HOUSTON, TX, May 14, 2012 – Last Friday night brought about the latest edition of the Legacy Fighting Championship to the local scene. The event was highlighted by a big time win for Houston’s Jorge “Macaco” Patino and also included some other big-time wins for other local Houstonian fighters like Chad Robichaux, Ray Blodget, and several others but there were some surprising as well.
For example, not too many people expected hot prospects Angel Huerta and Cody Williams to lose. Those two have been built up for some time to be future stars for LFC and rightfully so as both are exciting fighters but the night was not theirs last week and it surprised many.
Likewise, the Artenas Young vs. Bubba Bush affair at middleweight did not go as planned. Many in the area predicted the winner of that bout to be perhaps the next local breakout star in a division devoid of any clearly identifiable top draw after the UFC departure of Team Tooke’s Andrew Craig. Unfortunately we got more questions than answers from a bout that ended in an unfortunate no-contest turned disqualification – a result that no doubt leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of both men.
Full results can be found here but the bottom line is that the event no doubt changed the perceived future course for many of its participants and perhaps the promotion itself in relation to some of these local stars.
In the wake ofLFC 11 results, we seek to come up with a few potential matchups that make sense for the fighters involved along with the local fans in the Houston area.
With matchmaking already in full swing long before this event even took place, it’s doubtful that we’ll see these in the future but we sure would like to.
Ten matchups that make sense after Legacy Fighting Championship 11
Cody Williams (3-2) vs. Angel Huerta (6-1)
Both these guys went into LFC 11 highly-touted and perhaps primed for a run at the 135 lbs. title afterwards should they have won but unfortunately, both came up on the losing end against some very tough opponents. To his credit, Williams already has his next fight lined up at IXFA 8 at Delta Downs in Louisiana this coming July 7th against Aaron Phillips (3-0) but a bout with Huerta shortly thereafter presents an enticing possibility should he want to try and climb up the LFC bantamweight ranks.
As for Huerta, we’re unsure what he has scheduled ahead of him after suffering the first loss of his career. By all accounts, he was winning his fight against Nelson Salas handedly before his cardio blamed him. At 31 years of age, Angel isn’t a dinosaur but he’s also not the youngest prospect out there so he’ll surely be looking to rebound quickly a little later this summer as well.
A bout between these two would surely be an exciting prospect for fans while positioning the winner on to bigger and better things in the near future.
Alternate Possibility – Either of these two vs. another fighter coming off a loss in Steven “Ocho” Peterson.
Artenas Young (8-4) vs. Bubba Bush (4-2)
Their first bout last Friday left a bitter taste in everybody’s mouth after the murky finish that saw a no-contest turned into a disqualification win for “The Machine Gun.” This bout was supposed to decide who ruled the middleweight roost in Legacy FC on the local level but instead left the division in disarray with no clear contender established despite Young’s “win.”
Is Artenas truly the best 185’er in LFC when it comes to fighters at the local level (discounting national signings)? Or was Bubba on his way to a workman-like victory before those few ill-placed shots to the back of Chico’s head?
We’ll never know the answer to either of these questions unless Mick Maynard and crew can get these two back into the cage again.
Alternate Possibility – Either of these two vs. Larry “Tae-Kwon” Crowe or Bubba McDaniel.
Lester Batres (1-1) vs. Ricardo Talavera (2-3)
Lester Batres scored a very impressive decision victory over Justin Murray at LFC 11. We say “very impressive” because beating the well-rounded grinder is no small task. He seems to have overcome the perceived mental blocks that may have plagued him earlier on in his (amateur) MMA career in this one and could be a prospect to watch in the future.
What better way to test his future viability than to pit him against another extremely tough opponent in Ricardo “The Hitman” Talavera?
Ricardo is a fan favorite with an exciting style yet he’s also a fighter that’s suffered his own spell of losses with three in a row after starting his pro career with two straight wins. A fight against somebody like Batres would not only be a tough test but one that could be telling for his own future prospects in the welterweight division.
Alternate Possibility – Lester Batres vs. Jonathan Harris.
Larry Crowe (5-2) vs. Noel Ligon (4-0)
Speaking of Larry “Tae-Kwon” Crowe, it was a shame not being able to see him fight last Friday after weigh-ins where he showed up in shape, in good spirits, ad no doubt ready to go. The fighter has no doubt improved on his overall fitness after making the move to 4OZ Fight Club and it would have been very interesting to see where he was at come fight night.
Unfortunately nobody got to see that happen after his planned opponent Sam Mohammed literally no-showed the fight on the day of after making weight and everything.
Looking ahead to his next one, it would be nice to see Larry do battle against another game opponent in Noel Ligon – another well-rounded prospect who’d present a tough test technically for Crowe. Trained by Tim Moussel, not only is Noel well-skilled and deserving of a push but he’s also the type of fighter that could be relied upon when it counts. In short, he always shows up when his number is called – exactly the type of fighter Crowe needs to be matched up with at this point.
Alternate Possibility – Larry Crowe vs. Bubba Bush.
Nelson Salas (4-0) vs. Ryan Benoit (4-1)
As we already mentioned, both these Dallas Fort-Worth based fighters scored some impressive victories over their highly-touted counterparts with Salas scoring the TKO over Angel Huerta and Benoit also finishing his opponent Cody Williams in the first-round via submission in their fight.
With those performances in mind, both these guys look like future contenders at bantamweight if given the opportunity and perhaps another win or two.
Especially consider the August LFC event planned in concert with the Europa Super Show and Fitness Expo, a clash between these two to decide who gets to be a legit title contender in the near future could be just what the doctor ordered.
