XFC 17: Apocalypse took place on Friday night in Jackson, Tennessee at the Oman Arena, and aired live on HDNet. In the main event, it was Eric Reynolds who squeaked out a unanimous decision win over Luciano Dos Santos. Although Dos Santos’ winning streak was snapped, the crowd thought he won the bout, and he most certainly won over some new fans. Reynolds did put up a fight, and this was far from a robbery, but the case could easily be made that Dos Santos controlled the majority of the fight.

In the co-main event, it was Marlon Moraes who got the upper hand on Jarrod Card with strikes early in the first round, and 48 seconds in the referee was forced to jump in and save Card. In another featured bout, Felice Herrig squared off against Patricia Vidonic, and it was all sizzle and no steak. Both talked up a big game going into the fight, and although Herrig clearly won all three rounds, it was far from a dominating performance over someone she had a clear advantage over. Instead of using her ‘superior striking skills,’ it was Herrig who was taking the grappler down with inside trips, and doing just enough to win the rounds. It takes two to tango, and Vidonic must have been injured, because she just didn’t show up to fight.

Below are the full results

MAIN CARD
Eric Reynolds defeated Luciano Dos Santos by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Marlon Moraes defeated Jarrod Card by knockout (punches) round 1, :48
Nick Newell defeated Chris Coggins by majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Felice Herrig defeated Patricia Vidonic by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Charles Blanchard defeated Johnny Davis by unanimous decision
Jason Wood defeated Ronnie Rogers by submission (guillotine) round 2
Joel Cooper defeated Amaechi Oselukwue by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

PRELIMINARY CARD

Teddy Holder defeated Bobby Carter by submission (armbar) Rd. 1 (3:27)
Bradley Stafford defeated Tommy Roberts by majority decision (28-28, 30-26, 29-27)
Steven Durr defeated Michael Manley by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

XFC 17 Poster

Continuing to thrive in the Southeast, Xtreme Fighting Championships is calling Tennessee home with its second of four strait shows happening throughout the volunteer state with XFC 17: Apocalypse taking place this Friday April 13, at the Oman Arena in Jackson, TN. The main card will be aired on HDnet.

Getting things started for this “must see” card will be a middleweight matchup between Joel Cooper (2-0) and Amaechi Oselukwue (5-4)
Once considered to be the best pound for pound amateur fighters in the state, the hometown favorite Joel Cooper has had a decorated amateur career holding several prestigious titles before turning pro. Cooper is coming off a decision victory in his last outing and is looking to make it two in a row.
Cooper’s opponent, Amaechi Oselukwue will be making his second appearances in the XFC cage as he too is looking for his second win in a row. Up until XFC 16, “AO” added 4 straight losses (3 by decision) to his then 2-1 record. “ The Infamous AO” impressed XFC President John Prisco at his last bout in Knoxville coming in on just a few weeks notice and knocked out the heavy handed Julio Gallegos in just over a minute. “He’s had some controversial decisions that didn’t necessarily go his way. When you watch the video of his fights, he’s so dynamic and so raw. He has a ton of upside and, in all honesty, could be the most athletic guy on the card,” stated Prisco.

Lightweights Ronnie Rogers (10-7) vs. Jason Wood (5-1) is the second fight on the card followed by another welterweight bout between Ultimate fighter 11 veteran Charles Blanchard (9-2) vs. Johnny “JJ” Davis (13-6)

Jason Wood once fought Jarrod Card for the XFC featherweight title. The weight cut to 145 proved to be to taxing on Wood. ““I felt like it killed me having to cut almost 40 pounds. I need to be at lightweight. The fight with Rogers will be at 155 and it’s a better cut. I can cut 25 pounds and still fight to my potential,” says Wood.
Charles Blanchard originally scheduled to fight UFC Vet Corey Hill in the co-main event but has now been re-routed to no face Johnny Davis in welterweight contention.

All eyes are sure to be on this “Little” fight in a Women’s 115 lb. bout as “Little” Patricia Vidonic (5-2) will battle Felice “Little Bulldog” Herrig (5-4). Felice Herrig is coming off of a very disappointing unanimous decision loss against Carla Esparza back at XFC 15 and will look to get her first win under XFC’s banner. Herrig was the IKF Women’s Bantamweight North American Champion in 2005 and 2006, she also won the 2008 Pro Muay Thai United States Bantamweight title. This skilled striker is now training under Bellator Champion Jeff Curran, and with two of her five victories coming by way of submission; she is also showing her evolution as a mixed martial artist.

