XFO 41: Outdoor War 7 took place at Sideouts Bar and Grill in Island Lake, Illinois. The day of action saw twenty seven mixed martial arts fights. The amateurs kicked the day off just after 2pm and the pros took to the cage around 8pm after a rain delay.

The professional card saw many fan favorites including Eric Schafer, Chris Albandia, Will Brooks, Christian Reynoso, Greg Reddington, Kent Rexford and Joey Diehl.

A full recap of the professional fights as well as the quick results from the event can be found here.

The first professional fight of the night was quick as Chris Haney needed just ten seconds to knock Dexter Wright out cold. Haney came out with a big leg kick, reset and then threw a high kick that sent Wright to the canvas unconscious.

Team Curran’s Mike Marrello made his return to action against Brad Scholten. Marrello opened with a big leg kick, and Scholten tried to counter. Scholten then threw a leg kick of his own, but Marrello caught it and threw a straight right. He followed it up with a high kick that rocked Scholten. Marrello quickly swarmed and nearly finished, but Scholten started to regain his composure. Marrello passed to mount and landed punch after punch and elbow after elbow. Scholten tried to use the cage to escape but ultimate gave up his back. Once Marrello had his back, he sunk in a fight ending rear naked choke.

Up next was fan favorite Kent Rexford taking on Quartus Stitt. Stitt came out with a leg kick and rushing jabs that forced Rexford against the cage. Both fighters exchanged knees before Rexford landed a clean uppercut. Stitt landed a low knee and time was called for him to recover. After the restart the fighters quickly clinched again and dirty boxed. Rexford decided to put the fight on the ground and had a beautiful trip takedown landing in mount. Stitt was able to quickly pull guard, but he spent nearly the rest of the round on his back eating punches and elbows. At one point Stitt escaped and got back to his feet, but was quickly taken down again. At the start of the second round Rexford landed a big uppercut on Stitt as he was rushing forward. Rexford followed with a swarm of punches and Stitt appeared to defend well. Rexford continued his assault and Stitt gave up his back, only to eat more punches forcing the ref to stop the fight.

Flyweights Joey Diehl and Josh Epps went to war. Diehl tried to keep his distance with leg kicks and a push kick. Epps landed a straight jab and as Diehl was backing up, he slipped on the canvas. Epps landed a massive knee that was heard through out the arena. Diehl quickly recovered and took the fight to the ground. Diehl worked for a heel hook, but couldn’t get it. He then transitioned to an arm triangle and it looked tight. Epps kept his composure and worked to escape, forcing Diehl to let go of the choke. Diehl from the mount threw a big elbow and then again looked to finish with the arm triangle choke. This time he was able to get the right pressure as Epps tapped out just as he was about to go to sleep.

Will Brooks kept his undefeated streak going by submitting Joe Richardson. Brooks opened the fight with a high kick that just barely missed the mark. Both fighters looked to box and it was Brooks who was getting the better of the exchanges. Brooks then dropped down and scored a big takedown on Richardson landing in side control. Richardson didn’t panic and he was able to escape and stand back up. Brooks again looked for the high kick and just missed and Richardson tried for one of his own. Brooks immediately took the fight to the ground again and worked elbows from half guard. While trying to pass to mount, Richardson gave up his back and Brooks controlled from there. Richardson tried to stand up and Brooks looked to suplex him, but Richardson quickly dropped back down to the canvas. Brooks transitioned to an armbar from the back and fought for it. Richardson defended it for a bit, but once the arm was fully extended he had no choice but to tap.

Greg Reddington and Christian Reynoso put on an action packed three-round fight. Reddington was making his professional debut and didn’t look nervous at all. Reddington in the first round took the fight down after a body kick by Reynoso. Reddington was patient in looking for his openings for attacking and capitalized when they were there. Not finding much to work with, Reddington stood up and let Reynoso stand too. With both fighters clinched against the cage, Reynoso jumped for a guillotine, but Reddington was able to escape. The second and third round were much of the same as both fighters looked to start the fight out strong. Both times it was Reddington who landed the better combo and then took the fight to the ground. Reddington controlled the action on the ground and ultimately won the unanimous decision.

