Ring of Combat XXXVI

The enthusiastic crowd inside the Tropicana Resort and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey saw another jam-packed night of fights as Ring of Combat XXXVI delivered a 15-bout card featuring two titles bouts, exciting finishes and a wide range of technical skills displayed inside of the cage.

In the main event, Pete "Drago" Sell (9-5) captured the ROC Welterweight Title with a victory over Elijah Harshbarger (6-3) via reverse triangle and armbar in Round 2 in what was a very exciting back and forth main event. Harshbarger gained the upper hand in the first round by using his superior wrestling to control the action and put Sell on the mat almost at will. But in the second round, the UFC veteran, Sell managed to gain top position after both men hit the canvas. From there he secured a tight and seldom used reverse triangle that kept Harshbarger from escaping. Sell then isolated the right arm of Harshbarger and locked on a straight armbar getting the tapout victory and becoming the new Ring of Combat Welterweight Champion.

In the co-main event, Aljamain Sterling (3-0) defeated Claudio Ledesma (4-2) via split decision to capture the ROC Bantamweight Championship. Both men were so evenly matched that it made it a tough decision for the judges. Neither fighter was any worse for the wear after the fight, but Sterling showed more cage control through the 15-minute fast-paced contest and worked a few better positions which gave him the nod in the eyes of two out of three judges. Both the new champion Sterling and Ledesma, are still very young in the sport and it would come as no surprise to see both men fighting for more titles in the future. This was a good battle of up and coming fighters in the 135 lb division who are forces to be reckoned with on the East Coast.

Be sure to catch all of the fireworks on this stacked card and watch the top East Coast MMA fighters do what they do best and battle in the cage as Ring of Combat presents Ring of Combat XXXVI exclusively at GFL.tv and only on GFLOnDemand.

Claudio Ledesma - From Hoop Dreams to Cage Dreams - CLICK HERE to READ

For Elijah Harshbarger Olympic Aspirations Turn to MMA Gold - CLICK HERE to READ