Adrian Alonzo ( fighter and writer here at the torture house ) has completed his US Judo open Tournament. In the 90 kilo division Adrian lost to a Korean champion by ippon ( meaning instant win) in the 3rd round after a tough battle but still moved up to overall 12th in the division. He then competed in the open division and quickly took the upper hand. Adrian dominated a oponent from Lebanon one minute in the first round. Adrian is now tied for 2nd and placed  in the nation with Daniel McCormick and is set for a tie breaker fight in New York sometime in October. Adrian placed 3rd overall and tied #2 in the nation for the P4P best judo fighter which is a huge deal and increases Adrian’s chances of being a competitor in the upcoming US Olympics. Adrian’s performance in the tournament was impressive because not only was he the only American to place, but Adrian fought the entire tournament with 2 injuries and didn’t let it slow him down.  I did a short interview with Adrian to get his take on the tournament and his future in the sport, here it is.

Q1. In your loss in in the 90 kilo divsion what would you have done different in the match ?

Adrian -” I wouldn’t have changed have my grips on him and allowed him to get the upper hand “

Q2. Did your injuries slow u down at all in your matches ?

Adrian- “No not at all”

Q2. If you were able to win your tie breaker in New York what would be next for you ?

Adrian- “A possible world championship title”

Q3. And lastly would you ever consider going to MMA ?

Adrian- ” I am planning on switching to MMA at the end of next year actually, id like to leave Judo at the top of my game though”

              The first fight with Marcus Davis and Nate Diaz was a battle with the always aggressive Diaz pushing the pace early in the first and put a deep gash in the eye of Davis with precise punches. Diaz came out with great combinations in the second and picked Davis apart and showed a strong game plan well into the early third round. The third round went to Diaz when he scored the take down and worked his way to a submission victory via choke. Whats amazing a bout this fight is Diaz possibly broke his hand in late second round but still showed he can dominate through anything.

In the Kenny Florian vs Gray Maynard fight , Kenny came out with great head movement and combinations early in the first. Maynard scored a take down late in first and controlled Kenny to the bell. In round 2 both fighters played the patience game until Maynard showed his take down strength when he drove Kenny to the mat again keeping the fight in his favor.In the 3rd it also went to Maynard for take downs and scoring with his relentless ground game to secure the decision win over Ken-Flo. Maynard also may have injured his hand in this fight with Florian.

In the 3rd fight with Demian Maia vs Mario Miranda it was a game of defense for Miranda while Maia scored with the takedown and controlled from his back to steal the first round from Mario. In the second it was all Maia with the takedown and ground and pound, but Miranda still showing his heart defending the submissions from the bjj black belt. In the third Maia came out with the same game plan to score by decision. Mia is gonna have to show more aggression in his next fight if he wants another shot at Silva.

In the Couture vs Toney fight it was all Randy, he scored with a takedown that I’m sure is never used in mma  and without a punch being thrown went strait to the mat, then into mount. From mount Randy gained textbook position on Toney and set up a great arm triangle to make the loud mouth boxer verbally give up. Randy is a true legend of the sport to gain not only a win over the undefeated boxer but to gain his black belt.

The main event with Bj Penn vs Frankie Edgar was my pick for fight of the night. Edgar came out early with a take down and then a second to score big. In both the first and second round Edgar continued to dominate with his accurate combinations and footwork . In the third Edgar dismantled Bj’s game with hand speed and aggression, while in the fourth round Bj showed signs of frustration as Edgar again put him down and worked till the bell. In the final round Bj came out with more aggression scoring with a takedown and trying to control Edgar on the ground but very quickly Edgar stood it back up and then from there secured the win and defended his belt.

Dana White has previously announced that ” The Janitor ” Vladimir Matyushenko has signed a new four fight contract with the UFC. Vlad has a 24-5-0 record suffering his recent loss to the power house Jon Jones at UFC on Versus 2. Vlad has good stand up and even better take downs. Vlad is a very patient fighter and shows that every time he sets foot in the octagon. Vlad has to show that he is able to compete at the level it takes to dominate the 205 pound division. Jason ” Hitman ” Brilz comes into this fight with a record of 18-3-1 and only 5 fights in the octagon, Brilz has only been in the UFC a little over two years. Brilz suffered his last loss to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 114 by contraversial split decision. Brilz is in the stage of his career where it is imperative that he must show dominance and defeat fighters like Vlad and prove he is UFC material. With that being said Brilz matches up well with The Janitor in standup, Brilz has the better grappling but in takedowns and takedown defense Vlad has the upper hand. Look for this to be a great matchup, this fight could go either way.

WEC 50 was a great card up and down with the main event being no different. Benavidez and Cruz battled for 5 rounds. In the first round it was a back and forth brawl. Both men getting in their shots with hard punches and kicks. Round two was more of the same. Both men bleeding but landing some big shots. Cruz lands a nice flying knee to score some points. Two close rounds I give round one to Benavidez and round 2 two Cruz. Round three starts a little slower each man respecting the others striking ability. Benavidez is swinging for the fences but Cruz is the better striker and is ducking and dodging the shots. Cruz is looking very comfortable and gets the take down securing the round for him. Giving him 2 rounds to 1 for Benavidez. The fourth round begins with Cruz bleeding badly from his nose. Cruz gains control with a take down and loses control for  second before knocking Benavidez down again. Cruz is trying to tire his opponent with his dominate wrestling. Round four goes to Cruz The first dominate round by either fighter. Cruz is now up three round to one and barring a T(KO) he will retain the title. Benavidez is trying to end the fight in round five taking hard wild shots but cant quite connect. The two exchange shots and Cruz hits the nail in the coffin with a final take down. Cruz wins round five but it could go either way. So there you have it 3 rounds of very tight close action which could go either way and a couple of good hard fought rounds by the champion. The verdict is in and Cruz defends his title in a split decision over Benavidez.