MVP MMA 1 A Resounding Success
On saturday, May 16th, MVP Promotions ran by Jake Paul and Nakisa Bedarian hosted an MMA event on Netflix for the first time in history. 22 fighters made the walk at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, Caifornia with the final eight bouts of the card ending by finish. Viewership on the prelims aired on YouTube peaked at over 350k viewers, with the arena nearly boasting a full sell out.
The preliminary card featured some interesting scorecards early, with two of the first three fights went to split decision Jason Jackson (20-6) stole the show on the prelims with a 22 second knockout of Jeff Creighton (12-3-1), and Namo Fazil (10-1) finished the prelims with a second round submission over Jake Babian (6-2). Namo Fazil was the star of the week on social media, racking up millions of views and showing he can be a star anywhere in the world. The prelims weren’t without controversy, with Phumi Nkuta vs Adriano Moraes being declared a submission despite Moraes holding the choke nearly four seconds after the final bell. Nkuta’s team has already filed an appeal over the result.
On the main card, every single fight ended before the judges could get involved, most notably Salahdine Parnasse displaying his world class ability in his dismantling of Kenny Cross. For years, knowledgeable MMA fans have referred to Parnasse as one of the best in the world, and he proved it tonight against a tough opponent in Cross. Francis Ngannou and Robelis Despaigne displayed the true meaning of heavyweight power with devasting KO’s over their respective opponents. Mike Perry sent the 209 faithful home disappointed as he sliced and diced his way to a doctors stoppage win in the co-main event, and Ronda Rousey returned to the cage in classic form with a first round submission over Gina Carano. Francis Ngannou scored a 100k bonus and Phumi Nkuta and Adriano Moraes both earned an extra 50k for fight of the night.
Full Results
Brandon Jenkins (17-11) def. Chris Avila (8-10) by Split Decision
Aline Pereira (3-2) def. Jade Masson-Wong (3-3) by Split Decision
David Mgoyan (9-1) defeats Albert Morales (19-11-1) by Unanimous Decision
Jason Jackson (20-6) def. Jeff Creighton (12-3-1) by KO (punch) 22 seconds into the first round
Adriano Moraes (22-6) def. Phumi Nkuta (11-1) by Submission (RNC) 4:59 into the third round
Namo Fazil (10-1) def. Jake Babian (6-2) by Submission (D’arce Choke) :58 into the second round
Robelis Despaigne (6-2) def. Junior Dos Santos (21-11) by KO (punches) 2:59 into the first round
Salahdine Parnasse (23-2) def. Kenneth Cross (17-5) by KO (body hook) 4:18 into the first round
Francis Ngannou (19-3) def. Phillipe Lins (18-6) by KO (Hook) 4:31 into the first round
Mike Perry (15-8) def. Nate Diaz (21-14) by Stoppage (cut) after the second round
Ronda Rousey (13-2) def. Gina Carano (7-2) by Submission (Armbar) :17 into the first round
Jon Jones vs Francis? Mike Perry vs Jake Paul?
The event was promoted by Nakisa Bedarian and of course Jake Paul, who jawed with both Francis Ngannou and Mike Perry after their respective wins. Jake was far more open to the idea of facing Mike Perry rather than Francis, with Jake Paul already holding a win over Mike Perry in the boxing ring. Regardless, Nakisa Bedarian confirmed that Jake Paul will be entering the cage in the near future.
Will MVP MMA Host Another Event?
MMA MVP will have more events, as confirmed by Nakisa Bedarian after the event at the post fight press conference. He mentioned multiple potential events, including Sacramento and France as potential locations. MVP is currently building out the interior infrastructure for the promotion to continue in the MMA space.
