Referees barely got called into action during Unified MMA 45 on Friday evening.
The packed card unfolded at the River Cree Resort and Casino in Edmonton, Alta., delivering a spectacular nine finishes out of eleven total bouts.
Headlining the evening, Ryan Ford (now 24-5) captured the Unified MMA 175-pound championship, dismantling Robert Hale (now 11-6) with a punishing strike combination after flooring him near the middle of the first frame.
Tensions had been running high on social media ahead of the headliner, with Hale publicly demanding a first-round stoppage — a promise Ford gladly fulfilled.
"It was beautiful. I don't even remember what I caught him with; I think I caught him with a back hand to shut his ass up," Ford said during his post-fight interview.
Though Hale showed impressive grit trying to survive after the early knockdown, Ford was certain the contest was wrapped up once he claimed the Unified MMA belt.
"When he was on the ground moving like a fish. In Edmonton, Alberta we reel those fish in and we eat them."
During the co-main event, Christian Larsen (now 7-2) needed barely any time to retain his Unified MMA heavyweight crown, taking down Grayson Well (now 5-5) just 30 seconds into round one before raining punches to the finish.
Larsen expressed satisfaction with his performance while also acknowledging the courage displayed by Well, who stepped in on extremely short notice.
"I thought the fight went well. I told myself I wasn't going to chase the knockout or anything like that. He came out with a snappy jab, caught me a couple times. I caught him with his back against the cage and I just knew I could go forward and throw some bombs and put him in trouble," Larsen told MMA Empire.
"The guy took the fight on eight days notice, he's tough as s**t. Fighters fight and it was good to have him out."
This marked the second successful title defense for Larsen, whose original opponent had been UFC veteran Rashad Coulter.
Another former UFC fighter, Anthony Hamilton, was also discussed as a potential next challenger for Larsen, whom Larsen said he'd be happy to face.
"Originally, I was supposed to fight Anthony on this card, but then he lost pretty embarrassingly to a guillotine in like one minute. Then Sunny didn't want to bring him in anymore," Larsen explained.
"Now he's just been beaking me off saying I've been ducking him and dodging him. Shut up, win a fight, then I'll come knock you out."
Beyond a possible bout with Hamilton, Larsen mentioned exploring opportunities with major promotions internationally.
"I've been talking a little bit to ONE Championship. I think that would be a good fit, but I'm also happy fighting here with Sunny and Unified where I came up. But if an opportunity comes around somewhere else I'll look at that then."
Opening the title contests of the night, Maged Hammo (now 11-6-1) defended his Unified MMA featherweight championship in brutal fashion, flooring Neal Anderson (now 11-5) in the fourth round before the referee intervened.
Despite already securing a stoppage victory over Anderson in their first encounter, Hammo insisted he wanted to send a stronger message during the rematch.
"I wanted to make a point, I wanted to knock him out, and that's what I did," Hammo declared after the bout.
Full results from the remainder of the card are available here.
