Weekend MMA Breakdown: Notable Non-UFC, Bellator Matchups

Cody Saftic / January 17, 2013 - 3:44pm

With the UFC and Bellator both holding events this week, it's time to take a look at a couple notable fights that may have slipped under the radar:

5. WHO: Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett (26-28-2) vs. John Harris (4-5)
WHERE: Gladiator Combat Championship 4, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, USA
WHY IT MATTERS: PRIDE FC veteran and longtime MMA personality Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett will try and pick up his first win since May 2012, when he locks up with submission fighter John Harris. This fight is a rematch of a 2011 encounter that Harris won via split decision. Since then, he's competed just once, losing a unanimous decision verdict. During that same time, his opponent "Krazy Horse" has fought a total of nine times, posting a 2-7 mark. Bennett sure isn't what he used to be, however at 33 years old, he still possesses enough game and athleticism to put on a show and maybe surprise a couple of opponents...not that anyone should be surprised if he wins this rematch with a 4-5 fighter like Harris.

4. WHO: Donald Sanchez (27-13) vs. Matt Comeau (8-3)
WHERE: KOTC: Regulators, Scottsdale, Arizona, USA
WHY IT MATTERS: King of the Cage bantamweight champ Donald Sanchez puts his 135-pound strap on the line Saturday night against Hawaiian fighter Matt Comeau. Sanchez has long been considered one of the top talents competing outside of a major MMA organization because of his inconsistencies inside the ring. Despite winning 12 of his past 15 fights, Sanchez has come up short when it's mattered most, dropping fights to Japanese standouts Hatsu Hioki and Tatsuya Kawajiri, as well as Bellator veteran Jeremy Spoon. Against a relatively unknown opponent like Comeau, Sanchez shouldn't face too many problems, and with 22 finishes in his 27 pro wins, don't expect this one to go the distance.

3. WHO: Luis Palomino (20-7) vs. Luiz Firmino (15-6)
WHERE: CFA 9, Miami, Florida, USA
WHY IT MATTERS: Peruvian lightweight Luis "The Baboon" Palomino looks to add to his recent success when he meets PRIDE and DREAM vet Luiz Firmino in Florida. Palomino has been fighting professionally since 2006, but it hasn't been until recently that the 32-year-old found his stride. Since dropping a Bellator featherweight tournament bout to eventual winner Pat Curran in 2011, the MMA Masters representative has rallied off four straight victories, including knockout wins over "Krazy Horse" Bennett and former K-1 Hero's champ Gesias "JZ" Calvacante, becoming the first man ever to stop the Brazilian. Firmino, meanwhile, returns to the CFA cage for the second time, having beaten Johnavan Vistante and Toby Imada last year. In his near 13 year MMA career, the "Blackzilian" based fighter has never been knocked out, and has finished six of his opponents inside of the first round.

2. WHO: James Krause (18-4) vs. Toby Imada (30-17)
WHERE: RFA 6: Krause vs. Imada 2, Kansas City, Missouri, USA
WHY IT MATTERS: WEC alumnus James Krause looks to even up the score this weekend against former two-time Bellator lightweight tournament finalist Toby Imada. In the pair's first fight, Krause was easily handled and submitted by the more experienced Imada in just two rounds. Since then, Krause has gone 7-1, with his lone defeat coming by split decision. No stranger to the fight game, Imada has fought 47 times in a career that dates back to 1998. At 34, he is likely nearing the end of the road, but is still more than capable of ruining his opponent's night with his superb ground game that has seen him submit 20 of his 30 foes.

1. WHO: Alexis Vila (11-2) vs. Josh Sampo (8-2)
WHERE: CFA 9, Miami, Florida, USA
WHY IT MATTERS: Former Olympic bronze medalist Alexis Vila (pictured above) returns to the cage for the first time since his Bellator release when he meets fast-rising Missouri prospect Josh Sampo. After coming up short twice in Bellator's bantamweight tournament, Vila, a Cuban-born fighter now living out of Miami, decided to drop down to 125 pounds. Seeing how Bellator does not support a flyweight division, Vila was forced to seek opportunities elsewhere in hopes of eventually getting picked up by the UFC. First, he'll have to get through Sampo, a man 13 years his junior. Sampo wasn't seen as much of a prospect until last September when he put a beating on UFC and WEC veteran Antonio Banuelos under the Legacy FC banner. Since turning pro just over three years ago, the Rodrigo Vaghi team member has submitted four opponents, including three in the first frame.

