It was a fantastic night of fights at ExciteFight MMA’s event at Muckleshoot Casino last Saturday. It was Seattle Fight’s first ExciteFight MMA event but it won’t be the last. If you are a PNW MMA fan do yourself a favor and snap up a ticket to their next event at the Auburn casino on July 7th.
The Muckleshoot Casino is an excellent venue to watch fights. The venue is intimate and has four large screens for replays. And if the action in the cage is obscured you can easily follow the action on screen. The environment is top notch and ExciteFight MMA does an excellent job creating a fun fight atmosphere. There’s lasers and pyrotechnics and music to set the stage for some great fights. And last but not least the Spokane based ExciteFight MMA boasts some of the best local amateur and professional MMA fighters.
Read on for a recap of the night’s 15 fights in reverse order of their placement on the card. The last five fights of the night were professional bouts while the first ten fights were amateur undercard bouts.
Shane WhiteEagle Brings Down The House With Standing Guillotine Finish In Barnburner Fight
The crowd was behind Shane WhiteEagle from the start and the “Dacaptivative Native” did not disappoint. His opponent, Andrew Kile, clearly came to fight and used a distinct size advantage to get ahead during the first two rounds of the fight. It was back and forth action with each fighter having their moments. But Kile was able to get the better of most of the grappling exchanges in the first two rounds. WhiteEagle however showed some slick grappling as well, at one point using a kimura from bottom position to reverse Kile.
Kile opened the striking in Round 1 with a low kick and WhiteEagle foreshadowed the wild nature of this fight by throwing a flurry of punches and followed with a flying knee attempt. WhiteEagle fell down off the attempt and Kile capitalized by taking top position. WhiteEagle did well to immediately work back to the feet only to have Kile drag him back to the canvas. WhiteEagle used butterfly hooks to escape and reset the fight on the feet. WhiteEagle then went heavy on the body attacks before Kile pressed him up against the cage. WhiteEagle wasn’t having it though as he shucked off Kile and landed a takedown of his own. WhiteEagle landed some hard left hands while standing over the grounded Kile. Kile however defended well, initially attacking leg submissions and eventually using a kimura to reverse position as WhiteEagle flipped over. WhiteEagle then used a kimura turn Kile over and reverse position once more. The fighters continued to trade positions in this wild fight. Late in the round Kile picked up WhiteEagle and set him down on the mat. Kile eventually took mount and was wailing away with punches, forcing WhiteEagle to turn face down.
Kile had WhiteEagle in some serious trouble as he must have landed twenty or more left hands and also looked for a kimura just before the bell sounded to end the round. The referee took a close look at stopping the fight but WhiteEagle showed toughness to weather the storm.
WhiteEagle must have done a good job defending as he did not look too tired or to have suffered much damage as the second frame began. Kile once more had WhiteEagle in trouble early in the round as he landed some hard punches and a jumping knee from the clinch. Then Kile was all over WhiteEagle as he landed alternating left and right hooks and finishing with a punishing left uppercut. Kile then converted a single leg takedown. As WhiteEagle looked to work back to standing, Kile took the back and appeared to have a rear naked choke sunk in fairly deep. WhiteEagle defended by turning into Kile’s guard as both combatants were showing heavy fatigue from the furious action. The crowd was going bananas. Kile then went for an armbar that WhiteEagle slipped out of and worked into side control. WhiteEagle landed a couple of short punches but Kile quickly reversed position. Kile then stepped over into mount as he worked on a kimura. WhiteEagle’s arm appeared to be in a pretty compromised position but was able to turn to his side and twist. Kile gave up on the kimura and looked for an armbar to no avail. It was another wild round in this crowd-pleasing fight.
The end came early in Round 3. WhiteEagle opened the round by landing a hard right body kick. WhiteEagle started pressuring heavy which drew a big left hand from Kile. WhiteEagle then landed a clever jab and followed with a big right hand that Kile ducked under and drove WhiteEagle over to the cage. WhiteEagle had immediately jumped on a front headlock and quickly put on a powerful squeeze to force Kile to tap.
Jay Pierotti Wins ExciteFight Lightweight Title With First Round Arm Triangle Choke
Jay “Mama’s Boy” Pierotti (great fight name!) took out the experienced Charon Spain to win the ExciteFight lightweight strap with a first round arm triangle submission. Spain fought hard but Pierotti was simply too much on this night. Pierotti showed a clear edge in the grappling department. Pierotti secured mount position and tried to get the submission from top position, but when Spain wouldn’t yield Pierotti slid off to Spain’s side in order to secure the leverage he needed to get the tap.
