J-F Gauron pulls off 3rd round triangle for main event win at Victory MMA’s first amateur event.

Victory MMA’s inaugural amateur event went down Saturday at the Academie Sportive in Montreal’s Park Extension neighbourhood. Jamie McGowan, last seen promoting Battle at GAMMA amateur events, organized the ten fight card, featuring a mix of Quebec and Ontario talent.

With exercise equipment pushed to the side, over 200 fans packed the third floor gym’s hot, humid, and cozy confines for the action.

In the main event, Sparmax’s Jean-Frédéric Gauron snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, pulling off a 3^rd round triangle choke after being outstruck and taken down by Muay Thai specialist Abdou Yousri in the fight’s opening rounds.

Sanctioned by the ‘Federation Quebecoise de Boxe Mixte Amateur’ (FQBM), the lion’s share of the evening’s fights were refereed by Loïc Pascal Magnier, taking place under amateur rules. On top of being in a ring, the three rounds are two minutes each, instead of five. Fighters wear 12 ounce gloves and shin pads. Elbow, knee, and heel strikes, hammer-fists, and submissions involving twisting (e.g. heel hooks) are prohibited.

In place of the typical man-in-a-suit, fans were treated to an attractive female as their in-ring announcer. With no microphone or PA system at her disposal, Kristina Simonova relied on the momentarily hushed crowd’s good will throughout the night to introduce fighters, adding a unique note to the proceedings.

Victory MMA’s next event is likely to take place in late August, according to Jamie McGowan.

Check back later for post-fight interviews with main-event winner Jean-Frédéric Gauron, and Victory MMA promoter Jamie McGowan.

Full Fight Results (weight divisions in bold, scroll to the bottom for quick results):

Main Event
145 – Jean-Frédéric Gauron (Sparmax) vs. Abdou Yousri (McGowan’s MMA)
Gauron wins by triangle choke submission at 0:38 of Round 3.

Gauron (right) finished Abdou Yousri (left) with a triangle in the 3rd round to win the evening's main event.

– Yousri was mostly in control for the first two rounds, taking Gauron down twice in the 1^st, and utilizing his Muay Thai background to gain a noticeable advantage on the feet. With the crowd chanting his name in the 3^rd, Yousri over-committed while defending a Gauron takedown attempt and fell forward with his head and left arm ending up between Gauron’s legs. Gauron capitalized and set up the triangle choke for the finish. Yousri had looked reluctant to engage on the ground throughout, seeming far more comfortable with his stand-up. The win improves the 18 year-old Gauron’s record to 6-3 as an amateur. He’s also the current 155 lbs. Bergeron Fight League (BFL, in Drummondville) title-holder. (A video of the fight can be seen at the bottom of the page).

Co-Main Event

180 – Jonathan Brun (McGowan’s MMA) vs. Kevyn Thouin (Team Venom)
Brun wins by unanimous judge’s decision.

Jonathan Brun (center), celebrating with his McGowan's MMA team after the win.

– Controlling Thouin on the ground for much of the fight, Brun took the decision. Taking Thouin down in all three rounds, Brun locked in a reverse triangle as time ran out in the 1^st, couldn’t make it past half-guard in the 2^nd, and got side-control in the 3^rd, before ending up on his back after Thouin broke out of a guillotine attempt.

155 – Maxime Lavigne (Sparmax) vs. Francis Paquette (Ness Martial)
Paquette wins by rear-naked choke submission at 1:33 of Round 3.
– Marginally outstriking Lavigne in the 1^st, Paquette won the round with a last second takedown. In a close 2^nd round, Lavigne reversed the tide by more often connecting with his stand-up. After landing his third takedown during the last round, Paquette was able to get Lavigne’s back and lock in the rear-naked for an exciting finish.

175 – Philippe Delice (Wolfpack MMA) vs. Joey Hie (ECI MMA)
Hie wins by TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 0:16 of Round 2.
– After a very close opening round where the fighters spent most of their time tied up (a very brief Delice takedown punctuated the action), the fight came to an end in the 2^nd. Again tied up early in the round, Delice suddenly indicated to the ref that something was wrong. A short strike of some sort (couldn’t see from where I was) by Hie appeared to have reopened an old cut over Delice’s left eye. A medical technician was called in to inspect, and the fight was stopped.

175 – Jean-Francois Lépine (Sparmax) vs. Joshua Vincze (Gracie Humaita)
Lepine wins by rear-naked choke submission at 1:22 of Round 2.
– In a fight short on stand-up, Lépine took the 1^st round, getting full mount and back control on Vincze, who’d at first taken him down and gotten side-control. In the 2^nd, Lépine got a takedown, and after punching Vincze from his feet, took his back and locked in the rear-naked choke to finish, much to the crowd’s delight.

