Minnesota MMA Results: Damion Hill Dazzles in 15-Second KO of Kenneth Glenn

An undefeated record had to be broken on Saturday night as Minnesota fighters Kenneth Glenn and Damion Hill battled in the main event of Driller Promotions’ Downtown Showdown 4. We just didn’t expect that it would happen so quickly.

The 150-pound catchweight bout was where they opted to meet, with an exhausted and dehydrated Hill weighing in just barely on target on Friday afternoon. The cut affected him enough that he even forgot to wear his trademark sunglasses during his weigh-in pictures.

“I cut too much weight, man,” Hill told Bleacher Report MMA after slamming an entire bottle of water next to the scale.

Hill surprised everyone, perhaps even himself, with his knockout of Glenn in the final fight of the night. But he wasn’t the only one who shined at Saturday night’s event. Here are the results from Driller Promotions’ Downtown Showdown 4.

Lead photo thanks to Kasey Jean Photography. 

Nick Reece (1-1) vs. John Melina (1-2): 170 Pounds

The night started off with two very exciting fighters as Nick Reece and John Melina battled in the welterweight division. Both fighters were coming off of losses in their most recent bouts and were looking to get back into the win column.

Round 1—

A big slam from Nick Reece brought John Melina to the mat after he missed on a big overhand right. The fans roared in approval as Reece moved into side control and eventually passed to mount.

Melina had been here before in his most recent fight against Jim Clark, though, and achieved a nice sweep, showing off his improved jiu-jitsu. Using the fence for some additional leverage, Melina held down Reece and didn’t let him get back to his feet.

Neither fighter did much from the dominant position early in the fight as the referee repeatedly warned them to keep working. Melina finally postured up and threw some big shots.

This allowed Reece to get to his feet, though, where he quickly slammed Melina down again. The first round came to an end as the fighters grappled for position on the mat.

The two takedowns likely secured the round for Reece despite him spending the majority of the first round on his back.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Reece

Round 2—

Reece shot in right away for another takedown and ate a kick for his trouble, but Melina was unable to stop yet another slam. Reece moved to side half-guard and then quickly passed again to mount.

Melina scrambled to escape and nearly did, but Reece got a hold of him again took his back, allowing him to rain down some huge shots from the top. The punches appeared to be connecting to the back of the head, but the referee stopped it anyway.

Official Result: Nick Reece defeats John Melina by TKO (punches) at 1:20 in Round 2

Melina continues to show improvement, but Reece was simply the better, more polished fighter on Saturday night.

Nick Palmer (0-2) vs. Jason Lande (0-0): 165 Pounds

Born without an “extra (right) hand,” Nick Palmer truly lives up to his nickname, “The Inspiration.”

He uses a special glove and even strikes with the arm on occasion. On Saturday night, he battled the debuting Jason Lande in a 165-pound amateur bout.

Round 1—

A big left hook followed by a front body kick from Palmer got things started. Palmer’s striking was dead on as he landed punch after punch to a seemingly surprised Lande.

Lande finally covered up and shot in for a takedown, tripping Palmer to the mat in the process. Palmer quickly scrambled back to his feet and landed another nice left hook. Nice jabs from Palmer with the left hand as he followed it up with another beautiful left hook.

As the fighters separated, it could be seen that Lande was bleeding from his right eye. Lande got the takedown again and put Palmer on his back, but it didn’t last long and he didn’t do much damage with it. Lande got one more takedown again to end the first round, but really did almost nothing with the three takedowns in the first round.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Palmer

Round 2—

Lande looked tired going into the second round. He did land a big leg and body kick combo almost immediately in the round and appeared to be looking to finish while he still had energy. Palmer attempted to answer with a body kick of his own, but Lande caught his foot and dragged him down.

Lande hammered down with some big punches from the top as Palmer covered up. Palmer moved around, but couldn’t stop the assault to the body and head and the referee was forced to stop the bout after quite a beating.

Official Result: Jason Lande defeats Nick Palmer by TKO (punches) at 1:32 in Round 2

Marcus Young (0-1) vs. Ehsan Karam (1-0): 145 Pounds

Round 1—

Ehsan Karam started things off quickly by pushing Marcus Young into the cage. From there, he worked for a takedown and brought the fight to the ground with a nice double-leg.

Working from half-guard, Karam tried to move to mount, which allowed Young to attempt a sweep. Young nearly flipped Karam over, but didn’t get it completely and Karam quickly took his back.

From there, it was just like his previous fight against Sam Khom as Karam slapped on a VERY deep rear-naked choke, flattening Young out in the process. Young tried to fight it, but had to tap out as there was nowhere for him to go.

