Ring of Combat XXXVIII

Ring of Combat returned to a sold out venue at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey for ROC XXXVIII. This event had another stacked lineup, something Ring of Combat has become synonymous with, as 4 titles were up for grabs. ROC continues to be the kingpin of East Coast MMA and this 13-bout card once again was a testament to ROC's dominance in the Tri-State area. All of the fighters wore their hearts on their sleeves, especially the fighters in the championship bouts, as 3 of the 4 title fights ended in KO or submission.

In the main event, Nordine Taleb (4-1) upset Pete Sell (9-6) by KO in Round 2 to win the ROC Welterweight Championship. The former Champion, Sell, was considered a heavy favorite coming into the bout, but Taleb was riding a 3-fight win streak coming into the night and made it 4 for 4 with the stunning KO of the UFC veteran Sell. Taleb, who trains at the famed Tristar Gym in Montreal alongside UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre, is a prospect on the rise and definitely a gem for ROC to have on its roster.

In the co-main event, Deividas Taurosevicus (14-5) defeated Marlon Moraes (5-3-1) by arm triangle submission in Round 1 to retain his title and continue his dominance in the featherweight division. Taurosevicious was on the attack from the beginning and managed to get the fight to the mat quickly where he worked for dominant position and then slapped on the fight-ending submission for the tapout victory. Taurosevicious is going to be very difficult to beat at 145 lb, even in the talent-ridden Northeast.

In another title fight, Patrick Audinwood (10-2-1) beat the previously undefeated Al Iaquinta (6-1-1) by armbar submission in Round 1 to win the ROC Lightweight Championship. The UFC vet, Audinwood, was not intimidated by Iaquinta and took it to the former champ from the get go. MMA is a battle of inches, sometimes centimeters and this just wasn't Iaquinta's night as the Serra trained fighter made one small mistake on the mat, and Audinwood capitalized on it immediately by securing Iaquinta's arm and getting the tapout victory and becoming the new Lightweight Ring of Combat Champion.

In the final title fight of the night, Tom DeBlass (6-0) remained ROC Light Heavyweight Champion after defeating Davit Tkeshelashvili (8-4) by unanimous decision. The Renzo Gracie fighter, DeBlass, got pushed to the limit by the challenger Tkeshelashvili. Both men kept up a good pace for 205ers as it was a back and forth scrap but DeBlass did enough to win every round on two judges' scorecards.

You won't find a more thrilling card then this one. Be sure to catch all of the action on video on demand as Ring of Combat presents ROC XXXVIII exclusively on at GFL.tv.