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Full calendar of events below:

Bellator 85
January 17, 2013
UCI Bren Center
Irvine, California, USA

-Michael Chandler (10-0) vs. Rick Hawn (14-1)
-Pat Curran (17-4) vs. Patricio Freire (17-1)
-Renato Sobral (37-9) vs. Mikhail Zayats (19-6)
-Seth Petruzelli (14-6) vs. Jacob Noe (8-1)
-Emanuel Newton (18-7-1) vs. Atanas Djambazev (17-2)
-Michael Guymon (14-5-1) vs. Savant Young (10-9)
-Jason Lambert (25-12) vs. Hector Ramirez (9-4-1)
-JJ Ambrose (18-4) vs. Brian Warren (18-16-1)
-Jamie Yager (6-3) vs. Joe Williams (7-1)
-Cleber Luciano (7-4) vs. Mario Navarro (4-2)
-Aaron Miller (12-8) vs. Joey Camacho (13-17)

RFA 6: Krause vs. Imada 2
January 18, 2013
Scottish Rite Temple
Kansas City, Missouri, USA

-James Krause (18-4) vs. Toby Imada (30-17)
-Brock Larson (35-7) vs. Eduardo Pamplona (15-3)
-Dakota Cochrane (13-3) vs. Deivison Ribeiro (23-7)
-Dustin Ortiz (9-2) vs. Aaron Ely (4-1)
-Aaron Derrow (12-4) Mark Dickman (5-1)
-Brian Davidson (10-3) vs. Kevin Croom (6-4)
-Bobby Cooper (5-3) vs. Nick Compton (3-0)
-Cody Peterson (0-0) vs. Tyler Stokes (0-0)

West Coast Fighting Championship 4
January 18, 2013
Jackson Sports Arena
Sacramento, California, USA

-Dave Huckaba (19-5) vs. Carter Williams (4-4)
-Mike Christensen (10-6) vs. Jeremiah Labiano (3-0)
-Max Griffin (4-1) vs. Richard Rigmaden (2-2)
-Mario Soto (3-0) vs. Justin Linn (3-0)
-Orlando Sanchez (3-0) vs. Robert Gonzalez (2-1)
-Daniel Romero (6-4) vs. Art Becerra (4-3)
-Doug Diffenderfer (3-1) vs. Micah Herbert (3-6)
-Derrick Easterling (3-2) vs. TJ Kuahine (2-2)
-Robert Escalante (3-3) vs. Steve Gruber (0-0)
-DJ Roberson (4-4) vs. Tony Juares (1-8)

Imperium MMA Pro 1
January 18, 2013
Espaço Realle
Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

-Ewerton Teixeira (1-0) vs. Claudio Junio (0-0)
-Erick Barbosa (11-5) vs. Bruno Justo (5-2)
-Carlos Alberto Junior (0-0) vs. Antonio Trócoli (0-0)

Elite 1-MMA: Unstoppable
January 19, 2013
Casino New Brunswick
Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada

-Mark Holst (11-4) vs. Matt MacGrath (11-8)
-Matthew DesRoches (3-0) vs. Brian Mazerolle (0-0)
-Dan Fowler (5-5) vs. Todd Westcott (1-3)
-Jon Foster (1-0) vs. Morgan Rhynes (1-1)
-Joshua Walker (0-1) vs. Andrew Thomas (0-0)
-Mike Thorne (0-0) vs. Brandon Chaisson (0-0)

CFA 9
January 19, 2013
Bank United Center
Miami, Florida, USA

-Luis Palomino (20-7) vs. Luiz Firmino (15-6)
-Alexis Vila (11-2) vs. Josh Sampo (8-2)
-Valdir Araujo (11-3) vs. Marcelo Alfaya (14-6)
-Patrick Cenoble (9-1) vs. Elvin Leon Brito (5-1)
-Victor Delgado (6-0) vs. Sean Soriano (6-0)
-Shah Bobonis (15-7) vs. Pablo Alfonso (7-5)
-Yosdenis Cedeno (6-2) vs. Ryan DeRocher (4-4)
-Trent McCown (5-1) vs. Michael Trujillo (4-2)
-Mike King (4-0) vs. Billy Garris (1-0)
-Socrates Pierre (3-1) vs. Michael Lilly (1-0)
-Maurice Salmon (3-2) vs. Luke Jackson (0-0)
-Jayson Jones (4-4) vs. Charles Rosa (1-0)
-Shaun Dillon (2-0) vs. Jose Caceres (3-2)
-Gleidson DeJesus (1-1) vs. Luis Hernandez (0-0)

