Hidden Talent MMA impressed in their second show “Who’s Next” on Saturday, November 10th. The thirteen amateur fight card took place at the Libertyville Sports Complex in Libertyville, Illinois. MMARecap’s Mike Finch was on the card and the night was headlined by Sean Gee taking on Richard Dey for the vacant bantamweight title.

The main event was for the Hidden Talent bantamweight championship as Richard Dey took on Sean Gee. The first round Dey immediately tried to pull guard, but Gee held him against the cage and worked short punches bloodying up Dey’s right eye. After the two separated it was all Gee as he stalked Dey and landed punches at will. The second round Gee again landed a big punch, but when he followed Dey to the ground, the two had a crazy back and forth going after heel hooks and knee bars. Dey was more effective as Gee was playing more defense, but still able to survive. Both fighters with their opponents ankle in danger threw punches that connected. The third round Gee came out even more pissed off and he connected on a big right hand. He followed Dey down again but this time he found his mark and several punches connected, knocking Dey out and forcing the ref to stop the fight.

Tom Angelhoff took on Alvin Jones in the co-main event. The first round Jones took Angelhoff down and Angelhoff was able to grab half guard. He used it to sneak around to the back of Jones where he worked punch after punch. Jones tried to escape while Angelhoff was looking for the rear naked choke. Jones rolled and Angelhoff followed, getting the mount. The second round had one of the craziest starts ever to a fight. Jones landed a punch, Angelhoff missed with a kick but slipped and fell. Jones went to swarm and Angelhoff dove under and tripped him down. Angelhoff stood and went for a diving spinning backfist that missed it’s mark. He wound up on top though and worked punch after punch until the ref stopped the fight.

MMARecap’s own Mike Finch took on Dillan Escobedo. Finch looked to work leg kicks to start the fight but Escobedo was countering them. Finch landed a good punch and Escobedo quickly shot for a takedown. He got it against the cage and had the mount. Escobedo started to throw punches in bunches and it looked like Finch could have been in trouble. Finch was able to stand up and escaped. Escobedo took him down again, and Finch was working from within his guard. Finch immediately threatened with a triangle choke and then transitioned to an armbar. The two rolled and the armbar became deeper forcing Escobedo to tap.

Adrian Ortega made his amateur debut against Franklin Springfield. Ortega nearly landed a high kick at the start and Springfield connected with a good left hand. Ortega took him down after the punch but Springfield was able to stand up. Springfield then took Ortega down and spent most of the round in his guard. With ten seconds left, the ref stood them up and Ortega swarmed Franklin as time ran out. The second round Ortega landed a good kick to the body of Franklin and followed it up with punches. Franklin went tumbling to the canvas and Ortega needed just two more punches before the ref stopped the fight.

James Bochnovich quickly took John Ducsynski to the ground. Ducsynski threatened with an armbar, but Bochnovich was able to escape. Bochnovich was then able to spin to the back and he looked for the hooks. Once he got them in, he put his arm under the chin of Ducsynski and fell backwards. The choke was tight and the tap was quick.

The fastest fight of the night was between Keith Burks and Giovanni Navarete. Burks was first to land and Navarete shot for a takedown. He unfortunately left his neck open and Burks was quick to grab the guillotine. Navarete tried to fight his way out, even standing and attempt a slam. But it was no use as Burks held on tight and Navarete was choked to sleep.

Timothy Phinney earned the first knockout of the night over Isaias Solano. The two came out swinging, but Phinney worked for a guillotine choke. Solano took him down but Phinney quickly reversed. The two stood back up and Solano worked for a takedown again. Phinney was able to defend and took mount. Once there hey started to throw several punches knocking Solano out cold.

Tyler Dempsey was a huge fan favorite against Zach Stander. Stander landed a good one-two that hurt Dempsey and Dempsey was forced to shoot for a takedown. He got it and then quickly passed to mount. Stander tried to escape the position, but Dempsey was able to ride him out and land multiple punches. The second round the two traded again, but it was Dempsey who hurt Stander this time. The fight went to the ground and Dempsey went to work with big punches and even bigger knees to the body. Stander tried to escape, but ate a huge knee to the chest as he was trying to stand and Dempsey finished with multiple punches forcing the ref to stop the fight.

