by split decision.

“It was a real close match that went back and forth, and because I was working the whole time for submissions and the positions I was in, I was trying to get the better position and do something . . . That’s when the judges kind of saw that and gave me the decision,” theorized Pete.

(From left): Dustin "Dirty D" Mueller, "Pistol Pete" Mostowa, & Andrew "Worst Case Scenario" Mostowa

“Peter’s a really good fighter. He’s really complete. . . His last fight didn’t get him much experience. So this fight . . . he learned a lot,” noted Rahnavardi.

Dustin Mueller felt that Pete was particularly strong on the ground, noting “Pete was going for a lot of submissions on the ground. . . He seemed definitely more aggressive in this second fight. . . He was transitioning from one move to the other.”

205 lbs. – Dustin Mueller (Legends MMA) vs. Paul Elias (West Coast Fight Academy)

Though he came in with a significant height and reach advantage, Mueller went through several opponent changes, and subsequent weight class changes, which took its toll on his cardio reserves. After his initial fight (at light heavyweight) fell through, Mueller got booked for a heavyweight scrap, and subsequently started to add weight. However, one week before the fight, his light heavyweight match was back on, forcing Mueller to cut 15 pounds in a week, with no prior weight-cutting experience.

“I learned a lot about my body and my whole self. Because I never got to really cut weight. I just felt weak. It was a weird feeling. But thank God that I won. The next fight will be a lot different for me, for sure,” he said in retrospect.

Elias almost immediately shot in early in round one. He caught a knee from Mueller and used it to score a takedown. Elias stacked himself over Mueller on the ground and threw rights, trying to pass guard, but Mueller kept control of Elias’ head and set up an armbar. Mueller flipped over, but Elias stayed on him and threw headshots from behind. Mueller managed to pop his head out the back door, but Elias scrambled and sunk in a guillotine choke, stuffing Mueller in the corner and taking his back as the round ended. Round two saw Mueller keep the match on the feet for the most part, throwing sporadic combinations. Mueller pushed Elias against the cage with lefts and rights. Elias charged for a double-leg takedown and got it, but Mueller transitioned out to side control near round’s end. Round three saw Mueller kept control of the center of the cage and pressure Elias with combos. Elias went for another takedown and eventually took Mueller’s back, but Mueller flipped him over and threw rights from front facelock top position to the end of the match.

Judges awarded Dustin Mueller the victory by unanimous decision on scores of 29-28.

“Dustin’s married, and he’s got three kids, and he’s got a full-time job. So he’s one of those full weekend warriors. But he did good. He’s the guy that came to Legends when I first started teaching, and he knew nothing. And he was a fat guy, so how far he’s come, I’m so proud,” said Rahnavardi.

185 lbs. – Andrew Mostowa (Bond Squad MMA) def. Bobby Fiscer (TapouT Fight Team) via TKO, R1, 1:34.

The younger Mostowa brother came on strong and kept the pressure on Fiscer with combos and several low kicks. He forced Fiscer against the cage and threw knees until Fiscer went to the ground. Andrew stayed on him with ground and pound until the referee called the match at 1:34 of the first round, awarding the man they call ‘Worst Case Scenario’ with the TKO victory.

Rahnavardi couldn’t have been happier about Andrew’s performance, boasting “he stayed completely on game-plan, did exactly what I told him, and just destroyed him. We call him Worst Case Scenario because he’s more flexible than any human being that you’ve ever met. He’s got awe some hands, awesome kicks, and great ground. So he’s seriously like the Worst Case Scenario for anyone to fight.”

Being his debut match, Andrew conceded that nerves were a slight factor, but that “when you get in the ring, everything goes so fast that it just goes back to your instincts, I guess. And everything that you train, it just comes out.”

