In a battle between two international fighters, JJ Ambrose submitted Spaniard Oriol Gaset with an early submission to take home the win in the main event of Hex Fight Series 4.
The event took place at the Melbourne Pavilion on Saturday night.
Oriol Gaset entered the cage looking calm, collected and composed. His opponent JJ Ambrose on the other hand was very amped entering the arena and appeared ready to engage.
Ambrose began the fight attacking with big wavy punches as Gaset pushed back, then quickly went in for a takedown but Gaset remained upright, as the pair clinched. Ambrose threw knees and was able to drag Gaset to the ground. From the top position Ambrose landed punches. The American looked to lock up the gator roll submission, but opted for the guillotine choke which forced Gaset to tap, 2:57 into the bout. With the win Ambrose now moves to an impressive 24-6. record.
“I was expecting a much rowdier crowd from the Aussies but I was pleasantly surprised at the quiet of the audience,” Ambrose told Fight News Australia following the bout.
“It reminded of the old Pride days in Japan where the audience was silent and applauded when something cool happened. Awesome experience,” Ambrose added.
When asked about his opponent’s strengths leading up to the bout, Ambrose answered, “I watched a lot of video, saw a couple of holes in his ground game that I was able to exploit. I knew he was a dangerous opponent as he has ten KO’s under his belt, so I wanted to put him on his back and implement my top game.”
Ambrose has made his next intentions very clear with a call-up to the big-show firmly in his mind.
“I have a lot of fights under my belt, I want the call up to the UFC. I feel like I’ve put my time in, I’m a veteran of this sport after ten years, it’s time for the call up.”
The co-main event ended due to an accidental eye poke with the judges being called called into play early with local fighter Nick Patterson being awarded the unanimous decision over Abel Brites. The bout was a rematch of their July bout which was won by Brites.
The hometown crowd were cheering loud and on their feet during Patterson’s entrance and when the bout began it was Brites who rushed forward before both clinched. Patterson secured a successful takedown and from the top position attacked the body then to the head. Patterson allowed his opponent to stand back up and the local fighter stuffed a takedown attempt from Brites. Patterson connected with a good exchange and a left high-kick which Brites parried away. Late in the round Patterson threw an unorthodox spinning back-kick which allowed Brites to catch the leg and get a takedown. Brites looked to ground-and-pound with Patterson staying active from the bottom, while also throwing elbows.
Round two started with Patterson connecting with successive punches while Brites opted for kicks. Patterson reciprocated with kicks and then a takedown. Brites looked to lock up a guillotine choke however Patterson was able to slip out and secure full-mount. With his opponent turning his back, Patterson immediately looked to secure a rear-naked choke. Brites proved very hard to submit as Patterson switched to different arms during his attempts for the submission and was able to explode sweeping Patterson over. The round ended with Brites on top as he picked his shots on Patterson.
Round three continued at a high tempo as the two combatants clinched early which allowed Patterson to take Brites to the ground with a judo trip. Both fighters got back to their feet but the fight ended shortly after with an accidental eye poke on Patterson by Brites.
With the premature stoppage of the match, the fight then went to a judges decision awarding Patterson the win unanimously. After momentarily retiring earlier in the year, Patterson announced in his post-fight speech that he was here to stay, hinting he will be back for Hex Fight Series 5 which is scheduled for February 2016. With the ledger one all, Patterson also welcomed the notion of another possible rematch with Brites.
Also on the main card, bantamweight fighter Gustavo Falciroli was dominant against Japanese Pancrase Veteran Hikaru Hasumi. Failciroli looked comfortable in both the stand up and the ground being the aggressor the whole duration of the fight. Falciroli proved too strong for his opponent and secured the armbar submission late in round one.
Additionally of note, former Nova Uniao trained fighter, now based in Victoria Rodolfo Marques was upset by American Alvin Cacdac. Cacdac secured the highlight reel KO finish in only 70-seconds into the bout. Another big KO was inflicted by Raphael Berthet who slammed his opponent Raja Shippen to the canvas and then finishing off with strikes.
Results:
- JJ Ambrose def Oriol Gaset via Submission (Guillotine Choke), Rd 1, 2:57
- Nick Patterson def Abel Brites via Decision (Unanimous)
- Gustavo Falciroli def Hikaru Hasumi via Submission (Arm-Bar), Rd 1, 4:40
- Alvin Cacdac def Rodolfo Marques via TKO, Rd 1, 1:10
- Raphael Berthet def Raja Shippen via TKO (Slam & Punches), Rd 1, 4:47
- Jordan Cameron def Luke Standing via TKO (Strikes), Rd 1, 4:15
- Callan Potter def Kahn Sandy via Submission (Head-Arm Triangle), Rd 2, 4:10
- Byron Cowell def Evander Agnew via Decision (Unanimous)
- Isaac Hardman def David Lescai via TKO, Rd 1, 0:11
- Sam Hibberd Def Jason Lonergan via TKO (Ground and Pound), Rd 2, 1:26