Patricia Vidonic was sailing on a five fight win streak until she met with female standout and Bellator vet.,Jessica Aguilar back in Febuary. However with three of her five wins coming way of submission, Vidonic will looks to capitalize on an area she feels Herrig is weakest and bring this fight to the ground. “I have had only 2 losses in my pro career, one loss in my pro debut, to an opponent with 11 previous pro fights, and one to the #2 ranked female in the world.” Vidonic goes on to say, “So Felice, when that cage door locks, you had better hope you have been training even half as hard as I have. So for you saying that I am going to do what every other girl does, I am NOT every other girl you have ever fought. I am getting stronger, more skilled and smarter every day. See you in Tennessee.”

The nights feature fight has been getting so much buzz you would think it’s the main event. Undefeated Nick Newell (6-0) and Chris Coggins(5-1) are going to show the fans a fun fight to watch.
Newell has captured the hearts of the MMA community when he made his XFC debut last December. At XFC 15 ‘Tribute’ Newell defeated jiu jitsu ace Denis Hernandez in just over one minute. What is really impressive is the way that Newell submitted Hernandez with a heel hook, and did I mention he did it without a left forearm or hand? That is due to Newell having been born with this condition called congenital amputation, which means his left arm stopped developing just past his elbow. His story was recently featured on HDNet’s Inside MMA where he was a guest on the show.
No doubt the fan favorite in this fight will be Clarksville, TN’s own “Dodgin’Coggins”. Chris Coggins is sporting 3 fight win streak with them coming all by way submission. Coggins has a wrestling base, great ju-jitzu and explosive stand-up ability. Though not much is known about Coggins, he has assured fans he is not afraid to hand Newell the first loss of his career.

The co-main event features a Bantamweight bout as the former Featherweight champion Jerrod “The Wild Card” Card (12-5-1) faces off against Marlon Moraes (7-4-1). Card has been absent from competition since his XFC Featherweight Championship defense against Louis Palomino way back in December of 2010.
As his two Brazilian Muay Thai national championships underline, Moraes is no joke when it comes to striking skills. Moraes trains with the likes of Edson Barboza at The Armory in South Florida and has been labled by the press as the next version of Barboza.
With the Bantamweight title vacated since 2010, this fight could very well be a deciding factor in the future Bantamweight division. If Card establishes himself in the division with a win over Moraes, he may find himself in the lead for the next opportunity to wrap another the XFC strap around his waist.

Lightweight Headliners Luciano Dos Santos (9-5) Eric Reynolds (14-5) will end out the evening in the XFC 17’s main event.
Dos Santos, who makes his XFC debut, carries a three-fight win streak will be looking for his fourth straight victory at XFC 17: ‘Apocalypse’. “Macarrao” made a name for himself from submitting fighters in Brazil to knocking out opponents here in the states, 2 of the last 3 in fact, in the first round. The American Top Team product is rapidly evolving and with only two decisions in nine career victories Dos Santos has proven himself as a man who finishes fights and puts on a great showing.
Reynolds has developed a reputation as one of the most exciting lightweights in the country. Since his fist defeat in 2008 Reynolds has had a roller coaster career of wins and losses going from 9-0 to 14-5. Reynolds looked very impressive in his win in his XFC debut over Jonatas Novaes in December, and aims to secure 2 in a row and make a home for himself in the as the top lightweight under the XFC Banner.

Here is the complete fight card along with each fighter’s official weight from the weigh-ins:

MAIN CARD (HDNet)
Luciano Dos Santos (155lbs) vs Eric Reynolds (155lbs)
Marlon Moraes (135.2lbs) vs Jarrod Card (135.2lbs)
Chris Coggins (152.6lbs) vs. Nick Newell (151.4lbs)
Patricia Vidonic (114.6lbs) vs. Felice Herrig (114.6lbs)
Charles Blanchard (176.4lbs) vs Johnny Davis (173.6lbs)
Ronnie Rogers (153.6lbs) vs Jason Wood (154.4lbs)
Joel Cooper (183.4lbs) vs Amaechi Oselukwue (185lbs)
Preliminary Card
Teddy Holder (202.4lbs) vs. Bobby Carter (206lbs)
Bradley Stafford (186.2lbs) vs Tommy Roberts (187lbs)
Steven Durr (145.2lbs) vs Michael Manley (144.6lbs)

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