I had the pleasure of attending the Deepshot Cages “Last Man Standing II” event in Wake Forest, NC, prior to watching the UFC 131 event last night. It was a great night of fights that had the nearly sold out crowd on its feet for much of the night. There were six bouts on the card that featured everything from huge slams, quick submissions, a slugfest, and a main event that lived up to the billing. Below you’ll find a recap of each fight:

Jonathan Noah vs. Chris Guimond

This was a back and forth affair that saw Noah land a nice combo at the beginning of the fight only to give up a takedown to Quimond seconds later. Noah attempted to sink in a guillotine choke, but saw Guimond defend it nicely. Noah worked a high guard mixed with a body triangle at times with wrist control for most of the round with Guimond landing body shots from the top position. The second round saw Guimond with a huge slam and then quickly mount Noah then landing some hammer fists. Guimond with the mount position for just about the entire time. Noah tried to buck Guimond off while using the cage, but Guimond showed a very good base to maintain position. Afterwards, Guimond started to rain down punches and hammer fists which prompted the referee to stop the fight. Guimond wins via round 2 TKO.

Danny Perdue vs. Danny Branch

This fight was action packed from start to finish. The pace was so fast that it was often difficult to single out all the techniques that were landing. Both fighters did a good job of landing bodykicks, knees and dirty boxing while in the clinch position in the first round.

The second round was more of the same with Perdue landing a very nice spinning backfist and body shots while Branch answered with a three punch combo later in the round. The second round was full of back and forth action even though both fighters were visibly tired at this point.

The final round saw Perdue land another spinning backfist which was probably the cleanest technique that landed in the round. However, it was more of the same with both fighters dirty boxing and landing knees in the clinch. This one went to the judges with Danny Perdue winning a split decision.

James Marcello vs. Tim Berry

If you want to talk about going in and taking someone out then this was the fight! As the bell sounded to begin the fight, both fighters came out and exchanged with Berry quickly changing levels and taking Marcello down to the ground. He actually took Marcello’s back and begin sinking in the rear naked choke while they were on the way down to the canvas. Marcello attempted to break Berry’s grip. Berry made the proper adjustments and sunk the choke in deeper forcing Marcello to tap at the :25 second mark. Awesome performance.Tim Berry wins via rear naked choke. This was the Pro MMA Now submission of the night.

Tim Boyle vs. Steven Thigpen

This was a very good fight with Tim Boyle showing tons of heart. The first round saw a dominant Thigpen land strikes in flurries against the cage. Thigpen also took Boyle down, landing in side control and basically controlled Boyle while on the ground. Once the fight got back up to the feet, Thigpen landed a solid right hand before the bell sounded.

The second round saw Boyle land a solid body kick during the opening seconds. Thigpen forced a clinch position against the cage. Boyle landed a nice 1-2 that forced Thigpen to retreat for a brief moment, but Thigpen came back forward and landed a nice three punch combo and then clinched with Boyle against the cage. Boyle was clearly hurt and Thigpen could sense it, but simply couldn’t put Boyle away during the round as he flurried with strikes several times as well as at the end of the round. Boyle motioned to the doctor that he couldn’t see clearly(he was bleeding pretty heavily from what I could tell) and didn’t answer the bell for the third and final round. Steven Thigpen wins via TKO in a dominant performance. This was the Pro MMA Now knockout of the night.

Tunene Jackson vs. Vincent Clark

This was the super bout on the card with both fighters nearing or surpassing 300lbs! The fight began and saw the larger Clark charge across the cage only to be met with a front kick that drove him back into the fence. They clinched with Clark looking to take the fight to the ground and he does briefly. However, Jackson is able to get back to his feet and land some punches to the body as Clark had a body lock on Jackson against the cage. It’s clear that Clark is gassed near the end of the first round.

The second round sees a VERY gassed Clark succumb to fatigue after taking a couple of shots. He basically went down from exhaustion with Jackson following up with punches before the referee comes into stop the fight. Tunene Jackson wins via TKO.

David Dew vs. Blake Taylor

This fight was for the Deepshot Cages lightweight title and it did not disappoint. It was a back and forth affair that ended in a controversial decision. At first I thought Taylor clearly won, but after thinking about the entire fight it all came down to how you would score a very close first round in hindsight.

The first round saw Dew land a nice lateral drop throw, but Taylor quickly reversed before both fighters returned to their feet. Dew landed a couple of knees as they clinched and Taylor answered with knees of his own. Dew with another lateral drop throw and tries to take Taylor’s back and lock in the rear naked choke but he’s too high on Taylor’s back and Taylor escapes. Taylor takes Dew down and lands some ground and pound as the bell sounded.

The second round began like the first with Dew landing another nice lateral drop throw, but Taylor was able to sweep then mount him. Taylor with some ground and pound. Dew rolls and Taylor takes his back and is looking for the rear naked choke. He comes close to cinching the choke a couple of times but Dew is able to tuck his chin just enough to defend. Taylor finishes the round with punches.

The third round saw Dew land a takedown landing in Taylor’s half guard. Dew landed some very hard shots and tries to take Taylor’s back but again is too high allowing Taylor to escape. Taylor on Dew’s back again looking for the rear naked choke but Dew defends again. Dew rolls and Taylor’s in the mount position but isn’t able to do much before the bell sounds.

The fourth round saw Dew land another takedown and he lands some very solid punches to Taylor’s head as Taylor was trying to stand. Dew pulls guard with a guillotine attempt but Taylor pulls his head out rather quickly. Dew rolls and Taylor takes his back. Dew is able to escape. Dew lands some heavy shots standing and goes for a takedown with Taylor reversing and taking his back as the bell sounded.

The final round saw Taylor attempt a takedown which Dew was able to sprawl nicely. Then Dew follows up with some  nice hammer fists. Taylor then lands the takedown and gets side control. Taylor transitions to Dew’s back and is looking for the rear naked choke again but isn’t able to get it.

David Dew is awarded the split decision (46-49, 48-47-48-47) and becomes the Deepshot Cages lightweight champion although the crowd reacted negatively. At first I was in shock as I was sure Taylor would get the decision winning three rounds to two. The most difficult round to score was the first one which could have gone either way in hindsight. The entire fight came down to Dew getting takedowns, but losing positions to Taylor. However, Dew did more damage in the fight landing the heavier shots in several transitions and once while in halfguard. This was the Pro MMA Now fight of the night. 

If Taylor would have been able to inflict more damage while having Dew mounted or when he had his back it would have left no doubt. As they say, never leave it in the hands of the judges! Overall, it was an excellent main event and I look forward to seeing both of these guys fight again.

Deepshot Cages Promotion looks to hold their next show in September. Be sure to stay tuned to Pro MMA Now for all your North Carolina MMA news. You can like the Facebook page right here.

4 thoughts on “North Carolina MMA: Last Man Standing II recap and results”
  1. Dear Kelvin,

    I just want to say thank you for writing the story the way you did, honest and fair. Blake is a strong and tough fighter I’m sure you’ll be writing about him again.

  2. David..thanks…and thanks for reading…I just call it how I see it…if you ever see me at a show…feel free to come up and introduce yourself..or add me on FB…I can talk MMA for days! I hope to see Blake fight again soon.

  3. it does sound like it was close. hey but is this the same David Dew that fought in tokyo? man he’s a beast, i saw the video of that fight. do you have any pics or videos from last man standing?

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