WSOF 9 live results and fight recaps

LAS VEGAS – Brazilian submission ace Rousimar Palhares (17-6) needed just 69 seconds of fighting in his new home to claim WSOF’s welterweight title.

Palhares used his patented heel hook finish, this one of the inverted variety, to score a submission win over former champ Steve Carl (21-5) and take home the hardware.

The bout served as the main event of Saturday’s WSOF 9 event, which took place at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. The evening’s main card aired on NBCSN following prelims that streamed on NBCSports.com.

Palhares wasted little time shooting in and taking the fight to the floor, where Carl tried to defend from guard. Palhares turned his hips out, looking first for the arm before defending a Carl and submission attempt and then turning his attention to the leg. When a kneebar didn’t get the job done, Palhares turned to the heel hook and scored a quick tap as Carl winced in pain.

Palhares’ first defense as champ has already been arranged, as he’ll meet Jon Fitch at July event expected to serve as World Series of Fighting 11.

In the night’s co-feature Brazilian striking ace Marlon Moraes (13-4-1) claimed World Series of Fighting’s inaugural bantamweight belt with a five-round destruction of scrappy but outclassed challenger Josh Rettinghouse (10-3).

Rettinghouse came out quick to start, looking to strike, but Moraes dropped him with a well-timed counter. Moraes immediately pounced, looking for the finish, but Rettinghouse cleared his head and reset on the feet. After another quick flurry on the feet, Moraes transitioned to the floor and looked for a rear-naked choke, but Rettinghouse escaped and reversed the position, taking the top and looking to score, Moraes turned for a leg, using the move to get back to the feet.

The two looked content to strike in the second, and Moraes’ sharp leg kicks, coupled with a quick sprawl, left Rettinghouse unable to mount much offense. A late takedown nearly scored for Rettinghouse, but Moraes got back to his feet and scored a flash knockdown with a quick left.

Moraes sharp leg kicks continued to pay dividends in the third, as the crushing blows forced Rettinghouse to change stances and get a bit reckless with his attacks. Rettinghouse looked uncomfortable in southpaw, switching back to orthodox, and Moraes continued to decimate the left leg. Rettinghouse buckled in the final minute, and Moraes battered him with knees to the body.

Moraes went straight to the leg to open the fourth, and Rettinghouse willingly sat down to avoid standing. Moraes initially shows willingness to engage on the floor but then realized the need to back away. Rettinghouse was forced to butt scoot for any sort of offense, even falling to the floor when his own successful kick proved painful. Rettinghouse showed heart, refusing to quit, and referee Jason Herzog allowed the odd action to carry on.

Rettinghouse somehow pushed forward to open the final round, but the change in momentum simply wasn’t going to happen. Moraes’ leg kicks, although perhaps too infrequent in nature, continued to batter his opponent. Rettinghouse tried desperately to find any chance of a miraculous comeback, but Moraes was simply too much and cruised to a decision win, 50-44 on all three cards, to claim the belt.

In his World Series of Fighting debut, Yushin Okami (30-8) did what he does best, grinding out an overmatched Svetlozar Savov (12-5) for nearly two full rounds before ending the fight by submission.

Okami looked to trade early, but when a Savov jab made it tough to score from the outside, the Japanese product pushed into the clinch and landed an immediate trip takedown. Okami moved immediately to mount and looked to pound away from the top. Savov was stuck on his back, and Okami finished the round in top position, passing on a potential armbar to stat in control.

Savov looked to strike in the second, throwing out a few flashy spinning strikes to open. But once Okami moved inside, he immediately scored a trip and against set up in top position. With Okami looking for option, Savov briefly pushed him away. But Okami moved quickly back down, set up the arm-triangle and dismounted, forcing the tap with 14 seconds left in the round.

In a welterweight matchup Tyler Stinson (27-10) who was supposed to own early knockout power. Instead, it was Josh Burkman (27-10) who delivered a highlight-reel finish.

Stinson took the center early and looked to strike, and Burkman happily obliged. With Stinson unable to string together combinations, Burkman stayed out of range until he was ready to strike. From the southpaw stance, a lead right hand landed on the button, and Stinson crashed to the floor. As he tried to recover, Burkman landed another big right hand to seal the violent win at the 2:15 mark of the first.

