We're Back With Another LineStar Weekly Knockout!

Written by LineStar contributor, combat sports enthusiast, and practitioner, Chris Guy.

Instagram: @therealsethgeko & Twitter: @DadHallOfFamer

T.J. Dillashaw (+150 ) vs Cory Sandhagen (-190)

Dillashaw: DK: $7.4k, FD:$ | Sandhagen: DK:$8.8k, FD:$

Much like the MLB, the UFC is entering the dog days of summer. Infamously, this exact time last year provided us with Jessica Eye vs. Cynthia Calvillo, the wackest main event in the UFC’s illustrious history. Keeping with the theme, the next couple of cards will be dogfights, and only the Mike Vicks will survive. When the cards are built almost entirely of unfamiliar faces, the true MMA fans show out. Or the ones who read the Weekly Knockout ; ) Like Wall-E, we’ll sift through the junk and find the gems and make sure to bump gums while doing it. But check it, this weekend’s main event, the return of T.J. Dillashaw vs. Cory Sandhagen, is an absolute classic banger and shouldn’t be missed even for a Tinder date with Mary Jane.

Cory Sandhagen started his UFC career by winning five straight before being submitted by Aljamain Sterling last June in just over a minute. That remains his only UFC loss in eight appearances. He made a mistake early in that fight by giving up his back against the cage, and Aljo capitalized by sinking in a rear-naked choke with the quickness. Since the Aljo fight, Sandhagen has won two straight, and a win against T.J. Dillashaw would all but lock up a title shot against the winner of Petr Yan vs. Aljamain Sterling 2.

Like the great Chuck Liddell, Cory fights with his hands low and tends to take a lot of unnecessary damage. He crouches in his stance and likes to bait opponents into counters by sticking his head out, trying to elicit strikes so he can pull-counter. On the mat, he has a solid ground game with an active guard, in which he creates scrambles and can use submission attempts to get back to his feet. But I don’t see this fight touching the mat unless there is a knockdown, and the fight will be a battle of distance and who can control it. Sandhagen fights long and needs to dominate the fringe of the pocket and use volume to stifle Dillashaw’s slick pocket entries.

Some philosophies attach a stigma to “flashy” techniques and consider them high risk with low success rates. Flying and spinning techniques usually fit inside the “flashy” technique genre and can provide a significant edge in an otherwise even matchup when used correctly. I believe any technique, from an Ong Bak flying elbow to a rolling thunder kick, to a cartwheel kick, can be landed if set up properly and timed. Much like we saw with Sean O’Malley last weekend, Sandhagen can mix spinning and flying techniques with his fundamental combinations. It creates an element of surprise and a sense of caution in the opponent that can throw them off their game. In his last bout, Sandhagen KO’d the great Frankie Edgar with a Kirk Gibson walk-off flying knee after anticipating and perfectly timing an Edgar level change. Frankie never knew what hit him.

Cory has to provide Dillashaw with some looks he hasn’t seen in the Octagon, especially since Dillashaw will be fresh off a two-year layoff. Why the layoff? Well, T.J. was caught up in Bikini Bottom in the back of The Krusty Krab, puckering up his starfish, receiving injections in both cheeks, administered by Squidward so T.J. would have the stamina to defeat King Neptune in a crabby patty cook-off. Without the injections, T.J. probably would have been half the crabby patty engineer he appeared to be. And he likely would have been seated next to Satan with an empty clip (no shot in hell) when it came to beating King Neptune. As a result, T.J would have had to take up employment at the Chum Bucket instead of the biggest crabby patty franchise in Bikini Bottom, just another guppy.

T.J. was cheating. And he got caught. How long was he cheating? Well, I used to work as an undercover snitch, arresting shoplifters for a major retail chain, and I rarely caught people the very first time they ever stole something… In basketball, there’s a saying, “The ball never lies.” In combat sports, the fists never lie, and in his last bout, T.J got his ass cracked like a McGregor tib/fib in thirty-two seconds by Henry Cejudo. But I digress.

