Cody Haddon adds another statement win to his promising young career.
Stepping into the headlining slot of Eternal MMA 56 on just a few days’ notice, Haddon took out 11-fight veteran Mark Familari in round two with a perfectly-placed left hook to the body.
From the bell Haddon wasted no time. An aggressive, relentless attack tested Familari’s hallmark durability. Transitioning seemingly at will from back control to full mount, Haddon unloaded a barrage of strikes for the duration of round one. A big elbow from mount cut Familari open at the close of the round. Haddon took a slightly more patient start to round two which soon paid off; he pressed Familari against the cage with rapid-fire combinations, but it was the shots to the body which caused visible impact. Haddon followed up immediately, ripping to the body with a left hook to fold Familari to the canvas.
“It’s my destiny,“ Haddon said, following the performance. “I say it all the time but it really is. I’ve been doing s*** since I was six years old.”
In the co-main event, Rod Costa managed yet another jiu-jitsu showcase. For the moments the fight was on the feet, his opponent Jamie Hunt had the clear advantage. However, those moments were very short lived. Costa dominated Hunt on the ground, cycling through submission attempts, and finally got the job done in the third round with his fists. From back control, Costa punched Hunt until the referee stepped in at 2:56.
“I have done a lot in jiu-jitsu,” Costa said. “If these brown belts or black belts – that haven’t done the same things I’ve done – think they can beat me just because they have a bit better striking, I don’t think its gonna work. I’m pretty good, man. I’m pretty f****** good at jiu-jitsu. You gotta be a lot better than me in stand-up to beat me.”
Cutting a seriously good promo for his new role as head Brazilian jiu-jitsu coach of Scrappy MMA, Pablo Torrealba submitted Quillan Salkilld superbly in the second round. Taking Salkilld’s back, Torrealba locked up a body triangle which he quickly adjusted over Salkilld’s right arm before sinking in the rear-naked choke.
To open the main card, Abdullah Eltigani overcame the elusive Sebastian Szalay with a high striking output and improved wrestling to secure a unanimous decision win.
Eternal MMA 56 was held at HBF Stadium in Perth, Western Australia, on Sunday, February 14. The preliminary card aired on YouTube and the main card on UFC Fight Pass.
Results (Main Card):
- Cody Haddon def. Mark Familari via TKO (Strikes), Rd 2, 1:27
- Rod Costa def. Jamie Hunt via TKO (Strikes), Rd 3, 2:56
- Pablo Torrealba def. Quillan Salkilld via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Rd 2, 3:25
- Abdallah Eltigani def. Sebastian Szalay via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Results (Preliminary Card):
- Frank Jankowski def. Darcy Spowart via Split Decision (28-29, 29-28, 28-29)
- Jack McManus def. Joel Julian via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Kevin Kophamel def. Logan Murray via TKO (Strikes), Rd 1, 1:47
- Kaleb Steinnokel def. Adam Bennett via TKO (Strikes), Rd 2, 0:24
- Thomas Harrison def. Ryan Jankowski via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Rohan Gray def. Dane Cross via Unanimous Decision (26-30, 27-30, 27-30)
- Wyatt Fraser def. Lorenz Araneda via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-27)
- Ian Cook def. Blade Townsend via TKO (Corner Stoppage), Rd 2, 5:00