In the night’s first main-card matchup, Las Vegas lightweight Johnny Nunez (5-0) kept his career record perfect with a gritty, albeit razor-thin split-decision win over Ozzy Dugulubgov (5-2).

Nunez pushed forward from the opening bell, rushing in for an early takedown. Dugulubgov remained active underneath and scrambled back to his feet, eventually moving into a clinch and answering by dragging Nunez to the floor. Dugulubgov couldn’t really capitalize on the position and eventually let it go to attack a leg. Nunez pulled the limb free and worked back to his feet, but Dugulubgov dropped him to the canvas once again.

Nunez again rushed forward to start the second, and after a wild scramble secured a D’arce choke and looked to squeeze. Dugulubgov patiently worked his way through the hold and worked his way to top position, surviving a guillotine choke attempt before transitioning to Nunez’s back and looking for a rear-naked choke. Nunez was completely flattened, at least briefly, but he, too, survived the attempt and scrambled up to his feet. Dugulubgov punctuated his performance with a takedown in the final seconds to finish on top.

Nunez fought like a man behind on the cards to open the third, immediately rushing forward and scoring a takedown. Dugulubgov held tight underneath, content to patiently wait through the attack. Nunez was able to drive in a few short elbows, but his offense was largely stifled. In the final 90 seconds, Dugulubgov used an attempt at the leg to get room to move back to his feet. Once there, he scored a takedown and late scramble to the back, where he finished the fight looking for the choke. Despite Dugulubgov’s ample time in control, his lack of activity cost him, and Nunez was awarded a split-decision win with scores of 28-29, 30-27 and 29-28.

Three-time Bellator veteran Mike Corey (13-3-1) looked impressive in his World Series of Fighting debut, scoring a second-round submission win over Shane Kruchten (11-3).

The taller Kruchten looked to utilize his reach early, but Corey managed the distance well with low kicks and leaping punches, dropping his opponent early in the fight. A gritty Kruchten worked back to his feet, his nose bleeding from the early damage, but he continued to struggle to defend Corey’s punching attacks. Kruchten found some late success in the clinch, driving knees to the head and body of his shorter opponent, but Corey took home the round.

Kruchten looked to pick up the pace in the second, but Corey continued to lace in power punches before scoring a takedown and moving immediately into side control. Corey nearly secured mount, raining down punches and elbows from the top before Kruchten rolled. WHen he did, Corey latched on to a rear-naked choke, despite being just slightly off-center, squeezed and earned the tap at the 2:59 mark of the round.

Bryson Hansen (7-1) made his World Series of Fighting debut a memorable one, scoring a 46-second TKO finish of Sean Cantor (1-1).

Southpaw Hansen looked for the takedown, and though Cantor defended well against the cage, his opponent refused to back away. As Hansen looked for the trip, Cantor used his right hand to post on the floor. That left his chin exposed, and Hansen exploded with a few powerful left hands that saw Cantor go limp, and referee Jason Herzog called off the fight at the 0:46 mark of the fight.

The move to featherweight didn’t prove beneficial for John Gunderson (34-16-2), as “Guns” ran into a buzzsaw in Chris Gruetzemacher (12-1).

Gruetzemacher wasted little time looking for a takedown, and while Gunderson went immediately for a choke as he hit the floor, the submission was never close. Gunderson tried to scramble up to his feet, but Gruetzemacher was relentless in the dominant position and racked up points with his time on top. Gruetzemacher added a few punches and elbows, as he maintained the position until the end of the round.

Gruetzemacher repeated the strategy in the second, looking immediately for a takedown. This time, Gunderson initially stayed upright but still took punishment in the clinch before Gruetzemacher ultimately took him to the floor anyway. Gruetzemacher assault took its toll over the round, and Gunderson looked exhausted when he made it to his feet in the final minute. Gruetzemacher then quickly deposited him to the floor, where they finished the round.

Gruetzemacher pushed in again to start the third, and Gunderson simply had no answer. While Gunderson repeatedly tried to scrambled to his feet, Gruetzemacher pushed him back to the floor each time. Eventually, he secured mount and the moved to the back when Gunderson rolled. Refusing to quit, Gunderson pulled free and transitioned to the back before looking desperately for an armbar. It was a game attempt at a comeback, but it came up short when the bell sounded, and Gruetzemacher was awarded a unanimous-decision win, 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26.

