It’s that time again, folks. Oregon’s finest amateur fighters will be back in action this Saturday night when the Full Contact Fight Federation (FCFF) presents: Rumble at the Roseland 87. As usual FCFF matchmaker Heather Standing has put together another stacked card; there will be three titles on the line, a lightweight super fight, and ten additional fights to round out the card. Oregon’s top gyms will be well represented; fighters from Gracie Barra Portland, Impact Jiu-Jitsu, Animals MMA, Straight Blast Gym, Alive MMA, and Team Quest will all be in action. With fourteen total fights on this card, the fans in attendance will certainly be getting their money’s worth.
The bout order is as follows:
Featherweight Title: Yan Kuvaldin (Team Chaos) vs Cris Williams (Gracie Barra)
Welterweight Title: Alex Aguilar (Portland Thai Boxing) vs Saul Gallegos-Ruiz (Impact Jiu Jitsu)
Bantamweight Title: Tristan Lindi (Rogue Combat Academy) vs Ryen Betzhold (Animals MMA)
Lightweight Super Fight: Abasi Young (Portland, OR) vs Adan Suarez (Gracie Barra)
Welterweight: Erik Kirkpatrick (Yachats, OR) vs Nick Martin (Team Quest)
Lightweight: Quinten Wyland (AliveMMA) vs Thomas Patrick (Gracie Barra)
140lb Catchweight: Zach Moore (Straight Blast Gym) vs Matt Charaba (Animals MMA)
Light Heavyweight: Brandon Lunny (Vancouver, WA) vs Aaron Lopez (Gracie Barra)
Welterweight: Mario Shonkwiler (Straight Blast Gym) vs Cruzito Esquivel (Sharks MMA)
Bantamweight: Samuel Crawford (Performance) vs Roi Cho (Impact Jiu Jitsu)
Lightweight: Matt Miranda (Portland, OR) vs Exie Benitez (Gracie Barra)
Bantamweight: Sean Keefe (Portland, OR) vs Zach Martin (Portland Thai Boxing)
Flyweight: Derek Augustine (Coos Bay, OR) vs Keaneo Moyer (Team Quest)
Lightweight: Leroy Santos (Corvallis, OR) vs Lawrence Phanomsack (Gracie Barra)
***As usual, fight card is subject to change
In the night’s first championship fight, the bantamweight title will be up for grabs when Tristan Lindi takes on Ryen Betzhold. This fight is certainly a fight of the night contender; both fighters are known to push the pace and look for the finish. Lindi is an especially tough fighter; his boyish looking face may seem friendly but in the cage he is all business. His ability to take a shot is noteworthy and in past fights he has been known to take a punch or two in order to land one in return. His opponent, Betzhold, on the other hand, has more of a power game. Betzhold has strong takedowns and instinctive ground and pound. In past fights, he has bypassed submissions in favor of throwing heavy punches from the top position or even from the back. His understanding of submissions is obvious as he has effortless transitions between positions but in this fight his power will be most important. Look for Lindi to try and control the distance in this one and use his footwork to keep the fight standing.
In the co-main event of the evening, Alex Aguilar takes on Saul Gallegos-Ruiz for the vacant welterweight title. This fight is an interesting matchup because both Aguilar and Gallegos-Ruiz are coming off of extended layoffs. Aguilar has been out of action for about two years and at just 3-0 in his career, he doesn’t have a lot of experience to fall back on. A strong kicker with good footwork, Aguilar will need to regain his timing in the cage to land his very powerful kicks. His opponent, on the other hand, is one of the more experienced fighters on the card. At 5-1, his only loss came to local standout Ricky Simon. The lone blemish on Gallegos-Ruiz’s record also happens to be his last fight and that was just over three years ago. A three-year layoff is tough for anyone; don’t be surprised if Gallegos-Ruiz has issues with his cardio in this one. This fight is a bit of a wildcard; I’d say look for Aguilar to push the pace and dominate with leg kicks.
In the final bout of the evening, Yan Kuvaldin and Cris Williams will fight for the featherweight title. This fight is an interesting matchup to me. In Kuvaldin, you have a fighter who is a bit wild in exchanges as well as on the ground. His power is clearly a big part of his game as he uses strength to overwhelm his opponents. He clearly has a fighter’s spirit, but I worry that his technique is lacking when compared to his opponent, Cris Williams. Williams has very sound fundamentals. His footwork is excellent; he stays on his toes and has natural lateral movement that is hard to teach. His kicks are excellent and he throws them with great variety. While Kuvaldin is the more experienced fighter, I don’t see this as a great matchup for him. I believe Williams uses his clean technique to finish off Kuvaldin early. This could be the signature win that pushes Williams out of the amateur pool and into the pros.
As I said before, this is a stacked card. These three title fights alone are worth the cost of admission, in my opinion. If you are looking for a fun night out on the town, head down to the Roseland Theater for a night of fights and support your local fighters.
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