Weekend Rundown: BJJ Wiz ‘Demente’ Abreu Rolls in MMA Debut
Chris Nelson Jul 11, 2011
Sherdog.com Illustration
One week after Tito Ortiz’s improbable guillotining of Ryan Bader at UFC 132, the Brazilian submission ace responsible for Ortiz’s ground training made his long-awaited transition to the cage.
In his MMA debut, decorated grappler Ricardo Abreu -- better known as “Demente” (Portuguese for “Madman”) -- topped Saturday’s card from the upstart Brazilian Fighting Championship at Sao Jose do Rio Preto Regional Events Center in the state of Sao Paulo. Abreu’s first night at his new job was an easy one, as the Nova Uniao BJJ black belt needed only 61 seconds to armbar amateur-circuit convert Marcos Wilson da Silva.
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Abreu, 27, began training with Ortiz in Huntington Beach, Calif., prior to the former UFC light heavyweight champ’s October 2010 clash with Matt Hamill. The two-time World Jiu-Jitsu Championship silver medalist has also spent time working with renowned coach Rafael Cordeiro at Kings MMA, and with a number of famous fighting countrymen in Rio de Janeiro.
“It was
X-Gym in Rio that made me believe I had the potential for MMA,”
Abreu said. “There, with the team of Anderson
Silva, I gained confidence. They taught me lots of things. I
have to thank Rogerio Camoes, Rafael ‘Feijao’ [Cavalcante], Josuel
Distak and Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ [Souza]... because, as I always say, a
champion doesn’t do it alone.”
Quick Hits
Former WEC bantamweight champion Chase Beebe added another belt to his collection Saturday, claiming the 135-pound strap of England’s World Fighting Championships by submitting Ralph Acosta at Grundy Park Leisure Centre in London. Beebe latched onto the American Top Team Orlando product with a deep guillotine choke and ended the fight after only 41 seconds, Beebe’s 16th career win via submission and fifth straight victory. In the show’s other title bouts, unheralded Polish light heavyweight Robert Krecicki upset Finland’s Toni Valtonen, while English featherweight Robbie Olivier outpointed Lithuanian Antanas Jazbutis.
Unbeaten Russian Rasul Mirzaev upset onetime Sengoku featherweight champ Masanori Kanehara on Thursday in the main event of Fight Nights “Battle of Moscow 4” at Moscow’s Aquarium Sports Arena. Despite possessing a three-inch height advantage, Kanehara could not keep the 25-year-old “Black Tiger” at bay while vertical, and Mizaev sprawled on multiple shots after stunning his Japanese opponent with an overhand right. When Kanehara’s desperate single-leg attempts failed and a clean left hook from Mirzaev put “Kin-Chan” on his posterior once more, the bout was waved off at 1:47 of the opening round. Mirzaev improved to 3-0 on the year, with three first-round finishes, while Kanehara suffered his third stoppage loss in four fights. The event’s undercard saw M-1 Global welterweight champion Shamil Zavurov maul overmatched Zhanybek Amatov with leg kicks, forcing Amatov to quit at 1:34 of the second frame.
Kim Couture fell victim to both a fine piece of submission work and a poor bit of officiating at Friday’s Assassin-X Combat “Execution” card in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Couture never looked competitive in the 135-pound bout, as local favorite Sheila Bird tossed the Las Vegas resident to the ground before mashing with hard punches from side control and transitioning to a leg-scissor choke. Her blood flow cut off, Couture’s own legs fell limp almost instantly, and the 35-year-old remained in the hold, unconscious, for approximately 10 seconds before referee Len Koivisto called a stop to the action at the 1:48 mark. In spite of the scary finish, Couture was eventually able to leave the ring under her own power.
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