T.J. Dillashaw is one of the most elite strikers to ever step in the Octagon. He admitted he developed his striking base by studying the movements of Dominick Cruz, the man with the best footwork in the history of the sport. Dillashaw lost the only meeting between the two and the Bantamweight title. But he went on to reclaim the belt against Cody Garbrandt a year later. I used to coach young fighters, and the thing they hated the most was when I would make them use the opposite stance and took them out of their comfort zones. Any techniques or combinations they practiced in one stance, I made them practice in the opposite. The future of this sport is being dynamic in both stances and flowing between them naturally. T.J. can do exactly that. He fights out of both stances with no tells as to which is his natural position.

The main advantage of using both stances is fighting in any direction and creating defensive holes to exploit. A fighter’s defense has to adapt to a stance switch because now strikes are coming from the reverse orientation. And when a fighter is switching back and forth between combos, the defense has to be doing the same. T.J. creates angles when he enters the pocket and rarely attacks straight up the middle. He uses same-side combinations (right round kick to a right cross and vice versa) better than anybody, and T.J. can change levels and keep you honest with takedowns; he’s a true mixed martial artist.

Both fighters are high output strikers and both are finishers. T.J. is opening as the (+150) underdog and is saturated with value. Both fighters should put up solid significant strikes, as I think this will go into the championship rounds. The big questions: How will Sandhagen look in rounds four and five? What will Dillashaw look like after a two-year layoff, and more importantly, how will he look without the Squidward cardio vaccine?

Without the layoff, I’d take T.J. Dillashaw without hesitation, but this sport passes you up quicker than any other, and I have zero idea what to expect from him against the top contender right out the gate and off the sauce. This isn’t boxing, homies. There aren’t any tune-up fights in the UFC. I’m writing this at the beginning of the week, and I’ll have to come back later to put this one on wax…

On wax, T.J. Dillashaw via TKO, round three.

Winner: T.J. Dillashaw | Method: TKO Rd.3

Aspen Ladd (-200 ) vs Macy Chiasson (+160)

Ladd: DK: $8.9k, FD:$ | Chiasson: DK:$7.3k, FD:$

EDIT: This fight has been canceled due to an injury

Aspen Ladd is wild, and you already know, she howls at the moon. She may be the first woman to get the Weekly Knockout’s highest praise. Valentina Shevchenko, Amanda Nunes, Joanna Jzerjfdksf, Rose Namajuanas, the list goes on for my favorite female fighters. But even among that elite list, none have been hailed as wild, off the leash, squatting on lawns. Although Aspen Ladd’s skills may not rival the skills of those elite fighters, her ferocity and aggression do.

This may sound facetious, but it’s not; one of her best skills is the Maria Sharapova grunt she uses to punctuate all of her strikes. Their purpose is multifaceted; they sell every strike to the judges as if each was a devastating blow, and they make her sound legit crazy and probably scare the hell out of her opponents. They turn into 80’s slasher movie screams as she gets more violent and borders on a superpower like that one X-Men… what’s that guy’s name?... Banshee; makes sense. Ladd is the first woman in the Octagon with an X-(Wo)Men special power, the banshee rebel yell.

Ladd uses relentless forward pressure and second and third level wide hooks to bully her opponents backward. She uses the heavy pressure to level change and is very handy with the double leg to inside trip. When she gets the top position, the fight turns into The Exorcism Of Aspen Ladd, a B-rated horror movie with never-ending hammer fists and elbows. Herb Dean can’t stop the fight; they have to bring in the expertise of Father Callahan.

Aspen is 9-1 as a professional, including 4-1 in the UFC. Her only loss was to elite kickboxer Germaine de Randamie. Ladd will be facing a woman who made her debut after only two professional fights, Macy Chiasson. Macy is 5-1 in the UFC and has impressive wins over Pannie Kianzad, Sarah Moras, and Marion Reneau. Her only loss was to Lina Lansberg, who is a high-level striker. But the Aspen Ladd matchup should prove to be her stiffest test.