Pierotti, whose most recent fight was in 2020 for the major Asian promotion One Championship, improved to 13-2 with the victory, while Spain fell to 18-34.
Byron Fernandus Gets Ground and Pound TKO in Round 2 After “Barrage of Strikes”
One of the best parts about seeing an ExciteFight Event is the colorful ring announcer the promotion employs. Per his post-fight reading of the result, Byron Fernandus took his ground and pound Round 2 TKO via a “barrage of strikes.” Midway through the first round, Brandon Sly threw an outside leg kick that Fernandus caught and converted into a takedown. Sly turned for an armbar but Fernandus defended well by stacking his foe and preventing Sly from extending Fernandus. Fernandus spent a good portion of the round in top control and landed some solid elbows and punches.
In Round 2, Fernandus put Sly up against the cage and landed a nasty right elbow. Fernandus then scored an impressive takedown via lateral drop. After initially landing in top half guard, Fernandus passed to side control before transitioning to mount. From mount, Fernandus attacked with an elbow. Sly tried to escape out of the bottom but Fernandus did well to float on top before transitioning to side control. Fernandus then stepped over into mount and postured up to land hard punches and hammerfists to get the stoppage. Sly did well to defend the attack by pointing his elbows upward into the downpour of blows. But Fernandus kept wailing away and eventually enough shots got through to elicit the referee stoppage. With the win Fernandus’ record climbed to 2-2 while Sly fell 2-6.
Christian Strong Wins First Round TKO Via Ground and Pound
One of the best parts about this event was the solid matchmaking that resulted in mostly competitive fights but this one appeared to be a bit of a mismatch from the jump. Christian Strong’s professional record rose to 3-1 with his vicious Round 1 ground and pound finish of Anthony “The Psychic Assassin” Zender. With the loss Zender fell to 7-13.
Carlos Martinez Submits Marco Garcia With Round 2 Rear Naked Choke in Fight of the Night
In the last amateur bout of the evening, the first round was a back-and-forth affair as Marco Garcia built an early lead Carlos Martinez as Garcia darted in and landed a nice lead right hand that snapped his opponent’s head back. Garcia then shortly thereafter did the same, landing a right hand after closing distance. Late in the round, Martinez reversed the tide late in the round when he charged forward and landed a hard knee that had Garcia covering up. Martinez then landed a couple more solid knees before switching to elbow strikes. Martinez had Garcia in trouble up against the cage but Garcia did well to circle out and get his back off the cage. Martinez ultimately took the round with a late knockdown that came via a big right hand. It was an impressive comeback late in the round by Martinez, utilizing his power, as Garcia had the striking advantage through a good portion of the round.
Martinez then took full control of the fight in Round 2 when he came out aggressively and fought as if Garcia owed him some money. Martinez started to land damaging strikes to the body. Martinez also showed some slick jiu-jitsu after landing a takedown as he immediately jumped on Garcia’s back and quickly got his forearms in position to apply the squeeze and get the quick tap via rear naked choke. With the win Martinez’s amateur record improved to 3-1 while Garcia lost in his amateur MMA debut.
Josh Cruz Wins Amateur MMA Debut With Round 2 TKO
Josh Cruz started this fight by shooting for a single leg and converting the takedown as he went straight into the closed guard of Jonathan Rudo. Cruz initially didn’t do much damage as he looked to advance position. Cruz landed some hard right hands to the ribs. Cruz spent most of the round in top position. Rudo was able to briefly reverse position by bucking and twisting but Cruz was able reverse positions once more. Cruz attacked with right hands to the ribs. Rudo once more reversed by bucking and twisting and at the end of the round Cruz was about to continue the chain of reversals when the bell sounded to end the round.
In the second round Cruz once more got a quick takedown about fifteen seconds into the round. Rudo was active on the bottom but Cruz did well to maintain the position and then passed into mount. Cruz landed left hands to the body as Rudo defended by pulling Cruz and holding tight to his chest. Cruz then postured up and was able to land alternating left and right hands.
It was a late stoppage as the referee for some reason refused to stop the fight despite the fact that it was very clear Rudo was not able to get out from under the mount position. Cruz likely landed thirty plus strikes that appeared unnecessary if the fight had been properly stopped. This was Cruz’s amateur MMA debut, while Rudo fell to 0-2.
