Marshall Fighting Championship — A Great Beginning!
This past weekend, fight fans were treated to a sporting spectacle in Slovakia as the eagerly anticipated debut event of the Marshall Fighting Championship took place in front of an appreciative audience both in person and watching live from all around the world!
The show opened on Friday at historic Bojnice castle, where the combatants faced off and, in a novel turn, also arm wrestled each other. This certainly added a new dimension to the event and potentially gave the arm wrestling winners a mental edge in the lead up to the next day’s fights!
That evening, the weigh-in was conducted, and all athletes made weight. The Octagon canvas with the livery of Marshall Inu and our MFC sponsors was installed in the Double Red Car Museum in Brezno and inspected by the fighters and their teams. The broadcast and commentary booths were setup and everything and everybody was prepared for fireworks on Saturday night!
The main card on Saturday began with an 80kg MMA fight between two Hungarians, Adám Geiszt and Daniel Nedreu. Geiszt made first contact with an early leg kick, Nedreu countering with a strong right hand. The men exchanged leg kicks before Geiszt took down Nedreu and, after some grappling, submitted him via head and arm at 1:49 of the first.
Up next was Hubert Wikar (Poland) vs Samuel Lehocky (Slovakia), fighting at 74kg under MMA rules. The Pole started strongly, driving his opponent back against the cage with heavy striking, but Lehocky finished the round stronger thanks to crisp strikes and intelligent front kicks.
The second round was a closer affair, with Lehocky having the better of the first half through a combination of clinches and knees. Our commentary team of Andy Whitelaw and Chris Garrido were sprayed with blood from Wikar’s head halfway through the round thanks to a Lehocky left hand! Wikar finished the round from top control after taking down Lehocky with a minute remaining.
The third was dominant for Lehocky as he used a combination of uppercuts, clinches, and knees to overpower his tiring opponent, and the fight finished with Lehocky mounted on Wikar. The judges scored the bout by UD for Lehocky — a very entertaining fight!
The next bout saw Michel Hatala (Slovakia) take on Waldemar Karkocha (Poland) in an MMA bout at 70kg. Both men took a few seconds to find their range, then, following a brief exchange of grappling, Hatala found his hand beneath Karkocha’s neck, and he sat down to secure the guillotine and forced the tap with just 40 seconds gone in round number one!
The fourth contest of the evening was a Lethwei fight with Ivan Hatala (Slovakia), a cousin of Michel Hatala, taking on Krystain Niewinzancy (Poland) at 70KG. With traditional Myanmar music in the background, these two guys gave us an absolute war in what was likely the introduction to the sport of Lethwei for many viewers!
Both men threw every shot in their arsenal throughout all three rounds! Knees, spinning backfists, headbutts, snapping jabs, tight clinch games with Hatala, in particular, finding success with the headbutts within the clinch. In round two, Niewinzancy used his timeout due to a large cut opening on his head, but he was able to continue.
In the third and final round, Hatala was able to impose some damage on his opponent, but Niewinzancy showed grit and determination to make the final bell. As per Lethwei rules, as no K.O was scored, the fight was ruled a draw, and was a strong contender for FOTN with the crowd going absolutely wild during the closing minutes of this great bout!
On to the co-main event next, with $MRI’s very own Cole Ferell (USA) taking on Dragan Pesic (Serbia) in a 77kg MMA bout. Pesic had blown this match up with an electrifying callout of Ferell during the build up and Ferell had an intense expression on his face as he came to the cage!
Despite a size disadvantage Ferell immediately drove Pesic against the cage and taking both legs secured a huge takedown into side control from where he was able to submit Pesic with strikes 1m and 15 seconds into the first round to secure a clean victory.
The main event of the evening was the World Lethwei Federation 71kg World Title, with Michel Kosik of Slovakia vs. Dan Lariviere of Canada. Ordinarily, there would be no such thing as a decision with KO needed to win a Lethwei bout. However, a title winner was needed on this night, so it had been decided that this would be a scored bout in the event that it did not end via KO.
The first round was closely matched, with Lariviere utilizing headbutts from the clinch and Kosik working the body before Lariviere scored a KD with a superman punch. Kosik sniped back with knees and elbows and low kicks before the bell. Lariviere was definitely the more active fighter in the first.
In round two, Kosik came out working low kicks and knees before the pair clinched and in-fought against the cage. On separating, Lariviere scored with some rangy left hands but also found himself slightly outside Kosik’s range with a number of shots, while Kosik continued to score with high kicks and left hands. Kosik took the second round.
In the third round, Lariviere knocked Kosik down twice in quick succession after the round began by rushing him, and Kosik responded with big, punishing, knees and kicks. Lariviere was forced to call a timeout due to blood impeding vision and, upon resuming, used the teep kick to keep Kosik at arm’s length. Kosik began to find range again with knees and kicks and a number of combination punches as the round drew on.
At the beginning of the fourth, Lariviere opened with a high kick and a punch to the head of Kosik, which dropped him. As the round wore on, Lariviere would unleash on Kosik and drop him a second time, and following this, he almost finished him with an unanswered barrage of punches and kicks. Kosik was able to clinch and drop several thunderously damaging elbows to the back and neck of Lariviere while simultaneously kneeing him in the face.
Both men were extremely tired entering the fifth, with Lariviere’s face sporting a bloody mask. They fought right down the straight with many headbutts and elbows delivered in tight, hard-fought clinches. In the final seconds, both men exchanged knuckles against the skull of the other until the bell, where they embraced in a display of sportsmanship and mutual respect. What a fight and what a night in Brezno!
After some adjudication, the judges came back with final scores and it came down to a split decision, with one judge scoring it 47–46 Kosik . The second judge scored it 48–49 for Lariviere , and the final judge scored it 47–46, with the winner being Michel Kosik! WLF President Andi Egeberg was on hand to present Kosik with the belt.
A heartfelt thank you to everybody who played a part in #MFC1; from the fighters, the referees, the judges, the commentary team, Double Red Cars in Brezno, MFC President Dave Leduc, COO Chris Garrido, our loyal holders, and all our $MRI team; good show guys!
A debt of gratitude is also owed to all of MFC’s sponsors; GenBlok, Heal The World, Dogger Token, Luna Inu, Dosa Coin, Marshelle Inu, World Cup Inu, and Play Numbers Game. Thanks for helping us put on a great show and we look forward to renewing our association at #MFC2 in Columbia!
That’s right! The Marshall Fighting Championship is bound for South America in early 2023, and we will put on our next show in Medellin, Columbia. It’s going to be bigger and better and just like #MFC1 will not be limited to MMA as it will feature manifold combat disciplines.
Medellin will also see the integration of the Marshall Mansion experience into the MFC! The Marshall Mansion experience is open to all holders of three or more $MRI “Fight Club” NFTs, and winners get to spend two days and nights in a luxurious getaway complete with food, limos, and parties, as well as MFC attendance and the opportunity to hang out and party with MMA superstars and # MFC stalwarts!
NFT holders will, as with #MFC1, also be able to vote for MOTN and participate in bout scoring, with individuals who score the same as the judges being entered into prize draws. There might even be all-expenses-paid trips up for grabs, so be sure to follow Marshall Inu and Worldwide MFC’s Twitter, Instagram, Telegram, and Announcement channels!
This will be a once-in-a lifetime experience — a totally immersive fan experience in an exotic global location! If you enjoyed #MFC1 in Slovakia, then brace yourselves for #MFC2 because this promotion is going to get bigger, harder, faster, and stronger with each show we hold! We’re not here to take part; we’re here to take over!
