Battle in the Desert 2 predictions

This coming weekend Lion Fight Promotions "Battle in the Desert 2" will take place at Buffalo Bills Casino in Primm, NV. The card is filled from top to bottom with quality Muay Thai fights featuring some of the United States biggest names, as well as some highly regarded international talent.

Kevin Ross vs. Mark DeLuca for WBC Muay Thai Super Lightweight International Title

Ross is the hands down favorite to win this bout. He has more experience against higher level competition and as he showed against Sittisak his last fight he can stay in a fight even when things are not going his way. None the less this is a fight and DeLuca has the ability to KO Ross, although it seems highly unlikely. DeLuca is known as a slow starter and despite being able to rally late he can not afford to start slow. In the end this fight is going to be Ross' fight to win or lose. Expect to see him pull out all the stops in route to an early stoppage.

Result: Ross via (T)KO in the second round.

Ky Hollenbeck vs. Gregory Choplin WBC Muay Thai Interim Middleweight World Title

Going into his fight with Vuyisile Colossa no one gave Hollenbeck a chance of winning, he proved everyone wrong as he walked away the winner by decision. Hollenbeck works hard and can adjust in fights to exploit opponents weaknesses. Choplin is a world class fighter who will look to impose his will on Hollenbeck. Choplin has faced world class competition and for the most part come out on top. Choplin has thunderous leg kicks and a good strategy for him would be to try and slow down Hollenbeck's attack by chopping down his legs with kicks. This fight will be very closely contested from start to finish, and could become somewhat of a chess match. It will end up heading to the judges cards for what is likely to be a slim margin of victory for the winner.

Result: Ky Hollenbeck via split decision.

Cosmo Alexandre vs. Cyrus Washington

This fight will likely have fireworks from start to finish. Cosmo is a world class fighter making his American debut. Coming off of back to back losses to Yodsanklai and Giorgio Petrosyan he will likely be looking to end the two fight skid by putting on a dominant display against Washington. On the other hand Washington is a very dynamic fighter from start to finish. He will not hesitate to throw a spinning heel kick, and flying knee, or any other moves he has in his arsenal. With Washington always looking for a flashy finish, and Cosmo looking to make an impression his first fight in the U.S. expect this one to end early. In the end Cosmo's experience against world class competition will lead him to victory as he scores a TKO, however, with Washington's explosive style don't be surprised if an upset does happen.

Result: Cosmo Alexandre via (T)KO in the third round.

Chaz Mulkey vs. Ken Tran

Mulkey's record is deceptive, at 4-4 it doesn't seem like much. Despite an average looking record he has competed against top competition most of his fights. Tran comes in with a more polished record of 13-2. Both fighter have the ability to finish, and Tran has made it a habit. Ten of his thirteen wins have come via (T)KO. This is actually a pretty even fight, but the deciding factor will be if Tran can get past the size of Mulkey. The lengthy Mulkey has a four inch height advantage over Tran and will likely look to exploit that advantage when they clinch as well as when Mulkey sets up his punches. Trans explosiveness could end a fight in a second but he's going to have to get into range to land anything that can damage Mulkey. When he tries to move in expect Mulkey to answer with elbows and knees.

Result: Chaz Mulkey via decision.

Shawn Yarborough vs. Chris Romulo

Yarborough will be looking to snap a two fight skid, while Romulo will be entering his first full rules fight. It will be interesting to see if the Yarborough of old shows up for this fight or if we see the lax and un-aggressive Yarborough that showed up against Brandon Banda at the last Lion Fight Promotions event. Romulo will have a height disadvantage, but he will make up for that with power. Whether it is his fist or his feet,  if Romulo connects he can put your lights out. The biggest factor will be how Romulo handles getting elbowed. It would be foolish not expect Yarborough to try to use elbows and exploit the fact that Romulo has never been allowed to use elbows in a fight before. If the "old" Shawn Yarborough shows up it is going to be an exciting fight. Expecting the "old" Yarborough to show up you have to sway in his favor due to the size advantage and his experience using elbows.

Result: Shawn Yarborough via (T)KO in the third round.

Scotty Leffler vs. Jose Palacios

Leffler is coming off a loss to Coke Chunhawat, after hanging in the fight for the first round Chunhawat turned up the heat the second round and forced a doctor stoppage. Palacios is coming off a KO victory over Joey Pagliuso. Despite a stellar KO many fans think that Palacios might have been losing the fight and the KO was due more to fatigue by Pagliuso than anything else. Never the less Palacios showed he can hang in a fight and pull out a victory, and that is what is important. Leffler has a more polished style and will likely look to utilize a clinch game to throw Palacios off his game. Despite being a tough guy Palacios will likely not be able to deal with Leffler in the clinch as well as with his aggressive style.

Result: Scotty Leffler via decision.

Jeri Sitzes vs. Sally McCarthy

McCarthy is filling in on a weeks notice for Misty Sutherland. Against an opponent the caliber of Sitzes that is a disadvantage you don't want to have. Hopefully she has been training for a fight for quite sometime and not just in the last week. Sitzes boxing will play a big roll in this fight as she possesses some great hands. If they clinch Sitzes is not hesitant to use her knees as she showed in her last fight against Joanna MacEachern. Expect Sitzes to prove to be too much for McCarthy as she earns a stoppage victory in the early rounds.

Result: Jeri Sitzes via (T)KO in the second round.

Anthony Castrejon vs. Ognjen Topic

Castrejon ended his amateur career on a high note with a spectacular head kick KO of Jason Andrada. He is now set to meet another up and coming prospect in his pro debut against Ognjen Topic in what is surely to be a fight of the future of American Muay Thai. Topic recently defeated Phillip Sehenuk at Friday Night Fights via KO in his pro debut, and will face a tough test in Castrejon. This is going to be a close fight, and could come down to how Castrejon can use his speed to his advantage. Either way it should an exciting fight between two young guns.

Result: Anthony Castrejon via decision.