Reign Fighting Championship held an MMA Fight Night event at the Clearwater Resort & Casino in Suquamish, WA on November 16, 2019.
The night consisted of a mix of professional and amateur bouts. The first nine fights were amateur bouts. Title fights in the 135 lbs and 145 lbs divisions capped off the card’s amateur fights. The last three fights were professional bouts. The Clearwater Resort & Casino Events Center was an impressive venue for fights. The Events Center was nicely appointed and offered a professional atmosphere for fights. The event appeared to be sold out and the crowd was energetic. A live DJ was spinning tracks prior to the
event and at intermission to keep the energy levels high. The venue also boasts an impressive lighting system that is used to great effect during fighter walk-outs. Local mixed martial arts fans would do well to take in a night of fights at the Clearwater Resort & Casino.
Ethan Shultz v Ralston Thomas – 185 lbs
Ethan Shultz started this fight strong by landing several nice leg kicks on Ralston Thomas. Shultz had another nice moment in the first round when he hit a strong knee from the clinch. The second round started off with a superman punch landed by Thomas. Shultz later scored with a hard leg kick that made Ralston stumble. Thomas then got off on a furious flurry countering a body kick by Shultz. Thomas landed several heavy shots during the assault. Thomas then tied up Shultz on the cage for several moments in the second round. Shultz did, however, land a heavy low kick late in the round.
Round Three saw Thomas earn the spectacular finish by standing guillotine at the 1:43 mark of the round. The round began with Schutz immediately shooting for the takedown. Shultz spent time working for the takedown up against the cage before finally putting Thomas on the canvas. However, Thomas immediately worked his way back to his feet. The fighters then traded knees in the clinch. The finish happened as Shultz initially drove Thomas backward across the cage, but Thomas halted Shultz’s momentum by applying the standing front chokehold and producing the tap via guillotine with both fighters standing.
Margo Lee v. Kayla Weed – Women’s 140 lbs
The first round of this fight played out largely in the grappling realm as Kayla Weed immediately charged Margo Lee, pushing Lee up against the fence in the clinch. Lee briefly turned Weed’s back to the cage, before Weed reversed the position with Lee back up against the cage. Weed then scored the takedown and immediately was in side control position. After passing to half guard, Weed controlled the rest of the round by mostly keeping Lee’s back pinned to the mat. Weed did get off a few punches but appeared content to dominate the position by pinning Lee down. Just prior to the end of the round, Weed postured up and rained down some hammer fists. Lee attempted an armbar but didn’t have much time to work the submission
attempt as the bell rang.
The fight came to an anticlimactic ending at 1:34 of Round Two when Weed was unable to finish the fight due to injury. The opening of the second round played out much like the first, with Weed charging forward and pushing Lee up against the fence. However, as Lee was taking Weed to the ground, Weed immediately suffered a left leg injury and could not continue. The referee quickly saw the pain Weed was in and called the fight as it was clear the left leg injury Weed suffered prevented her from continuing the fight.
Aaisin Jay Liberato v. Eric Ledesma – 125 lbs
Aaisin Jay Liberato won by unanimous decision in this 125 lb contest that he largely dominated. Eric Ledesma started the fight well enough, with the first clean strike of the round by way of a big overhand right hand. Liberato then scored with a heavy body kick on Ledesma. Both fighters
showed quick, crisp striking in the middle portion of the round that featured a fast pace. Liberato controlled the end of the round, however, as he landed a body kick, two hard right hooks, and a right knee to Ledesma’s body.
Round Two was a good round for Ledesma as he spent most of the round in top position. Liberato started well by landing two good knees to Ledesma’s body while the fight was in the clinch. Liberato then appeared to pull guard, although it was difficult to tell if the move was precipitated by a slip. In any event, Liberato defended well from the bottom position as he effectively controlled Ledesma’s posture by pulling him tight and not providing much room to work. Liberato showed good ground skills by quickly shifting his hips and positioning for an armbar attempt. Ledesma eventually worked his way out of the armbar after an unsuccessful attempt to lift Liberato and slam him out of the position. Ledesma spent the last four minutes of the round in top position but didn’t do much damage despite the amount of top time.
As the Third Round opened, Ledesma’s right eye was swelling badly. Liberato applied pressure by snapping two quick jabs. Liberato scored with a nice right hand counter off a missed front kick by Ledesma. Liberato then did some of his best work of the fight by securing a takedown and immediately gaining mount position and landing some heavy punches. Liberato transitioned to back mount before Ledesma was able to reverse position. While in Liberato’s guard, Ledesma got off a few punches before the closing bell. At the end of the fight, Liberato did not appear to have suffered much damage, while Ledesma was really wearing it with quite a bit of selling and bruising around his eyes.