Official Result: Ehsan Karam defeats Marcus Young by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:12 in Round 1

Mikey Wavereck (3-2-1) vs. Peter Riojas (2-0): 160 Pounds

Round 1—

Riojos shot out of the gate, attempting two big head kick attempts, but both failed and Wavereck quickly took him to the mat.

Riojas utilized a very high guard which didn’t allow Wavereck much room to work with. The two fighters grappled for position here for the majority of the round without much damage coming either way.

Wavereck finally broke free a bit and landed a big right hand. The motion allowed Riojas to throw his leg over Wavereck’s shoulder momentarily, but was unable to get the triangle. The movement did cause Wavereck to get off balance, though, which Riojas used to sweep him.

Wavereck went for a triangle choke at the end of the round, but there wasn’t enough time to finish it.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Wavereck

Round 2—

Wavereck moved in and attempted a head kick, but missed, falling to the mat in the process. Riojos moved in as Wavereck sprung to his feet up and shot in for a takedown against the cage. Riojas tossed him aside and ended up on top of the exchange.

Riojas’ corner pleaded for him to stand up but he was in a zone as he threw bombs from a standing position as Wavereck was on his back. Wavereck finally slapped on a deep triangle and got the submission, much to the frustration of Riojas’ corner.

Official Result: Mikey Wavereck defeats Peter Riojas by submission (triangle choke) at 1:31 in Round 2

D Rice (0-2) vs. Jake Grisel (0-0): 125 Pounds

Round 1—

Big spinning roundhouse from Rice early, but Grisel moved in toward him and it didn’t connect.

The flyweights were extremely quick early in this one, moving around the cage and throwing without hesitation. They battled back and forth, throwing quite a few shots, but neither fighter landed much of anything.

Rice made a mistake by going for a leg kick and Grisel capitalized on it by taking him down. Rice attempted to escape, but Grisel quickly took his back. Rice was stretched out and Grisel submitted him with a rear-naked choke.

Official Result: Jake Grisel defeats D Rice by submission (shoulder lock) at 2:51 in Round 1

Jeffery Brummett (0-0) vs. Corwin Nichols (3-0): 165 Pounds

Round 1—

Jeffrey Brummett wasted no time and threw a punch combo, but Nichols saw it coming and shot in for a double, taking Brummett to the mat with ease.

Nichols’ bread-and-butter is ground-and-pound from the top, but Brummett did a good job of avoiding taking too much damage for the majority of the round. Nichols finally passed to mount and landed some punches from there. Brummett covered up and attempted to throw body punches when he had a chance, but Nichols continued to pressure him with punches from the top.

Nichols postured up and landed some big shots from the mount, but that allowed Brummett to escape into half-guard.

When Nichols heard the 10-second warning for end-of-round, he exploded with a fury of huge punches until the bell rung and the referee broke things up.

It appeared as if things would continue, but the referee opted to stop the bout when a groggy Brummett was unable to get back to his feet and to his corner in a timely fashion.

Official Result: Corwin Nichols defeats Jeffery Brummett by TKO (punches) at 5:00 in Round 1

Corwin Nichols continued to impress with his intensity and has now improved to a clean 4-0 record. It’ll be interesting to see when he opts to move to the professional ranks as he seems to be unmatched as an amateur at this point.

Zaur Jalil (2-1) vs. Randal Rasmussen (1-1): 135 Pounds

Round 1—

A leg kick from Rasmussen started things off as the fighters seemed to be feeling one another out. They clinched and moved against the cage with Rasmussen controlling Jalil early. Jalil switched it up and put Rasmussen’s back against the fence before finally tossing him to the mat.

Jalil landed some small but effective punches from close range inside the guard. Rasmussen held Jalil for awhile, but when he broke loose, he landed some nice punches before the round came to an end.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Jalil

Round 2—

Jalil came out swinging, landing huge punches that shook up Rasmussen. It appeared like he was about to be knocked out, but he shot in out of desperation and took Jalil down. He finally got top position for the first time in the bout, but wasn’t able to do much with it and Jalil eventually swept him.

Jalil put Rasmussen in a headlock and began landing some nice punches. Rasmussen tried to escape, but Jalil got even better positioning and applied a shoulder lock which eventually got the submission.

Official Result: Zaur Jalil defeats Randy Rasmussen by submission (shoulder lock) at 2:20 in Round 2

This was the second straight fight that Jalil has won by utilizing his jiu-jitsu. He had previously defeated Kevin Vang with an Americana/Armbar in February.

Dustin Wieland (2-2) vs. Codie Kahler (4-3): 150 Pounds

Round 1—

Codie Kahler came in quickly, but Dustin Wieland caught him with a straight punch right on the button that rocked him. Kahler fell to the mat where Wieland nearly submitted him with a choke, but he didn’t wrap up the body and Kahler was able to get back to his feet.

