Ferguson Takes Pure Combat Welterweight Belt; Emerson Victorious

CLOVIS, Calif. -- Tony Ferguson stopped the durable Brock Jardine with fourth-round strikes to capture the vacant welterweight championship in the Pure Combat 12 “Champions for Children” main event on Saturday at the Clovis Rodeo Grounds. Proceeds from the event went to benefit Valley Children’s Hospital.

Like many matches featuring two skilled wrestlers, this one was contested mostly on the feet. Jardine was game and pressed the action, but Ferguson utilized fantastic takedown defense, kept the fight standing and wore down Jardine. Each man showed superb scrambling ability during the brief periods when the fight did hit the mat.

By round four, Jardine was obviously tiring, and Ferguson took advantage. He stuffed a sloppy shot, took Jardine’s back and pounded away. Jardine could do nothing but turtle and wait to be saved. The end came 2:35 into the fourth round.

Meanwhile, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 cast member and UFC veteran Robert Emerson stopped Rodney Rhoden on strikes just 3:33 into round one.

It did not take long for Emerson to find his opening. Once he put down Rhoden, Emerson swarmed with a barrage of punches until the referee stepped in to halt it. The victory was Emerson’s first since being released by the UFC following his unanimous decision loss to Nik Lentz at UFC Fight Night 21 in March.

Finally, regional prospect John Reedy knocked out Preston Scharf in their 160-pound catchweight bout.

The end, which came less than two minutes into the fight, was both swift and brutal. Scharf pressed his foe against the cage early, but Reedy took him to the ground and landed a vicious elbow that put Scharf out cold 1:51 into the first round.

Several tense moments followed, as Scharf remained unresponsive and appeared to seize in the cage. The medical staff assisted, strapped the still confused and resistant Scharf to a stretcher and rushed him to an area hospital. Scharf was released shortly after he arrived and was given a clean bill of health.

Other Bouts
Josh Herrick def. Todd Willingham -- Split decision
Anthony Vidal def. Eddie Mendez -- Submission (Guillotine Choke) 1:25 R1
Daniel Price def. Cole Nagy -- Unanimous Decision
Joshua Miranda def. Moses Lira -- Submission (Armbar) 1:08 R1
Dominic Clark def. Rafael Urena -- Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 1:20 R1
Joey de la Cruz def. Raul Sandoval -- Split Decision