Chiasson is a NOLA representative, the same city as the greatest lightweight of all time not named Khabib, Dustin Poirier. There’s something different about fighters from NOLA; they’re unbreakable and lack any kind of trepidation in the cage. She’s a long combination striker who thrives in the clinch, scoring a large portion of her total strikes from the position. Chiasson has topped out over two hundred strikes in recent fights and allows for little dead air between exchanges. Her best defense is keeping her opponents on defense. Her biggest weakness is a lack of power; most of her strikes are peppering shots in high volume.

The key for Chiasson will be controlling distance, managing the pocket from the outside. She has to keep Ladd moving backward and attack with second and third-level strikes and maintain control of the center of the Octagon. Chiasson’s takedown defense will be the deciding factor. Her takedown defense is suspect, but she is very strong from the top position and uses her long frame to land Tito Ortiz ground and pound from the guard.

At the opening, Chiasson is the (+140) dog, and Ladd the (-190) favorite. I think this fight is closer to a pick ‘em, a complete toss-up. Both fighters have the potential to land a high volume of significant strikes, but with six TKO/KO’s on her record, Ladd provides the better shot at a finish. Aspen Ladd via decision.

Winner: Aspen Ladd | Method: Decision

Kyler Phillips (-285) vs. Raulian Paiva (+225)

Phillips: DK: $9.2k, FD:$ | Paiva: DK: $7k, FD:$

Kyler Phillips was one of my top 2020 undercover sleepers, making his debut and going 2-0 before beating Yadong Song in a big upset in early 2021. Phillips is unpredictable and aggressive on the feet, regularly using spinning and flying attacks in combination with smooth, loose boxing. He has the ground game to match, slick grappling with heavy ground and pound. Kyler can beat you wherever the fight goes and has the added advantage of deciding where that is.

Phillips’s special move is the head kick; he throws it out of nowhere and hides it behind short hand combinations. When fighting outside the pocket, fundamentals usually dictate that you use footwork to slide into the pocket behind feints and jabs, and the ill-advised technique is leaping into the pocket with power strikes. Kyler gets away with the latter because he has the hand speed to cover the distance. He often closes with a long power jab or cross and uses the forward momentum to shoot into double legs.

Phillips’s has a unique approach to scoring takedowns. At times he won’t waste much energy attempting to hold the opponent down and will let him back up just so he can take the opponent down again. He doesn’t give up on takedowns and will run opponents across the cage to finish them. If you have any holes in your game, Kyler Phillips will find them and exploit them like TMZ.

Raulian Paiva is a seventy-five percent clearance Charles Oliveira, usually found sitting on a wobbly cart in the back of the store by the restrooms, one day away from growing mold; “Must Consume Immediately.” Paiva has the traditional flatfooted, upright Brazilian Muay Thai with long straight punches and heavy leg kicks. For the most part, Paiva is a one-punch striker, and when he does throw combinations, he drops his hands and throws repetitive one-twos. He tends to square his feet when throwing combos and is very vulnerable in the pocket as a result.

Paiva also likes to score takedowns but relies more on the cage to finish them than Phillips does. If the fight does go to the mat, it will feature entertaining scrambles and submission attempts; both fighters are solid grapplers, but I’d give the edge to Phillips. Paiva’s major malfunction is that he mirrors his opponent’s pace. If his opponent isn’t willing to engage or settles on a slow back and forth controlled affair, Paiva will acquiesce. When the opponent pushes the pace, Paiva is at his best because it forces him to engage more often and use more combinations than single strikes. That should be the case when facing Phillips.

Phillips is a member of the Jackson-to-a-Grant club, and I’m 3-0 when betting on him. Percentage-wise, Phillips is the better finisher, but I think this one will go the distance. The more diverse Fantasy scorer will be Phillips, and I don’t see much upside to Paiva. Phillips is the big favorite at (-245), and I think Paiva is a slight step down in competition from Phillips’s last bout against Yadong Song. Kyler Phillips via decision.

