Though he was in the co-main event, Bas Rutten clearly stole the show at the WFA's return to MMA. The event was somewhat mired by fighter bans (Kimo), small attendance, and some rather lazy fighters. Still, for their 1st show in over 4 years, the WFA has a lot of promise.
Bas Rutten defeated last minute replacement Ruben "Warpath" Villareal by KO via leg kicks. Kimo was forced out after testing positive for steroids and many thought Wes Sims would be the replacement. Then Wes pulled out to stay in the memorial show for Ryan Bennett (for which he is taking no money). Tank Abbott was even called, but finally Warpath stepped up and took the fight on just 48 hours notice. The guy is always game but completely outmatched here. When Bas' music hit, the house erupted heralding the return of "El Guapo" after 7 years of retirement. When the match began, Bas landed perfect punches square to the jaw of Warpath. To the Native American's credit, he didn't even flinch though he was repeatedly tagged. Then Bas went to work on the almost 300lb. man with ultra fast and deadly leg kicks. Finally, the giant fell and could not continue.
Bas looked absolutely amazing. He was fast, crisp, and in great shape, though he opponent was not necessarily an upper tier fighter. Still, the fans loved it and what is even more impressive, is that Bas fought with a torn ACL and a pulled rib. A true warrior Bas never considered pulling out of the fight. Welcome back El Guapo!
Though Bas stole the show, Rampage and Lindland put on a war. The bout seemed dead even with each man slamming the other. Lindland even secured two submission attempts which almost ended the fight. Rampage won the battle on the feet landing good shots and a flying knee, though nothing stopped Lindland from coming forward. In the final round, Rampage took Matt down and delivered punches as the bell rang. The judges scored the bout a split decision for Rampage, though some saw it the other way. It was a war and a great fight where neither man really lost in the eyes of the fans.
Mayhem Miller took 1 round to submit Lodune Sincaid by rear naked choke. What was most exciting about the fight was the wild flashy entrance by Mayhem.
The mystery man Lyoto Machida disappointed all by having a horrible fight with gamer Vernon White. Neither man did a whole lot though Ryoto did enough to get the decision. The fighters never really engaged and the crowd boo'd almost the whole match.
Ivan Salavarry dusted off the rust of a year off from MMA to KO Art Santore. Ivan has been called "boring," but this fight saw a devastating high kick before the punch KO.
Ricco was fat as always and there isn't a need to talk about his lame fight. Ricco won.
Razor Rob decimated Sarmiento's legs in the 1st round and the guy was gutsy just to stay in the fight after that. Rob couldn't finish him but dominated to avenge his past loss by decision.
Marvin Eastman and Jorge Oliveira was another disappointing match. They just did very little, perhaps respecting each other too much. More boo's and a draw to add to the boredom.
Martin Kampmann stepped in late to TKO Edwin Aguilar in the 1st for a nice debut.
Not great, but not bad for the WFA. Maybe Ryoto will face Rampage in the future and we can see just how good he is. Lindland vs Salavarry would be good for hardcore MMA fans, and we need someone to challenge the exciting Razor Rob at lightweight. The next WFA event in rumored to be in October, giving the WFA some time to sign new talent. Decent start and congrats to the WFA.-MMA Mafia
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