The Art of Combat 7 Preview by Jimbo Slice

Post date: 23-Sep-2013 19:01:15

This Saturday, Scotland’s current reigning "C Class Promotion of the Year", and home of the only credible titles in C Class MMA, returns for it's 7th instalment. Taking place at the Alhambra Theatre in Dunfermline, The Art of Combat 7 is sure to be a good show; as well as being a stacked card, promoter Darren Clark has promised me “A spectacular surprise to create the atmosphere the main event deserves". And this is sure to be a good preview, telling you all you need to know about the fights you need to know about!

Main Event

Aidan Stephen v Paull McBain @70kg for The Art of Combat C Class Lightweight title - wow. Even if the rest of the card was crap (it's not), this fight alone would be worth the price of admission. Simply put, now that Ronda Malone has stopped fighting C Class, this is a match between the two best C Class fighters in Scotland. On one side, we have Aidan, a natural bantamweight, who after completely clearing out the featherweight division, has decided to vacate the AOC Featherweight title and move up in weight to go after the Lightweight strap. In a time when more and more C Class guys are taking easy fights to pad their record, it is refreshing to see Aiden doing the exact opposite, hunting out the toughest fight he can find. On the other side we have Pain McBain who has comprised a perfect 7-0 record and smashed every lightweight that has been put in front of him, displaying skills both on the feet and on the ground. Both guys have won fights by T/KO, both guys have won fights by submission. Neither guy really does decisions. Simply put, I don’t see how this can be a bad fight, wherever it goes.

Stephen probably has an advantage on the ground with his dynamic BJJ, but McBain most likely has the wrestling edge, which may well lead to a fight on the feet, where both these chaps excel and I don’t see a clear advantage for either – the old speed v power debate. Anyone who says they know who will win this fight is simply not telling the truth, just buy a ticket, sit back and enjoy what is sure to be one to remember.

Dean Begg v John Wills @ 62kg for The Art of Combat C Class Bantamweight title – local favourite Begg gets his second crack at the belt after coming up short against Scott Malone, who has now vacated the belt, at the last show. Begg rebounded well by using his signature BJJ to earn a submission win over highly touted prospect Peter McCafferty. The Malone match is his only defeat and he’ll look to keep it that way against Edge MMA’s John Wills. Wills is dropping to bantamweight after a tough fight against Aiden Stephen and will be HUGE for the weight. At the last AOC, Wills finished always tough Allan King with strikes, so if he had that power at featherweight, then Begg could be in for a tough time. This title fight is a bit more clear cut than the main event. If Wills can keep it standing, it may well be his fight as he hits considerably harder. If it goes to the ground, you have to expect Dean to wrap up a submission, even from the bottom as his guard is very dangerous, to the point where I’d expect Wills to not want any part of it. It’s a cliché, but I don’t see this one going the distance. Will Begg have the wrestling to get it to the ground? Can Wills keep it standing and land a power shot? Only time will tell.

Craig Harrower v Lee Kinnell @ 70kg – I am previewing these fights in the order that they interest me, rather than the running order of the card, hence why this one is up next. Craig is a former opponent of mine and now a friend, so his fights are always interesting to me. Harrower is coming off his best victory yet at Caledonian Combat where he outworked the always game Chris Cownie to earn a decision in a great fight that really showcased Craig’s improved wrestling. He also gave me a black eye that lasted for two weeks and almost submitted me in our fight, so I can vouch for his striking and grappling skills. He is well rounded and almost always in exciting fights. As regards Lee Kinnell, well, he has a tendency to pull out of fights if he doesn’t think he’ll win, so assuming he doesn’t just duck out of this one, what can we expect? He is pretty aggressive and can overwhelm lesser guys with his pace, but has faltered against better guys who have exposed his limited grappling. I see Harrower outwrestling him and submitting him.

Asa Rodger v Scott Drummond @ 65kg – Asa is my training partner/coach, so of course this fight is of interest to me! I’m obviously not going to go into too much detail about what I expect to happen and it’s obvious who I want to win, but I’ll just say that Drummond when I’ve seen him fight has shown excellent wrestling and Asa’s grappling is always exciting to watch too. This should be a fun grappling match, appreciated by all fans not a part of the “stand em up” brigade.

Edgar Silins vs Graeme Ross @ 93kg – I don’t know anything about these two, but any time we get to see 93 kg guys fight, I’m interested! The only exception to this rule is when James Pattie signs up to fight at 77, but misses weight by 16kg. This is actually my weight class at the moment as well, so that adds a bit of interest I suppose haha! This fight should be like all other 93kg fights at C Class in Scotland – it will be fun maybe for a minute until they gas, then it will get a whole lot funner. I expect haymakers and I expect a happy crowd!

Euan MacLeod v Kev Brooks @ 62kg – this is an absolute sleeper on this card. Two of the most exciting prospects in the bantamweight division against each other in this one. Bot hwell rounded, but prefer the striking aspect of the sport, which always pleases the fans. Macleod has solid boxing that he has showcased in his fights so far and the Griphouse’s Brooks’ striking looks on point aswell, as he is already the owner of a head kick knockout, quite the rarity at this level of MMA. This should be a fun striking battle between two “ones to watch” and the winner establishes themselves as one of top guys at the weight!

That’s it for the fights I am interested in and know enough to write about, you can see the full card below. If you have a ticket, enjoy the show. If you don’t have a ticket, get one. They are available from fighters, Darren Clark, or TicketMaster.

If you liked this article, cool. If you hated it or were offended by it, I sincerely apologise and invite you to send all hate mail to growupyoubigbaby@hotmail.com

Also, check out the Art of Combat Facebook Page for all the latest info on this, and future, shows.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Art-of-Combat/128529373882818?fref=ts

Aiden Stephen vs Paull McBain – Lightweight Title

John Wills vs Dean Begg - Bantamweight Title

Edgar Silins vs Graeme ‘Beg Sexy’ Ross 93kg

Sheraz Hyat vs Steven Kelly 73kg

Lee Kinnel vs Craig Harrower 72kg

Dan Morgan vs Michal Szczepanek 84kg

Asa Rodgers vs Scott Drummond 65kg

Thomas Hepburn vs Allan Barlow 70kg

Harry McDonald vs Michael Brooks 78kg

Kieran Laidlaw vs Dean Eillot 62kg

Euan ‘Ginge’ MacLeod vs Kev Brooks 62kg

Cheers, Jimbo!