The co-main event featured Casey Dyer taking on Dan Aguirre. Both fighters looked to just go out and let it all out. Both fighters were exchanging kick after kick and punch after punch. There was hardly any time where either fighter was not throwing a strike. The fighters worked from the clinch and threw multiple knees. Dyer decided to change the game up with a takedown and scored it rather easily. Unfortunately he left his neck open and Aguirre grabbed a hold of it with a guillotine choke and squeezed until Dyer tapped.

Eric Schafer and Chris Albandia headlined the night of action. The fight marked the first fight for both fighters in fifteen months and the first fight for Schafer at middleweight. Albandia took the center of the cage and looked to keep Schafer on the outside with leg kicks. Schafer landed a right hand that seemed to hurt Albandia and followed it up with another combo that definitely rocked his opponent. Albandia then shot for a takedown and Schafer grabbed a guillotine. Albandia escaped and was patient working body punches. Schafer grabbed Albandia’s arm and then threw it outside of his leg to set up the triangle choke. After a quick adjustment, the choke was in tight and Albandia was forced to tap.

Professional Quick Results

Chris Haney defeated Dexter Wright by knockout at 0:10 of round 1

Mike Marrello defeated Brad Scholten by rear naked choke at 1:16 of round 1

Kent Rexford defeated Quartus Stitt by TKO at 1:17 of round 2

Joey Diehl defeated Josh Epps by arm triangle choke at 1:57 of round 1

Will Brooks defeated Joe Richardson by armbar at 3:49 of round 1

Greg Reddington defeated Chrisitan Reynoso by unanimous decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27

Dan Aguirre defeated Casey Dyer by guillotine choke at 2:19 of round 1

Eric Schafer defeated Chris Albandia by triangle choke at 1:41 of round 1

Amateur quick results

Mike Oconnor defeated Deshaun Fergson by rear naked choke at 1:23 of round 1

Pat Oconnor defeated Dustin McIntire by tap out due to strikes at 1:07 of round 1

Al Nelson defeated Jared Baily by unanimous decision 29-28, 29-28, 29-28

Sean Fallon defeated Brian Radtke by triangle choke at 1:44 of round 3

Tim Lagray defeated Levi Rose by guillotine choke at 0:20 of round 2

Charlie Radtke defeated Dennis Sherman by TKO at 1:00 of round 1

Danny Martinez defeated John Cabel by rear naked choke at 2:30 of round 1

Dom Singleton defeated Don Wendt by rear naked choke at 1:32 of round 1

Shawn Bridgeman defeated Jason Bottomhagen by guillotine choke at 1:36 of round 1

David Sorenson defeated Devin Orton by TKO at 1:59 of round 1

Mike Giger defeated Nick Hernandez by rear naked choke at 1:20 of round 1

Peter Tonev defeated Drew Stout by rear naked choke at 0:36 ovf round 1

Aaron Meyer defeated Matt Vance by guillotine choke at 0:35 of round 1

Dustin Stusse defeated Matt Eisenzimmer by TKO at 2:23 of round 3

Armondo Calderon defeated Jeremy Kuldniski by unanimous decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27

Tyler Reese defeated Mike Blake by rear naked choke at 2:22 of round 2

James Gilmore defeated Pat Hastings by guillotine choke at 2:35 of round 1

Sean Bottoms defeated Greyson Plate by KO at 0:23 of round 1

Kevin Switalla defeated Tom Lagray by rear naked choke at 2:50 of round 1

Xtreme Fighting Organization is nearly finished finalizing their September 3^rd professional card.  In the main event, former UFC fighter Eric “Ravishing Red” Schafer will be taking on Midwest Training Center’s Chris Albandia.  Also on the card is an exciting welterweight matchup between Mike Stumpf and Tony Parker.

XFO Outdoor War 7 will take place at Side Outs Bar and Grill in Island Lake, Illinois.  The day of action will start with several amateur mixed martial arts fights and then continue onto the night with the professionals.  It is the largest outdoor gathering of mixed martial arts in the greater Chicagoland area.

Tickets are available at mmafreeagent.com and start at just $35.

The full professional lineup now looks like:

Eric Schafer vs Chris Albandia

Mike Stumpf vs Tony Parker

Mike Pitz vs TBD

Daniel Aguirre vs Stanton Gavia

Mike Marrello vs Alex Rozman

Matt Tobie vs Baron Rotza

Christian Reynoso vs Greg Reddington

Joey Diehl vs TBD

Eric Acuna vs Christopher Haney

Kenny Booker vs Robert Couillard

Voting is now underway in conjunction with US Combat Sports at http://uscombatsports.com/best-of-il for the best fight that took place in Illinois in 2010.  Five fights easily stood out us and are up for your votes.

