Former EliteXC
titleholder Wilson Reis
continued his late-career resurgence in
Cage Warriors Fighting Championship, as he took care of
Johnny
Campbell with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their
CW 149 headliner on Friday at the Sycuan Casino Resort in San
Diego. Reis (27-12, 4-0 CW) closed out the bantamweight affair 2:20
into Round 3.
Campbell (22-15, 0-1 CW) started strong and pushed the pace in the
first part of the opening frame, where he secured a takedown and
improved his position through ground-and-pound. Reis bounced back
in the second part of the frame and wound up in top position after
a wild scramble. The Brazilian came close to finishing Campbell
twice in Round 2 with deep neck crank and arm-triangle attempts,
but “Cupcakes” managed to survive. Reis looked for a successful
takedown early in the third round, perhaps sensing his grappling
skills were superior to his opponent’s defense. Once on the mat,
the
Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran worked his way to
Campbell’s back and cinched a deep rear-naked choke. This time, the
South Shore Sport Fighting rep had no answer and was forced to
tap.
In the lightweight co-main event, hometown hero James Lynch
clashed with promotional newcomer Georgii
Eivas at 155 pounds. Lynch (6-3, 4-2 CW) put forth a dominant
performance, leaving no room for his counterpart to implement his
gameplan. “Jamey” attacked with a variety of submission attempts
throughout the fight, forcing Eivas (7-6, 0-1 CW) to play defense
most of the time. Lynch proved he was the better wrestler and
grappler in the second and third rounds, where he pinned the
“Assyrian Assassin” to the canvas but failed to secure a finish.
Even though Eivas attempted a last-minute attack by setting an
armbar-triangle choke attempt, the fight went the distance. When
the dust settled, the judges flashed 30-26, 30-27 and 30-27
scorecards in a unanimous decision for Lynch.
In other action, Damon Wilson (6-1, 5-1 CW) outstruck Shawn Tremelle Johnson (3-4, 0-1 CW) to a unanimous decision in a three-round featherweight tilt, sweeping the scorecards with 30-27 marks across the board; Roberto Hernandez (6-1, 4-0 CW) eked out a narrow split decision—29-28, 29-28, 28-29—over John de Jesus (15-11, 1-1 CW) in a three-round featherweight confrontation; and Blake Perry (2-1, 1-0 CW) outpointed Joshua Nakagawa (2-3, 0-3 CW) to a unanimous verdict, drawing 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 scores from the judges in their three-round welterweight battle.
Several injuries marred the show, including a last-minute complication for Alex Trinidad that resulted in the cancelation of his bout with Alberto Romo.
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