170 lbs. – Alan Jouban (Legends MMA) vs. Ruben Gudino (West Coast Fight Academy)

Gudino made first contact with several low kicks as Jouban took his time. Gudino got Jouban against the cage, but Jouban clinched and walked into him, getting a trip takedown. Jouban kept top control with a full mount, landing a few lefts. Gudino got to his feet briefly, but Jouban took him down again with a highlight reel belly-to-back slam. Jouban got full mount, but Gudino quickly swept him and landed in guard. Jouban switched to butterfly guard and set up the gogo plata. Gudino tapped moments later, at 1:57 of the first round.

(Clockwise): Chris Reilly, Alder Hampel, Alan Jouban, Dr. Joe Canu

For Jouban, this match represented a big personal accomplishment, and even something of a possible graduation to the pro ranks, a move which is supported by his head trainer, Chris Reilly. Earlier this year, Jouban set the goal of fighting five times before 2011, and not only hit that mark with the Gudino match, but went undefeated in dominating fashion, winning four times via first-round finish, twice by gogo plata submission.

“I didn’t know if I was gonna really be able to obtain that goal. Before I was averaging maybe one or two a year, because of injuries and whatnot. . . It’s kind of played out that way, so I’m extremely thrilled. If I can get my pro fight in before the next year, it would really complete what I wanted to do, starting at the beginning of this year,” he reflected.

To win via gogo plata in an MMA match is rare. To do it twice is almost lightning in a bottle. Ironically, Jouban had intended to keep it a striking match, after his opportunity to make his pro debut a Muay Thai match in Thailand fell through.

“But it was just weird, because it wasn’t as I envisioned the fight. I just kept picturing a beautiful KO. Like some kind of Muay Thai-related head kick or something of that sort,” joked Jouban. “Big props to Alder Hampel. I’ve been working a lot of jits with Eddie Bravo . . . I went to see Alder a couple weeks before my fight, just to kind of fine tune things, and he really came through for me. . . I’m glad that I’m making Eddie Bravo and everybody at 10th Planet proud.”

In other CFL “Halloween Fight Fest” action:

135 lbs. – Benji Gomez def. Jaime Leon Hernandez via decision.

155 lbs. – Nathan Speer def. William BJ Ingram via submission, R1, 1:57.

185 lbs. – Mike Jasper def. Joshua Ramirez via TKO, R2, 1:55.

135 lbs. – Michael Castanon def. Juan Estrada via split decision.

155 lbs. Female – Samantha Mosqueda def. Hayden Munoz via decision.

185 lbs. – Mose Aieti def. Anton Torres via decision.

Combat Fight League returns on December 2^nd with an amateur show at the Westlake Hyatt. Both Mostowa brothers expect to return to action on that show. Legends MMA is sponsored by X-Pole.

Jouban & Marenya explode at ‘Ground Zero’

Alan Jouban (left) and Eugene Marenya

Welterweights Eugene Marenya and Alan Jouban kept Legends MMA’s win streak alive-and-kicking this weekend with a pair of victories at Combat Fight League’s “Ground Zero” amateur MMA event, held at West Coast Jiu Jitsu in Oxnard.

In the main event, Jouban was put in the invader’s role, as he faced West Coast Jiu Jitsu’s star Mose Aieti, who has made waves this year in the SoCal amateur MMA scene. However, Jouban proved to have answers for the hometown hero’s questions, winning by unanimous decision. As the winner of what was declared the Match of the Night, Jouban was awarded a Polanti luxury watch.

“Tough dude. Good fight. It was a fight that I wanted, too. Because I’d been saying I don’t want a quick finish or anything. I want a war. . . I haven’t been out of the first round in my last three fights. So to get to go to a three-round decision, and to kick a guy in the head and have him come back wanting more, it was good,” commented Jouban after the fight.

Marenya, who fought at a 160 lb. catchweight in transition to welterweight, was particularly anxious to get in the cage. He was originally scheduled to fight Anthony Olivas of Bloodbank MMA the week prior, and, ironically, was the main event on that show. However, when rowdy and drunk fans in the crowd started their own fight during the match before Marenya’s, El Monte police and CAMO officials were forced to immediately shut the show down, leaving he and Olivas frustrated and unfulfilled.

