BOSS FIGHT XXXV: MOORE vs PARSONS
ROUND ONE: It’s been almost a year since Union Grand Prix hosted a night of fights in California, and judging by the reactions from the crowd, it was long overdue. Leading off the night is a promising Lightweight bout featuring the spirited Osvaldo Ledesma and the Everest MMA Season One Welterweight Champion Silvio Gotti Jr. Referee Archie Driscoll will be the third man in the cage and with a civil touch of the gloves, we begin. Gotti strikes first with a nice single leg takedown, and scrambles his way into nearly securing a leg lock before Ledesma kicks free. A stalemate ensues and the official stands them up, but Gotti goes right back in with a double leg. Ledesma is able to close his guard and control the situation, and even catches Gotti off guard by rolling and getting to a full mount position. Gotti doesn’t panic though and manages to stall the action and allow the referee to bring them back to their feet. Both fighters are a bit more methodical in their approach on the back half of round one before Gotti secures a double underhook clinch and changes levels to hit a masterful knee tap takedown. The two hit the mat and scramble for position, where Ledesma winds up on top in a full mount. He begins dropping some heavy ground and pound but Gotti covers up to protect himself. Ledesma switches gears and nearly locks in an armbar, but Gotti slips free and surges to his feet. The round is coming to a close, and Gotti goes right back in with a double leg. Ledesma closes his guard on the ground and rides out the rest of the time to fight another round.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Gotti Jr.
ROUND TWO: The exhaustion is already starting to creep in as both fighters are breathing heavily to begin the second round. Right off the rip Gotti goes for a single leg but doesn’t set it up and Ledesma is able to easily sprawl back and stuff the attempt. As they break off, Ledesma tags Gotti with a big overhand right that wobbles him a bit. Ledesma rushes in to capitalize but Gotti quickly changes levels and dumps him to the mat with a blast double leg. There’s a moment where both fighters take a breather before the referee shouts a verbal warning. Then they begin jockeying for position, where Gotti eventually makes his way to full mount. Gotti drops some ground and pound while Ledesma lays hammer fists to the rib cage. Both fighters block most of the impact and another scramble results in both men getting to their feet. Gotti keeps the pressure on and quickly catches the far ankle and trips Ledesma back to the mat with a sweep single. Ledesma closes his guard momentarily as Gotti breaks free and moves to half guard, but nothing else comes out of it and the referee stands them back up. Ledesma goes on the offensive, swinging a wild right hook, but Gotti is able to dodge it and wrap him up in double underhooks. With the final seconds ticking away, Gotti caps off the round with a nice outside leg sweep before the horn.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Gotti Jr. (20-18 Gotti Jr.)
ROUND THREE: We’re down to the final frame of this bout and both fighters come out of their corners gassed. The tempo has slowed significantly, but the will is still there. Gotti pummels his way into double underhooks and drops Ledesma with a leg sweep. Ledesma closes his guard and doesn’t give Gotti anything to work with, which causes the referee to step in and stand them back up. Back on their feet, Ledesma launches a hook to the body that gets blocked. Gotti circles around and measures his range with a leg kick that gets checked. Gotti then feints a jab and drops down for another double leg takedown. Ledesma immediately closes his guard but isn’t looking to stall out here. Instead he postures up and rolls to get to a half guard. From here, Ledesma slides his knee across and secures the full mount, but Gotti displays his superior ground game and rolls to get back on top before deciding to break off entirely and stand up. Ledesma follows suit and with one final shot, Ledesma throws a big haymaker that whizzes past Gotti before the final horn sounds.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Gotti Jr. (30-27 Gotti Jr.)
JUDGES’ SCORECARDS
Osvaldo Ledesma 9 9 9: 27
Silvio Gotti 10 10 10: 30
Osvaldo Ledesma 9 9 9: 27
Silvio Gotti 10 10 10: 30
Osvaldo Ledesma 9 9 9: 27
Silvio Gotti 10 10 10: 30
Winner: Silvio Gotti Jr. by Unanimous Decision
Statistics: Osvaldo Ledesma
Punches 1/5 (20%)
Kicks 0/0 (0%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/6 (0%)
Submissions 2/2 (100%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 488 s
Statistics: Silvio Gotti Jr.
