Lion Fight 50 official results and recap; Champ Regian Eersel puts on a Muay Thai clinic
The historic Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles played host to Lion Fight 50 on Saturday night. It was a monumental night for the leading Muay Thai organization as it made its debut on the CBS Sports Network. The jump to CBS Sports is also a huge step in the combat sports world as more and more networks are realizing that there is a thirst from fight fans for more than just MMA and boxing. The even had a total of seven fights on the bill with two of them being championships bouts.
The night opened up with a super featherweight bout between Zach Ungureit and Anthony Warken. Wakren landed a spectacular knock down when he connected with a clean knee to chin of Unguriet with only ten seconds left in the first round. Ungureit was able to answer the referee’s count but the crowd was in amazement at the knockdown. Unguriet was able to shake off the knock down and spent the remainder of the fight as the aggressor. Warken, however, had an answer for everything Ungureit threw at him. Unguriet showed toughness and determination, as he did not let the early knockdown discourage him. Warken on the other hand was in control the entire time and landed when he needed to and was able to avoid any real danger throughout the entire fight. Warken’s lead in the scorecards grew as the fight continued and it was too much for Ungureit to overcome. Warken walked away the winner with a unanimous decision.
The CBS Sports Network broadcast started with a good technical fight between Travis Petralba and Bounthong Syvanthong. The fight started off with a long feeling out process between the two but it was Petralba who turned up the heat first and never looked back. Syvanthong did not find his groove until the fourth round but by then Petralba has clearly ahead in the scorecards. Petralba would walk away with split decision victory.
The third fight of the night was a non-stop flurry of action. Josh Aragon defeated Chris Mauceri in a very exciting bout that had the crowd cheering in approval after the final bell had sounded. “El Gato” was on high speed throughout the five round affair and came at Mauceri from all angles and had the full support of the Los Angeles crowd on his side. Mauceri to his credit did not give up and tried his best to keep up with Aragon but came up short.
The night’s co-main event was for the inaugural Lion Fight North American Lightweight title. Joshusa Scales and Jordan Harris partook in a hard-hitting fight that had plenty of drama. The fight started with both men exchanging hard strikes. The kicks and punches traded by both men echoed throughout the crowd. Harris came out strong in the second round and was able to get under the reach of Scales to land his strikes. Scales did his best to keep up with Harris but could not quite put together anything significant. Harris’ momentum was stopped cold in the third round after he landed two consecutive low blows. After the second shot below the belt the referee took a point away from Harris. Remarkably the two low blows seemed to light a spark under Scales who came out strong after the fight had resumed. He charged at Harris with kicks and punches. If the two low blows were not enough of an oddity the fourth round say Scales go flying out of the ring and land head first onto the timekeeper’s table. The Coliseum crowd stood in unison and let out a collective gasp. After a few quite moments Scales picked himself up and walked up the steps and back into the ring. The crowd erupted in applause and the fight continued. The fifth round saw Harris pull away from Scales in the scorecards. Harris landed with hard leg kicks throughout the round. But once again Harris’ momentum was stopped as he landed yet another kick below the belt of Scales. Harris was given a stern warning from the referee and the fight continued. Scales tried his best to land any strike he could and he was successful but it was it was just not enough to get the victory. Harris earned a hard fought split decision victory. A rematch between the two could be worth putting together for Lion Fight just to see how badly the low blow effected Scales in the long run.
The main event was a Muay Thai clinic by Regian Eersel. The current Lion Fight super middleweight champion showcased his skills against a very game Joakim Hagg but the fluidity and power of Eersel was just too much for Hagg to handle. Eeresel started the fight by landing clean and often. Hagg tried to land but was only successful a few times and was never really able to get into a groove. Everything Eersel does has ap purpose and there is no wasted movement when he fights. His endurance maintained deep into the fight while Hagg looked tired and beaten by the time the fifth round started. Eersel cut Hagg under the right eye in the third round and while it did not impair Hagg’s vision it was a pretty deep cut. In the forth round Hagg put the pressure on Eersel but could not land anything significant. Hagg did a good job in quieting Eersel’s offense that round but even at a lower volume Eersel’s strikes are still powerful. After a “disappointing” fourth round, Eersel came out determined in the fifth. Eersel charged at Hagg and landed hard punches to the head and body. Hagg staggered back against the ropes and tried his best defend himself but the referee stepped in and stopped the bout. It was an impressive performance by the champion and a showcase of grit by Hagg.
Lion Fight 50 Full Results:
Main Card:
- World Super Middleweight Title
Regian Eersel def. Joakim Hagg via TKO in round 5 at 2:32. - North American Lightweight Title
Jordan Harris def. Joshua Scales via split decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45)(4-0) - Super Welterweight
Josh Aragon def. Chris Mauceri via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 50-45) - Welterweight
Travis Petralba def. Bounthong Syvanthong via split decision (49-46, 48-47, 49-46) - Super Featherweight
Anthony Warken def Zach Ungureit via unanimous decision (48-46, 48-46, 48-46)
Amateur Bouts:
- Welterweight
Evan Boulton def. Wilson Ha via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Super Lightweight
Andres Esparza def. Kevin Gonzalez via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
- Flyweight
Ana Flores def. Fayeda An via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Article by: Alex Ramirez of FiveRoundMMA- Head Writer and FightBookMMA Correspondent.
Roberto Villa is the CEO, Founder, Executive Writer, Senior Editor of FightBook MMA. Has a passion for Combat Sports and also a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He’s also a former MMA fighter and Kickboxer.
