Jesse Finney gets choked out by Josh Neer...

From AroundtheOctogon.com:

Josh Neer didn’t engage in a stand-up battle with Jesse Finney like he suggested he might in Saturday’s main event of Fight Me MMA 1: The Battle Begins! Finney vs. Neer at the Family Arena just outside of St. Louis.

Instead, the UFC veteran finished with a dominating win.

In front of a sold-out pro-Finney crowd, Neer repeatedly took down the St. Louis native, finishing him off with a guillotine submission late in the first round. After the heated talk leading up to the fight, the victory tasted especially sweet for Neer (28-10-1).

“This is definitely pleasing,” Neer said. “I like to embrace the fight. I love to fight and when I get in there, I want to have a good time. “I had a lot of fun in there.”

He wasn’t alone on a festive and action-packed night. It was a rewarding night for the Fight Me promotion, which entered the mixed martial arts game with a successful and entertaining debut night in front of an energetic crowd.

Neer fed off that, intensely staring down Finney before handing the Strikeforce veteran his first career loss. Neer appeared to have the strength advantage, taking Finney down and mounting him twice in the first round. Finney (6-1) gallantly battled through most of it, but one last powerful surge from Neer was enough for “The Dentist” to pick up the victory.

“I wanted to take him down,” Neer said. “My guys kept telling me, ‘Let’s take him down and beat him up’ and that’s what I did.”

I was there and it was a 100% Neer beatdown. I wont rehash the details but the outcome was clear from the opening seconds.

Can we please revisit a potential grudgematch between Berger and Finney? Berger is clearly on the backside of his career (fighting on club shows in the Metro East should be an indication) but he wants the fight and he wants it badly. Finney isn't the undefeated high flying prospect after his dismal performance on Saturday. He might not have had much to gain by fighting Berger prior to the Neer loss. It's a different story now. This fight will sell well in STL and both guys will get a nice payday. It'll also settle the long standing debate on who is the better fighter.

Good luck on that. Finney doesn't need a big "payday" and he doesn't give a shit about who is debating what.

shooter1 wrote:

Good luck on that. Finney doesn't need a big "payday" and he doesn't give a shit about who is debating what.

Shooter, my unbiased question here is - what is Jesse fighting for at the moment? He is a huge name in STL combat sports - and like you said, he doesn't need the money...

Is he trying to win titles, or trying to get his name out there nationally? Mayweather didn't need to fight Gatti or Judah, but he did because the fans wanted to see it. Both fights generated lots of money and many fans who would have cared less about either guy bought the PPVs.

Where does this fight leave Jesse Finney as a professional MMA combatant? I don't know him, and since he's local - it's something I'm interested in.

D

I haven't talked to him since the fight so I don't know what his plans are. I think Jesse doesn't want to look back at anything and wonder what could have been. He lives to compete at everything and is constantly testing himself. Mayweather's nickname is "money". He fought Judah and Gatti for the dough and easy victories.

shooter1 wrote:

I haven't talked to him since the fight so I don't know what his plans are. I think Jesse doesn't want to look back at anything and wonder what could have been. He lives to compete at everything and is constantly testing himself. Mayweather's nickname is "money". He fought Judah and Gatti for the dough and easy victories.

LOL - I was testing you with the Mayweather stuff. You passed.

In all seriousness, you know him better than anyone - and I trust what you are saying. I wonder where Jesse fits in in the grand MMA scheme - is the Ultimate Fighter something we would see him compete in? I am really going to have to pay more attention to the local MMA scene. I wish I was more educated. Thanks for the insight brother.