The first fight to go to the third round featured Anthony Richmond taking on Shane Edwards. Richmond landed some big punches to start each round, forcing Edwards to shoot for a takedown. Each time Richmond worked for either a D’Rce or a guillotine choke and the fight would get to the ground. Richmond repeatedly took mount and threw punch after punch while working for a submission. In the second Edwards was able to escape and wound up on top only to be swept with a kimura. The third round Richmond transitioned from the guillotine to a triangle choke. Edwards tried to escape but each time Richmond defended well. Eventually the choke was tight enough and Edwards was forced to tap to the choke.

Heavyweights Carlos Brown and Robert Little were up next. The two immedately came out swinging and Brown landed a good jab before the two clinched. Brown and Little jockeyed for position and when separating, Brown landed a big knee to the groin of Little. After time out was called and the fight restarted, Little landed two huge punches. Brown dove down and worked for a takedown. Little defended it at first, but Brown spun to get the back of Little. He landed a big punch and followed it up with a knee to the body. Little was hurt and Brown looked to stand up only to turn around and throw another massive knee to the body of Little. Several punches and a couple of knees to the body later and Little was forced to tap due to the strikes.

Albert Solano was the shorter fighter against James Brown but he made quick work of closing the distance and took the fight to the ground. Brown was able to reverse and got the mount, but Solano scrambled and was able to stand up. Brown grabbed his back and worked for a belly to back suplex, but Solano was ready and landed on all fours. He then rushed Brown and the two scrambled. Solano grabbed a front headlock and sprawled and spent most of the round trying to secure an anaconda choke. The ref stood the two up with about twenty seconds left only to have Solano take Brown down again. The second round Solano again with the quick takedown and he looked to get the back of Brown. Brown defended and was able to get Solano’s back. He put both hooks in and then worked to get his arm under the chin of Solano. Once it was there, he squeezed and Solano was forced to tap.

Ramin Pahlavan and Rian Parsell was a strange fight. The first round the two came out swinging and when clinched worked knees. Pahlavan was first to attempt a standing guillotine, but Parsell escaped. The two battled again and this time it was Parsell working a standing guillotine choke. He pulled guard to make the choke tighter, but Pahlavan escaped. The rest of the round was Pahlavan working on top from within the guard of Parsell. The second round Pahlavan quickly grabbed a guillotine but Parsell tripped him and avoided the choke. He swept him and worked to establish the top position. The two stood and Pahlavan landed a low knee. Time out was called and after the restart Pahlavan landed three more low blows before the ref noticed and called a time out. He then took a point away. During the time out Pahlavan quit awarding Parsell the victory.

The first fight of the night Jake Childers took on Angel Solano. Childers quickly took the fight to the ground and worked for a keylock on Solano. Solano was able to escape the submission and stood up. He landed a nice jab, but then ate a knee to the body. Childers again took the fight to the ground and Solano was quick to pull half guard. Childers tried to get his leg free and get to mount and when he did, he grabbed ahold of Solano’s arm. The two summersaulted, but Childers held onto the kimura and Solano was forced to tap.

Quick Results
Jake Childers defeated Angel Solano by kimura at 1:51 of round one
Rian Parsell defeated Ramin Pahlavan by retirement at 1:36 of round two
James Brown defeated Albert Solano by rear naked choke at 1:47 of round two
Carlos Brown defeated Robert Little by tapout due to strikes at 2:33 of round one
Anthony Richmond defeated Shane Edwards by triangle choke at 0:48 of round three
Tyler Dempsey defeated Zach Stander by technical knockout at 0:56 of round two
Timothy Phinney defeated Isaias Solano by knockout at 2:30 of round one
Keith Burks defeated Giovanni Navarete by guillotine choke at 0:31 of round one
James Bochnovich defeated John Ducsynski by rear naked choke at 2:51 of round one
Adrian Ortega defeated Franklin Springfield by knockout at 0:20 of round two
Mike Finch defeated Dillan Escobedo by armbar at 1:39 of round one
Tom Angelhoff defeated Alvin Jones by technical knockout at 1:00 of round two
Sean Gee defeated Richard Dey by technical knockout at 0:59 of round three

Rockford Cagefighting Championship’s Rumble at the Resort took place on Saturday, June 9th from the Clocktower Resort in Rockford, Illinois. The night of action saw a mix of professional and amateur mixed martial arts in front of a sold out crowd. Read on for the full recap of the professional bouts and highlights from the amateur portion.