Alternate Possibility – Either of these two vs. Steven Peterson or Salas vs. Chris Jones.
Ray Blodget (6-1) vs. Justin Reiswerg (4-2)
Former LFC lightweight champ Ray Blodget made his comeback fight a successful one with a clean decision victory over Cris “Chop” Rucker on the LFC 11 undercard. Having lost only to UFC fighter and former LFC champ Daniel Pineda in his career to date, Ray’s win here positions him well to make another run at the top.
Meanwhile, another fighter who’s impressed in the past and could make a run back up to title contention in short order is Justin Reiswerg. He was last seen at LFC 10 losing by submission to UFC vet Pat Audinwood in the third round of their fight after an ankle issue derailed him in the early going only to see him gut it out almost to the very end.
A potential fight between Blodget and Reiswerg seems unlikely at this point and we’re doubtful it would ever happen given that they’re quasi-teammates at 4OZ Fight Club but it’s an interesting one plenty of people would like to see and worthy of mention.
Alternate Possibility – Either of these two vs. Adam Schindler.
Evan Cutts (4-0) vs. Alex Morono (4-1)
Gracie Barra’s young stud Alex Morono was forced to sit on the sidelines for this one after an injury suffered in training derailed him from his planned fight versus Lee King. What he saw instead was Evan Cutts picking up the fourth win of professional career vs. the Paradigm fighter – a win that could conceivable have been his.
Both these 21 year olds are amongst the top prospects in each of their respective cities with Morono holding it down for Houston while Cutts does the same for his neck of the woods up in Dallas Fort-Worth. All hype aside, they’re also both extremely well-rounded mixed martial artists that are adept at fighting anywhere a fight goes – whether it’s standing, wrestling, or on the ground with submissions, they’ve both got the total package.
This is another one that fans of cities would no doubt love to see and actually presents one of the rare matchups that could really rally the friendly Houston vs. DFW rivalry. It would also have the makings of a definite ‘Fight of the Night’ candidate.
In short, we’d love to see it.
Alternate Possibility – Either of these two vs. Mike Bronzoulis.
Chad Robichaux (12-2) vs. Jimmy Flick (4-0)
What is there to say about Chad Robichaux other than “Bravo!” after last Friday night? Nothing. The former head of Gracie Barra Woodlands came back to Houston after his brief-retirement facing a tough test on former UFC fighter Joseph Sandoval and he passed it with flying colors – scoring the biggest win of his career and doing so while hardly taking a punch at all. He did exactly what he said he was going to do and attacked aggressively from the opponent bell, taking his opponent down, and summarily choking him out.
It doesn’t get any better than that for a comeback win and his stay in Legacy FC may be short-lived if his appeal to land in the UFC flyweight division are heard by the higher powers he’s appealed to.
If he does stay however… and this is unlikely given what he’s looking for… a fight with another top Texas flyweight by the name of Jimmy “The Brick” Flick would be more than welcome. These two were originally supposed to fight a few cards back before an injury sidelined Robo but we know for certain his would-be opponent would welcome a shot with the Mighty Oaks leader if given the opportunity.
Alternate Possibility – Chad Robichaux vs. Will Campuzano (winner moves on to the UFC; a very likely possibility if this matchup were to actually be put together)
Gerald Harris (21-4) vs. Todd Moore (13-5)
Gerald “Hurricane” Harris made his welterweight debut a successful one after out-pointing Mike “The Greek” Bronzoulis in their LFC 1 fight this past Friday. With that win, the Oklahoman now moves to 4-0 in his past four fights.
Should he stay in the division and continue to be a regular in Legacy FC (his last two fights have been in the org), an exciting clash with somebody like Jorge “Macaco” Patino could be in the cards somewhere down the road. That’s not to say it should happen now though with only one win in the division.
So that leaves the question – who does he face next?
That’s not an easy question to answer without bringing in some other national names but one person that does present an intriguing possibility is Strikeforce veteran Todd “The Maniac” Moore.
Like Harris, Todd also has a very impressive wrestling acumen and wouldn’t be a stranger to this type of “big fight” having taken on the likes of Shinya Aoki, Shane Roller, and John Alessio earlier in his career. The dearth of regular events for the Strikeforce promotion would also likely allow for this fight to happen.
Alternate Possibility – Gerald Harris vs. another Strikeforce vet in Brian Melancon (who recently retired but may not be able to stay away if presented with a test as tough as Harris.)
Jorge “Macaco” Patino (22-13-1) vs. Jeff Rexroad
When it comes to the life of a two-division champion, we assume life is never quiet or easy and we don’t think it’s going to be any different for Gold Team’s fearless leader, Jorge “Macaco” Patino.
Fresh off his dominating win over Clay Hantz that marked his fourth straight, Patino will probably take a day or two off then jump right back into it training with Evangelista Cyborg, AJ Hoffman, and crew at his Gold Team gym in Sugarland. The good news for him is that he can afford to eat a burger or three as his next fight should be coming in the welterweight division where he’ll likely defend that title against #1 contender Jeff “The Executioner” Rexroad.
Coming off his own run of four straight wins, Jeff is thought by many to be the most deserving local contender that hasn’t fought for a belt yet for Legacy. He’ll likely get that chance later this summer when he faces the toughest test of his career against the Brazilian, Macaco.
Alternate Possibility – None. This fight needs to happen and likely will in July or August of this year.
So there you have it folks. What do you think of these possibilities? Do any of them make sense to you? Are there any other fights you’d like to see in the aftermath of Legacy FC 11?
Sound off here in the comments section or on our TXMMA Facebook Page and let us know what you’d do if you were in Mick Maynard’s shoes as far as these guys who competed on the last card.