Bayou Fighting Championship continues to be the premier MMA organization in Louisiana. The highlights continued February 23, 2019 from the Lamar Dixon Center in Gonzales, Louisiana for Bayou Fighting Championship 35: Capitol City Fight Night. The eight card bout displayed the best talent across the southern part of the United States. As always, BFC events are called by “Dynamite” David Hardy Jr. Dynamite was the runner up in 2018 for MMA Today’s Cage Announcer of the Year award.
The Shadow Shines Bright
The night kicked off with a very solid matchup between “The Shadow” Jordan Salgado and TWebb MMA fighter Donald Wilkinson. Wilkinson started out with leg kicks to try and throw off Salgado. Salgado was able to catch one of the low leg kicks and drive Wilkinson to the mat, landing in side control. Wilkinson did a good job fighting through the amazing strength of Salgado. On the ascent up, Salgado locked in a guillotine-type choke and drove Wilkinson back to the mat. Though Salgado was controlling the early pace of the fight, Wilkinson showed a relentless spirit and brought the fight back to the feet. Salgado went to where he had been dominant, back to the mat, with a nice judo toss. The two battled for ground superiority to end out the first round.
Wilkinson came out the gate with leg kicks but Salgado was able to pressure Wilkinson’s back to the cage and land another big takedown. With Wilkinson on his back, Salgado stacked him and dropped a few shots before Wilkinson was able to return the battle to its feet. Wilkinson looked solid on the feet but Salgado used his wrestling to lower the Karate-style fighter back to the ground where he maintained control to finish out the round.
Salgado returned to what has been working the whole contest; clinching Wilkinson on the fence and bring the fight to the mat. After taking Wilkinson’s back, Salgado attempted an armbar from the back but was too far up Wilkinson’s back to get the appropriate pressure. Salgado kept the pressure on and locked in what appeared to be a type of crucifix. Once Wilkinson’s hands were pinned out the way, Salgado rained down shots leading to the stoppage. Salgado was declared the winner via Round three TKO (Ground and Pound.)
Light Heavyweight Battle
The night continued with another TWebb MMA talent, Nick Lusher, taking on Ethan LeBlanc in a battle of two light heavyweights. Both fighters came out displaying back and forth striking. Eventually, LeBlanc clinched Lusher against the cage but Lusher was quick to spin into the dominant position against the cage. The first round consisted of a lot of jockeying for position between two strikers who could easily end the night for the other with one strike.
The second round started with LeBlanc coming out the gate with several jabs and head kick attempts. Lusher attempted to stop the flow of strikes with a takedown but LeBlanc pressed Lusher back to the cage before performing a sweep to take the battle to the ground. LeBlanc landed in the dominant position after the sweep and dropped down strikes until the bout was called to a stop announcing LeBlanc the winner via Round two TKO.
Submission of the Night Winner
The next matchup of the night saw one of Gladiator Academy’s own Tyson Labit battle with Kenny Grover. Labit did a good job mixing up the body and leg kicks to start out the contest. After briefly taking the fight to the ground, both returned to the feet with Grover taking over cage control. Labit worked hard, staying active not allowing Grover to take advantage of the cage control. Once the battle returned to the striking game, Grover landed a low blow that halted the action for a few minutes. Upon returning to action Grover landed a takedown and took the back of Labit. He eventually locked in the rear naked choke and Grover was announced the winner via Round one submission.
The Easy Pick for Fight of the Night
The next battle of the night was the easy pick for Fight of the Night. The battle between Gladiators Academy lightweight Elliot Hebert and Yadier del Valle of Gracie Barra Westchase. Hebert is an extremely entertaining and talented fighter based out of Lafayette, Louisiana. His ring entrance dancing to “Electric Avenue” always livens up the live crowd in attendance for every single one of his fights. His entry to the cage of completely jumping over the steps always draws an “aww” from any new fans in attendance.
