BY MIKE JOHNSTON
SPORTSNET.CA
It was a rough night for Canadian fighters as they went a disappointing 2-5 at UFC 140 in Toronto Saturday.
In the night’s most controversial decision, Claude Patrick of Mississauga, Ont., lost a split decision to Brian Ebersole. The Toronto crowd booed the decision mercilessly when it was announced.
“The outcome was unfortunate,” Patrick said.
“I tried to take the fight to the ground, but he ended up on top. I attempted three different submissions towards the end and even threw some hard punches. But you know what happens when you leave it in the judges’ hands.”
The night couldn’t have gone worse for Mark (The Machine) Hominick. In his first fight since the tragic death of his longtime trainer and friend Shawn Tompkins, Hominick was knocked out in a UFC record-tying seven seconds by Chan (The Korean Zombie) Sung Jung.
Hominick came out aggressive, but after missing with a left hand, Jung came over the top with a straight right hand. Several punches later, the referee stepped in.
“I needed to pace myself,” said Hominick.
“I let my emotions get the best of me and didn’t follow my game plan. I got a little too hyped up.”
The original record was set at UFC 102, when Todd Duffee knocked out Alberta’s Tim Hague in seven seconds.
Toronto’s Mark Bocek was one of two Canadians victorious on the night. Bocek defeated Nik Lentz via unanimous judges’ decision in a preliminary lightweight bout. It was a grueling three-round battle between Bocek and his feisty opponent.
“Nik was a super tough opponent. We played it safe and it was a friendly fight, but I wanted the win more. I kept him guessing, played with my hands and then went for the takedown. I prepared for going all three rounds going into the fight.”
Bocek added that the crowd support helped him: “It was great to fight here. The fans are awesome.”
The other successful Canadian was Yves (Tiger) Jabouin, who won a crowd-pleasing split decision over Walel Watson in bantamweight action. The two stood and traded spinning kicks, back-fists and punches for three rounds.
“This is an awesome feeling,” Jabouin said after the fight.
“I hustled and did struggle in the fight. There was a fire burning inside me not to quit. I wasn’t going to give up. I fed off the energy from the crowd. I studied his footage coming into this fight and was ready for him. My game plan was to use momentum, strike and to catch him off balance.”
Winnipeg’s Krzysztof Soszynski’s night didn’t last long, as he was knocked out by Igor Pokrajac in just 35 seconds.
“I should have reacted differently when I got hit. Pokrajac was a good opponent and hit hard.”
Montreal’s John Makdessi is known for his striking ability but couldn’t implement any of his game plan against Dennis Hallman, as he was quickly submitted. Hallman came into the fight three pounds overweight and forfeited 20 per cent of his earnings.
Saskatchewan’s Mitch Clarke also didn’t fare well in his UFC debut, losing to John Cholish by second-round TKO. The loss was Clarke’s first of his career, moving him to 9-1. Clarke became the first fighter from Saskatchewan to fight in the UFC.
