Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we spotlight fights from around the world that may have been overlooked in these turbulent times when it seems like there’s an MMA show on every other day.
We don’t talk enough about the importance of having the proper equipment before entering the cage.
Obviously a good set of gloves is essential, although that sort of thing should be taken care of by the promotion, so no problem there. Then there’s the matter of having a strong cup to deal with those annoying kicks below the belt. And, of course, you want to have a properly fitting mouthpiece, to protect your jaw and reduce impact.
Just be sure to grab said mouthpiece, an opponent has to be so rude that they forcefully pull it out with their foot in the middle of a fight.
(Many thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KO and submissionsand to @Grabaka_Hitman to download many clips you see here. Follow them and participate in Patreon if you can.)
Biniyam Shibre vs. Joshua Simpson
At an amateur 559 Fights event in Visalia, Calif., Biniyam Shibre ended a fight with two incredibly painful kicks, the second of which caught Joshua Simpson low in the jaw to send his mouthpiece towards the fence .
See another angle of the airborne object here.
This thing has almost become a keepsake for one lucky fan.
You can watch more full matches of 559 fights by themselves Youtube page.
I don’t know what Shibre had that day, but it took him six seconds to score the best knockout of the week, narrowly edging out a similar finish that happened at a Road FC show in Seoul. .
Tae Young Yoon vs. Young Chul Lee
Vitaly Mironyuk vs. Jin Guk Kim
Another wild headbutt. Another fighter left senseless. Another spokesperson who made a valiant effort to stay put, only to be violently released.
Tae Young Yoon took advantage of Young Chul Lee’s lack of defense and didn’t miss, landing the kind of kick you only dream of connecting with in practice.
According to Tapologyit was Lee’s first MMA fight since 2004. I don’t know what prompted him to compete again, but let’s hope he scratched that itch because his comeback couldn’t have been much worse.
Also at Road FC 62 (free replay available on Youtube), Vitaliy Mironyuk landed a sweet choke with a baseball bat on Jin Guk Kim, a submission finish that would have led Missed Fists for many more weeks.
Xia Lianyang vs. Cheng Jin
Taking a quick flight south to a World Kings Glory MMA event in Shenzhen, China, we had the ugliest knockout of the week as Xia Lianyang was inexplicably cleared to play on opponent Cheng Jin, who was also lively as a scarecrow at the end of this finishing sequence.
OH MY GOD. Xia Lianyang just unloaded twelve punches on a standing, unconscious Cheng Jin against the ropes while the ref was clearly checking his phone or something. Scary. #MMA pic.twitter.com/1OfEbh89TL
— Chris Presnell (@mmaecosystem) December 18, 2022
I don’t even want to count the number of unanswered knocks. Just horrible visuals and a disappointing effort from the referee, who may as well have watched this fight since the nosebleeds.
Tuerxun Jumabieke vs. Yasser Ashayeri
Let’s end this overview of the Asian MMA scene with a trip to the other side of the continent and catch up with a former UFC fighter competing at an Octagon League event in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Yes, that’s former UFC bantamweight Teurxun Jumabieke, who unfortunately didn’t have much luck with that promotion, going 0-3 inside the octagon in 2014. He reappeared on the North American radar in 2018, going 0-3 for the PFL as a featherweight, and has since moved up to lightweight.
Good to see Jumabieke still in action and fighting for a knockout, his first knockout win in over five years.
Octagon League 38 is available for free replay on Youtube.
Fabio De Luca against. Alessio Ibba
Chris Vasil vs. Frank Wells
Billy Ray Valdez vs. Ian Allston
Cameron Smotherman vs. Adam Martinez
last weekend, UFC Battle Pass provided plenty of highlights for promotions looking to end their 2022 campaigns on a high.
It’s no baseball choke, but Fabio De Luca’s slow-developing inverted triangle of Venator FC 13 in Chieti, Italy deserves plenty of bragging rights.
Alessio Ibba actually fought against a traditional triangle choke to get to this situation, but De Luca kept busy with the legs and put Ibba in an even worse position. You can immediately see the regret on Ibba’s face when he realizes it’s time to tap.
At Atlantic City’s Cage Fury FC 116, Chris Vasil was stuffed with a takedown but made the most of the failed attempt. As the more more.
I can’t say if Frank Wells was looking to counter fire immediately here and that’s what it cost him, but who cares, what a perfectly timed knee from Vasil. This is the third fight in Vasil’s last four appearances that ended in the third round (including an incredible wheel kick of which he was the recipient), so pay close attention to this guy after the first 10 minutes are up.
On that same show, heavyweight Billy Ray Valdez had the highest of highs and the lowest of lows (blows) in his professional debut.
At Fury FC 72 in Houston, Cameron Smotherman had a plug from a walk-off as he grabbed Adam Martinez with his hands down.
Seriously, I’m not sure what Martinez does defensively (nothing would be a fair assessment), but Smotherman saw an opening and just fired a left hand in there that had a knockout written all over.
Tyago Moreira against. Claudio Rocha
The knockouts kept coming this past weekend and there’s no way we can leave Tyago Moreiara’s flying knee villain out of Missed Fists.
This combo was one punch away from being a legit “three piece and a soda” finish.
Standout Fighting Tournament 38 is available for free replay on Youtube.
Phruethukorn Chaichongcharden vs. Medhi Nefzi
Jenny Gotti vs. Maria Casanova
Cédric Doumbé against. Florent Burillon
The French MMA scene continued to grow last year and we saw some delightful finishes at a Mixed Martial Arts Grand Prix event in Bordeaux to wrap things up.
Phruethukorn Chaichongcharden absolutely crushed Medhi Nefzi’s header which caused a delayed fall and you know what? It’s the holiday season, I give Chaichongcharden credit for the walkout.
I wish I could say the same for Jenny Gotti, who made Maria Casanova pay for a reckless leg kick with an overhand right that Casanova couldn’t come back from.
And in a classic case of lede burial, kickboxing star Cedric Doumbe improved to 3-0 in the main event with that knockout of Florent Burillon.
I still don’t quite understand what happened with Doumbe’s aborted UFC debut, but let’s put this man on a big card in 2023. Best case scenario: he screws up and becomes UFC champion. A statement that would have sounded bizarre before 2022 and Alex Pereira past.
Survey
What was Missed Fists’ most memorable moment this week?
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48%
Biniyam Shibre Six Second Mouthpiece Ejector
(24 votes)
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26%
Tae Young Yoon’s headbutt flies a mouthpiece
(13 votes)
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4%
Vitaliy Mironyuk’s baseball bat chokes
(2 voices)
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14%
Fabio De Luca’s inverted triangular choke
(7 votes)
-
8%
Tyago Moreira’s two-piece and a soda
(4 votes)
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0%
Other (leave a comment below)
(0 votes)
50 voices in total
Vote now
If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that might need some attention, please let us know on Twitter – @AlexanderKLee – using the hashtag #MissedFists.
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