Lance Palmer, Hakeem Dawodu And Blagoi Ivanov All Impressive At WSOF 21

Back on Friday night in Alberta, Canada, we saw three homegrown stars all on display for the World Series of Fighting mixed martial arts promotion. While each of the three fights on the main event had great moments, only two of the stars found success. We may have an impending title bout looming as we we watched both Lance Palmer and Hakeem Dawodu finish their opponents in quick fashion. The featherweight division stole the night but heavyweight fighter Ivanov had no issue grabbing his moment in the spotlight. Friday night proved to be a great warm up for the upcoming title heavy event and reminded us of the talent that is in WSOF.

Head wrestling coach and 45er Palmer has been doing a fine job representing Team Alpha Male under the WSOF banner. In his first title defense, he fought the always challenging Chris Horodecki (21-6) who even Palmer himself admitted he was a fan of. The former IFL fighter couldn't hold off the strength of Palmer as Lance finished him in the first round. With over 25 bouts in his career, who knows what looms next for Chris. As for Lance, it's possible he may have watched his next opponent earlier in the evening. Rock Glenn was scheduled to welcome Frodo Khasbulaev but pulled out. A good scenario would be to place Hakeem in front of Glenn and give a shot at the title to Frodo. That could really give us an idea of who really should be next in line for Palmer. Only time will tell on how they handle it but it’s always good to have some options.

As mentioned earlier, not all of the young talent in the promotion found success as we saw the heavyweight title change hands. Blagoi Ivanov (12-1) may have looked as if he didn’t want to get hit by Smealinho Rama (9-1) but it also looked as if it was a trap from the young fighter. The former Bellator heavyweight contender allowed Rama to press forward and each time found success with a left and right hook. It was a close first round and we felt Baga was up as he landed more effective shots which at times woke up Smealinho. It became clear this fight wouldn't go all five and in the third round is when Baga seized the opportunity. Another counter hook found the chin of Rama and sent him stumbling across the cage. That’s when Ivanov grabbed the neck of Rama and put him in a vice grip tight guillotine. This was a great technical display by both fighters who possessed a lot of power. We wouldn’t be surprised to see a rematch on this one though more than likely Rama may have to take a few before. For Baga he will be a formidable champion for anyone WSOF can conjure up for him.

If you want any evidence that WSOF still has the capabilities to produce some genuine talent, look no further than Hakeem Dawodu (5-0). After dealing with a barrage of takedowns and strikes from Chuka Willis (4-1) he waited for his chance to dominate. He did so in the second round by using his clinch to deliver amazing knees and elbows. He made Willis verbally quit and showed why Dawodu has issues finding opponents in Canada. It’s possible his next opponent will be another American who resides in San Jose. At the age of 23, this humble and respectful fighter is the future, so a title shot should not be out of the question. Whatever they decide to do with Hakem next, it’s imperative they feature him on a card here in the US.

Up next for the World Series of Fighting is WSOF 22 from Las Vegas on August 1st. The night will feature three title bouts including Rousimar Palhares defending his belt against Jake Shields while Marlon Moraes look to retain against Sheymon Moraes. The full results of WSOF 21 are listed below.

Lance Palmer def. Chris Horodecki via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:28 of R1

Blagoy Ivanov def. Smealinho Rama via submission (guillotine) at 2:17 of R3

Hakeem Dawodu def. Chuka Willis via TKO (strikes) at 2:55 of R2

Undercard

Thiago Goncalves def. Matt Baker via submission (verbal tapout) at 5:00 of R2

Justin Sander def. Dan Lariviere via submission (arm triangle) at 2:52 of R2

Michael Hay def. Louie Grover via submission (armbar) at 2:17 of R1

Prelims

Mike Hill def. Mark Drummond via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Stephen Beaumont vs. Jose Rodriguez via unanimous decision (30-26 x3)

Spencer Rohovie def. Tim Smith via submission (rear-naked choke) (R1, 3:09)

Garrett Nybakken def. Nick Hrabec via first-round TKO (2:36)