EFC 55: Potts takes another step towards heavyweight title contention
Former heavyweight champions Ruan ‘Fangzz’ Potts (from Boksburg) and Brendon Groenewald clashed at EFC 55 held at the Grand West Arena.
Groenewald attacked early, bloodying Potts in the first round with heavy punches and elbows, but fell victim to exhaustion in the second, and tapped to a rear-naked choke to the submission specialist Potts.
The win further strengthened Fangzz’s case to reclaim the heavyweight belt – a target he’s been eyeing since his return from UFC.
The arena also played witness to arguably the biggest fight in EFC history on Friday, November 11.
The event was sold out hours before the first fight, and by the time Demarte ‘The Wolf’ Pena and Irshaad ‘White Tiger’ Sayed took to the hexagon to fight for the bantamweight title, the crowd was split down the middle in support.
Both men fought through a grueling five rounds, the first three of which were filled with excellent striking.
Pena and Sayed played a tactical standing game, landing consistently and using a dazzling array of punches, kicks and elbows.
All expected Pena to take Sayed down early, but it was only in the fourth that the Angolan shot in for the first time and began a ground assault that would push him ahead on points.
The judges finally handed down a unanimous decision in favour of Pena, sparking immediate calls for a rematch from the Sayed’s support, and the ‘White Tiger’ himself.
While the main event sizzled with potential, the co-main event between lightweight champion Dave ‘Pain Train’ Mazany and former champion Leon ‘Iron Lion’ Mynhardt exploded into a full-scale war.
Both landed thudding punches from the start, mesmerising the crowd with a brutal display of mixed martial arts. Mynhardt, wary of the quick submission that lost him his title to Mazany the last time out, kept his distance and filled the space with punishing strikes, which the American happily absorbed and returned.
By the third round Mynhardt was a mask of blood. Although landing consistently, he was unable to match Mazany’s outstanding skill set, and one takedown too many led to a TKO stoppage on the back of hard ground and pound.
Francois ‘Franaconda’ Groenewald made his push for a shot at the bantamweight champion with a first-round submission win over Durban’s Baldwin Mdlalose.
Former welterweight champion Dino ‘The Lion’ Bagattin opened the night’s main card. After over a year out of action he entered the hexagon to face Port Elizabeth’s devastating Cameron Pritchard.
Bagattin fired off some punches early, but was soon overwhelmed by the ground game of Pritchard, who took him to the canvas and kept him there for the first round.
The second saw the same, but this time Bagattin couldn’t ride the pressure and tapped to a rear-naked choke.
Fight of the night was awarded to the personal battle between Mazany and Mynhardt.
Performance bonuses were awarded to Sylveste Chipfumbu, Regis Muyambo, Gary Joshua, Pritchard and Potts.
