The Cellar Fight Team went 3-0 this past weekend as Fearless Fighting Championships -12 returned to Black Bear Casino in Carlton, MN. Competing from The Cellar was seasoned veteran, Brandon Buchholz as well as Marcelo Nunes and Terrance Young who were both making their MMA debuts. Also fighting as part of the team was Las Vegas based, Rodrigo Botti who is part of the Drysdale Jiu Jitsu Association along with The Cellar Gym.

First up from The Cellar was Marcelo Nunes, a BJJ black belt and head jiu jitsu instructor at The Cellar Gym. Everyone expected this fight to go to the ground, including Marcelo’s opponent, Eric Ziebarth (1-0), but Marcelo had other plans. Wanting to work on his striking, Marcelo kept this fight standing and landed two huge leg kicks before surprising Ziebarth with a giant head kick. The two clinched up with Marcelo attempting a guillotine choke and Ziebarth pushing the fight against the fence. When the two later separated, Nunes went back to work landing more leg kicks and another head kick that dazed Ziebarth. Knowing he was in trouble, Ziebarth tried taking Nunes to the ground, but Nunes connected with a giant knee and more strikes that ended the fight at 2:22 of the very first round. Minnesota MMA News reported, “Nunes is a monster and could quickly run up the ranks in the 185-pound division. For his effort, Nunes earned Knockout of the Night.”

Next from The Cellar was Terrance Young, an All-American college wrestler jumping into the cage for the first time. Young took on a tough Jonathon Bird with a 1-1 record. The action started quickly with Young landing two well-placed right hands as well as a powerful head kick before the two clinched up. From the clinch Young began working his knees and when Bird attempted to take the fight to the ground, Young locked up a guillotine choke at :45 seconds into the first round.

With only 2 professional fights on the card, Rodrigo Botti faced Eddie Larrea in the co-main event spot. Going into the fight, Botti had a professional MMA record of 3-0, but had not fought since 2010. His opponent, Eddie Larrea is a seasoned veteran with 35+ fights. The bout began patiently with both fighters testing their range and opponent’s gameplan. Botti landed some good leg kicks and hand combinations before scoring a late round takedown and finishing the first round on top. In the second round Larrea seemed focused to defend the takedown, but looked hesitant to strike. Botti landed several unanswered strikes, but struggled to get the fight to the mat. In between takedown attempts to took a nasty front kick to the nose, but was able to get the fight back to the ground and win the round. The third round was the opposite of the second, Larrea looked more comfortable on his feet, but Botti scored a pair of takedowns. It was a close round with Larrea getting the better of the striking, but Botti scoring takedowns and making numerous submission attempts. In the end, this fight took home Fight of the Night honors as all three judges scored the bout completely differently. According to MN MMA News, the decision was “met with a huge chorus of boos from the crowd” as the decision was announced as a draw. After the bout the scorecards were examined and peculiarities were discovered with some of the judging. Representatives from the event later reviewed the fight tape plus judge’s score cards and later declared the bout a no-contest due to the poor judging of one of the rounds.

In the main event of the evening, The Cellar’s Brandon Buchholz took on Brian Learn. Learn was a tough fighter, but Buchholz was able to control the bout from bell-to-bell each round. Buchholz blasted heavy leg kicks, well-timed push kicks that knocked Learn to the ground, and a big right hand that cut Learn open below the eye. Buchholz was also able to score numerous takedowns to further control the action. In the end, all three judges scored the bout 30-27 for Brandon Buchholz.