Punches 0/1 (0%)
Kicks 0/0 (0%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 7/9 (78%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 2/2 (100%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 488 s
Isaac Cohen’s Opinion: Not the most exciting way to kickoff a card, unless you are a diehard wrestling fan. Nonetheless, Silvio Gotti Jr. was able to grind out a definitive decision win in his Union debut. Even though Osvaldo Ledesma is more of a striker, you can tell that there are levels to this sport, as he was able to neutralize most of the ground attacks from Gotti. There is room for improvement for both fighters based on this performance, but overall it was a solid chess match in the grappling department.
ROUND ONE: The first of two Bantamweight Bouts scheduled for this evening features two fighters coming off of tough losses that will be battling it out to either maintain or crack the top ten rankings. Yasmine Vermeulen has been on a rough skid since competing for an interim title and Terrico Harris is on the final fight of his rookie contract. Colin Davenport is the official in charge for the bout and quickly draws some criticism from the crowd when Harris flicks an early jab that pokes Yaz in the eye that goes unnoticed. Harris takes advantage of the situation and unloads a chaotic flurry of punches. A couple jabs miss their mark, but a big hook lands and drops Vermeulen to the mat. Yaz keeps her composure when Harris tries to jump inside her guard by launching some upkicks, and creates enough space to get back to her feet. Harris shuffles around and sets up a nice single leg and lands in a side mount. Harris works his way into setting up an armbar, but Yaz breaks free and scrambles on top. Harris targets the body with some punches from the bottom, but Yaz pushes him up against the fence and looks to improve her position. She scrambles to half guard and in the midst of it all hooks Harris’ eye. Referee Colin Davenport sees this one and stops the fight to give Terrico Harris time to recover. Due to the nature of it, he decides to dock Vermeulen a point and the boo birds come out in droves. The fight resumes on the feet and Yasmine looks heated and wants Harris to pay for it. She wraps him up in double underhooks and fires off a devastating knee to the sternum which nearly drops Harris. Yasmine pushes off and lands a stinging kick to the thigh off the break and then a spinning back kick to the body. Harris hunkers over in obvious pain and Yasmine wraps him back up in a Thai clinch this time. Both fighters throw some shots to the body without much effect but with just seconds remaining in the round, Vermeulen unloads a barrage of knees to the face and body, working Harris over until the horn sounds.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-8 Harris
ROUND TWO: Coming out of their corners, both fighters look focused but Terrico is showing some swelling around his eyes, potentially from the knees he absorbed at the end of round one. Vermeulen is first to strike with a stinging calf kick that ignites a wild exchange of punches. Yaz gets the edge, landing several significant strikes, and Harris abandons the striking and drags Vermeulen to the mat with a takedown. Yasmine immediately starts to scramble and gets on top to secure the full mount. Terrico fires off some punches but Yasmine controls the situation, so Harris decides to roll but Vermeulen takes his back. Yaz works her way into hooking both legs and flattening Harris out, but Harris turtles up and forces a stalemate. The referee stands them back up and Yasmine targets the legs, chopping at them with some vicious kicks. She finishes off the offensive attack with a nice front kick that sends Harris bouncing off the fence and she wraps him up in a plum clinch. Still in a daze, Harris tries to shrug his way out, but Vermeulen keeps control of the situation and lands a brutal flying knee that sends Harris back into the fence again. Vermeulen continues to pour it on by landing some solid punches which forces the official to warn Harris that he needs to defend himself. Out of desperation, Harris indolently goes for a takedown, but Vermeulen sprawls back and presses him back into the fence to ride out the final few seconds of the round.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Vermeulen (19-18 Harris)
ROUND THREE: The tides are gradually turning heading into the final round. Yaz looks heated coming out of her corner and is looking to continue to push the pace, whereas Harris tries to drag it out in hopes of securing a decision victory. Vermeulen bounces on her feet from side to side to keep Harris’ full attention. Yaz feints a lead right hook then fires off a nasty leg kick that folds Harris’ knee like dirty laundry. There could be some serious damage to that knee as Harris struggles to put any sort of weight on it, and Yasmine sees that he’s easy prey right now. She rushes in and fires off another lead right hook, this time clipping Harris right under the eye and cutting him. Harris continues to have Bambi legs as Vermeulen catches him with a follow up uppercut that rocks him and he goes crashing into the fence. The referee has seen enough and waves off the fight. Harris tries to get to his feet and protest the stoppage, but he’s clearly out of it and fumbles back to the mat several times as Vermeulen celebrates the highlight finish with her cornermen.