Curtis Bouton Versus Tony Marchand Ends In No Contest Due To Accidental Collision Of Heads
It was entertaining while it lasted but this bout unfortunately concluded via no contest as the fighters clashed heads during their brief encounter. After Tony Marchand got top position, Curtis Bouton initially defended by controlling Marchand’s right hand as Marchand was trying to get off some ground and pound. Bouton then deftly put on a triangle lock and Marchand responded by trying to go full Rampage Jackson as he lifted Bouton high into the air as he appeared to be looking for a slam to break the triangle. But Bouton wasn’t having it as he repeatedly threw hammerfists to Marchand’s face both on the way up and back down. After the clash of heads the referee immediately stopped the bout and called the fight a no contest. Marchand was wearing a black eye and a pretty bad cut over his right eye after the fight was called off.
Kayla Weed Defeats Rose Fujinaka By Unanimous Decision
Kayla Weed and Rose Fujinaka went the distance and provided an entertaining fight. Fujinaka showed some solid boxing skills in this bout but Weed landed the harder strikes and had more clinch control time. Fujinaka also demonstrated some solid defensive skills on the ground as she stymied Weed’s ground attacks on multiple occasions. With the win Weed’s amateur record climbed to 3-2, while this was Fujinaka’s amateur debut.
Wazeen Mohammed Stops Ethan Drake In Round 3 Via Strikes
Give Ethan Drake credit for repeatedly coming forward in this bout. But Wazeen Mohammed saw Drake’s repeated entries that started with an outside leg kick and began to successfully answer with hard right hand counters to stop Drake’s advance. The end came in Round 3 as Mohammed charged forward aggressively with strikes and connected with a hard punch that sent Drake to the canvas. Mohammed followed up with punches while standing over Drake. The referee quickly determined that Drake was not able to continue the fight calling off the bout via TKO. This was Mohammed’s amateur debut, while Drake fell to 1-1 with the loss.
Ike Okoli Takes Unanimous Decision Over Elijah Ellison In Battle of Heavyweights
Ike Okoli improved his amateur record to 2-0 with a solid victory over Elijah Ellison in Ellison’s amateur MMA debut. Okoli who appeared to have a significant weight advantage won this bout on the strength of his wrestling. After a competitive first round, Okoli dominated the second round with a lot of top control time. Ellison did well to get back to standing but Okoli was able to get his foe back to the ground in relatively short order.
Okoli once more had a lot of top control time in the final round. Ellison was looking for a kimura late in the round, cranking hard from bottom position to no avail. Both of these men fought hard and both fighters may have a bright future in the heavyweight landscape considering the relative dearth of talented heavies.
Danielle Edwards Gets Early Round 1 Rear Naked Choke Against Tatym Ronquillo
Danielle Edwards and Tatym Ronquillo got their fight off to a quick start as both women met in the middle of the cage and traded heavy shots in a wild exchange. After the fighters engaged the clinch, Edwards got the takedown and quickly took top position and flattened out her opponent. Edwards showed solid offensive jiu-jitsu as she produced a quick tap via rear naked choke. This bout was both ladies’ amateur MMA debuts.
Cole Hollenbeck Wins Unanimous Decision Against Bruno Castro
Cole Hollenbeck and Bruno Castro made their amateur MMA debuts in a fight that largely played out on the ground. Hollenbeck won this bout with a solid amount of top control time. The fight never appeared to be close to a finish however.
Lazaro Curup Defeats Cameron O’Neil By Unanimous Decision
Seattle Fights disagreed with the judges’ decision to give this fight to Lazaro Curup as it appeared that Cameron O’Neil had won the first two rounds. The judges scored the bout 29-28, 29-28, and 28-28 giving Curup the majority decision. The final round was clearly Curup’s round however as he big brothered O’Neil, charging forward and hammering away with body kicks. Curup secured top position late in the final round and landed hard punches from top position.
Eddie Quinones Wins Unanimous Decision Against Kenneth Lawrence
Eddie Quinones took a unanimous decision over Kenneth Lawrence with a dominant showing on the ground. Quinones was able to take Lawrence’s back multiple times and also landed some hard punches from top position. Lawrence, working off his back, at one point had what looked to be a fairly tight armbar submission attempt but Quinones was able to survive. With the win Quinones amateur record improved to 1-1 while this was Lawrence’s debut.
Hannah Brobykov Earns Second Round TKO Against Johanna Coble
Hannah Brobykov and Johanna Coble got the night of fifteen fights off to a solid start. Coble did some good work landing solid outside leg kicks and some knees from the clinch. But Brobykov was much sharper with her punches throughout the fight as she landed hard straight punches and some solid combinations. The stoppage came in the second round after the referee broke up the clinch and Brobykov immediately went on the attack landing hard punches and backing up Coble. As the fighters worked over to the fence, Brobykov connected sending Coble to the canvas. Brobykov started pouring on the hooks with Coble grounded. The referee stepped in for the TKO stoppage giving Brobykov the win in her amateur MMA debut. Coble dropped to 0-3.