Mike Lullo versus Jeremy Castro is up because of the fantastic gogoplata finish that Lullo was able to secure.  The submission victory had the crowd erupt in cheers at the inaugural Chicago Cagefighting Championship event.

Clay French and Billy Stamp put on one of the best three-round fights the state had seen all year.  The two were the co-main event for Ruckus Invades Navy Pier and easily earned the “Fight of the Night” award.

Carson Beebe destroyed Danny Black at Chicago Cagefighting Championship 1.  Beebe used his wrestling and his strength to put Black in bad positions and unloaded multiple strikes nearly fracturing Black’s orbital bone and forcing a stoppage.

Matt Fiordirosa returned to action at XFO Outdoor War against Bobby Reardanz.  The fight was easily the fight of the night and earned a feature piece here at MMA Recap.

A sleeper of a fight that fans probably didn’t pay too much attention to saw former “Ultimate Fighter” Jeremy May take on Midwest Training Center’s Chris Albandia.  May upset Albandia with a first round triangle choke at Ruckus 2 in March.

To vote, just visit http://uscombatsports.com/best-of-il where you can vote on any number of categories for 2010.

Ruckus Entertainment put on their second show “Ruckus 2″ last night.  Many fans praised the production of the first show, and the second surpassed the first.  Local DJ Julian “Jumpin” Perez kept the beats rocking through out the night of action.  Four amateur fights were capped off with six professional bouts.  Read on for the full results.

Nick Porter and Tyler Bird wanted to set the pace for the night.  Unfortunately there wasn’t a lot of action as most of the fight was spent on the ground.  Bird easily got the fight to the ground, but once there, couldn’t find a way to finish the fight as his opponent did a good job of controlling his head and arm.  While Porter was able to defend well, that didn’t earn him any points and all three judges scored it 30-27 for Bird.

Before the match started, Kevin Switella looked like Sean Anderson had just done something horrible to his family.  When the bell rang, both fighters respected each other’s striking game as they were both hesitant to throw a big shot.  Near the end of the first round, Anderson got a takedown but didn’t do much with it.  In the second round, Switella responded with a takedown of his own.  He was able to get full mount, but Anderson was able to roll out of it and punished Switella’s forehead with shots.  It was a close round and could have gone either way.  The third round Sitella spent most of the round trying to choke Anderson out.  While he couldn’t secure the tap, he was able to win the round.  Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough as the judges awarded the fight to Anderson.

The women were up next with Marcia Allen taking on Kim Novak.  Through out the entire three rounds, the women were typically jockeying for position from within the clinch.  Both fighters were able to take the other down, and in the end it came down to who did more damage.  The judges awarded the victory to Marcia Allen after three rounds of action.

The final amateur fight of the night saw Dan Borke take on Kris Blayney.  The first round was extremely close as Blayney scored a takedown, but Borke was able to get out of the troublesome position and secure Blayney’s back.  The second round showed the grappling skills of both fighters as they were able to sweep and reverse the position on each other.  Blayney wound up the better of the two as he ended the second round in full mount unloading punches.  The final round Borke used a trip takedown to land in side control.  From there he worked an arm triangle submission, but he couldn’t get the leverage he needed to finish the fight.  In the end, the judges saw Blayney as the victor.

Professional bouts
The opening professional fight saw Carson Beebe make his pro debut against Nate Williams.  Beebe controlled the action for the full fifteen minutes.  The rather lackluster affair saw Williams being taken down by Beebe, Beebe working to get a dominant position, Williams giving up his back, and rinse and repeat.  While there were some good strikes by both fighters, the fighters were rather predictable by the end of the third round.  In the end the judges awarded Beebe the victory.

Danny Black and Vince Ramos were both making their professional debut and only one could come away as the victor.  Ramos quickly shot for a takedown and got it.  Ramos then worked to get mount and threw punches in bunches.  Black bucked and rolled to escape and brought the fight back to his feet.  Unfortunately Ramos quickly worked a takedown and while Black attempted a submission, he wasn’t able to get it.  From the takedown, Ramos worked a kimura that looked bad, but Black didn’t give up.  Black gave up his back attempting to get out of the hold and Ramos locked in the fight ending rear naked choke.