Winner: Yasmine Vermeulen by TKO (Uppercut) at 0:54 Round 3
Statistics: Yasmine Vermeulen
Punches 8/9 (89%)
Kicks 7/10 (70%)
Clinch strikes 8/14 (57%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 212 s
Statistics: Terrico Harris
Punches 3/7 (43%)
Kicks 0/0 (0%)
Clinch strikes 1/4 (25%)
Takedowns 2/3 (67%)
GnP strikes 2/5 (40%)
Submissions 1/1 (100%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 189 s
Isaac Cohen’s Opinion: Big rebound for Yasmine Vermeulen tonight who showed a ton of grit in this fight. She rallied back from an early knockdown and a point deduction in round one to finish strong and end this fight in the third and final round. She knew she very likely needed a finish based on where she stood on the scorecards to secure the win and showcased some legitimate veteran experience. This puts her back on the right track, but now there’s a lot of uncertainty for Terrico Harris, who finishes his rookie contract on a loss, and loses three of his last four overall.
ROUND ONE: The featured undercard bout is a Cruiserweight clash between two sluggers José Meléndez and Alfie O’Shea. Darrell Stevens is the referee in charge of the action and we touch gloves to get started. Both fighters circle around, cautiously finding their range, when Alfie strikes first with a takedown attempt. Meléndez sprawls back and off the break lands a vicious head kick that rocks Alfie back a few steps. The two circle back in where Meléndez lands a crispy uppercut and Alfie lands a few crosses. Meléndez storms in with a looping right hand that wobbles Alfie and he presses forward with a flurry of jabs and crosses. The two get into a heated exchange where Meléndez gets the upper hand and caps it off with another nasty head kick. Alfie whiffs in some body shots and eats a few jabs that backs him up to regroup. The two close the distance and Alfie misses his target on a combo and pays for it by eating a filthy switch kick from Meléndez. The two get into another exchange where Meléndez gets the best of it, landing a big hook that could be heard from the nosebleed section and another head kick. Alfie O’Shea’s face is beginning to swell up big time at this point and his cornermen are audibly worried. Despite the circumstances, Alfie is still trudging along and looks to fight in the phone booth. He eats a roundhouse punch as he’s walking in and then a barrage of punches, but somehow is still standing. Alfie gets cut from this exchange and is leaving a trail of blood along his movements, but he’s still coming for more. Meléndez tags him with a quick one-two combo, feints, and then clips him with a right hook on the chin. Referee Darrell Stevens watches closely and looks ready to stop this fight at any moment. Meléndez fires off a punishing hook to the body and then a spinning wheel kick that drops Alfie O’Shea like a California Redwood.
Winner: José Meléndez by KO (High Kick) at 4:47 Round 1
Statistics: José Meléndez
Punches 32/43 (74%)
Kicks 7/7 (100%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 0 s
Statistics: Alfie O’Shea
Punches 2/16 (12%)
Kicks 0/0 (0%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 0/1 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 0 s
Isaac Cohen’s Opinion: Whew… After witnessing that lopsided brawl, I’m convinced that Alfie O’Shea’s cranium is made out of titanium. That guy took an unnecessary amount of punishment out there and was completely outclassed by the high motor José Meléndez. This gives Meléndez back-to-back wins and secures his spot at the top of the rankings.
ROUND ONE: The Co-Main Event features the gargantuan Heavyweights Joseph Byrne and Cortez Gaines. There is still a lot of bad blood from yesterday’s skirmish during the weigh-ins, and the tension is high. Ron Anderson is the third man in the cage officiating the bout. As expected, there is no glove touch as they size each other up in the center of the octagon. Joey B strikes first with a massive spinning back fist that gets Cortez Gaines’ attention and things quickly erupt into a brawl. Both fighters trade punches back and forth and land some big shots to get the crowd up on their feet. The end could be coming soon as caution is thrown to the wind, but eventually Gaines ducks a flurry and circles out. Byrne taunts the man, pointing to the mat and obviously wanting to continue to fight in the phone booth and gets a massive reaction from the crowd. Byrne circles his way back in range and lands a crispy uppercut, followed by a jab that rocks Gaines back. A cut forms under Gaines’ eye and like a raging bull, Joey sees red and continues on the attack. A solid exchange unfolds after Byrne lands some jabs and Gaines lands some crosses, but a big shovel hook from Cortez Gaines flips the script, or so it seemed. Byrne stumbles back and Gaines rushes in to capitalize, but Joey B connects with an uppercut that nearly sends Gaines into orbit. Joey launches a front kick that narrowly gets blocked, and Gaines fires back with a right hook. Byrne leans back to avoid the hook, and fires back with an absolutely filthy jab that crumbles Gaines down to the mat for a highlight reel walk off knockout.
