KSW 45 results: Phil De Fries defends HW title, Roberto Soldic dethrones Dricus Du Plessis

Phil De Fries successfully defended his heavyweight title for the time with a second-round submission in the main event of KSW 45 in London, England on Saturday.

The towering Brit completely drained Karol Bedorf’s tank with a solid grounded onslaught up until the finish. After consistent ground and pound, De Fries passed Bedorf’s guard and and isolated his arm before forcing the tap from the juggernaut with an americana.

Ahead of the fight, former UFC fighter De Fries explained to MMA Fighting how the resurgence in his career was down to him overcoming anxiety. After two upset wins with KSW, it seems he’s ready for whoever his bosses see fit for his second defense.

“My head’s together now, and I’ll f*ck anyone up,” said De Fries in his post-fight interview.

Famed Polish fitness model and social media star, Erko Jun, recorded his second professional win in as many fights as he finished rapper and fighter, Popek Monstor, in the second round of their heavyweight clash.

Jun spun to Popek’s back and landed consistent shots to finish the fight two minutes into the second round.

In just his fourth professional fight, Olympic wrestler Damian Janikowski gave veteran Michal Materla plenty of trouble, but ultimately was finished after a wild back and forth in the first round.

Materla found it hard to time the wrestler as he launched flying knees in his direction and threw clusters of hooks as he planted his feet.

Janikowski got caught with a clean left hook with two minutes left on the clock in the opening round. He turtled up on the ground and ate several shots before the referee stopped the fight.

Materla has booked a rematch with Scott Askham in the middleweight tournament final with the win.

Roberto Soldic claimed back the welterweight title with a win over Dricus Du Plessis with a stunning third-round knockout.

The Croatian was far more measured in his approach during the rematch compared to his explosive entry in their first title clash in April. He chewed up Du Plessis’ lead leg in the first round, before blasting him to the body with his rear leg in the second.

In the third round, he clattered Du Plessis with a left hand that put him down. He followed up the shot with grounded strikes before the referee waved off the action.

In the first middleweight tournament semi-final of the night, Scott Askham sliced through his second KSW counterpart, Marcin Wojcik, with a liver kick, booking himself a spot in the tournament final in the process. The win comes on the back of his spectacular debut that saw him finish Polish legend, Michal Materla, with the same technique.

Askham will now face Materla in a rematch to decide the tournament victor.