Time for War
Hebert came out the gate throwing absolute dangerous, heavy shots. Yadier used his top-level wrestling to land a takedown but Hebert used his strength to work the fight back to the feet. After breaking apart, the two fighters swung heavy shots with knockout potential in every punch. Yadier went back to his wrestling game, landing another takedown. Hebert was able to perform a huge slam but got caught in an armbar that nearly ended the bout. Hebert continued to work hard and eventually released from the armbar. Yadier was able to lock in another armbar but again, Hebert delivered a slam. After the slam, Yadier transitioned the armbar to a triangle choke and rode it out the end the stellar first round.
The second round was just as action-packed as the first. Hebert connected on a solid right hand early on that rocked Yadier. Hebert continued the onslaught of strikes but Yadier rebounded quickly and began throwing hammering shots of his own. Yadier landed several heavy thudding strikes which Hebert appeared to absorb well. Both fighters took the best the other had to offer with Hebert landing a takedown at the conclusion of the second round.
The Final Round of Action
This time Yadier was the one launching the early heavy shots. The two continued the amazing display of striking and groundwork with another series of exchanged strikes. After the battle was brought to the mat, Yadier attempted to secure the victory with a rear naked choke but was unable to get the finish. But fighters put on a brilliant performance that had the crowd fully invested. When the scorecards were read, Yadier was announced the winner via unanimous decision.
Team Jucao Solid Showing
Team Jucao representative, Jacob Small, who also represented Avondale Boxing Club, put on a very solid performance against a tough opponent in Mike Bruno of Gladiators Academy. Small landed the first takedown of the battle after some brief time against the cage. Bruno used his strength to bring the fight back to the feet but Small kept the standing back control often pressing Bruno into the cage. Eventually Small landed a sweeping takedown but yet again Bruno was able to return the fight to the feet quickly. Upon the break, both fighters threw some heavy shots as the round came to an end.
The second round started with solid strikes exchanges. Small had a good reach advantage but Bruno did a good job staying in close to deliver his own shots. The disadvantage to Bruno being in close was it allowed Small to clinch and deliver solid knee strikes. Small kept the cage control, controlling Bruno’s back and sending in knee strikes to the back of Bruno’s thighs. Small maintained control until the end of the round.
Round three consisted more of what the bout had already shown. Bruno started out striking early but Small went to his clinch-cage came which has been working well throughout the contest thus far. After a significant amount of time controlling Bruno’s back, the two separated and engaged with standup striking leading to the end of the contest. When it came time for “Dynamite” to announce the winner, Small’s hand was raised earning the unanimous decision.
Professional Co-Main Event Knockout of the night
The first professional bout of the night consisted of TWebb MMA welterweight Romalice Thomason taking on Mark Kolker from Port City MMA in Alabama. Both fighters looked comfortable in the cage looking to implement their own game plan. Thomason came out with several well placed leg kicks. The first round consisted of both fighters picking their shots, respecting the other’s ability to capitalize off of any mistake made. In the second round, Thomason started to find his range and landed some solid strikes. Kolker connected on a huge strike that leveled Thomason and immediately resulted in the halt of the contest. Kolker was announced the winner via second-round KO.
Professional Main Event that did not Disappoint
The main event concluded the night of amazing action and did not disappoint. One of the most seasoned professionals in all of Louisiana MMA, Josh Davila, took on Justin Osborn, the BFC: Battle of New Orleans lightweight champion. Davila utilized a clinch on the cage before the two eventually went to the mat. Osborn attempted a guillotine but Davila was able to escape quickly with his very solid ground game. After returning to the feet Davila showed his skills as a true mixed martial artist landing solid strikes. Davila kept his known high-pace action up leading to the conclusion of the round.
Both guys put on a striking display to begin round two. The fight eventually went back to the ground with two evenly matched opponents. Osborn ended up with the top position but Davila was able to get the fight back to the feet. Osborn grabbed a clinch and started to deliver knees making some contact. The fight was taken back to the ground by Davila and once it returned to the feet, Davila continued to show his striking skills. The clinch was then reinstated by Osborn who threw knees but didn’t land with any real force. Davila ended out the round with a high pace striking output.
The Final Round
The final round of the contest was spent mostly on the mat. Both fighters engaged on the feet before finally going to the ground where Davila locked in a rear naked choke. Osborn fought through the attempt and stayed alive until the bell to end the bout. Davila was announced the winner via split decision in a very close main event.