Winner: Joseph Byrne by KO (Punch) at 2:04 Round 1
Statistics: Joseph Byrne
Punches 11/17 (65%)
Kicks 0/1 (0%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 0 s
Statistics: Cortez Gaines
Punches 6/8 (75%)
Kicks 0/0 (0%)
Clinch strikes 0/0 (0%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 0/0 (0%)
Time on the ground 0 s
Isaac Cohen’s Opinion: No respect in this bout whatsoever. After yesterday’s skirmish at the weigh-ins, these fighters were out for blood and wanted to inflict damage. Joseph Byrne rebounds with a spectacular first round knockout, and brings it to winning three of his last four and securing his spot at the top of the rankings.
ROUND ONE: We’ve reached the main event, an important matchup in the Bantamweight Division, that could see either woman stake a place at the top of the division with a win tonight. Both are coming off wins at the last Boss Fight event–Moore made an emphatic statement, dominating Syn Saetang over the course of the 8 minute fight, while Parsons’ first outing in Union was a touch-and-go affair against Gibrelle Arroyo. Jordan Ripley draws the bout assignment and goes over the rules to both ladies, there’s a touch of gloves before they back to their corners, and the fight begins. Moore rushes forward and feigns a takedown straight off the bat, but Parsons obviously knows L-Mo’s gameplan; straight off the bat, she lands two stinging inside leg kicks, before unleashing a quick three-punch combo that only just whizzes past L-Mo’s head. Lauren counters with an uppercut that touches Rachel’s chin, but the Twin Cities rep shakes it off and circles away before Lauren can try to take her down. Lauren presses forward, but eats two more loud, snapping leg kicks in the process. Moore paws with a couple jabs, then wings a big looking overhand that misses wildly. Rachel commits to a counter attack, but when she throws the punch, Lauren drops levels and drives for a double leg takedown! Rachel resists, but Lauren drives her back to the fence, and eventually sweeps her legs out from under her, landing in Parsons’s guard. Rachel locks her guard and tries to keep hold of Lauren’s head to force a stalemate, but L-Mo slams her fist into Parsons’s ribs until she has to cover up, and she pops her head up and starts raining down big, powerful ground and pound punches. Parsons tries to push Moore away with her feet, but Lauren stuffs her legs through and almost passes straight to mount; Rachel barely manages to retain her half-guard, but she doesn’t do much to restrict Lauren’s attack. Moore drives Rachel into the fence, landing a couple body shots before working to feed her leg through. Rachel’s aware of what’s going on, and at least prevents Lauren from taking the mount, but Lauren laces Rachel’s legs with her own and slams her with a series of huge shots to the temple. Jordan Ripley warns Parsons to defend or the fight could be stopped, which forces Parsons into a scramble; she manages to free her leg and wall-walks her way up to her feet, keeping hold of Lauren and trying her best to muscle L-Mo onto the fence. It takes some doing, but Parsons manages to turn the table, and lands a couple solid knees to Lauren’s thigh before the round ends.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-8 Moore
ROUND TWO: Round 2 begins similarly to round 1; Moore presses the action early, but Parsons lands a quick one-two combination before punctuating it with a stinging outside leg kick. Lauren opens up with a big hook and uppercut combo, but both punches miss wide and Rachel lands a stinging straight left that puts Moore on her heels. Rachel presses forward with a series of straight punches, but Lauren’s able to block most of them, and when Rachel tries to punctuate her flurry with a kick to the body, Lauren catches it and drives her to the mat! Rachel tries to explode back to her feet, but Lauren stays on her, dragging Rachel back to the mat and ultimately taking her back in the process! Moore doesn’t have the hooks in, though, so again Rachel tries to get back to her feet; this time, though, Lauren’s able to keep her from getting a good base, and in the process, laces one hook in–and starts to unload with big punches from the back! Rachel covers up and absorbs most of them, but a few get through the guard, one landing right on the chin that clearly stuns the Twin Cities fighter. Lauren takes advantage and tries to secure a Rear Naked Choke, but Rachel’s able to peel the hand off and prevent the choke before it gets secured. A period of hand-fighting eventually gets interrupted as the two women are stood up–with Moore protesting even as she gives up the position. On the restart, Lauren’s quick to try to bring the fight back to the mat, but Parsons is able to sprawl hard and keep her balance, landing a couple shots to the body before back out and forcing Moore back to her feet. As the clacker sounds to signal the ten second warning, Parsons unloads a series of punches, including an uppercut that clips Lauren’s chin, and nearly lands a massive head kick just before the horn!