“I was pissed off last week. And all that built up into this week, and I put it out there in the ring. I did my thang. Did what my coaches told me, and I banged,” said the North Carolina native.

Legends MMA's winning team

Also worthy of note about ‘Ground Zero’ was teammate Chris Brady, taking the cornerman reins for the night, covering for head trainer Chris Reilly. Along with Amir Rahnavardi and 10^th Planet brown belt Victor Webster, ‘Boulevard Brady’ was chief second for both Marenya and Jouban. With two successful fights, Brady was praised for his leadership, which, not surprisingly, resembled his longtime mentor’s.

“Brady is like a Little Reilly,” noted Marenya. “He really knows his stuff. He knows the advice to give you. Watches the fight really well. Amir is just a great guy. Great coach. One of the most experienced guys we got. I could hear Vic [Webster] advising. So I basically had all three in my corner, and I really appreciated all of them.”

Jouban noted that having Legends’ more experienced fighters corner their teammates not only helps them grow, but also brings the team itself closer together: “I think not only for me, but for my teammates, I think that it builds their confidence as well. In bringing fighters to fights, [cornering] them, warming them up. That way, we can work together as a team, like an actual cohesive unit. Where, if Reilly can’t make it, I could corner my buddy. I can warm them up. We know that we can all rely on each other.”

160 lbs. – Eugene Marenya vs. Marcus Aven (Right Cross)

Aven spent a good part of the first round working for a takedown, crowding Marenya against the cage and trying a trip, but Marenya fended it off incredibly well, sprawling and stuffing the double-leg shot, quickly escaping when they did finally get to the ground. Marenya opened up with lefts and rights, and then fended off another shot with overhooks and knees. Aven charged and did get Marenya on the ground, peppering him with lefts and taking his back, but Marenya pivoted around and was stacking Aven from above as Aven worked for an armbar as the round ended. Aven was determined to get the takedown in round two, trying to pull in Marenya’s legs against the cage for well over half the round. After breaking apart, Marenya landed a high kick that rocked Aven, who instinctively changed levels and grabbed for a single-leg, which he did score as the round ended. Marenya came alive in the third round, opening with a a low right kic and attacking with lefts and rights to the head, pushing Aven back against the cage until referee Ray Rothfelder stopped the match. Marenya was awarded the victory via TKO.

Marenya’s growth as a fighter, from his first West Coast match back in April, was markedly obvious, not just in his takedown defense, but, according to Jouban, his punches and kicks: “I think Eugene’s striking is really starting to come along. You could see the progression in his last three fights, leading up to this. It really showed because he landed the head kick. . . The guy wore himself trying to take him down. But the striking was the difference-maker. The guy didn’t want any part of the striking, but he had no choice. Eugene had the more dominant reach, and just athleticism.”

“I’ve been working with a lot of the good wrestlers at the gym. I’ve been working with some of the good jiu jitsu guys. Working on little tricks to defend the takedown. And it paid off,” said Marenya.

175 lbs. – Alan Jouban vs. Mose Aieti (West Coast Jiu Jitsu)

Alan Jouban was all chill backstage.

Aieti was active on the attack, taking Jouban down off a combo and working from inside Jouban’s guard. Jouban muted Aieti’s options by pulling mission control. Aieti tried a short slam to no avail. Once referee Ray Rothfelder stood them up, Jouban landed several Muay Thai knees, kicks, and punches to end the round. Both men were more cautious in engaging in round two, throwing selective kicks before Aieti charged in. But Jouban caught him with two more Muay Thai knees before being taken to the ground, where Aieti kept the fight. In round three, Aieti shot in for a takedown that Jouban caught with a front headlock, slipping in an underhook and several strong knees. Jouban let go and tagged Aieti with a right kick, then charged in with kicks and punches.  Aieti dropped Jouban with an overhand right and pounced, but Jouban caught him in a triangle choke that he held to round’s end.

