The tenth installment of the San Francisco based Dragon House MMA league occurred on Saturday, June 2, 2012 at the Oakland Marriott Convention Center in Oakland, California.

The card featured a total of 5 professional mixed martial arts fights, in addition to several fights at the amateur level sanctioned by the California Amatuer Mixed Martial Arts Organization (CAMO).  Due to medical complications, however, the California State Athletic Commission had no choice but to cancel the main event.

Several CAMO amateur fighters had a strong showing.  Welterweight Rich O’Toole of the Skrap Pack showed off his submission prowess by submitting his opponent, Angelo Reyes of Combat Sports Academy, by triangle choke at 1:38 of Round 3.  Similarly, 20-year-old welterweight Danasabe Mohammed beat the buzzer by securing a rear naked choke on Abraham Vaesau at 1:59 of Round 1, just before the round ending horn sounded.  Lightweight Paradise Vaovasa of Dragon House MMA also had a strong showing with impressively athletic guard passing en route to a TKO victory over Mark Trader of Mendocino Combat Club at 1:21 of Round 3.

Two big heavyweights, David Ferguson of Vortex Fight Team and Richard Treas of Dynamic MMA willingly traded shots to the chin until Ferguson inevitably went down for the referee’s stoppage at just 1:03 of Round 1.  Following the heavyweight matchup, the victor Richard Treas was pumped up with energy and gave his hecklers from the audience (who came out to support David Ferguson) some single-fingered sign language that clearly communicated his feelings.  After the fight, security had to break up the ruckus and escort the fighters out of the building.

The professional card began with a flyweight bout between Andrew Valladerez of Cung Le’s AKA taking on Ryan Bastianelli of Crispim BJJ.  Although Cung Le is known for his thunderous and flashy striking, his protégé Valladerez showed solid takedown defense before finishing off Bastianneli with a guillotine choke at just 2:17 of Round 1.

The night of submissions continued when featherweight Osmar Jr. Delima of Team USA and FTCC defeated Giovanni Encarnacion of Team Fight Kore via triangle choke at 2:10 of Round 1.  Although Encarnacion managed to take Delima to the ground, the BJJ brown belt, Delima, worked a number of smooth transitions between an armbar and triangle off of his back until he secured the fight winning submission.

The fight of the night came when welterweights 24-year-old James Chaney of Combat Sports Academy and 36-year-old Sam Spangler of Cung Le’s AKA took to the cage.  The imposing Sam “the Ram” Spangler showed off some impressive power in Round 1 by knocking Chaney down twice, and bloodying up his younger foe.  However, as Spangler appeared to wane, Chaney hung in there and showed some true heart in a memorable comeback.  Eventually, Chaney took a tired Spangler to the ground in Round 2, and finished him by submission via rear naked choke at 4:53.

The co-main event featured a matchup for the vacant Dragon House MMA bantamweight championship belt between Rolando Velasco of Last Stand and Evan Esguerra of True Fight Club.  Both fighters got off to an aggressive start with clinching and brawling.  Soon after, Velasco scored a takedown, and immediately transitioned to mount, forcing Esguerra to buck and roll and give up his back.  Velasco immediately saw an opening and sunk in a rear naked choke to end the fight at 1:41 of Round 1, and added yet another submission to the tally.  Following the fight, an obviously emotional Evan Esguerra repeatedly screamed out his frustrations over the loss.  Regardless, Velasco was the competitor who took home the belt that night.

The loyal fans in attendance at the Marriott Convention Center were looking forward to the night’s main event.  This fight featured local favorite and Strikeforce veteran Bobby Stack taking on Pete Sabala.  After both featherweight fighters made their way to the cage, Stack had a noticeable skin irritation just above his waistline.  Although any and all health matters were presumably resolved in a pre-fight medical screening before the event, several California State Athletic Commission representatives entered the cage to check on Stack’s condition.  At the eleventh hour, CSAC called off the main event.

Of the 5 professional fights at Dragon House 10, 4 of them certainly delivered, with 4 impressive submission victories from up and coming regional talent.  However, the people in attendance were unable to witness and enjoy the scheduled main event.  This was unfortunate for both the fans and the brass that took part in the Dragon House 10 event.

The Dragon House MMA league has the potential to make a serious impact in the Bay Area mixed martial arts scene.  However, we should all hope for the best that everyone involved, including the promoters, producers, athletic commissions, fans, and fighters can collectively bring out the best of what Dragon House and Bay Area MMA has to offer.  Some of the very best camps and gyms in all of mixed martial arts are centered in the Bay Area of California.

The next Dragon House event, Dragon House 11, is scheduled to take place at the Marriott Convention Center in August of 2012.  FightStylez wishes Dragon House MMA our support and the best of luck at its next show.

By: Alan J. Chang, Editor, FightStylez Magazine
Photography by Dave Fong, MMA Photographer