Winner: Kyler Phillips | Method: Decision

Darren Elkins (+125 ) vs Darrick Minner (-155)

Elkins: DK: $7.6k, FD:$ | Minner: DK: $8.6k, FD:$

Like apparitions, Chupacabra, and the Loch Ness Monster, a boring Darren Elkins fight doesn’t exist. Elkins is eighty-one years old in fight years and has thin skin. I don’t mean he can’t take a joke; he’s tear-able, rip-able like Parks and Recreation toilet paper, and tends to start bleeding when the cutman applies the Vaseline before he steps in the cage. He never stops throwing strikes and moving forward, never stops scrambling when on the mat, and never stops competing even when it appears he’s out of the fight. He takes heaps of punishment in every fight and has only been finished three times in twenty-three UFC fights, and those were all by elite fighters.

Elkins’s bread and butter is his relentless wrestling and suffocating clinch and top control. He’s technically sound on the mat, maintaining head-over-head and wrist control, making it difficult for opponents to post and scramble back to their feet. The big hole in his game is closing the distance. Elkins tends to close the distance recklessly, marching straight forward without changing levels or defending strikes on the way in. He takes a lot of damage in transition and will have to be careful not to get lazy and allow Minner to control his head and break his posture. Above all else, the Rza, the Gza, Old Dirty Bastard, Inspectah Deck, Raekwon The Chef, U-God, Ghostface Killah, and the M-e-t-h-o-d Man, coming straight from the slums of Shaolin, said it best: Protect Ya Neck!

Darrick Minner is 26-11 with twenty-two submission victories, including eleven by guillotine choke. He’s a submission specialist who lives and dies by the sub. Eight of his eleven losses are by submission, as he tends to hunt for guillotine chokes every chance he gets, and if it doesn't land, he ends up in terrible positions. Your neck is never safe when fighting Minner; there isn’t a position in which Minner will not look to cinch up a guillotine, and he uses them to defend takedowns. The threat of a guillotine or front choke forces opponents to give up on takedowns to fight the hands to defend the choke. Submissions don’t have to end the fight to be effective.

Prior to his most recent fight, I said Minner’s major malfunction was his gas tank. But like Rodolfo Vieira did last weekend, Minner made a liar out of me by pacing himself and going three hard rounds against another solid grappler in Charles Rosa. In previous bouts, Minner provided one to two minutes of fiery fury before rolling over and smoking a cigarette and calling it a day. In thirty-six career fights, Minner has only gone to the third round twice and to the second round seven times. There is a fifty percent chance that he catches you in a guillotine in the first round, and after that, he has an eighty percent chance of getting his ass kicked, historically.

Striking, Minner is a puncher, not a boxer, and usually just wings wild, wide hooks and causes chaos on the feet with the intent to close the distance. He covers up massive holes in his striking with aggression and volume, backing his opponents into the cage where he can clinch and work trips.

If you rolled into the Costco Tire Center with these two guys as company, the staff would point out their tread wear indicators and suggest an immediate replacement. They both have heavy mileage and wear and tear and could leave you stranded in the middle of the Nevada desert with only one Valero within a one-hundred-mile radius. If he snatches your neck, he’s mounting your head on his wall. Elkins’s value is in his cardio and ability to drag any fighter into deep waters. A late submission is Elkins’s biggest upside. Coin flip on this one. Darrick Minner via guillotine choke, round two.

Winner: Darrick Minner | Method: Guillotine Choke Rd.2

Miranda Maverick (-140 ) vs Maycee Barber (+115)

Maverick: DK: $8.4k, FD:$ |Barber: DK:$7.8k, FD:$

In a division struggling to provide legit contenders for the champion Valentina Shevchenko, Maycee Barber and Miranda Maverick represent possible future contenders who have both shown unique skillsets early in their careers. Barber is the more diverse but less technical striker. She freestyles like Biggie on the corner in Brooklyn, flowing without the limitations of pre-programmed combinations. She’s suffered her first career loss and a knee injury in a bout against Roxanne Modafferi, and followed it up with a tough loss to the top contender Alexa Grasso.