Rocktagon: Elite Series 23
January 19, 2013
La Villa Conference and Banquet Center
Cleveland, Ohio, USA

-Anthony Lapsley (21-5) vs. Gerald Meerschaert (15-6)
-Corey Mahon (10-5) vs. Cody Stevens (8-5)
-Keith Koehn (1-0) vs. Brandon Seyler (0-0)
-Anthony Jamison II (1-2) vs. Matt DiCenso (0-0)
-Aaron Jeffery (0-0) vs. Tim Beanblossom (0-0)

KOTC: Regulators
January 19, 2013
Talking Stick Resort
Scottsdale, Arizona, USA

-Donald Sanchez (27-13) vs. Matt Comeau (8-3)
-Lolohea Mahe (6-2-1) vs. Cody East (5-1)
-Jade Porter (9-2) vs. Treston Thomison (6-1)
-Victor Meza (10-3) vs. Collin Dunkley (0-1)
-Gabe Rivas (14-22-1) vs. LaRue Burley (1-0)
-Peter Baltimore (3-2) vs. Ray Borg (1-0)
-Mike Poe (0-3) vs. Joey Miolla (0-1)

AOW: Game Face
January 19, 2013
Chicken Ranch Casino
James Town, California, USA

-Josh Thornburg (8-6) vs. Randall Wallace (3-0)
-Oscar Martinez (5-3) vs. Robert Ballard (4-2)
-Nathan Shindler (2-0) vs. Granson Clark (1-0)
-Robert Breslin (3-8-1) vs. Steven Cartwright (0-2)
-Johnny Marez (2-1) vs. Sergio Vasquez (1-1)
-Ramoni Koeut (2-3) vs. Raul Estrada (0-2)
-Will Torres (0-2) vs. Rudy Buendia (0-0)
-Damon Taylor (0-1) vs. Enrique Perez (0-0)

Gladiator Combat Championship 4
January 19, 2013
Hollywood Casino Bay
Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, USA

-Charles Bennett (26-28-2) vs. John Harris (4-5)

UFC on FX 7: Belfort vs. Bisping
January 19, 2013
Ibirapuera Arena
Sao Paulo, Brazil

-Vitor Belfort (21-10) vs. Michael Bisping (23-4)
-Ben Rothwell (32-8) vs. Gabriel Gonzaga (13-6)
-Thiago Tavares (17-4-1) vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov (18-0)
-Daniel Sarafian (7-2) vs. C.B. Dollaway (12-4)
-Diego Nunes (18-3) vs. Nik Lentz (22-5-2)
-Edson Barboza (10-1) vs. Lucas Martins (12-0)
-Yuri Alcantara (27-4) vs. Pedro Nobre (14-1-2)
-Ronny Markes (13-1) vs. Andrew Craig (8-0)
-Godofredo Pepey (8-1) vs. Milton Vieira (13-7-2)
-Wagner Prado (8-1) vs. Ildemar Alcantara (17-5)
-Francisco Trinaldo (11-2) vs. CJ Keith (8-1)

Shooto: 1st Round 2013
January 20, 2013
Korakuen Hall
Tokyo, Japan

-Yuta Sasaki (10-1-2) vs. Tetsu Suzuki (13-10-3)
-Shin Kochiwa (10-4-2) vs. Shinji Sasaki (11-6-2)
-Shigeki Osawa (8-4-2) vs. Kazuya Satomoto (8-7-1)
-Wataru Miki (19-11-6) vs. Jung Gyeong Lee (0-1)
-Ryuichi Miki (13-6-3) vs. Ung Hyeon Kim (0-0)
-Yo Saito (8-8-3) vs. Motohiro Takenawa (6-9-1)
-Kosuke Suzuki (5-3-2) vs. Hiroshi Roppongi (2-3)
-Ukyo Abe (3-2) vs. Yoshinori Suzuki (1-6-1)
-Daisuke Sasaki (1-1-1) vs. Takanori Takahashi (1-2)