Bellator Fight Master episode 9 recap

It’s time for the next batch of quarterfinal fights here in Bellator’s Fight Master. It’s been a long slog, but the light at the end of the tunnel is approaching. Tonight we get Evan Cutts vs. #1 seed Joe Riggs, and wrestling rivals collide when Joe Williams faces Eric Bradley.

Bellator Fight Master episode 9 recap

Fight 1: Joe Williams (Team Shamrock) vs. Eric Bradley (Team Jackson)

We start off on fight day, with Joe Williams discussing fighting 3 times in 3 weeks, and Frank Shamrock talking about how the only thing that can hold Williams back is injuries. “Sideshow” Eric, however, feels that his explosiveness and quickness will win him the day, and plans to go for the knockout. Coach Jackson echos this, and says that Williams has better wrestling than striking, but that his pupil is vastly better in both of those areas.

This will be the 4th time in total that these two have scared off, with Bradley going 3-0 when they competed against each other as wrestlers in the NCAA. “Mongo” has been working on his striking with Coach Frank, who feels that Williams power and counter-wrestling ability will be the keys to victory. For Team Jackson, the main points that they feel will bring victory to their boy Bradley are working as a proper mixed martial artist, and keeping his counter-wrestling tight. Both men are hungry, and neither feels they’re going to lose.

Round 1 started off with “Mongo” Williams pumping the jab out, but “Sideshow Eric” landing the occasional straight or overhand left. Each man hit the odd body shot as well, but no serious strikes were landed until a nice 3 punch combination from Bradley bruised the cheek of the sole remaining member of Team Shamrock. The majority of the round was essentially a tepid boxing match, until about the 3 minute mark, when Joe Williams went for the single leg, only to have Bradley take his back off the attempt. Williams got to his feet right away, but this gave “Sideshow” Eric some confidence, as he went for and landed a high kick approximately 30 seconds later, only to slip and fall on his butt upon connecting. He regained his vertical base quickly, though, and used his striking to set up a takedown and put “Mongo” on his derriere. Bradley eventually settled into Williams’ half-guard, and started to rain down light, Askren-esque ground’n’pound on his now-bleeding opponnent until the end of the round. This round is 10-9 for Eric Bradley.

The second round saw another minute and a half of the same tepid boxing that started the first round off. With about 3:30 left in the round, Bradley shoots for a takedown, only to have it stuffed by Williams. Half-way through the round, “Sideshow” Eric attempts another takedown shot on Joe “Mongo”, only to have Williams sprawl out on the attempt. Bradley lands a hook as they stand and separate, but after that all we get is more tepid boxing with a kick thrown in every once in a blue moon. Any takedown attempt from Bradley got stuffed, while Williams was able to get a takedown in the last 5 seconds. Tough round to call. The judges gave it to Bradley, which gives him the win.

After the fight, Williams talks about not remembering getting taken down in the first after getting kicked in the head by Bradley. He feels devastasted, but gives glory to God. Team Shamrock is eliminated in the quarterfinals, but Shamrock tells his pupils that he is still proud of them. Team Jackson is more celebratory, with Bradley talking about his cage comfort levels increasing.

“Sideshow” Eric Bradley def. Joe “Mongo” Williams via Unanimous Decision (20-18, 20-18, 20-18)

Fight 2: Evan Cutts (Team Warren) vs. Joe Riggs (Team Jackson)

Evan Cutts is motivated for this fight, saying he needs to be able to look his wife in the eye after the tournament and tell her he gave it his all. Joe Warren’s running his pupil’s hype machine, reminding us that “The Butcher” beat the #2 seed of the previous round. Joe Riggs disagrees with Warren’s assessment, though, saying he is more skilled all around, and that Cutts’ main skill is, “Taking a beating.”

Riggs feels like he can’t be mad at his opponent, and wishes him the best of luck, but says he will still have to knock Cutts out. Warren acknowledges the risk of having his pupil stay on his feet and in the center of the cage with “Diesel” for too long, so the strategy is to push the #1 seed up against the cage and go for double-leg takedowns as they present themselves. As has been the case all season so far, this is code for “Wall’n’stall! Wall’n’stall!” Warren feels that with this strategy, and all the work that’s being done on “The Butcher’s” wrestling, that his team will carry on into the semi finals. Coach Greg Jackson counters that his star pupil in the tournament, Joe Riggs, has the all around game to handle his Team Warren opponent, and so they focus on fine-tuning things like “Diesel’s” counterwrestling.

Joe Warren talks about how he feels Joe Riggs is breaking due to the extreme weight cuts he is subjecting himself to. Riggs’ teammates notice this, and Riggs admits to feeling tired and hungry, and to missing his family. He starts to have an emotional breakdown, but his team rallies around him to raise his spirits. Cutts talks about having youth on his side, and that this is not his last run. Riggs, however, talks about how the situation is basically “32 men trying to kill each other for a dream.”

Round 1 saw the much lankier Cutts, who has an 8″ reach advantage, using his jab to push the veteran Riggs into the cage. “The Butcher” clinches in and goes for the takedown, but just can’t quite get it. After about 30 seconds of this, “Diesel” muscles his way out and takes the Team Warren member down with a hip toss before going straight into side control. While Evan managed to re-guard, his active hips and submission attempts were kept in check by steady pressure from the top-seeded veteran. Nearly half-way through the round, the youngster managed to get back to his feet while Riggs was attempting to pass guard into side control, and pressed his more experienced foe against the cage once again. Riggs with another hip toss, making it look easy, as he once again takes side control. The fight returned to a standing position again, with Riggs landing shots on Cutts as he stood up. Each man attempted to take down the other with no real success, but it did allow “Diesel” the chance to land some solid knees and punches. Eventually, the bout came back to the cage wall, and with 30 seconds left to go, Joe Riggs landed a trip that put Cutts on the mat for the rest of the round. 10-9 round for Riggs, easily.

Greg Jackson was very animated between rounds, with Warren trying to return the confidence to his pupil. The second stanza saw Cutts get aggressive with his striking, throwing head kicks and punches only to be caught and tossed to the mat and against the cage like a ragdoll. “The Butcher” got back to his feet, pushed his Team Jackson opponent into the cage, and then got taken down shortly after having his position reversed. Riggs lands some ground’n’pound, but again “The Butcher” gets up and “Diesel” takes him down again. The rest of the round continued this way, with Joe Riggs dominating the proceedings. 10-8 round for Riggs in my eyes, easy.

Post fight, Riggs went over to Cutts and had their tender moment, encouraging the young fighter and praising his toughness. That’s really the theme of the whole post-fight for this bout, with Riggs saying he didn’t get hit, but that Evan wouldn’t stop. Warren talks about how he hates to lose, but that it is only this year, and hopes to be back if they do a second season.

Joe “Diesel” Riggs def. Evan “The Butcher” Cutts via Unanimous Decision (20-18, 20-18, 20-18)

So, with that, the quarterfinals are done, and Teams Shamrock and Warren have both been eliminated. Now it is a battle between Team Couture and Team Jackson. Who will fight who next week? Will another team be eliminated? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Team Couture (2-2, 2-0)