Barber looked off the first two rounds against Grasso; she consistently attempted to engage from halfway across the Octagon and often looked like she was just shadowboxing in place. She looked like she was VR boxing in a kitchenette. In the third round, she flipped the Aspen Ladd switch and suddenly threw caution to the wind and won the round. In her two losses, Barber’s biggest weakness proved to be her mental game and almost seemed to crumble under the pressure and expectations.

Maycee’s striking is movement-based and allows her to manipulate the pocket to attack and slip and counter. She switches between stances and mixes hand and kick combinations while maintaining a karate-like in/out bounce. But there are huge holes in Barber’s defense; she tends to pull (move her head straight back) too much as her primary means of defense. This brings her chin straight up in the air and may allow her to evade one strike, but extended combinations tend to land. Miranda Maverick needs to attack Barber with overhands and straight right hands whenever Barber is in the southpaw stance. Barber doesn’t defend well over her lead shoulder from the lefty stance.

Miranda Maverick is a big, strong wrestler with striking like a pair of adolescent boy’s socks, stiff. Maverick looks like she took Karate in the mall as a kid from an instructor wearing American flag hot pants. Here’s a Game Genie cheat code: Maverick reacts to all feints and drops her lead hand every time. I think it’s just an amateur-ish reaction that hasn’t been ironed out yet. She has wrestler boxing with Karate side-kicks and usually wins fights because she is an overall better athlete than her competition.

If the fight goes to the mat for extended periods, I think Maverick is just too powerful for Barber. It will be hard for Barber to hold Maverick down or scramble back to her feet if Maverick ends up on top. The edge that Maverick has over Barber is that Maverick only has two fights in the UFC and is still has an air of invincibility. Maverick is in the place Barber was at two fights ago before Barber was humbled and found out the hard way that nobody is invincible.

I’m going to gamble that Barber learned a lot from the third round against Grasso. If she flips the Aspen Ladd switch early in the fight, she has the more diverse, dangerous striking. Maverick hasn’t shown much urgency to use her wrestling and has been willing to engage in kickboxing matches with four-ounce gloves. Maybe that will change, but I’m reluctantly rolling with Maycee Barber via decision. On Wax.

Winner: Maycee Barber | Method: Decision

Mickey Gall (+145 ) vs Jordan Williams (-180)

Gall: DK: $7.5k, FD:$ |Williams: DK:$8.7k, FD:$

Mickey Gall was the winner of the MMA Willy Wonka golden ticket when he was awarded the easiest fight in UFC history against CM Punk in 2016. CM Punk was one of maybe two fighters in the UFC who I could beat with Snoop Dogg and Cypress Hill in my corner, passing me the four-footer between delivering six-piece combos. I once thought Mickey Gall was an underrated grappler who had a ceiling as a solid gatekeeper. I. Was. Wrong. When he lost to the Halley’s Comet cultist, Diego Sanchez, I knew I was like Biggie and Eminem, Dead Wrong. Diego pappy’d Mickey and made Mickey look like Greg Hardy on his back. The worst part was, he couldn’t even strike with Diego, and Diego’s striking has always been complete BS like an Astros world title. Mickey couldn’t out-strike a Nuggets fan. You thought I forgot.

When you look at Mickey Gall’s UFC record, it’s actually a quite respectable 5-3, but on top of the CM Punk win, one of those wins is against Sage Northcutt. Don’t get me started on Sage Northcutt, homies. Mickey has lost three of his last five fights, the most recent L coming against Mike Perry a year ago. If Mickey can’t get the fight to the mat, he can’t beat many fighters on the feet. He’s a puncher, not a boxer, and he lacks power or anything respectable that can provide cover for his takedowns. This weekend, Gall will be up against Jordan Williams, a long, rangy boxer with Chris Leben-like freakish power that catches you by the boo-boo.