The main event featured a late replacement Rob Morrow taking on Shayne Adams. Both fighters came out swinging with bad intentions. The two clinched and Adams scored some big knees. He continued his assault to Morrow’s body with big punches. Morrow then threw a big knee up the middle and Adams went down. Morrow followed up with several punches knocking Adams out.

Kenny Booker in his second pro fight took on Jay Ellis who has nearly sixty pro fights. Ellis swarmed at the opening but Booker escaped and looked for a flying knee. The knee missed as Ellis ducked under the attack, but he slipped. Booker followed Ellis to the canvas and worked from within his guard. Ellis was able to hold Booker down and prevent Booker from posturing. Booker worked short elbows and hammer strikes trying to get his posture, but Ellis held on. The ref stood them up and Booker landed a beautiful counter right to Ellis kick dropping Ellis. Booker taunted Ellis to stand backup, and Ellis surprised Booker with a takedown and even got the mount. Ellis started to throw punch after punch, but Booker used the cage to roll over and wound up on top. Ellis looked to escape, unfortunately Booker took his back and secured a rear naked choke.

Anthony Goodwin was the hometown favorite against Jesse Coca, but Coca didn’t want to give Goodwin any edge. Coca came out with a front kick, then started to unload punch after punch against a covered up Goodwin. He let his knees fly and more punches, but Goodwin persevered and then rushed forward for a takedown. Once on top he started landing big right hands and then opted to let Coca stand. Hands were flying by both fighters, but Goodwin would take the fight back to the ground. Coca attempted a heel hook on Goodwin, and Goodwin countered with a heel hook of his own. Neither fighter was going to tap, and after Coca let go of the submission, Goodwin did as well only to follow up with a big punch. Goodwin stood up and again got another takedown. Coca tried to escape, but Goodwin was able to sprawl. He transitioned from a D’Rce and then switched to a mounted guillotine. The choke was tight and Coca was forced to tap.

The first half of the fight between Mike Cannon and Mike Sanchez was vastly different than the second half. Sanchez landed a big right hand and then worked for a takedown. He got it and was able to escape the guillotine attempts by Cannon as Cannon tried to counter the position. Cannon then switched to a kimura and Sanchez looked like he might be in trouble. Cannon used the submission to stand back up and that’s when the fight completely turned in his favor. Cannon immediately took the fight to the ground and passed to mount. He threw several elbows and Sanchez tried to sit up to escape the bad position. Unfortunately Cannon used it to secure not only the back, but a rear naked choke. Sanchez tried to put two on one to pull the arm down, but he wasn’t able to and had to tap.

Matt Wikoff immediately took the center of the cage but Damian Norris scored a leg kick. Wikoff shot for a takedown and after an adjustment was able to get the double leg and scooped Norris up and slammed him down. Norris did a good job of tying up Wikoff to prevent any attacks going through. Wikoff tried to utilize a standing guard pass, but it didn’t happen and the ref stood the two fighters up. Once standing, Norris found his range with his right hand. Wikoff resorted to a takedown attempt, but Norris defended and wound up on top. He started to throw elbow after elbow and it looked like the fight was nearly over. Wikoff persisted through the punishment and Norris opted to bring the fight back to the feet. He scored with more straight rights, and looked for a takedown of his own. Wikoff countered with a guillotine and it was in deep. Norris looked to be fighting his way out, but then he went to sleep and the fight was over.

