Shepley, Arnel Win Fights At Joe Louis
Nick Whittal in the cage at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit – Contributed Photo
First up was Jake Martin making his debut against Jason Malloway who was also making his debut in the 155 lbs weight division. They touched gloves and both lead with right overhand punches. Martin was the first hit and went down for a KO, 14 seconds into round one.
Bowe Shipley made his debut at 135 lbs division against Waji Ghanes who was also taking his first fight. It was a great display of technique on both mens part until Waji attempted a take down. Shepley defended and sat back catching Waja in a triangle choke. With a controversial tap, Shepley eventually won by submission midway through the first round.
Craig “Carny” Arnel faced off against fellow Canadian Chris Heedo of Windsor at 155 lbs. Heedo with an MMA record of 1-0 and a Purple Belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu started off strong with guillotine choke attempts. Craig capitalized on this by passing Heedos guard to mount, then taking his back and catching an armbar in transition with only 6 seconds left in the first round to win the fight. Arnel’s MMA record now improves to 3-3.
For the Co-Main Event, Chatham’s Nick Whittal, 3-0, faced off against Adrian Hadribeaj. Hadribeaj, a European Karate champion moved from Albania to the USA to start a career in MMA. Hadribeaj walked into fight with a record of 6-0. The match started off with a lot of technical striking. Whittal was unable to get in to achieve the clinch. It started to frustrate him near the end of the first round. Hadribeaj got Whittal against the cage with Whittal blocking the damaging strikes but was stopped by Referee at end of first round. Whittal’s title was not on the line for this fight so he remains the 170 lbs champion for TXC in Michigan with a new record of 3-1.
Next MMA fight for Gracie Barra Chatham will be Josh “The Ripper” Rich making his Pro debut at 135 lbs in Sarnia.