Titan FC 67 recap – Danny Sabatello dominates in championship headliner
Titan FC made its 2021 debut on Friday night at the InterContinental Hotel in Miami, Florida with Titan FC 67. The event was broadcast on UFC Fight Pass and the Titan FC Facebook page.
In a stacked 11-fight card, the fights at Titan Fc 67 did not disappoint.
Danny Sabatello vs. Da’Mon Blackshear
In the main event of the evening Danny Sabatello took on Da’Mon Blackshear. These two highly touted prospects went the distances in a gritty battle that played out in favor of Sabatello. Sabatello was on his game in the first three rounds capitalizing on takedown after takedown. Sabatello maintained top position, landing occasional ground strikes, but Blackshear did his part defending transitions and avoiding serious danger. In the last two rounds, Blackshear did well defending the takedown, but Sabatello was relentless with the attempts landing a few in the late part of the rounds. In the end, the bantamweight champ, Danny Sabatello, walked out with a convincing unanimous decision victory.
Muhammad Naimov vs. Olivier Murad
The featherweight strap was on the line in the co-main event which involved Olivier Murad and Muhammad Naimov. This was nothing short of war. This fight was a back-and-forth battle and this was easily on of the best fights, if not the best, of the evening. Murad was the more efficient striker through the whole bout, however the grappling exchanges favored Naimov. Murad turned his grappling offense on in the back half of fight getting the better of the two there. In a very close battle between two warriors, the judges gave Olivier Murad the nod and he is the new Titan FC featherweight champion.
Dilano Taylor vs. Lewis Gonzalez
One of Titan FC’s hottest prospects, Dilano Taylor, took on UFC veteran, Lewis Gonzalez, in a main card bout on Friday night. It was all Dilano Taylor in the first two rounds of the fight, as he seemed to be better than Gonzalez everywhere. Gonzalez, in fact, had a hard time finding his range. After two dominant rounds from Taylor, Gonzalez found a way to get the fight to the ground in the third and had his way. In the end, Taylor earned the unanimous decision win.
Evelyn Martins vs. Melissa Croden
In a bout between two young prospects in the women’s bantamweight division, it came down to the wire. Martins seemed to fight well in the first and held her own on the feet early. Croden landed her fair share of strikes later in the bout. Martins was clearly the better grappler and had a few submission attempts, but none were successful. The 18-year-old, Evelyn Martins, secured a split decision win and improved to 2-0 in her pro career.
Alberto Montes vs. Richie Santiago
In the 2-minute duration of this bout it seemed to be all Alberto Montes. Montes won the striking exchanges and grappled extremely well. There really isn’t much to say about this fight except to praise the undefeated Alberto Montes. Montes ended up choking Santiago out via anaconda choke just 2 minutes into the first round.
Adrian Garcia vs. Rudy Isidro
Garcia and Isidro mixed it up well in the early minutes of the first round, however it seemed to be Garcia getting the better of the exchanges. Isidro initiated multiple clinches and did well there. Garcia’s kickboxing was the difference in this fight, in fact that’s exactly how he got it done. Garcia landed a mean front kick to the body dropping Isidro and then following with ground and pound leading to the ref stopping the bout. Garcia’s 1st round TKO was one of two for the Goatshed Academy on the night. The goats were huge winners Saturday night.
Adi Alic vs. Carlos Espinosa
This was another back and forth war. Alic was clearly the far superior striker as he continuously landed two punch combos piecing up Espinosa. As the second round came it started very similar to how the first went. As it went on Espinosa seemed to be the fresher fighter, however Alic looked to get the better of him. In the third Espinosa capitalized on the gas tank of Alic and won the round. However, in the end it was Sanford MMA’s Adi Alic earning the unanimous decision victory.
Titan FC 67 Prelim and After Party results:
John Ortiz def. Ronny Hauser by split decision
Phillip Jackson def. Daniel Jacobucci by submission via strike at 1:59 of round 1
Roy Echeverria def. Earnest Walls by submission via rear naked choke at 3:27 of round 1
Sal Guerriero def. Matt Quigley by TKO 2:22 of round 2
