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ARCHIVED STORY WINTER 2017
“Smokin’ Jo” retains super welterweight belt at Lion Fight 35
Kengsiam, left, battles Jo Nattawutt during the main event of Lion Fight 35 on March 3.
Photos by Nicola Faraone
By Brian Woodman Jr.
(March 3--Mashantucket, CT)
Jo Nattawut (62-6-2) retained his super welterweight title following the main event at Lion Fight 35 -- a professional Muay Thai bout between “Smokin’ Jo” and Kengsiam (65-13-5). The challenger, who serves in Thailand’s Air Force, launched a spirited but tempered offense against Nattawut, throwing several knees. But Nattawut, who currently holds two division titles, attacked Kengsiam’s legs and eventually broke a bone in the challenger’s left leg during the third round (a prepared statement from Lion Fight management indicated it could be a broken femur).
Nattawut secured a TKO victory at about 2:40 in the round. Kengsiam left the ring in a stretcher.
During the co-main event, Naruepol Fairtex (180-46-5) earned an unanimous decision victory over Amadeu Cristiano (51-16) It was a back-and-forth middleweight bout in which the second round opened with Cristiano landing a light high kick to Fairtex’s face. Two judges scored it 49-46 while another awarded 48-47.
The main card opened with a lightweight bout between Yeison Berdugo (2-3) and Jafar Toshev (1-0) in his professional debut. Toshev, who threw several high kicks during the fight, won by knockout at 1:26 in the third round after landing a spinning back fist to Berdugo’s face.
The next bout, a super bantamweight women’s fight, was a bloody affair with a surprising outcome. Jeri Sitzes (33-14) manhandled (woman handled?) Estonian fighter Andra Aho (7-1) for the bulk of their fight and threw lots of high kicks in between clinches. But a few well-placed elbows during the course of the bout caused bleeding from Sitzes’s forehead that became apparent during the second round. Although Sitzes continued to dominate the fight, the bleeding grew some excessive that the referee stopped the fight at 2:35 in the third round. Aho was awarded a TKO victory, which drew a negative response from the crowd at the Fox Theater.
CES MMA competitor Chip Moraza-Pollard (3-0) earned a one-sided victory over Scott Noble (1-1) by unanimous decision. Moraza-Pollard threw a variety of strikes but Noble stayed on his feet.
Andra Aho, left, is pinned by a blood drenched Jeri Sitzes on March 3 at Lion Fight 35.
Photo by Nicola Faraone
The amateur results were as follows:
Christian Pereira versus Doug Holland (Heavyweight) -- Pereira by unanimous decision.
Jeff Soivilien versus Greg Muldrow (Super Heavyweight) -- Muldrow by unanimous decision.
Mike Triana versus Jose Medrano (Lightweight) -- Triana by unanimous decision.
J. Luck Henry versus Elvin Johnson (Light Heavyweight) -- Henry by unanimous decision.
Matthias Eckstrand versus Brian Bogue (Super Middleweight) -- Bogue by TKO (:53 in the third round)
Julian Nyguen versus Keeman Diop (Welterweight) -- Nyguen by split decision.
(Editor’s note -- Professional bouts are five three-minute rounds. Non-title amateur bouts are three two-minute rounds).
Scott Nobles drills Chip Moraza-Pollard on March 3 at Lion Fight 35.
Photo by Nicola Faraone