Judges awarded Alan Jouban the match via unanimous decision, off scores of 29-28, 29-28, and 30-27.

Marenya had nothing but praise for the always-poised Jouban, commenting “aw, man. Superman! Great fight. . . He outworked the kid. . . I guess people now know not to stand-up with Legends guys. ‘Cuz Chris Reilly, Muay Thai. It’s just showing how great our stand-up reputation is. No one wants to stand with us.”

In other “Combat Fight League: Ground Zero” action that night:

135 lbs. – Juan Aguilera def. Juan Estrada via TKO, R2.

185 lbs. – JJ Mortimer def. Sid Sidberry via submission, R1.

150 lbs. – Francisco Estrada def. Peter Mostawa via submission, R1.

205 lbs. – John Hernandez def. Jarrod Huggins via KO, R1.

145 lbs. (female) – Ronda Rousey def. Hayden Munoz via submission, R1.

Legends MMA is sponsored by X-Pole, Melee Fight Gear, and MMA Elite.

CXF holds inaugural “Thursday Night Fight Series” with MMA action

Some call the night before Halloween “Devil’s Night,” and there probably couldn’t have been a more appropriate name for CXF’s inaugural “Thursday Night Fight Series” which took place on October 30^th at the El Monte Expo Center.  “Thursday Night Fight Series” is CXF’s new program of bringing various combat sports (boxing, Muay Thai / kickboxing, and mixed martial arts) to local fight fans on a monthly rotating basis, making CXF the only full-scale fight promotion in the state of California.  The debut event delivered no less than ten exciting mixed martial arts fights, drawing a packed house.

Match 1, 145 lbs. – Francisco Rivera vs. Chris Drumm (Team Wildman)

Drumm wins by TKO in the first round.

Match 2, 170 lbs. – R.J. Clifford vs. Dan Hernandez

R.J. Clifford uses ground-and-pound technique to win by TKO at 2:37 in the second round.

Match 3, 174 lbs. catch weight – Devin Howard (Combat Sports Wrestling) vs. Mano Taha (Team Diamond)

The first round saw Taha drop Howard early with a punch that almost ended the match, but Howard was able to hold on and survive.  In the second round, Howard controlled the action with clinch work and a takedown.  The third round delivered the most action, as Howard and Taha scrapped on the ground in a clash of dueling heel hooks.  Neither could get the submission, leading Howard to move into top control, directing the rest of the match with ground-and-pound combinations and an attempted rear naked choke.  Judges awarded the match to Devin Howard via unanimous decision.

Match 4, 145 lbs. – Angelo Catsoures (Subfighter MMA) vs. Ruben Vera (Chute Boxe)

These two submission experts came out trading blows, but eventually went to the ground when Vera scored a trip takedown.  However, Catsoures was able to transition and catch Vera with a triangle choke at 2:01 in the first round.

Match 5, 145 lbs. – Andrew Patlan vs. Brian Abram

Abram scored a takedown early in round one with a textbook hip toss, but Patlan was able to work his way to his feet.  In round two, Abram was in punching control, and again took Patlan down to the ground.  In round three, Patlan stuffed a takedown attempt, and then bulled Abram into a corner with a takedown attempt of his own.  The two nearly fell out of the ring before referee “Doc” Hamilton restarted the match.  Patlan and Abram continued to battle over a takedown and guillotine choke, respectively, to the end of the match.  Judges awarded the match to Brian Abrams by unanimous decision.

Match 6, 185 lbs. – Reggie Orr (Millennia Fight Team) vs. Fernando Bettega (Chute Boxe)

Round one saw Orr and Bettega jockey for position with a lot of clinch work.  At one point, Orr dropped Bettega with a right hook, but it was not enough to put the Brazilian away.  Bettega came out swinging in the second round.  Orr landed a solid body shot on Bettega, who shot in for a single leg takedown.  The third round saw more of the same, as Orr controlled the pace of the match and the center of the ring.  Bettega unsuccessfully shot for another takedown, but ended up on bottom with Orr in his guard until the clock ran out.  Judges scored the decision unanimously for Orr.