Bobby Reardanz needed less than ninety seconds to submit Randy Fuentes.  Both fighters exchanged kicks before Fuentes worked for a takedown.  After the takedown, Fuentes postured up, but Reardanz threw his legs up and was able to secure the choke.

Jay Ellis wanted to punish Tyler Combs as was evident in the stare down between the two before the bell started.  Ellis came out with a flying kick that missed.  Combs kicked Ellis’s leg, but Ellis caught the kick and used it to take the fight down.  From there he quickly moved to mount and landed several shots.  But Combs was able to sweep Ellis.  After a couple of short shots, Combs stood up and Ellis followed leaving his neck open.  Combs grabbed a guillotine choke and it looked deep, but Ellis broke free.  After escaping, the referee called time out and deducted a point from Ellis for grabbing the glove to break the choke.  At the restart, Combs caught a kick of Ellis, but Ellis jumped over Combs to get Combs’s back.  Again Comb’s rolled out of it and this time he started landing powerful shots. Ellis curled up and the ref called a halt to the action.

The co-main event saw Dustin Neace take on Toni Marti.  Marti opened the fight with a big overhand right followed by a takedown.  Neace defended well as Marti worked for a choke.  Neace pushed through it and wound up in Marti’s guard, but the choke was still there.  Neace forced his head out and grabbed Marti’s neck.  Marti reversed the position and again attempted a choke from within Neace’s guard.  Neace threw his legs up working for an arm bar, but Marti spins and worked for a leg lock of his own.  Neace spun out of the leg lock and was able to get Marti’s back.  Once there he sunk in a rear naked choke forcing Marti to tap.

The main event saw former “Ultimate Fighter” cast member, Jeremy May take on Chris Albandia.  Albandia landed a nice leg kick and then worked for a single leg takedown.  May defended it well and both fighters were clinched.  May with a big knee, followed it up with a good 1-2 combo another knee and finished it off with upper cuts.  Albandia looked to be in trouble and he shot for a takedown.  Albandia got the takedown, but May showcased his jiu jitsu by locking in a triangle choke.  Albandia didn’t give up and May worked several punches to Albandia’s head before being able to pull down on Albandia’s head sinking the choke in as tight as possible and earning the tapout victory.

Quick Results
Amateur Bouts

• Tyler Bird defeated Nick Porter by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Sean Anderson defeated Kevin Switella by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Marcia Allen defeated Kim Novak by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
• Kris Blayney defeated Dan Borke by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Professional Bouts

• Carson Beebe defeated Nate Williams by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-27)
• Vince Ramos defeated Danny Black by rear naked choke 3:18 of round 1
• Bobby Reardanz defeated Randy Fuentes by triangle choke 1:22 of round 1
• Tyler Combs defeated Jay Ellis by TKO (ref stoppage) 3:13 of round 1
• Dustin Neace defeated Toni Marti by rear naked choke 3:53 of round 1
• Jeremy May defeated Chris Albandia by triangle choke 2:53 of round 1

Danny Black

The weight-ins for tomorrow night’s event took place earlier tonight at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  MMA Recap was on scene to witness all the fighters step on the scale.  All fighters were on weight for their fights with the exception of both main event fighters, Jeremy May and Chris Albandia.  Both fighters weighed in at 188lbs and agreed to have the bout contested at that weight.

With less than 24 hours until the event takes place, less than 70 tickets remain for the 1400 capacity event.  All fighters expressed excitement for their fights tomorrow.

Full Weigh In Results include:
Amateur Bouts
    •    Nick Porter 145 vs Tyler Bird 145
•    Sean Anderson 145 vs Kevin Switella 145
•    Wilbert Jones vs Tim Duggan (weight was under the max 265 for both fighters, no weight specified)
•    Marcia Allen 135 vs Kim Novak 135
•    Kris Blayney 185 vs Dan Borke 184.5
•    Aaron Plumley 150 vs Dennis Dombrow 150 (catchweight)

Professional Bouts
    •    Demitrius Richards 205 vs Luke Burton 205
•    Carson Beebe 135 vs Nate Williams 135
•    Danny Black 145 vs Vince Ramos 145
•    Bobby Reardanz 152 vs Randy Fuentes 150 (catchweight)
•    Jay Ellis 165 vs Tyler Combs 165 (catchweight)
•    Dustin Neace 145 vs Tony Marti 145
•    Jeremy May 187.7 vs Chris Albandia 187.8

Ruckus Entertainment will put on their second show “Ruckus 2″ on Friday March 12 from Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  Six amateur bouts will kick off the night before eight professional bouts end the night.