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Moore (20-17 Moore)
ROUND THREE: It’s Parsons on the aggressive to start round 3–rather than let Moore get going, Rachel rushes to the center and throws a reckless flying knee, albeit one that almost connects; if nothing else, it does what Rachel needed it to do, and keeps Moore on the back foot. Rachel pumps out a few jabs that land, followed by a wicked left cross, and punctuates the combo by slamming an inside leg kick that nearly buckles Moore’s left leg. Lauren’s on her bicycle quickly after that, shuffling away from Rache’s kicks, which leaves her open to get caught with a big uppercut! Lauren grabs hold of a clinch, but Rachel out-muscles her and pins her back against the cage, slamming a couple knees into L-Mo’s thigh before clipping her with an elbow to the temple! Lauren manages to pummel for a collar tie to slow Rachel’s onslaught down, but Rachel slams a knee up the middle anyway; it definitely has some effect on L-Mo, but she eats it and drops for the takedown anyway, driving Rachel to the mat once again! Lauren’s much less frantic this round, though, and Rachel’s able to lock her guard and largely stall the fight out. Lauren keeps her position by throwing a couple blows to Rachel’s head, but nothing lands with any real menace at first; it’s more to keep Rachel’s attention while Lauren recovers. Before she can really start to advance, though, the official steps in to stand them up again. Rachel puts the pressure on at the restart, landing a couple jabs but missing with a wild, winging overhand that gives Lauren a chance to land a couple punches of her own; a short counter hook, followed by a big uppercut that gets Rachel’s attention. Lauren feigns a takedown, but Rachel doesn’t bite on it this time, and just slams another outside leg kick in. Lauren rushes in with a couple ineffective punches, but it keeps Rachel off-balance long enough that she can drop for a double leg–but before she can finish the takedown, the horn sounds to end the round.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Parsons (29-27 Moore)
ROUND FOUR: Rachel’s obviously feeling better about herself after the last round, and comes out in a similar way–she jabs her way into range, clipping Lauren with a straight left before launching a high kick that just misses. The aggression backfires on Rachel, though, as Lauren drives forward with her opponent off balance, taking her to the mat for the fifth time in the fight, and this time she’s already got Rachel’s back! Rachel explodes back up to her feet, but L-Mo still has a grip around her body and pins her up against the cage; this time, it’s Moore that’s able to land a few strong knees to the thigh as Rachel tries to pummel her way into a better position. Lauren drops for a single leg takedown, but Rachel’s able to keep her balance, and eventually manages to fight her way free and escape back to the center of the cage. Both ladies meet in the middle and start to exchange punches, neither landing anything of real significance but each scoring points with a couple straight shots each. Lauren presses the action, throwing a couple big hooks that get deflected, before Rachel counters with a lightning quick spinning heel kick! Lauren’s only just able to get her guard up in time, but she clearly felt the kick. Rachel smiles and flicks out a couple jabs that get Lauren’s attention, but don’t land with any real intent, before Parsons spins around and throws the same kick a second time! This time, Moore sees it coming, and drops just in time, catching a single leg and lifting Parsons up off the mat, slamming her down with a big takedown! The clacker sounds to signal the end of the round, so Lauren abandons all caution and just unloads massive shots from the top, landing about as much as she misses, but the horn sounds before any real damage can be done.