James Galam v. Sam James – 150 lbs
Sam James took the unanimous decision victory over James Galam in a hard-fought fight. James connected early in this fight with a good right hand. However, Galam showed good counter- striking skills with a nifty three strike combination. James responded with a great sequence that
started with a front kick close to the cage, followed by two hard right hooks. James then secured a takedown. Galam effectively defended on the ground as he was not content to sit still on his back and was constantly moving and threatening from the bottom. Galam attempted to secure a
triangle but James did well to defend and escape the position. While in Galam’s half guard, James got off three nice punches, but Galam continued his effective defense from bottom by limiting James’ attack.
Round Two largely played out on the mat as James fell to the ground after throwing a body kick. Galam was briefly in top position, but James showed off his excellent athleticism by exploding and reversing the position. Galam once again initially showed good defense on his back by effectively tying James up. However, not to be outdone, James passed to knee on belly position and quickly landed several punches before moving to side control. Galam worked his way back to his feet but the fight returned to the mat as James took Galam’s back. James attempted to apply a rear naked choke, and while the choke initially appeared to be sunk in, Galam continued
showing his impressive defensive grappling by working his way out of the choke and reversing position by turning into James’ guard just before the bell.
The Third Round appeared to be almost entirely James’ round as he began hammering low kicks on Galam. A clean left hook that landed on Galam’s face opened a cut over Galam’s left eyebrow. James landed the best shot of the night by slamming a hard straight left hand counter off a body kick by Galam. Jones finished his impressive round by landing a good knee to the
body and following with a hard left hook to the head that landed clean. The ring announcer declared James the winner by unanimous decision, but as with the other fights that went the distance this night, no judge’s scores were announced.
Matt Yuste v. LJ Huereca – 145 lbs
Matt Yuste and LJ Huereca’s fight was a contender fight, with the winner guaranteed to fight at the next 145 lb championship bout. Yuste entered the fight with what appeared to be a significant size advantage. Yuste had the height and reach advantage and appeared to be at least ten pounds heavier than Huereca.
Huereca started well by obtaining a front headlock in the opening minutes of the fight and landing several good knees from the position. Huereca then was able to control Yuste up against the cage in the clinch. Huereca pursued the takedown up against the fence to no avail. After breaking the clinch, the fighters engaged in another clinch when a hard knee by Yuste dropped
Huereca to the mat. After Huereca regained his feet, Yuste punished him with another hard knee to the body. Yuste closed the round by landing several hard punches. As the round closed, Huereca’s face was bloodied by the damage.
Round Two opened with a good lunging left superman punch by Yuste. Huereca responded by shooting for a takedown, but Yuste was able to sprawl and collapse Huereca. Yuste transitioned to top position and landed two hard left hands to the face. Yuste moved to side control and landed a nice left elbow to Huereca’s ribs. Yuste attempted a toehold submission prior to the end of the round.
The Third Round ended quickly as the referee missed a blatant groin strike on Huereca. With Huereca clearly compromised, and the referee not stopping the action, Huereca went to the mat in a defensive shell on his knees and elbows. As Huereca attempted to cover his head, Yuste moved aggressively to finish the fight by hammering down punches while standing over Huereca. After ten to fifteen unanswered punches the referee finally stopped the fight. The finish came at 0:47 of Round Three. While Yuste deserves credit for largely dominating the fight, it was an unfortunate ending as Huereca clearly was unable to defend himself after the referee’s
glaring mistake of not stopping the action off the groin strike.
Marco Martinez v. Jason Ellis – 135 lbs Title Fight – Five Rounds
The Reign FC 135 lbs Amateur Championship belt was on the line in this bout between Marco Martinez and Jason Ellis. The title bout was scheduled for five three-minute rounds. In the First Round, Jason Ellis got off to a good start as the fighters spent a fair amount of time in the clinch, with Ellis controlling the southpaw Marco Martinez. Ellis continued doing good work by landing a few knees from the clinch. However, Martinez got on the board when he landed a nice counter left hook off a missed uppercut by Ellis. Martinez later landed a hard three-punch combination. The fight again went to the clinch and some grueling action followed as both fighters landed multiple punches. Martinez landed a big head kick late in the round. It was a good round for both fighters, however Martinez, in particular, impressed with his striking, as his boxing was sharp. Ellis finished the round with a cut over his right eyebrow as a result of Martinez’s handiwork.
