Photos by Paul Erickson and Shawn Lord (see more: TXMMA on Facebook)
Crown Center Plays Home To Professional MMA In Austin; Ray Rodriguez Wins Pro Title In Main Event
AUSTIN, TX, July 1, 2013 – The Crown Center was home to professional mixed martial arts in Austin this past Friday night with Austin’s newest multi-purpose event center playing host to Suzy Swinger’s Strikedown Pro MMA 1 promotion.
The show brought forth nine pro bouts for Central Texas fight fans and was headlined by a title fight featuring San Antonio’s Johnny Ray “The Judge” Rodriguez taking on Austin’s own Warren Stewart for the promotion’s featherweight belt. In the end Rodriguez won 29-28 on all three judges’ scorecards to take the belt home and bring his record as a pro to 4-1 overall.
Also highlighting the event were big wins by Pete Spratt-trained CJ Vergara, who moved to 2-0 as a pro by beating Houston-based striking specialist Akira Smith. Vergara turned pro in late 2012 following a big amateur win by knockout over now-undefeated pro and Legacy FC title contender Elias “Smash” Garcia so he’s definitely a name to watch in the pro ranks in the bantamweight division.
Here are the rest of event results from this past Friday in Austin.
Strikedown Pro MMA 1 – Quick Results from June 28, 2013
Johnny Ray Rodriguez over Warren Stewart by unanimous decision
Gabriel Vasquez over James King by TKO, RD1
CJ Vergara over Akira Smith by unanimous decision
Micah Franks over Edwynn Jones by submission (RNC), RD3
Kashif Solarin over Adan De La Garza by unanimous decision
Andre Kavanaugh over Carl Perry by submission (RNC), RD1
Jason Petitte over Todd Gentry by split decision
Matthew Jones over Edgar Verdin split decision
Julian Shore over Joshua Scales by submission (RNC), RD1
Strikedown Pro MMA 1 – Images by Paul Erickson and Shawn Lord