Adrenaline MMA 4 Preview & Predictions

Adrenaline MMA 4 takes place on Friday, September 18 on HDNet

Two time UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia returns to the cage Friday, September 18 in search of turning around his once potentially hall-of-fame career when he takes on Jason Riley at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa in the main event of the Adrenaline MMA 4 show. Current UFC light heavyweight, Houston Alexander, trying to get in the win column, is listed as a co-main event participant. Other notable fighters scheduled to appear include former UFC fighters Chad Reiner, Forrest Petz, Sherman Pendergarst, and Joe Vedepo. The event will be telecast live on HD Net beginning at 10 PM ET.

Chad Reiner vs. Forrest Petz

UFC veterans, Chad “The Grinder” Reiner (21-8) and Forrest “The Meat Cleaver” Petz (15-7) both come into their Adrenaline MMA 4 welterweight bout off of impressive stoppage victories. Reiner converted on his eleventh career submission when he slapped a rear naked choke on Nate Martin at the Iowa based Max Fights DM in August. Petz bruised and battered his opponent, Trawon Howard for two and a half rounds before finally finishing him off with a TKO.

In his career, Chad Reiner has worked his way up to the highest level of MMA, only to falter and start all over once again. Fighting in organizations such as Extreme Challenge, Ring of Fire, and The Cage Incorporated, Reiner banged out twelve straight wins to begin his career. He received his chance on the big stage at UFC – Fight Night 8 in January 2007, losing to Josh Burkman via unanimous decision. When he was given his a second life in the UFC five months later, he was knocked out in thirteen seconds by Anthony Johnson. It has been two years since his dismissal from the UFC and Reiner has been average winning eight and losing five.

It has been over seven years since Cleveland, Ohio native, Forrest Petz began his MMA career fighting in the Indiana-based Dangerzone organization. Eleven wins and only two losses later and the UFC called with an invitation. Lasting a little over one year and totaling five fights, Petz ended up on the wrong side in his UFC career after winning two and losing three. After his UFC 77 loss to Josh Burkman, Petz was released from the organization and left to fight his way back up the ladder. So far, “The Meat Cleaver” has shown mixed results, winning two and losing two which includes an appearance in the first Adrenaline show defeating Brian Gassaway.

Prediction: Petz over Reiner via decision

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Houston Alexander vs. Sherman Pendergarst

Current UFC light heavyweight, Houston “The Assassin” Alexander (8-4) will step outside of the organization after three straight losses to try and right the ship against one time UFC fighter, Sherman Pendergarst (11-14). It has been a year since Alexander graced the Octagon, losing to Eric Schafer at UFC Fight Night 15 via triangle choke. Pendergarst lost in his most recent action, a TKO defeat by Joey Beltran in the Bellator organization.

Alexander arrived on the UFC scene after winning seven consecutive bouts fighting for Extreme Challenge, Gladiators, Judgment Night and Downtown Destruction organizations. At UFC 71, filling in as a replacement fighter, Alexander used a flurry of punches to knock out Keith Jardine. He made it back to back when he showed his versatility using knees and punches to knock out Alessio Sakara in only eight seconds. His momentum came to a screeching halt when he was finished by Thiago Silva, James Irvin and Eric Schafer. The Omaha, Nebraska resident has only been past the 1st round twice in twelve career bouts.

Sherman Pendergarst has a tough task ahead of him. The one-time UFC fighter has been part of eighteen other promotions spanning over four plus years. Before earning his shot at UFC 65, Pendergarst won six out of his previous seven bouts. “The Tank” arrived at UFC 65 in November 2006 against Antoni Hardonk with momentum on his side; however the momentum didn’t help, losing via one-punch KO roughly 2:00 into the bout. Since his one and only appearance in the Octagon, Pendergarst has been victorious only three times in fourteen bouts. His slump has been taken to a whole new level lately, losing seven of his last eight including each of his last five bouts. His last bout in May against Joey Beltran lasted a little over 2:00, losing via TKO.

Prediction: Alexander over Pendergarst via TKO

Tim Sylvia vs. Jason Riley

Tim “The Maine-iac” Sylvia (24-6) tries to put a stop to his recent slide, taking on up and coming heavyweight, Jason Riley (6-1) in the main event for Adrenaline MMA 4. Sylvia, a former two-time UFC heavyweight champion, was embarrassed in his most recent bout after being knocked out in nine seconds at the Adrenaline MMA 3 show at the hands of former professional boxer, Ray Mercer. Riley, who only has seven professional bouts under his belt, was a winner in April defeating Justin Black by KO at a NAAFS event in Ohio.

Riley has been fairly impressive so far in his two plus years as a professional mixed martial artist. After debuting in the IDBL in 2007, he has also appeared on Judgment Day, Fightfest, and NAAFS promotional cards. He produced four consecutive stoppage victories to begin his career before falling to James Sendo in March of 2008. Since his first career loss, he has impressive performances in back-to-back victories. He has only been to a decision once in his career, finishing five of the six opponents that he earned wins against.

“The Maine-iac” has been active over the past eight years, including stints in the IFC, GC, UW, SB, UFC, Affliction and Adrenaline. He produced victories in his first sixteen bouts, taking care of “Big” Ben Rothwell, Mike Whitehead, and Jason Lambert along the way. When finally landing in the UFC, he fought his way to two heavyweight championships and a 9-4 UFC record. The former champion has fought for the UFC heavyweight title eight times, the last being a UFC 81 bout where he lost to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Since asking and being granted his release from the organization, Sylvia has lost both of his bouts via stoppage. Last July, while fighting for Affliction, Sylvia was taken to the ground and choked out by Fedor Emelianenko in 36 seconds. More recently in June, an out of shape and overweight Tim Sylvia was knocked out cold by Ray Mercer in 9 seconds in the main event of Adrenaline MMA 3. He has stated that he would like to earn a return trip back to the UFC before his retirement.

Prediction: Sylvia over Riley via TKO

Fight Card for Adrenaline MMA Main Events:

• Tim Sylvia (24-6) vs. Jason Riley (6-1)
• Houston Alexander (8-4) vs. Sherman Pendergarst (11-14)

Fight Card for Adrenaline MMA Main Card:

• Chad Reiner (21-7) vs. Forrest Petz (15-8)
• Alonzo Martinez (23-10) vs. Ryan Williams (10-4)
• Jeremy Lang (15-1) vs. Matt Delanoit (13-6)
• Joe Vedepo (9-2) vs. Webster Farris (1-0)
• Jimmy Seipel (1-0) vs. Bob Tuttle (1-0)

Fight Card for Adrenaline MMA Preliminary Card:

• Todd Meneely (0-0) vs. Corey McDonald (1-1)
• Dustin Smith (5-0) vs. Marcos Marquez (3-0)
• Matt Bentley (4-2) vs. Danny Black (7-5)
• John Hansen (10-2) vs. Gregg Van der Creek (4-1)
• Dakota Cochrane (6-0) vs. Bill Holcombe (12-4)
• Ryan Shell (15-4) vs. Robert Rojas (13-1)

By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer