Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Unbeaten Beerbohm wants title shot

He’s 23-0 after Rumble; McCombs wins in debut

Jason Shoot Correspondent

Spokane knows now what the world will soon.

Lyle Beerbohm made his case for a title shot in mixed martial arts organization Strikeforce late Saturday night as the local fighter overwhelmed Josh Martin at Arena Rumble at Spokane Arena.

A pair of local fighters also posted dominant first-round victories on a 14-fight card that continued nearly until midnight. Coeur d’Alene’s Trevor Prangley quickly beat Dennis Reed, and Spokane’s Ben McCombs registered his first-ever professional win with a rear naked choke hold against Justin Grizzard.

Fighting at 160 pounds, Beerbohm scored an early takedown against Martin and dropped repeated right elbows with Martin trapped against the cage. Most of them landed flush – Martin had a deep laceration on his forehead and abrasions on the left side of his head after the fight – before the referee stopped the contest.

Beerbohm remained undefeated through 23 fights and announced to the crowd he’s ready for a championship bout on Strikeforce, which televises its pay-per-view shows nationally on Showtime.

Prangley and Reed began their 190-pound match swinging wildly, but a right hand from Prangley landed behind Reed’s ear and sent the MMA veteran to the canvas. The referee stopped the bout immediately before Prangley could deliver more harm.

McCombs, the Spokane Shock player in his MMA pro debut, scowled as he stalked Grizzard around the cage in their heavyweight fight. Grizzard tried two submission moves without success before he made a mistake and exposed his back. That allowed McCombs to place his arm under Grizzard’s chin and lock in a choke hold, forcing his foe to tap out.

In the final fight, Jason Guida got the early jump on Jeremy Horn with a quick takedown. Horn managed to reverse it, and secured a mounted position. Less than a minute later, Horn implemented an arm triangle to get the submission victory.