Fightstar 4.0 goes off with a bang
Saturday, August 31 saw South Africa’s top amateur Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) athletes go head-to-head.
MMA fans packed the Mandeville Indoor Sports Arena to witness some of the best amateur match-ups to date. Despite the cold, things quickly heated up. Fightstar 4.0 did not disappoint, as all the fighters gave everything they had.
The evening kicked off with the first bout between Nic Roos, from Guts and Glory, and Tobie Du Preez, Nelspruit Kick Boxing.
The fight set the stage for the night, as both men came out to prove a point.
Round one saw Roos take Du Preez down, but landed in a guillotine. Roos managed to escape the choke, and landed some tough ground-and-pound, only to be flipped and have Du Preez on top.
That saw the end of the first round. Du Preez was unhappy, and came out swinging.
It was not long before they hit the mat and Du Preez was able to finish Roos off. Du Preez won by a technical knock out (TKO) in round two.
The action continued, however, with Fighting Fit EFC Africa development athlete Cassim Khusu beating Duvan Rossouw via a rear-naked-choke in round one. There was not much caution on the night; this fight was a true reflection.
Both men were slow to start, throwing testing punches, but unwilling to engage in anything too serious. The fight hit the ground and this is where it ended. Khusu sunk in a rear-naked-choke after getting Rossouw on his back and he had to tap out. The highlight of the night was the first Fightstar ladies MMA fight.
Santa-Marie Venter beat Natasha Elliot via TKO in round one. The women had a tough first round and it must be said that Elliot’s stand-up game was no match for Venter’s boxing. Elliot matched Venter on the ground and managed to flip her twice onto her back, while in trouble with Santa-Marie in mount. The fight was stood-up and Venter came out firing, showing off her boxing skills to finish Elliot off.
Another fight saw Keron Davies beat Gordon Roodman via a ground-and-pound after three rounds. Roodman landed many punches, but Davies was in a league of his own. The fight started with Davies landing a couple of heavy leg kicks and then a quick scrap on the ground and the fighters getting back up.
Roodman found some replies with his lethal fists. The fight hit the deck again, with Davies throwing some heavy blows and Roodman defending well. Round two saw both men land some heavy blows. They ended up in a clinch, and like clockwork, landed on their knees. Once separated, Davies had a point deducted for a flying knee to the jaw. This just aggravated Davies, as soon after, he followed up with a trip, sending Roodman to the canvas. The third round saw Davies win the title with some punishing ground-and-pound. The round started with a massive leg kick that left Roodman with shaky legs. Roodman landed some massive shots, but nothing seemed to faze Davies. The fight went to the ground and this saw Roodman in big trouble. Davies chose his shots carefully and had Roodman tapping for the fight to stop. The referee stopped the bout, and Davies was crowned the Middleweight Fightstar Champ.
“Davies proved why he has been signed by EFC Africa. He is going to be a destroyer in the professional ranks and in the running for a professional title in the near future,” said Mr Pietro Cignoli, President of EFC Africa. Fightstar 5 will be at the end of October.
