The much-hyped grudge match between [autotag]Tito Ortiz[/autotag] and [autotag]Alberto El Patron[/autotag] turned into, well, a match between a former UFC light heavyweight champion who has stayed active, and a professional wrestler who hasn’t fought an MMA bout in a decade.
Ortiz (21-12-1) dominated the 210-pound catchweight bout Saturday night, which was the main event of Combate Americas’ first pay-per-view event. The time of the stoppage in Hidalgo, Texas, was 3:10 of the opening round when Ortiz won with a rear-naked choke submission.
As a result of the victory, Ortiz won a side bet with El Patron (9-6), who is best known as Alberto Del Rio from his run in the WWE, in which Ortiz had put his UFC belt up against El Patron’s WWE title belt.
Ortiz, who turns 45 in January, walked out to Hulk Hogan’s “Real American” theme song by Rick Derringer to a mixed reaction from the crowd. When the fight started, he immediately took El Patron down.
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El Patron, who has worked in Combate’s front office over the past several years, had a 10-fight MMA career that included high-profile matchups in PRIDE, but he had not competed since 2010, and it showed. The San Antonio resident, who is the son and nephew of lucha libre legends Dos Caras and Mil Mascaras, respectively, showed very little.
Ortiz worked El Patron over on the ground, and while El Patron did manage to get back onto his feet, he left himself wide open for the finishing choke.
“I was a five-time defending UFC champion, and here I am – 22 years later I still fight, and Alberto pushed me to be the best that I can,” Ortiz said. “I’ve got another fight in Combate. I may have a couple more fights in Combate.”
The victory is Ortiz’s third in a row. The UFC Hall of Famer is 5-1 since announcing the first of two retirements in 2012. It was his 15th career finish and his fifth submission. El Patron has lost two straight fights.
Complete “Combate Americas: Tito vs. Alberto” results:
- Tito Ortiz def. Alberto El Patron via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1, 3:10
- Melissa Martinez def. Desiree Yanez via split decision (27-29, 29-28, 29-28) — Martinez wins inaugural Combate Americas strawweight title
- Dani Barez def. Joao Camilo via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
- Levy Marroquin def. Enrique Gonzalez via submission (guillotine choke) — Round 1, 4:53
- Dani Barez def. Joao Camilo via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
- Gaston Reyno def. Rey Trujillo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Dulce Garcia def. Anali Lopez Hernandez via submission (guillotine choke) — Round 1, 2:47
- Jose Flores def. Clarence Brown via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1, 3:16
- Victor Martinez def. Luis Luna via TKO (strikes) — Round 1, 1:39
- Elias Urbina def. Mike Tovar via KO (head kick) — Round 1, 3:14
- Edmilson Freitas vs. Raymond Banda declared majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
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