Shaun Asher gets submission, retires at Empire Fight Series 2

Empire Fight Series 2 went down in Mt. Orab, Ohio on Saturday night, as the promotion held its first event since 2019 in front of a sold out crowd at the Mt. Orab Sports Complex.

In the main event, local native and longtime MMA veteran Shaun Asher competed in “One Last Ride”, as the 44-year-old made his mind up to fight in front of his hometown fans for a final time. Standing across from him was a fellow Bellator veteran in Anthony Garrett, who make the trek from Texas for the bout.

Asher said that he planned to stand in the fight, but he got clipped early on and immediately took the fight to the ground. From there, it was all Asher, as he stayed heavy on top and eventually locked in an Americana to force the tap.

After the bout, Asher did indeed retire, saying that he was very emotional, and he loved everything that the sport of MMA brought to him and and his family.

In the co-main event, Carson Frei used his heavy top game to stymie any and all offense from Bryan McDowell, wrestling his way to a clear-cut unanimous decision victory.

In the night’s opening pro bout, Corey Dulaney utilized striking and timely wrestling to take home a unanimous decision against Jeff Mack. After striking for the first half of the bout, Dulaney took control in the second half, grounding Mack en route to a unanimous victory on all three judges’ scorecards. After the bout, Mack announced his retirement from MMA.

View full results from Empire Fight Series 2 below.

Empire Fight Series 2 results

Pro Bouts:

Shaun Asher (13-5-1) def. Anthony Garrett (6-9) via Submission (Americana) – Round 1

Carson Frei (12-6) def. Bryan McDowell (8-9) via Unanimous Decision

Corey Dulaney (5-10) def. Jeff Mack (2-5) via Unanimous Decision

Amateur Bouts:

Maurice Yarbrough (5-3) def. Josh Lennert (3-3) via Submission (guillotine) – Round 1 – Heavyweight Title

Jacob Ross (1-0) def. Daniel Hernandez (0-1) via Submission (tapout to strikes) – Round 1

Jeffrey Franklin (1-0) def. Richard Adkins (0-1) via Submission (rear naked choke) – Round 1

Dillon Evans (1-0) def. Ashton Barr (0-1) via KO (right hook to ground punches) – Round 1

Justin Sons (1-0) def. Arturo Hernandez (0-1) via Submission (choke) – Round 1

Dakota Grooms (1-0) def. Troy Bravard (0-1) via KO (punch) – Round 1

Nick Murphy (1-0) def. Dylan Grundy (0-1) via TKO (punches) – Round 1

Brandon Huddleston (1-0) def. Anthony Barr (0-1) via TKO (verbal submission) – Round 1

David McKinney

David McKinney has covered MMA since he was in high school in 2008. A former co-owner of BluegrassMMA, he currently hosts the Beers and Beards and Brewery Adventures podcasts. He covers regional MMA in the Midwest with a focus on Ohio.

See Full Bio