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In the main event before a nice crowd at the Maverik Center in West Valley City Saturday May 16, Suleiman Bouhata, of Montreal, Canada, scored a shocking upset over highly favored Joel Haro.
The featherweight pro MMA bout ended in 41 seconds after Bouhata, 16-10, floored Haro, 7-3, with a right hand. Haro was pummeled on the ground before the bout was stopped. Bouhata was taller and slightly heavier than his opponent. Haro was very groggy for several minutes after the stoppage.
In a strongly anticipated co-main event between two solid professionals, Ha'va Nathan Owens, Ogden, 144, scored a mild upset with a second round TKO over Julian Ruiz, 5-3, 146, of Salt Lake City. (The photo above is of Ruiz, at left, congratulating Owens after the bout.)
Owens had the upper hand in a close first round, showing strong boxing. Ruiz rallied in round 2 with a strong right hand and put Owens to the ground. However, Ruiz was hampered by what appeared to be a broken nose, which bled profusely. Late in round 2, after they were up, Owens staggered Ruiz with hard shots that sent him against the ropes. The fight was stopped at 4.59. (The below photo is of Owens (at left) and Ruiz competing in round 1.)
In a pro welterweight bout Teague Vigil, of Roy, 5-4, sent Desmond Manabat, 4-8, fighting out of Las Vegas, to the canvas early. Vigil finished the bout in 32 seconds with a rear naked choke submission.
In the final pro bout, bantamweight David Kim, 1-2, of Provo, picked up his first win with a hard-fought three-round decision over Jordan Gonzales, 0-2, of Salt Lake City. Scores were 29-28 and 29-27 twice. Utah Fight Game scored the bout 29-28 for Kim.
In a five-round amateur bout for the Fierce Fighting Championship bantamweight title, Talon Carvalho, 7-3, generally controlled the action over challenger Rey Lee, 5-3, of Gardenia, Calif. Judges scores were 50-45 across the board. Utah Fight Game scored it 49-46 for Carvalho.
In other amateur bouts:
Ashley Green, 2-0, from Las Vegas, scored a mild upset over Provo's Nicole Fuga, 4-4. Scores were 29-28 unanimously, which is how Utah Fight Game saw the women's bout too.
In a bout between 190-plus pounders, Hunter Birdsley, 3-1, of Salt Lake City, used hard punches to quickly end the unbeaten record of Park Abegglen, 2-1, of Cedar City. The bout was stopped after 34 seconds.
In a 150-pound catchweight bout, Park City's Chris Ventura, 3-2 with 1 no contest, needed one right cross to end his bout with Morgun Colledge, 5-9. The fight was stopped at 41 seconds
In a welterweight bout Edgar Mixan, 3-1, of Bozeman, Mont., used a big right hand to stop Provo's Lance Lovoie, 1-1, in 42 seconds of round 1.
In a match between debuting 155-pounders, Brady Gourson, wore down debuting Joseph Marshall to score a second-round submission win. Both are Northern Utah fighters.
In a lightweight bout between Northern Utahns, London Van Camp, 1-2, caught Chris Vandemyle, 1-1, with a hard shot midway in the first. The bout was stopped at 1.57 of the first with Van Camp the winner.
In a featherweight bout, Eric Lazo, 2-0, defeated Pouya Bahamin, 0-2, via unanimous decision. Utah Fight Game scored the bout 29-28 for Lazo.
In the first bout of the night, between 200 pounders, Traie Buhler,1-0, scored a close unanimous 29-28 win over heavier Raven Janis. Utah Fight Game agreed with the 29-28 tally.
A scheduled bout between amateur middleweights James Prescott, 4-1, and Jett Swain, 2-1, was scrapped when Swain had to pull out. Prescott entered the cage and thanked fans for their support.
-- Doug Gibson