205 – Chris Cleveland (McGowan’s MMA) vs. Sébastien Généreux (Venom)
Cleveland wins by unanimous judge’s decision.
– After losing the 1^st round to Généreux, who took him to the ground and held them there for most of the two minutes, Cleveland stayed on top in the 2^nd, reversing an early Généreux takedown, and maintaining side-control for most of the round. With both of the hefty fighters looking gassed by the 3^rd, striking was sloppy. Généreux pulled Cleveland down with a guillotine, but he soon escaped, staying in Généreux’s guard for most of the round, landing a small number of punches.

185 – Olivier Althot (Sparmax) vs. Mathieu Desrosiers (A-Prime Fight Team)
Althot wins by guillotine submission at 1:37 of Round 3.
– After a solid two rounds to start the fight, Althot managed to lock in a guillotine in the 3^rd, taking Desrosiers to the ground, and getting the tap. The opening rounds saw both fighters failing to connect with a large number of their punches, and Althot mostly controlling Desoriers on the ground, though the latter managed to sweep in the 2^nd and achieve full mount.

145 – Izatis Croteau (McGowan’s MMA) vs. Derek MacDonald (ECI MMA)
Macdonald wins by rear-naked choke submission at 1:30 of Round 2.
– After losing the 1^st round to Croteau courtesy of a takedown followed by punches from full mount, MacDonald bounced back to finish in the 2^nd after again being taken down by Croteau. Escaping a later guillotine attempt, MacDonald ended up in full mount, before taking advantage of a turning Croteau to cinch in the rear-naked and finish.

160 – Simon Grimard (Venom) vs. Charles Pimpare (Sparmax)
Pimpare wins by arm-bar (referee stoppage) at 1:14 of Round 1.
– This one was over quickly, much to the chagrin of Grimard and his corner. Pimpare was the aggressor from the start, landing a takedown and achieving full mount, before rotating for an arm-bar. With the hold fully extended, but Grimard’s face showing no grimace, the referee stepped in to stop the fight. Despite the lack of a tap, amateur regulations, aimed at avoiding serious injury, force referees to do so.

Exhib – Kevin Legris (Académie Sportive) vs. Samuel Watson (McGowan’s MMA)
– With a 16 pound weight difference between Legris (136 lbs) and Watson (152 lbs), this one was an exhibition. The three rounds played out almost identically, with Legris starting by outstriking Watson, Watson taking Legris down and spending some time on top, then Legris eventually sweeping and holding top position until the end of the round.

By schools, here’s how the win-loss records for the night came out:
Sparmax (4-1)
ECI MMA (2-0)
Ness Martial Arts (1-0)
McGowan’s MMA (2-2)
A-Prime Fight Team (0-1)
Gracie Humaita (0-1)
Wolfpack MMA (0-1)
Team Venom (0-3)

Quick Results (weight divisions in bold, records are amateur):

145 – Jean-Frédéric Gauron (Sparmax, 6-3) defeated Abdou Yousri (McGowan’s MMA, 1-3) by triangle choke submission at 0:38 of Round 3.

180 – Jonathan Brun (McGowan’s MMA, 2-0) defeated Kevyn Thouin (Team Venom, 1-2) by unanimous judge’s decision.

155 – Francis Paquette (Ness Martial, 2-2) defeated Maxime Lavigne (Sparmax, 2-2) by rear-naked choke submission at 1:33 of Round 3.

175 – Joey Hie (ECI MMA, 2-0) defeated Philippe Delice (Wolfpack MMA, 0-3) wins by TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 0:16 of Round 2.

175 – Jean-Francois Lépine (Sparmax, 1-1) defeated Joshua Vincze (Gracie Humaita, 0-1) by rear-naked choke submission at 1:22 of Round 2.

205 – Chris Cleveland (McGowan’s MMA, 1-1) defeated Sébastien Généreux (Venom, 0-2) wins by unanimous judge’s decision.

185 – Olivier Althot (Sparmax, 1-0) defeated Mathieu Desrosiers (A-Prime Fight Team, 0-1) by guillotine submission at 1:37 of Round 3.

145 – Derek MacDonald (ECI MMA, 1-0) defeated Izatis Croteau (McGowan’s MMA, 1-2) by rear-naked choke submission at 1:30 of Round 2.

160 – Charles Pimpare (Sparmax, 1-0) defeated Simon Grimard (Venom, 0-2) by arm-bar (referee stoppage) at 1:14 of Round 1.

Video of the Main Event Fight