KSW 15: Bad Night for James Irvin, Great Night for Neo-Nazis

(Seven pounds over, and dropping his shorts just in case. Positivity’s a great thing, James, but sometimes you have to meet it halfway. Props: mmanewspl)

Just two weeks after it was announced that he blew a steroid test back in California, cursed UFC veteran James Irvin was back in action last night in the main event of KSW 15 in Warsaw. And if you thought this would a redemptive performance for the Sandman, then buddy, you don’t know James Irvin. The bout was held at a catchweight after Irvin came in juuuuuust a bit heavy for his scheduled middleweight title fight against Mamed Khalidov. His initial weigh-in tipped the scales at 197 pounds — 12 over the limit — but after four hours in the sauna, Irvin managed to get down to 192, and the match went on at a catchweight — with the middleweight belt still on the line, for some reason.

Anyway, the numbers don’t really matter. Khalidov opened the bout with a spinning back kick (as he tends to do), then dropped to his back when it didn’t connect. Irvin dived on for some ground-and-pound, and was immediately caught in an armbar. The fight was over in 33 seconds. On the bright side, Irvin didn’t leave the fight badly injured, as we assumed he would. Hopefully that’s the last time that Irvin accepts a fight at middleweight…on short notice…overseas…against a really tough opponent…when he has a drug suspension hanging over his head.

In the co-main event, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou increased his MMA record to 11-8 — and won KSW’s light-heavyweight title — forcing Polish up-and-comer Jan Blachowicz to quit after two rounds thanks to a steady barrage of brutal leg kicks. Finnish teammates Toni Valtonen and Niko Puhakka also came out on top in their bouts against Polish locals. If those names sound familiar, it’s probably because of their white supremacist tattoos — Valtonnen wears a Swastika on his arm and the phrase “Born to Hate” on his stomach, while Puhakka has the logo of Neo-Nazi organization “Blood & Honour” on his chest and was formerly a member of the Hoelzer Reich fighter stable. But hey, that shouldn’t prevent them from being booked on the main card of an MMA event, right? You stay classy, Poland.

The Mariusz Pudzianowski vs. James Thompson scrap didn’t happen, by the way. I know, we’re heartbroken too. Full KSW 15 results are below…

– Mamed Khalidov def. James Irvin via submission (armbar), 0:33 of round 1
– Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou def. Jan Blachowicz via TKO (retirement), 5:00 of round 2
– Niko Puhakka def. Maciej Gorski via technical submission (arm-triangle choke), 3:20 of round 2
– Toni Valtonen def. Lukasz Jurkowski via unanimous decision
– Rogent Lloret def. Karol Bedorf via unanimous decision
– James Zikic def. Antoni Chmielewski via unanimous decision
– Michal Materla def. Gregory Babene via submission (guillotine choke), 3:30 of round 2
– Marcin Rozalski def. Marcin Bartkiewicz via TKO (doctor stoppage), 1:51 of round 2
– Aslambek Saidov def. Ruben Crawford via unanimous decision