Headlining the night’s action will be “Ultimate Fighter” veteran Jeremy May battling Chris Albandia.  Carson Beebe, brother to Chase Beebe, will be making his professional debut.  Another local fighter to make his professional debut at the event is Vince Ramos who went 7-0 as an amateur fighter.

The full card looks like:
Amateur Fights:

• Tyler Burd vs. Nick Porter
• Kevin Switalla vs. Sean Anderson
• Wilburt Jones vs. Tim Duggan
• Kim Novak vs. Marcia Allen
• Dan Borke vs. Kris Blayney
• Dennis Dombrow vs. Logan Anderson

Professional Fights:

• Adam Ward vs. TBD
• Ed Carpenter vs. Harley Hiner
• Luke Burton vs. Demetrius Richards
• Vince Ramos vs. Danny Black
• Carson Beebe vs. Nate Williams
• Toni Marti vs. Dustin Neace
• Tyler Combs vs. James Seipel
• Jeremy May vs. Chris Albandia

Ruckus Entertainment has confirmed the rest of the professional portion of their “Ruckus 2″ card.  The event takes place on Friday, March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, IL.

Ruckus Entertainment previously confirmed that Vince Ramos would be making his professional debut for the organization.  Ramos has an impressive 7-0 amateur record and is one of the top amateur fighters in the Chicago land area.  Welcoming him to the professional ranks is Danny Black (1-0) who fights out of Disorderly Conduct in Nebraska.  Black made his debut at “Adrenaline 4″ where he submitted Matt Bentley with a triangle choke in the second round.

Other fights that are now official include Mike Lullo vs Josh Schmidt, Demo Richards vs Steve Laureto, Ed Carpenter vs Harley Hiner, Carson Beebe vs Nate Williams and Adam Ward vs Shannon Slack.

The full line up now looks like:
•    145 lbs Vince Ramos (MTC) 0-0 vs.  Danny Black (DC) 1-0
•    155 lbs Mike Lullo (MTC) 5-1 vs. Josh Schmidt (DC) 8-7
•    145 lbs Tony Marti (MTC) 7-2 vs. Dustin Neace (Hit Squad) 25-15
•    205 lbs Demo Richards (DC) 4-1 vs. Steve Laureto (Hackneys) 3-1
•    HWT Ed Carpenter (MTC) 3-1 vs.  Harley Hiner (DC) 1-1
•    135 lbs Carson Beebe (Gilbert’s) 0-0 vs.  Nate Williams (DC) 5-6
•    145 lbs Adam Ward (GIlbert’s) 0-0 vs.  Shannon Slack (DC) 1-0
•    155 lbs Kyle Watson (Hit Squad) 16-6  vs.  Tyler Combs 12-4
•    Main Event:  185 lbs Chris Albandia (MTC) 10-4  vs.  Jeremy May 6-6

Hot off the heels of announcing Vince Ramos making his professional debut at the March 12 event, Ruckus Entertainment has just confirmed that former “Ultimate Fighter” cast member, Jeremy May (6-6) will take on Chris Albandia (7-5) in the night’s headline bout.

May recently got back on the winning streak after defeating Casey Stillman in just 40 seconds at “XCF 10″ in October.  Prior to the victory May had been recovering from a broken collarbone and fractured number two vertebrae due to a freak accident in a dirt bike.  May competed on season seven of “The Ultimate Fighter” defeating David Roberts in the elimination round and losing to Matt Brown in the first round.

Albandia is just 1-2 in his last four fights with one being ruled a no contest.  Albandia has competed for many promotions including the XFO, IFL, and M1 Mixed Fight Championship.  Albandia trains out of the Midwest Training Center, which is home to Chase Beebe, Clay Guida, Kevin Knabjian and many other notable fighters.

Ruckus Entertainment will take place on Friday March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addision, IL.  The current card looks as follows:
•    Jeremy May vs Chris Albandia
•    Vince Ramos vs TBA