Jordan Williams is making his sophomore appearance in the Octagon after fighting on the Contender Series three times. His first win on the show was overturned because he got high; because he got high; because he got high. Williams is unable to cut weight because he has diabetes and elects to compete at middleweight, where he gives up a lot of size every time he steps foot in the cage.

Jordan has the IDGAF gene and wades into deep waters without any hesitation or floaties. His striking isn’t technically pleasing to the eye, but he's deceptively powerful and stays busy. He has whipping, Nate Diaz-like arm punches that he peppers from the outside. He throws most punches just to get them over the plate until he sees an opening and sits down on a left-hand fastball. Like ASMR, people sleep on Williams, and before they know it, Joe Rogan is sitting cross-legged next to them on the apron, asking if they ever tried DMT. Jordan is all offense and has little defense, and often gets caught with counters while watching his handy work. Williams has many holes on the feet and is a sucker for punishment, and usually takes as much as he gives. But he’s fighting Mickey Gall, so he should be okay.

Mickey has about as much value as Dogecoin, capable of making a bull run and landing a submission but is more likely to drop at any moment. Seven of Jordan Williams’s noine career wins have come via TKO/KO, including a Contender Series KO of the Brazilian Debo, Gregory Rodriguez. Mickey could flip the playing field if he can get top position; Williams has shown solid submission defense, but overall, Gall is a better grappler, and five of his six career wins are rear-naked choke submissions. But I don’t have the gall to pick Mickey. Jordan Williams via TKO, round three.

Winner: Jordan Williams | Method: TKO Rd.3

Prelims

Highlighted Matchup

Adrian Yanez (-225) vs. Randy Costa (+175)

Yanez: DK: $9k, FD:$ | Costa: DK: $7.2k, FD:$ 

*Banger Of The Night*

If you miss this fight, you’re a Buster: Buster Douglas, Buster Olney, Buster Posey, Dave & Buster. Yanez is one of my sleeper horses, and I plan to ride him into the ground like we're at Santa Anita. I saw his thirty-noine second Contender Series KO victory last summer and knew this kid’s striking was on a different level. This will be only his third official UFC appearance, but I can already say with confidence that Yanez is one of the best counter punchers in the promotion. May a higher being strike me down with lightning if I’m lying. I’m still typing, homies.

Adrian Yanez’s style is that of a mini Jorge Masvidal with a slicker pocket presence. His timing is unreal; he has the hand speed to wait for his opponent to engage and beats them to the punch. Yanez uses subtle slips in the pocket and rarely relinquishes it even when he’s under attack. Like choking up on the bat, Yanez is quick to the target with tight, short combinations and steps off at angles to find openings.

Shadowbox feints are mimicked punches thrown with the intent to get a reaction and not to land. They also act as a kind of kick-start to build momentum on your punches, adding extra speed. Calvin Kattar is a fighter who uses shadowbox feints effectively as a fundamental technique, and Adrian Yanez does much of the same. When you see Yanez shadowboxing in front of his opponent, he’s probing them to find an opening to attack.

I don’t want to sound like Yanez is unbeatable; he has holes and is there in the pocket to be hit. The key is to use feints to draw out his counters and to counter his counters. This is chess. Adrian will lose some fights as he develops, but I think he’s a guy you’ll see in the top ten/top five at some point in his career. In fact, I hope he does lose some fights; I have no scientific measure of proof, but I think you grow twice as much from a loss than you do from a dub. 

Randy Costa is aggressive with a cape on, super aggressive. Costa comes straight out the gates shot out of a cannon, a blur of kicks and wide punches. He has a little “Wavy” Davey Grant in him and throws punches at every angle, often looking awkward and off-balance. Costa’s aggression and low hand position are gifts and curses. Carrying his hands low allows Costa to strike from the opponent’s peripherals and, at the same time, leaves him vulnerable and wide open for counters.