Dennis Dombrow is known for his submissions and that was what he was hunting for against Jeff Lavallee. Lavallee clinched Domrbow up against the cage and worked small punches. Dombrow circled out and then shot for a single leg takedown. He got it and shortly after passed to half guard. Dombrow meticulously worked short punches to the head and body while trying to sneak his other leg out and get the mount. When he couldn’t pass to mount, he opted to pass to side control. From there he placed his knee on Lavallee’s belly and threw an elbow. He passed to mount but only to jump over to get Lavallee’s arm. Lavallee started to tap, but the ref didn’t see it. Dombrow started to let go, but Lavallee pushed on and got caught in a triangle choke. Lavallee tried to escape, but then an adjustment by Dombrow forced the tap.

Amateur Highlights
Tom Angelhoft made quick work of Corey Thorton. Thornton shot for a takedown and worked a single leg, but Angelhoft was able to defend. As Thorton dropped to get leverage to get the takedown, Angelhoft snuck around and took his back. A couple of punches were thrown, then he was able to sink in the rear naked choke for the win.

James Bochnivic denied Blake Davis a touch of gloves when it was offered and instead threw a punch. He then worked for a standing guillotine choke but Davis pushed him up against the cage to defend and escape. Bochnivic circled out and started to throw punch after punch. Davis was forced to shoot for a takedown, but Bochnivic was able to sprawl and took a side back control position. Davis tried to stand and escape, but Bochnivic used the opportunity to circle to the back. Once he had his hooks in, he started to throw rights and lefts at will. His corner yelled for him to enjoy the moment and shortly after the ref was forced to stop the fight.

Alvin Jones landed a right hand that dropped Sam Horwitz. Horwitz was trying to roll out, but the ref stopped the fight and it was called off. Horwitz protested, but it was already over before it seemed to begin.

Another quick finish as Chad Mashinter took on Mike Miller. After a touch of gloves, Miller threw first, but Mashinter clinched to defend. Mashinter then grabbed a guillotine and pulled guard. Miller tried to escape, but when he wasn’t able to pop his head out, he knew he was going to go to sleep and opted to tap instead.

Wanting to make a splash, Zack Davis showed how powerful his hands were against Cameron Lindsay. But before he had an opportunity to land fist to face, he landed a massive body kick that had the crowd going crazy. Davis tried to land a spinning back fist, but Lindsay ducked under and worked for a takedown. Davis fought out of it, landing a big right hand. Lindsay gave up the takedown attempt and went to regain his composure but Davis followed, landing two more punches before Lindsay was unconscious.

Professional Quick Results
Dennis Dombrow defeated Jeff Lavallee by triangle choke at 2:53 of round 1
Matt Wikoff defeated Damian Norris by technical submission (guillotine) at 3:59 of round 1
Mike Cannon defeated Mike Sanchez by rear naked choke at 2:55 of round 1
Anthony Goodwin defeated Jesse Coca by guillotine choke at 4:24 of round 1
Kenny Booker defeated Jay Ellis by rear naked choke at 4:46 of round 1
Rob Morrow defeated Shayne Adams by knockout at 0:39 of round 1

Amateur Quick Results
Tom Angelhoff defeated Corey Thorton by rear naked choke at 1:06 of round 1
Dylan Roads defeated Johnny Rodrigues by tapout due to strikes at 2:10 of round 1
James Bochnivic defeated Blake Davis by technical knockout at 2:20 of round 1
Zack Davis defeated Cameron Lindsay by knockout at 0:34 of round 1
Chad Mashinter defeated Mike Miller by guillotine at 0:20 of round 1
Nelson Lebron defeated Kelly Jordan by tapout due to strikes at 2:40 of round 1
Robbie Strong defeated John Strader by tapout due to strikes at 1:05 of round 1
Mike Turnmire defeated Gary Rhoades via guillotine choke at 0:32 of round 1
Theron Neisus defeated Willie Rimmer by knockout at 2:17 of round 1
Alvin Horwitz defeated Alvin Jones by technical knockout at 0:06 of round 1
Danny Martinez defeated Joe Hanley by unanimous decision
Carlos DeLaMaria defeated Niko Gasper by knockout at 1:59 of round 1