GATINEAU, Quebec -- Freedom Fight handed out hardware in three weight classes Saturday and hosted a lineup decorated with high-profile MMA debutants as well as a dynamic undercard that had fans on their feet for the majority of the night.
After a flurry of about 15 to 20 punches, Motard finally came out of his defensive shell to retaliate with a one-two, left-right hook combination that sent Vujnovic to the mat on all fours. Referee Philippe Chartier hesitated before stepping in, and Motard delivered one last shot to end the fight and make Motard the new Freedom Fight welterweight champion.
Freedom Fight veteran Mark “Boots” Holst brought the hometown fans to their feet with a systematic dismantling of a very tough Kris Donaldson. Holst held the advantage standing, where he demonstrated crisper striking. He had Donaldson hurt early, dropping him with a knee from the clinch. By the time the first round came to a close, blood was pouring from Donaldson’s nose and from cuts under his eyes.
In the second round, Holst picked up where he had left off in the first, but it didn’t take long. A right straight sent Donaldson down to the mat, and the fight was stopped 15 seconds into the stanza to crown Holst as the new Freedom Fight lightweight champion.
With the heavyweight strap up for grabs, Andre Desrochers and Ilya Woronowski gave the judges a break with a classic striker-versus-wrestler matchup. Woronowski took the fight to the ground and attained the mount, and then the Toronto native methodically hammered away. While it wasn’t pretty, it was certainly effective. Desrochers could do nothing but throw punches from the bottom, but eventually he swept Woronowski and delivered some brutal shots to the head and body that almost had Woronowski finished.
At the start of round two, Woronowski looked exhausted and barely able to stay on his feet. A failed shot to open the round spelled the end for Woronowski. On his hands and knees, he absorbed punishment from Desrochers until the fight was stopped 24 seconds into the round.
From the opening bell, Kulka came out bombing and used his raw strength to literally toss the 280-pound Xilon into the corner. There, Kulka unloaded a seemingly endless barrage of knees that forced an end to the contest at 1:13.
The opening round was a baptism of fire for Much Music’s Robin Black in his MMA debut against Chris Myra. On their feet, Myra was able to tag Black at will while Black covered up. For Black, getting the fight to the ground was a bigger task than anticipated.
The fight eventually moved back to the ground, where Myra surprised many in attendance by catching Black in a triangle choke for the submission at 1:15.
Other results
Remi Morvan, who had accepted the fight one day prior at the weigh-ins, stunned Ian Dawe with a rear-naked choke at 1:49 of round three. … Marhaille Wedderburn stopped Stephane Lamarche at 2:04 of the first when referee Philippe Chartier called an end to the bout, somewhat controversially, while Lamarche was absorbing punches in a very loose triangle. … Louis Phillip Carlos submitted Chris Hulme with a guillotine at 1:35 of the second. … Clint Martin came back from getting floored with a one-two to drop Joey Ayres with an overhand right, then follow up with punches on the ground for the stoppage at 1:15 of round one. … Rob Tracey upset Nick Portieous with a rear-naked choke at 3:32 of round one. … Stephane Bernadel defeated Mike Walton by rear-naked choke at 3:13 of the first round.