Nanaimo’s Andrew Buckland didn’t hold much respect for Matt (The Riotmaker) Baker heading into their Battlefield Fight League main event Saturday night at Wesbild Centre.
Buckland, who trains with Impact MMA, showed even less in dominating Baker (Team Nogueira) to claim the mixed martial arts promotion’s pro middleweight title, earning a submission stoppage with an arm-in guillotine choke at 2:12 of the third round. Showing a good mix of hands and feet, including several solid head kicks, Buckland battered and bloodied Baker to take the strap.
The new champ was just as relentless after the bout, calling Baker arrogant and overrated in his post-fight interview with the ringside announcer.
In the co-main event, Impact’s Graham Spencer ground down Port Coquitlam’s Shawn Albrecht (West Coast BJJ & MMA) over four rounds before locking in a rear naked choke to secure the BFL pro featherweight title.
In a fight for the amateur middleweight strap, Canoe’s Ryan Allen, who trains with Gracie Barra Vernon-Shuswap, started strong but got caught in a triangle choke by lanky Michah Brakefield (West Coast BJJ), who then transitioned to an armbar for a first-round submission.
Kelowna’s Matt Dwyer (Toshido MMA) stopped Penticton’s Mark Dobie (Cannibull Fight Team) in the first round with a series of elbows and strikes from full mount; Kamloops’ Jordan Beecroft (Champion’s Choice MMA) weathered relentless takedown attempts by Cory Tosoff (Toshido) to earn a second-round armbar submission.
Former Vernon Viper enforcer Richard Jodoin, a last-minute stand-in, showed moxy in his pro debut against Marcus Aurelio (Axe Capoeira), but was outclassed by the flashy Brazilian. Referee Tony Williamson, playing it safe, called a stoppage after Jodoin got tagged with some hard shots in the first round.
Langley’ Gurdarshan Mangat (Tristar Gym) earned a unanimous decision over Vancouver’s Dan Lin (Franco Kickboxing & Pankration), and Spokane’s Daniel Swain (Pro Reign) used his superior wrestling/grappling skills to take a unanimous decision over Toshido’s Russell Davis.