Reina Cordoba shocked Zoila Frausto with a Submission of the Year candidate while Jesse Strader stole the show in Fresno on Friday night in Combate Americas.
Going into Friday’s Combate Americas main event, Reina Cordoba was seen as a speed-bump en route to bigger things for former Bellator champion Zoila Frausto. To begin the fight, Frausto was the more active fighter and was keeping Cordoba on the defensive by mixing up her punches and kicks. The 40-year-old Cordoba showed resilience in eating a big right hand and getting the fight to the ground with a head-and-arm throw. On the mat, Cordoba had Frausto pinned down and was landing shots to the head before getting a no-handed arm bar to finish the fight in the first round.
Look at that grimace 😬
Upset in La Jaula at @combateamericas 🚨 pic.twitter.com/tMheKibFx4
— DAZN USA (@DAZN_USA) August 3, 2019
Cordoba said of her upset victory:
“When we begin the fight, it’s 50/50. You can’t think about the opponent or what the people say. I’ve worked my judo and sambo. Ultimately I worked more my sambo. We studied Zoila a lot and knew what position she would get herself into. On the ground, I had her in the position and I was able to get the arm bar with my legs. It never crossed my mind that I would lose as she was ahead to open the fight. I knew at the most it was 15 minutes and that I could go all three rounds if I didn’t get the finish but losing never crossed my mind.”
In featured action, Jesse Strader of Lancaster, California, delivered an emphatic knockout in the final fight of the night against Isaiah Batin-Gonzalez. Gonzalez appeared to struggle with the power and combinations of Strader as he failed to get respect on the feet in the early going. In the finishing sequence, Strader placed a perfect left hook that put Gonzalez to sleep before he hit the canvas. The finish also ended up at number two on SportsCenter‘s top ten countdown.
Relive Jesse Straders impressive KO in #CombateFresno pic.twitter.com/lRUIygr2Xb
— Combate Americas (@combateamericas) August 3, 2019
Also on the main card, JC Llamas needed only several minutes to take out Ivan Castillo, although it looked like even that was too long for his liking. Llamas stunned Castillo early with a kick and unloaded a barrage of strikes that followed Castillo to the ground. Llamas never let up as he got the mount and continued to unload with strikes until the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
The next Combate Americas event is set to be held on August 23 in Lake Tahoe, Nevada with a double-header as bantamweight champion Gustavo Lopez will look to defend his title against Joey Ruquet and Andres Quintana will battle Bruno Cannetti for the inaugural featherweight championship.
Full Combate Fresno Results:
- Reina Córdoba def. Zoila Frausto via Submission (Armbar) – R1 (2:32)
- Jesse Strader def. Isaiah Batin-González via KO – R1 (1:56)
- JC Llamas def. Iván Castillo via TKO (Punches) – R1 (1:38)
- Adrian Guzmán def. César González via Unanimous Decision (30-27 x 3)
- Albert Gonzales def. Havier Pedroza via TKO (Punches) – R1 (4:53)
- Jose Avalos def. Trey Branch via Submission (RNC) – R1 (1:59)
- Paul Elizondo def. Mike Tubera via Submission (RNC) – R1 (4:59)
- Dan Argueta def. Christian Hermosillo via Submission (RNC) – R1 (1:52)
- Daniel Oseguera def. Austin Liu via Unanimous Decision (29-28 x 3)