Entire galaxies disappear in the black holes in his striking, and every exchange is fifty-fifty, kill-or-be-killed. When Costa jabs, watch his right hand. It drops below his waist, and he looks like he’s tying his shoe with one hand. But, in seven career fights, Costa has only been out of the first round once, and that was his only loss, a second-round submission loss in an absolute war in his UFC debut.

Costa’s major malfunction? He’s fighting Adrian Yanez, one of the best counter punchers in the game. His style is Men’s Fashion Depot, tailor-made for Adrian Yanez. Randy’s reckless style and forward pressure play right into Yanez’s strengths. Could Costa land something fight-ending in a wild exchange and provide Yanez with a valuable learning experience? Absolutely. But he will have to approach the fight more technically, and unfortunately, that’s not conducive to Costa fighting to his strengths. Adrian Yanez via TKO, round two.

P.S. Samples are back at Costco.

Winner: Adrian Yanez | Method: TKO Rd.2

Twenty-Twen-Twen Sleepers

Twenty-Ten-Twen Sleeper

Last week I did something I rarely ever do. I usually bet an underdog straight up, but I was hearing the whispers of the MMA Gods all week and decided to bet round and method. I put Mr. Jackson down on a third-round finish for Billy Quarantillo. Billy dominated the fight and created a nasty eye injury on Benitez, and the rest was history. A classic Jackson-to-a-Grant just like that. I needed that one; I had come up short like CP3 the last couple of weeks.

Unfortunately, I haven't heard any whispers this week. This card is a tough crowd, and the pickings are slim. Honorable TTTS mentions: Nassourdine Imavov (+135) and Andre Ewell. Imavov is a slick grappler and striker and could give Ian Heinisch all kinds of problems. Andre Ewell (+160) is long and has quick hands; if he can figure out a consistent output, he too could provide problems for his opponent, Julio Arce. But I'm rolling with Macy Chiasson also at (+160). She's a rangy, aggressive fighter who can make fights ugly and won't allow Aspen Ladd to bully her. I think that fight is a complete toss-up.

Pick 'Em

Punahele Soriano (-115 ) vs. Brendan Allen (-105 )

Winner: Punahele Soriano

 Method: TKO Rd.2 

Nassourdine Imavov (+135 ) vs. Ian Heinisch (-165 )

Winner: Narrourdine Imavov

 Method: Decision

Julio Arce (-200 ) vs. Andre Ewell (+160)

Winner: Julio Arce

 Method: Decision

Sijara Eubanks (-335) vs. Elise Reed (+255)

    Winner: Sijara Eubanks

 Method: Decision

Diana Belbita (-105 ) vs. Hannah Goldy (-115 )

    Winner: Hannah Goldy

 Method: Decision

Thanks for reading LineStar Weekly Knockout! We'll be back next Thursday with another one. Until then, good luck and support your local MMA Gym.

About Me

My name is Chris Guy, and I’m an avid combat sports enthusiast and practitioner. I’ve been a fan of MMA since the early 2000s when Limewire was still around, and I downloaded Bas Rutten’s Big Book of Combat. In 2004, I started training Muay Thai at City Boxing in San Diego, CA. I competed as an amateur for many years, and I've also dabbled in Jiu-Jitsu. I follow many different disciplines, such as Combat Ji-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Glory Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA.

I’m equally as enthusiastic about the craft of writing, and in addition to writing about combat sports, I also write short fiction and music. I hope to bring unique prose to sports writing, and along the way, encourage people to not only become Martial Arts fans but to also become Martial Artists themselves.

In the future, you may see me refer to the Thunderdome; it's an ode to the old Mad Max movie and refers to the world-class training facility I built in my one-car garage. It's complete with throw dummies, wrestling mats, heavy bags, and six months' worth of Chef Boyardee cans from when I thought the world was going to end back in March. I hope you enjoy my work, and if you don’t, the Thunderdome has an open door policy.

Check out my Podcast The Whiskey (S)ick Podcast on Apple and Spotify. Parental Advisory Warning

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