Match 7, 125 lbs. — Sofie Bagherdai (Millennia Fight Team) vs. Angela Hayes

In one of the more anticipated fights of the night, Angela Hayes came in from Colorado Springs, CO to challenge local fan favorite Sofie Bagherdai.  The two women used most of round one to feel each other out, with Bagherdai throwing a lot of high kicks that hit their mark, but didn’t seem to do much damage.  Hayes countered with a clinch and side headlock in the waning seconds of round one.  They continued trading kicks in round two, with Bagherdai opting to target low with kicks and follow up with two single leg attempts.  She continued her single leg campaign in round three, finally taking Hayes down and working ground-and-pound to the end of the match.  Judges awarded the match to Bagherdai via unanimous decision.

Match 8, 265+ lbs. – Tim Persey (No Limits) vs. Ross Clifton

This battle of superheavyweights was short-lived, as “Big Perm” Persey pushed “Grizzly” Clifton into the corner.  Clifton came out of the corner off-balance and caught a punch by Persey that put him to the mat.  Persey followed up with punches for a quick TKO win in 21 seconds of the first round.

Match 9, 155 lbs. – Toby Grear (True Warrior Fitness) vs. Anthony McDavitt (Gazza Academy)

In what many will point to as match of the night, Toby Grear and Anthony McDavitt fought a war which was clearly driven by personal drama as well as professional competition.  McDavitt attacked with several single leg takedown attempts, which Grear neutralized with overhooks and knees into the ropes.  McDavitt did drop Grear with an overhand right and got top position in Grear’s guard.  But from there, Grear pushed the action from the ground, landing elbows and almost escaping with au up-kick and roll-out.  After the first round ended, McDavitt shoved Grear away, fueling an already heated battle.   Round two saw McDavitt shoot in several times for takedowns, with Grear evading and countering with body kicks and low kicks.  In round three, Grear picked his shots selectively before dropping McDavitt with a hard straight left, then following up with a single kick to the midsection before the referee jumped in and stopped the fight.  Toby Grear wins by KO in the second round.

Match 10, 205 lbs. – Jaime Fletcher (Combat Sports Wrestling) vs. Nick Braker (West Coast Jiu-Jitsu)

In the main event, Braker and Fletcher fought another war of attrition, as each vied for control against the other in the clinch and in whizzer position that seemed to travel all over the ring.  At one point, Braker tripped to the mat, but Fletcher wasn’t able to capitalize on the potential takedown.  The clash for control continued in round two, as Braker and Fletcher continued in the clinch.  There was a lot of respect going on, as both were very cautious in throwing knees, and even more guarded in blocking them.  Braker finally forced the takedown.  As round two ends, Braker is going for a takedown and Fletcher is working for a guillotine choke.  In round three, Fletcher came out swinging, and at one point almost dropped Braker, who continued to fight for the single leg.  Braker spent tons of energy trying for the takedown, but doesn’t seem fatigued.  Fletcher worked  knees from the corner and eventually pulled Braker into his guard for a guillotine choke, ending the match by submission at 2:41 of the third round.

On November 13^th,  CXF returns to the El Monte Expo Center with more “Thursday Night Fight Series” action with a full card of boxing.  This event features the boxing return of former EliteXC Lightweight MMA champion Karl “K.J.” Noons (7-1, 5 KOs), who squares off against Ontario’s Alex Bogarin (8-6-3, 2 KOs).  Also in action will be the hometown heavyweight Javier “Monster” Mora (21-4-1, 17 KOs), stepping into battle with Jonathan “Too Sweet” Williams (7-5-1, 6 KOs).

Tickets for this event are available at www.californiaxtremefighting.com.  For more information, call 949-716-2557 or email Craig@mezsports.com.