Kahler cleared his head and slammed Wieland to the mat. Wieland worked his way back to his feet, but was taken down with another slam. Kahler exploded with punches and the referee was forced to stop the bout as Wieland was taking a ton of damage.
 
Official Result: Codie Kahler defeats Dustin Wieland by TKO (punches) at 1:26 in Round 1

Codie Kahler showed a great ability to recover in this one as he was in some serious trouble early.

Jake Erickson (5-2) vs. Tom Lytle (1-1): 205 Pounds

This fight was a very interesting physical matchup as a bulky, 5’9” Jake Erickson battled a long and lanky, 6’6” Tom Lytle. The body types really could not be more different.

Round 1—

Lytle went for a wild head kick quickly, but that allowed Erickson to shoot in and took him down.

Erickson worked and moved past Lytle’s long legs, momentarily into side control, but the limbs were too long and Lytle got back into guard. Erickson stood up and the referee allowed Lytle to get up.

Lytle went for a wild knee this time, but Erickson quickly took him down again. Seemingly in control, Erickson looked to land some punches from the top, but Lytle used his long legs to throw on a triangle choke. Erickson did everything he could, throwing some big punches and even slamming him from the position, but he simply could not escape. Frustrated, Erickson finally submitted.

Official Result: Tom Lytle defeats Jake Erickson by submission (triangle choke) at 1:31 in Round 1

This was the second straight fight that Lytle has won by triangle choke, both coming within the first two minutes of the bout. He hasn’t shown much striking ability, but with his long limbs and a very active guard, he is a tough challenge for anyone who wants to try to wrestle him.

Brandon Pease (1-1) vs. Dave Owens (0-0): 165 Pounds

The MMA debut of Dave Owens was up next and there was a large section of the crowd that came out to support him for his fight against Brandon Pease.

Round 1—

The two fighters wasted no time as both men missed punches. Owens backed Pease into the fence where he landed some big punches that rocked him. Pease fell to the mat as Owens unloaded on him and the referee stopped the bout.

Official Result: Dave Owens defeats Brandon Pease by TKO (punches) at 0:16 in Round 1

Pease believed the stoppage was early and a case could definitely be made that it was, but it’s the referee’s job to protect fighters and he was doing that. It appeared as if Pease was out and although he seemed to recover quickly, he was taking quite a bit of damage and it would’ve been much worse if the referee didn’t stop the assault from Owens.

Brett Murphy (1-0) vs. Eddie Castillo (0-0): Heavyweight

The heavyweights were next on the card. After three straight first round finishes as an undefeated, Brett Murphy battled Eddie Castillo in his professional debut.

Though it was his first pro fight, Castillo seemed to be very relaxed as he sung and danced to his entrance song, “Jump Around” on the way to the cage.

Round 1—

Huge punches early from both men miss as the fans cheer, hoping for a big heavyweight knockout.

A left hook from Murphy tagged Castillo twice and he seemed a bit surprised by it. Another combo from Murphy connected on the end with a right uppercut.

Castillo couldn’t seem to land anything as Murphy’s head movement seemed to be vastly superior.

After eating punch after punch, Castillo finally clinched and threw a knee to the body which accidentally caught Murphy in the groin. The referee separated things, but Murphy was okay to continue without much of a stoppage. This could have been a big missed opportunity for Castillo as he was being eaten alive on the feet.

As the fighters came back to the center of the cage, a spinning backfist from Castillo nearly connected, but Murphy countered with another combo.

Castillo clinched again and nearly got a takedown, but Murphy was the one who finally brought the fight to the mat. Castillo gave up his back on the ground and Murphy landed some shots, but Castillo battled through it and got to his feet before he tripped Murphy to the ground.

As the fighters stood back up, a cut had been opened on Castillo’s left cheek. Murphy threw a flailing right head kick, but didn’t connect. He finished the round with a couple punches that didn’t seem to connect cleanly.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Murphy

Round 2—

Castillo seemed to be losing the boxing match, but continued to try to stand. He had been the more active of the two with kicks, but it wasn’t enough to slow down Murphy to this point.

Murphy seemed to still be very energized as he landed a big right leg kick followed by a straight right on the button. Murphy continued to pick Castillo apart with superior boxing and Castillo’s face began to swell up.

Murphy still appeared to be very fresh midway through the second round as his opponent threw looping punches that continued to miss over and over again. Murphy easily moved out of the way, never really allowing the Chicago-native to do much damage.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Murphy (20-18 Murphy overall)

Round 3—

After landing only a couple leg kicks throughout the bout at this point, Murphy threw a kick to Castillo’s lead left leg which took him down temporarily. Smelling blood in the water, Murphy landed another and Castillo just didn’t seem to have much energy left.

A confident Murphy began to taunt a bit as he knew Castillo just was under-matched. Castillo finally caught one of Murphy’s leg kicks and nearly capitalized as Murphy was off balance, but Murphy again escaped without much damage.

