Everyone knew that a match between Thomas Keenan and John Combs would be a barn-burner, but damn did it deliver. Keenan ultimately did enough to win the judges decision, but the fight was far from an easy one.



It was a breakneck pace right from the the bell: Keenan opened the match with a flying triangle attempt that was stuffed by Combs; Combs immediately dove on a brutal toe hold that had us wincing at home.

Cool under pressure, Keenan survived the submission attempt and made his way to 50/50 to initiate attacks of his own. However, Combs again was able to find an opening and pass Keenan's guard; it was beginning to look like a rough night for Keenan.  

But this is jiu-jitsu, and the momentum of a fight can change in an instant.

Keenan's moment came right before the 1-minute mark: he lured Combs in to his open guard and slammed on a omoplata out of nowhere. Combs defended well, but could not escape, as Keenan advanced his submission attempt by cycling through various armlocks until the whistle blew. The match had somehow made it to a referees decision.

The referees' deemed the severity of Thomas Keenan's submission attempts to outweigh Comb's and he was awarded the well-deserved victory.