The Second Round opened with Ellis making an aggressive push forward. He landed a couple of nice jabs as the fighters once more engaged in the clinch along the fence. After Martinez’s takedown attempt was stymied, the fighters entertained the crowd as they stood and threw flurries of punches as both banged away in the pocket. Following the exchange, Martinez again
pushed Ellis up against the cage as the combatants entered the clinch. Martinez finished a double leg takedown but was unable to do any work from top position as the bell rang shortly after the takedown landed.
The Third Round started with a good front kick by Martinez. Ellis was wearing the damage at this point and was clearly tired. Martinez landed a hard right hand upstairs. Martinez then put Ellis in a front headlock position and eventually turned to take Ellis’s back. Martinez forced the
fight to the mat and stayed on Ellis back, throwing hard punches to Ellis’s head. Martinez briefly worked his way to top mount and threw punches to Ellis’s face as he covered up. Martinez transitioned to Ellis’s back and after a few more distracting punches to the head, Martinez finished the bout by rear naked choke at 2:25 of Round Three, capturing the 135 lbs title.
James Pollard v. Dexter Thumm Jr. – 145 lbs Title Fight – Five Rounds
The last amateur bout of the night was for the 145 lbs amateur championship belt. The fight was scheduled for five three-minute rounds. As both fighters stepped to the middle of the cage, Dexter Thumm Jr. threw a left high kick that missed its mark. As Thumm pressed forward and the fighters were up against the cage, Pollard dropped Thumm with a combination that finished the fight by TKO just 22 seconds into the fight. As Matt Yuste won the 145 lbs contender fight earlier in the evening, he will be up next for the titleholder Pollard.
Jordan Anderson v. Ashequllah Mohammadi – 145 lbs
The first professional fight of the night was a 145 lbs contest between Jordan Anderson and Ashequllah Mohammadi. The fight began with the competitors trading some hard low kicks. During this short fight, Mohammadi had his best moment when he landed a hard front kick
followed by a couple of hard outside leg kicks. Early on Anderson showed a glimpse of his power by landing a left superman punch. Shortly thereafter a hard hook to the head dropped Mohammadi. With Mohammadi covering up and not offering much in the way of defense, Anderson looked for the finish as he threw hard punches. The end came at 4:29 of Round One as
the referee put a stop to the fight, giving the TKO victory to Anderson.
James Tyson v. Bo Asay – 170 lbs
James Tyson and Bo Asay fought in the second professional fight of the night in the 170 lbs weight class. Just prior to the start of the fight as the ring announcer was finishing the introduction, Tyson stalked back and forth on his side of the cage and didn’t take his eyes off Asay as the intimidation factor was turned up several notches. For his part, Asay didn’t appear interested in making eye contact as he did last minute stretches prior to the opening bell.
Tyson dominated this bout from the start as he quickly landed a hard, lunging right hand clean to Asay’s face. Tyson wasted little time looking for the takedown and after getting it he secured side control. As Tyson attempted to pass to full mount, Asay exploded to stand up as Tyson attempted a guillotine choke. With the fight going to the mat, Tyson was in top position in Asay’s guard. Asay initially defended well by controlling Tyson’s posture by pulling him in tight. Tyson, however, worked his way free and threw punches from top position. Tyson then finished the fight at the 3:07 mark of Round One by D’arce Choke.
Nick Mills v. Matt Kovacs – Heavyweight Main Event
Matt Kovacs used his significant size advantage in this bout against Nick Mills. Kovacs quickly put Mills up against the fence to start the fight. From there Kovacs landed a hard knee prior to looking for the takedown. Mills initially defended well up against the cage, but Kovacs persisted and worked his way to a successful single leg takedown. With Kovacs in Mills half guard, Kovacs landed several short elbows to the head. Kovacs was not particularly active, but controlled Mills from top position. As Mills made a move to stand up, Kovacs took Mill’s back and as the fight went to the ground Kovacs quickly produced the submission victory by Rear Naked Choke at the 3:08 mark of Round One.
After the fight, Kovacs was gracious as he was interviewed, acknowledging his opponent as a tough competitor and mentioning the combatants’ size disparity by saying Mills came up “three weight classes” for the fight. Kovacs then turned his attention to Mill’s teammate at Six Feet Under MMA, Sua Tuani. Tuani is the current CageSport Heavyweight champion. Kovac’s made the call out of Tuani by saying “I heard what you said on social media. Get ready because you’re next!”
