Earlier this month, on Saturday, April 12, Jamestown’s Chicken Ranch Casino hosted Art of War: Presents Knockout Artist. With 23 fights, seven of which were title fights, Oakdale MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) was strongly represented.

Tom Theofanopoulos and 13 of his fighters headed into Chicken Ranch Casino focused and prepared. Three of the 13 Oakdale representatives are in the pro ranks and all three won title bouts.

Lamar “The Lion King” Reed took on Mike Persons for the vacant Welterweight title and Reed ended his battle with Persons as Reed caught Persons with a Guillotine Choke exactly one minute into the opening round.

“He tried to shoot for my leg, I let him have it, but I slapped the Guillotine on him and he passed out,” Reed said. “I train with a variety of people here, so I am prepared for different types of fighters when I am called upon for a fight. In the meantime, it’s back to work come Monday. When it’s not my turn to fight, it’s someone else’s and I want to help them prep for their fight, just like we all do here.”

Ryan Tobar of Oakdale MMA also claimed gold as he won the vacant Lightweight title against Ryan Reneau via knockout in the first round. This is Tobar’s first professional title, but he has won three amateur titles dating back to 2012.

“Every fight is a learning experience. I realize that I’m not going to be doing this forever, so I wanted to absorb every moment of this journey,” Tobar said.

Rudy Buendia finished William “Little Bear” Johnson to win his heavyweight bout as well. Oakdale’s Lloyd Mathiesen, Sal Becerra, Mike John, Sergio Guerrero, Brit Lippincott, Sean Powers and Alex McLaren also were victorious in their amateur bouts.

Oakdale MMA is scheduled to return to Chicken Ranch Casino on Saturday, July 12. No fights have been announced for that event as yet.