In featherweight action, Xtreme Couture’s Brenson Hansen (6-2) rebounded from a contentious split-decision loss in January with a strong, three-round win over the son of Marvin Eastman, Boostayre Nefarios (2-2)

Nefarios scored the first significant strikes of the contest, landing clean with two crisp shots, but Hansen answered by driving in and dumping his opponent on the floor. However, Nefarios scrambled up to his feet, ad his comfort level was evident as he hung his hands low and looked to land a quick jab and powerful uppercut.

Hansen started quickly in the second, pressing forward with powerful hooks as he looked to attack. Once the pace settled, Nefarios again kept his hands low and looked to use his quickness to his advantage. Hansen was unimpressed by the tactics and kept a blue-collar approach, scoring a takedown halfway into the fight. Unable to gain much offense in the position, Hansen had to settle for a stand-up from referee Chris Tognoni.

The two continued to trade on the feet in the final round, both mixing in kicks with their punching attacks. Nefarios’ continued unwillingness to keep his hands up infuriated his corner, and Hansen took advantage by rifling in punches and kicks. Nefarios showed flashes of his athletic skills, but he didn’t maintain continues offense for any lengthy stretches. A late Nefarios kick to the groin caused a brief delay, but Hansen finished strong with a late takedown and a flurry of strikes, and he was rewarded for his efforts with a unanimous-decision win, 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.

In a welterweight matchup between crosstown rivals, Xtreme Couture’s Danny Davis (9-8-1) outpointed Syndicate MMA’s Phil Dace (9-5).

Dace held the center in the early going, but it was Davis whose hands looks crisper once he was willing to throw. A big right hand late in the first was the best punch of the round, and while Dace was game, it was Davis who was having the most success early.

Davis switched tactics in the second, scoring an early takedown. Dace quickly returned to the feet, where he started to string together combinations, but Davis again seized control with a crisp right, followed by a powerful one-two.

Dace fought on to the third round, but Davis continued to pepper him with shots on the feet, including a few impressive elbows in tight, before taking him to the floor. Dace eventually crawled back to his feet, but his face showed the wear of the contest. Dace fought valiantly until the final bell, but it was obvious Davis had done enough to score the decision win, who scored a unanimous call with three scores of 30-27.

In the night’s first matchup, Jimmy Spicuzza (3-0) rocked opponent Gil Guardado (2-1) on the feet before finishing him on the floor.

The lightweight matchup was contested at 161 pounds after Guardado failed to make weight at Friday’s official ceremony.

The two went to work quickly, both trading punches in the pocket from the opening bell. Guardado eventually turned to his wrestling, but Spicuzza escaped to his feet and landed a devastating knee as they broke apart. Guardado tried to shake it off, but Spicuzza kept the pressure high with punches and eventually took the fight to the floor, where he quickly secured the back.

To Guardado’s credit, he defended the initial choke attempts well, but Spicuzza was relentless, using strikes to pull his opponent’s hands away in defense before seamlessly working the arm under the neck and earning the tap by rear-naked choke at the 3:14 mark of the first frame.

The evening’s full results include:

MAIN CARD

• Rousimar Palhares def. Steve Carl via submission (heel hook) – Round 1, 1:09 – to claim welterweight title
• Marlon Moraes def. Josh Rettinghouse via unanimous decision (50-44, 50-44, 50-44) – to claim inaugural bantamweight title
• Yushin Okami def. Svetlozar Savov via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 4:46
• Josh Burkman def. Tyler Stinson via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:15
• Johnny Nunez def. Ozzy Dugulubgov via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Mike Corey def. Shane Kruchten via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:59
• Bryson Hansen def. Sean Cantor via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 0:46
• Chris Gruetzemacher def. John Gunderson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
• Brenson Hansen def. Boostayre Nefarios via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Danny Davis def. Phil Dace via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jimmy Spicuzza def. Gil Guardado via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:14

For additional coverage of WSOF 9, check out the MMA Events section of the site.