Isaac Cohen’s Scorecard (Unofficial): 10-9 Moore (39-36 Moore)
ROUND FIVE: Both ladies meet in the middle for the last round, the aggression toned down a little for this last round; the first few seconds are just circling, Rachel pawing with her jab while Lauren looks for an opening for a big, swinging overhand. Lauren feigns a takedown, but Rachel doesn’t bite and instead tags her with a three punch combo, ending on a big uppercut that snaps Lauren’s head up. Moore circles away, snapping off a leg kick of her own as Parsons pursues, then throws a one-two combo; the first jab misses, but the follow up right hand clips Rachel’s chin, and just gets enough of her attention for Lauren to drop for another takedown! Rachel’s able to stuff this one, though, and keep the fight on the feet, this time in tight in the clinch. Rachel lands a couple digging shots to the body, then a massive elbow to the head before breaking the clinch and unloading some BIG punches; only a couple land, though, and none with the impact she might’ve wanted, as Lauren’s able to throw a big right hand of her own that backs Rachel up, then drops for another takedown up against the fence this time. Lauren sweeps Rachel’s leg out and takes full mount straight off the takedown! The Twin Cities corner can be heard screaming for Rachel to bridge and get up, but Lauren starts to rain down a firestorm of ground and pound; straights, hooks, wild punches, elbows, all aimed at Rachel’s head. Parsons absorbs some of it, blocks some more, but a lot of it is getting through–and the official knows it, warning her to defend or the fight will be stopped. Rachel covers up, and as Lauren drops a big elbow, she wraps her up to try to contain her. Lauren’s determined to get the finish, so she keeps up with the smaller punches to the head, but the horn sounds to end the round before she can get the finish she’s looking for.
Unofficial Scorecard: 10-9 Moore (49-45 Moore)
OFFICIAL JUDGES’ SCORECARDS
Lauren Moore 10 10 9 10 10: 49
Rachel Parsons 8 9 10 9 9: 45
Lauren Moore 10 10 9 10 10: 49
Rachel Parsons 8 9 10 9 9: 45
Lauren Moore 10 10 10 10 10: 50
Rachel Parsons 8 9 9 9 9: 44
Winner: Lauren Moore by Unanimous Decision
Statistics: Lauren Moore
Punches 10/21 (48%)
Kicks 1/1 (100%)
Clinch strikes 4/6 (67%)
Takedowns 7/8 (88%)
GnP strikes 52/77 (68%)
Submissions 0/1 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 1/1 (100%)
Time on the ground 771 s
Statistics: Rachel Parsons
Punches 39/60 (65%)
Kicks 10/16 (63%)
Clinch strikes 8/11 (73%)
Takedowns 0/0 (0%)
GnP strikes 0/0 (0%)
Submissions 0/0 (0%)
Clinch Attempts 1/1 (100%)
Time on the ground 771 s
Isaac Cohen’s Opinion: Incredible Main Event to cap off the night and a big win for the Cali Girl, Lauren Moore. L-Mo was aggressive from the first bell of round one to the final horn of round five, and once again showed that there are levels to this sport. I think you could see that Rachel Parsons was a bit overwhelmed by Moore’s offensive aggression, and didn’t really have much of an answer. Moore was smart to keep her head off the centerline and work in her takedowns off of Parsons’ missed flurries, which was the x-factor to move the fight from the feet to the ground. You gotta give the Twin Cities prospect some props though, as she rallied back from a near first round stoppage and kept the fight competitive to win round three, but ultimately Moore’s pressure proved to be too much. There was a lot of good that came out of Parsons’ performance, but also a lot to learn and improve on. Lauren Moore on the other hand, showed us once again that she can still hang with the best strikers in the world, and has done so for years in multiple divisions.
Venue: Honda Center
Location: Anaheim, California
Attendance: 14,376
Date: May 29, 2022
Fighter Payouts: $2,605,000
Gate: $1,394,475
FIGHT OF THE NIGHT
Lauren Moore vs Rachel Parsons
PERFORMANCE OF THE NIGHT
Yasmine Vermeulen, José Meléndez
TOP EARNERS
Lauren Moore ($750,000)
José Meléndez ($370,000)
Rachel Parsons ($350,000)
Yasmine Vermeulen ($345,000)
Joseph Byrne ($300,000)
RECAP
Silvio Gotti def. Osvaldo Ledesma by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)
Yasmine Vermeulen def. Terrico Harris by TKO (Uppercut) at 0:54 Round 3
José Meléndez def. Alfie O’Shea by KO (High Kick) at 4:47 Round 1
Joseph Byrne def. Cortez Gaines by KO (Punch) at 2:04 Round 1
Lauren Moore def. Rachel Parsons by Unanimous Decision (50-44, 49-45 x2)
