‘Da Hellion’ knocks Chisato cold in middleweight bout

In what was the swiftest and most brutal match of Predator or Prey, Lionel “Da Hellion” Borja knocked out “Big” Ron Chisato 13 seconds into their middleweight bout held last Saturday at the Taga Hall of the Saipan World Resort.

Most of the crowd was still adjusting their seats when Borja unleashed a flurry of punches against the Trech Tech fighter and fellow MMA neophyte, landing a haymaker that knocked him out in what seemed like five minutes.

Chisato laid flat on his back and the ring doctor soon was summoned, but all the initial worries were eased when Chisato got up by his own power. Fight fans, who moments before were silent, cheered but the loudest applause came from Borja, as the Choke Chain fighter was relieved his opponent was alright.

The fight preceding the Borja-Chisato encounter, meanwhile, saw Cuki “The Flying Cockroach” Alvarez defeat Pete “The Dragon” Guerrero via submission 2:50 into first round.

In a battle of MMA gym founders, Dragon Tribe’s Guerrero was all over Trench Tech’s Alvarez early only to have the roles reversed in the closing seconds, which ended with Guerrero tapping out.

The win allowed Alvarez to keep his unblemished record now at 5-0, while Guerrero’s debut resulted in a loss.

Fasi “Quick Draw” Jesse of Trench Tech, meanwhile, won over Nate “The Terrible” Flores of Predator Combat Team in their lightweight bout.

It was a close fight with both fighters exchanging blows, kicks, and takedowns. Jesse eventually took the victory in his war of attrition against Flores, as the three judges scored the fight 30-28, 29-28, and 28-29 in favor of the former. Jesse improved to 2-0, while Flores now has a 1-1 record.

Predator Combat Team’s John “The Jackhammer” Borja, for his part, dominated Trench Tech’s Darrel “The Derailer” Salas in their middleweight showdown until Salas executed an armbar that Borja had trouble escaping from, forcing referee James Ravilla to stop the fight at the 1:06.59 mark of the third round.

Salas, who was coming off an upset win against “Kill” Bill Saures in Trench Wars VIII, now sports a 4-1 record, while Borja fell to 2-3.

Team Zalaka’s Andrew “Top Gun” Sablan won his bantamweight match against independent fighter “Tabi” Jay Muna in what possibly could be Sablan’s last MMA fight.

Both fighters exchanged furious blows in the opening round with the U.S. Air Force-bound Sablan once again showing his ability to not submit when Muna had him on an armbar. Sablan eventually pulled himself out and proceeded to exchange further blows with Muna.

Muna apparently had enough after the action-packed first round and conceded the match to Sablan even before the second round started. The win allowed Sablan to even his win-loss card at 2-2, while Muna dropped below .500 at 3-4.

Subbing for Saures, meanwhile, probably was not a good idea for Team Xtreme’s Lucio “Oh No” Omar as the beach boy went down early and often against Predator Combat Team’s Bryson Sablan.

After some posturing, Sablan mounted Omar and delivered a succession of punches to which Omar did not defend, leading Ravilla to stop the fight with only 1:24 gone in the fight. It was the third win in four bouts for Sablan.

Giovanni “Palaksi” Sablan of Trench Tech, meanwhile, improved his record to 11-3 after besting previously undefeated Jerome Norita of Marianas Elite in their featherweight bout.

Sablan, who is known for his impressive submission skills, forced Norita to tap out after the up-and-coming MMA fighter applied a rear-naked choke on him. It was the first loss in three matches for Norita.

Saipan Tribune earlier reported that Charlz “The Predator” Aiken and Luka “Bad News” Iakopo Tapua’ialupe won their respective bouts against Kelvin “The Big Hit” Fitial and mainland fighter Johnny Mercurio.

The semi main event pitting Syl “The Deal” Teregeyo against Slade “The Rage” Adelbai, meanwhile, wound up in a draw.

During intermission, host PTI gave away T-shirts and the organizers drew ticket stubs for cash prizes and cellular phones.

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Kimo Leopoldo also addressed the crowd and said Saipan has so much potential and thanked the fans and organizers for doing a great job.

California-based organizer and MMA fighter, Bobby Gamboa, also extended his gratitude to local promoters Jeff Boyer, John Blanco, Pete Sablan, and Mark Sablan for their hard work and promised more exciting events to come.

The Commonwealth’s first-ever women’s boxing match between Soledad Tenorio of Marianas Elite and Tara Namaule of Team Zalaka will be published in the coming issues of the Saipan Tribune.

Predator or Prey is the first foray into the local MMA scene by Gorilla Warfare Productions.