Murphy mixed in some punching combinations throughout the round, but he didn’t seem to be looking to finish, obviously knowing that he was well on his way to a one-sided decision.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Murphy (30-27 Murphy overall)

Official Score: Brett Murphy defeats Eddie Castillo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30- 27, 30-27)

Though he didn’t live up to his nickname, “The KO Kid,” Brett Murphy looked to be on another level in this fight. His conditioning was excellent and his head movement was even better.

Now 2-0 as a pro and 6-0 overall, it’ll be interesting to see what’s next for this heavyweight prospect.

Bill Friday (1-1) vs. Lloyd McKinney (6-2): 125 Pounds

Round 1—

Both fighters backed one another up with punches, but McKinney finally grabbed Friday and went for a slam. Friday countered by sinking in what appeared to be a deep guillotine choke. It looked like McKinney was in big trouble, but after quite a struggle, he escaped and ended up on top of Friday.

McKinney eventually taking Friday’s back where he worked for a rear-naked choke. He even got a full body lock, but that allowed Friday to stand right up with McKinney hanging on his back. McKinney slipped off and pushed Friday into the fence.

McKinney began looking for another double which Friday tried to counter with another guillotine choke, but McKinney confidently lifted him right off the mat and slammed him down. McKinney landed some punches, but Friday stood up and shot in for a takedown of his own. McKinney rolled through it, though, and ended up in mount.

He got position and began looking for an arm-triangle choke. Friday looked like he was turning red as McKinney squeezed with all his strength. Friday finally broke free and landed a couple punches from the top with just seconds left in the round.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 McKinney

Round 2—

McKinney went for another takedown early, but like a mirror image, was countered by another deep guillotine choke from Bill Friday. This time, McKinney could not escape. Like a true warrior, he refused to tap out and finally passed out.

Official Result: Bill Friday defeats Lloyd McKinney by technical submission (guillotine choke) at 0:21 in Round 2.

McKinney is an incredibly tough kid and although it’s somewhat of a pride thing to refuse to tap out, watching someone’s body shake with convulsions like McKinney’s did when Friday let go of him is a very scary thing.

Ryan Braun (12-10) vs. Paul Bradley (16-4): 175 Pounds

The Ultimate Fighter’s Paul Bradley battled a red hot Ryan Braun, who was coming off of three straight victories, in the co-main event. The UFC veteran did not fare well in his two appearances for the promotion, losing both fights by decision, but looked to work his way back up to the big leagues with a win.

Round 1—

Paul Bradley went in for a kick early, but Ryan Braun pushed him against the fence and went for a double. Bradley avoided it and pushed Braun against the cage himself. A knee to the body from Braun separated things as he pushed Bradley off before landing a big right hand that seemed to stagger the “Gentleman.”

Bradley answered with a shot and a slam against the cage before where he quickly moved to mount. Braun flipped over, but Bradley was perfectly fine with taking his back where he rained down with huge punches.

The referee nearly stepped in to stop things, but Braun was covering up enough and made it out of the round.

Bleacher Report Unofficial Score: 10-9 Bradley

Round 2—

A nice double leg shot from Bradley brought Braun to the mat early in the round. He moved into mount again, this time with much more time to work with in the round as only about a minute had passed.

After some positioning and a bit of ground-and-pound, Bradley finally locked in an arm-triangle choke from the mount and got the submission.

Official Result: Paul Bradley defeats Ryan Braun by submission (arm triangle choke) at 2:11 in Round 2

Damion Hill (5-0) vs. Kenneth Glenn (4-0): 150 Pounds

Saturday night’s main event featured a big fight between two local undefeated fighters as Damion Hill and Kenneth Glenn met in a 150-pound catchweight bout. Someone’s undefeated record had to come to an end in this one.

Round 1—

Kenneth Glenn shot in quickly and Hill attempted to answer with a kick. Glenn caught his foot in the process and began unloading with punches to an off-balance Hill as the crowd roared.

Still off-balance and with his foot in Glenn’s hand, Hill answered with a huge punch of his own and rocked Glenn. He pounced and landed a number of punches to a staggered Kenneth Glenn before the referee pulled him off.

Official Result: Damion Hill defeats Kenneth Glenn by knockout (punches) at 0:15 in Round 1

After winning his previous fight by a razor-thin split decision over Nick Compton, Hill bounced back with a very impressive knockout over one of the top five fighters in the Minnesota 145-pound division.

Hill’s personality and natural talent make him a potential star in the future if he can keep up this kind of dominance. If he does, it may not be long before he becomes the next Minnesota prospect to make an appearance on the national stage.

Photo thanks to Kasey Jean Photography. 

For more MMA news, fighter interviews and opinions, follow Nick Caron: @NicholasCaron.