The Russians know how to bring it.

‘Less show, more fighting.’

 

That’s the mantra of Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB) – the Russian promotion that held their first event in Australia on the Gold Coast last night.

Sick of the over the top antics and unnecessary showmanship, the aim of ACB is to simply put on great fights.

And they did not disappoint.

There was no fluff as the fights rolled on in quick succession.

14 fights, 10 finishes, 5 Russian fighters mixed amongst a host of international and local talent – there were even 5 judges scoring each contest – ACB felt a little different.

The show couldn’t have got off to a better start with Mohammed Alavi landing a head kick flush on the chin of his opponent, scoring a walk away KO in the opening minute of the first fight.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566172893462317/

Trent Girdham improves to 7-0 as a professional

PCYC Blacktown and Wild Style Murder Squad fighter Trent Girdham showed once again why he is one of the top young prospects fighting in Australia today.

Taking on the older and more experienced Tim Moore, Girdham constantly threatened with submissions before finally snapping onto an armbar at the end of the first round.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566259400120333/

The sky is the limit for Girdham, who At only 20-years-old has now won 7 professional fights with 6 of these being finishes. In the aftermath Girdham said he would like to get another fight with the promotion and work his way towards a title shot.

Joblin loses third straight fight

No one ever said the fight game was easy and a lot can change within a year.

It was not long ago that kieran Joblin was widely regarded as the top fighter in Australasia and UFC bound. After recently losing his XFC lightweight title to Issac Hardman, Joblin has now lost three straight after losing a split decision to visiting Russian fighter Bai-Ali Shaipov

Shaipov controlled much of the fight, but Joblin never gave up and nearly secured a rear-naked choke late in the third round.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566283566784583/

Unfortunately for ‘The Stonecutter’ it was not enough and the Russian did what Russians do – Shaipov endured the pain and refused to tap.

With Shaipov dominating the majority of the early exchanges, it was enough for 4 of the Judges to score the fight for the Russian, with only 1 believing the Kiwi did enough to secure the victory.

Michael Tobin wins by bicep-slicer

It’s not the most common submission used in MMA, but Michael Tobin managed to produce a rare bicep-slicer over his Malaysian opponent Sam Chan.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566353930110880/

‘The Great White’ won 12 straight on the Australian scene before heading to Europe to compete on ACB.

Not having to take the long journey to Europe clearly helped Tobin this time around. Tobin took his opponent down and with relentless top-pressure he dominated him from the opening exchange. Looking for an armbar, Tobin was unable to seperate his opponents hands, but it did not matter as Tobin managed to pull of what he described as a ‘bicep crusher’

At only 24-years-old Tobin brought his professional record to 13-2 with the win.

Dylan Andrews suffers TKO loss

Dylan Andrews appeared to be enjoying himself as he walked down the ACB ramp and into the cage but the joy was short lived for the former UFC fighter.

Taking on a late notice replacement in Azamat Amagov, Andrews appeared almost too relaxed for the fight.

Andrews was constantly moving backwards with his hands down without really showing any offence. Amagov noticed this in the second round and swooped on the Kiwi, knocking him to the canvas with a left hook before securing mount and finishing Andrews on the ground.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566403026772637/

The Main Event

It was USA vs. Russia in the main event as Brett Cooper took on Shavlat Davlatmurdov.

A nasty groin shot from Davlatmurdov in the opening exchange forced Cooper to take the full 5 minutes of recovery time. Big John McCarthy deducted a point from Davlatmurdov for the foul. This appeared to only compel the Russian to push on harder as he proceeded to dominate the American on the mat.

The tide quickly turned however in the second round as Cooper came on hard and strong throwing shots to the head and body of Davlatmurdov who started to step backwards.

A right-handed uppercut by the American dropped Davlatmurdov.

https://www.facebook.com/acberkut/videos/1566434683436138/

Cooper proceeded to batter Davlatmurdov with hammer-fists as the Russian curled over forcing Big John to stop the contest.

Cooper improved his professional record to 24-13 with the win.

Post-fight bonuses

ACB is generous enough to reward its fighters for putting on great performances inside the cage. A number of Aussies managed to snag an extra few thousand for their efforts which will be invaluable to their careers moving forward.

https://twitter.com/ACB_League/status/939565303595401216

              Absolute Championship Berkut 76 full results:

• Brett Cooper def. Shavlat Davlatmurdov via TKO (strikes) 3:29 Rd 2
• Azamat Amagov def. Dylan Andrews via TKO (strikes) 1:08 Rd 2
• Anthony Leone def. Dean Garnett via submission (guillotine) 4:40 Rd 2
• Michael Tobin def. Sam Chan via submission (bicep slicer) 2:00, Rd 1
• Islam Yunusov def. Alan Philpott via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-25)
• Rodolfo Marques def. Mehdi Baydulayev via split decision (28-29, 28-29, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Bai-Ali Shaipov def. Kieran Joblin via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Trent Girdham def. Tom Moore via submission (armbar) 4:30 Rd 2
• Shannon Ross def. Ste Nightingale via TKO (strikes) 4:51 Rd 1
• Saeed Fatahir def. Ty Duncan via TKO (strikes) 2:35 Rd 1
• Johnny Walker Mendez def. Justin Van Heerden via submission (rear-naked choke) 4:20 Rd 1
• Diego Pereira def. Kairin Moses via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Daniel Hill def. Gavin Hain via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) 5:00 Rd 2
• Mohammed Alavi def. Eben Cox via KO (head kick) 0:48 Rd 1

Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB) 76 lineup set for Saturday night on the Gold Coast