Sylvia’s downward spiral bottomed-out at 2:32 versus Jason Reily (6-2).  Sylvia dropped the North American Allied Fight Series heavyweight champion with an overhand left, then finished him on the mat with hammerfists.

Alexander was even quicker, setting-up Sylvia’s training partner at Militech Fighting Systems, “Tank” Sherman Pendergarst (11-15), with chopping leg kicks, before putting him on the mat with a bone-crushing knee to Pendergarst’s body, and finishing him with punches at 1:51.

Both fighters moved up a weight class.  Sylvia weighed 287 pounds for the fight, 22 pounds over the Unified Rules heavyweight limit, but 23.6 pounds less than his disastrous KO loss to “Merciless” Ray Mercer (1-1) at Adrenaline MMA 3 in Birmingham June 13.  Alexander’s matchup versus Pendergarst was contested in the heavyweight division.

Monte Cox both promotes Adrenaline MMA and manages Sylvia and Alexander and this fourth iteration was conceived specifically to get Alexander a payday and some cage time after a year long hiatus from the Octagon.  The opposition Sylvia and Alexander faced wasn’t UFC-level, but the stakes for each fighter were all-or-nothing.

After losing to Mercer in what was supposed to be a boxing match until the Association of Boxing Commissions reversed their sanctioning policy days before the event, Sylvia found himself peering out of the deepest trench of his underrated career.  A source close to Adrenaline MMA confided to Fighters.com that Alexander’s UFC career was on the line versus Pendergarst.

Both fighters now find themselves out of the quicksand of losses and on stable ground to regain former glory.  Sylvia plans to fight again before the end of 2009 and Alexander might return to the Octagon as early as December.

Perhaps it goes without saying; but, Fighters.com wanted to verify the stakes for Alexander. “Oh, yeah. If he loses, that’s it with the UFC,” said Fighters.com’s source.

Alexander exploded onto the international MMA scene when he TKO’d “Dean of Mean” Keith Jardine (14-6-1) in 48 seconds in Alexander’s Octagon debut at UFC 71 in Las Vegas in May 2007, but has been shelved by the UFC since losing his third straight when he tapped in an arm triangle to “Red” Eric Schafer (12-4-2) at UFC Fight Night 15 in Omaha in September 2008.

And, according to Fighters.com’s source, the UFC had warned Alexander he wouldn’t have another opportunity to fight in the Octagon until December. Adrenaline MMA 4 in Alexander’s hometown of Omaha is manager and Adrenaline MMA CEO Monte Cox’s way to get Alexander a pay day and some cage time in the interim.

Veteran heavyweight Pendergarst has lost five consecutive fights, but has submitted his opponent in eight of his 11 wins.

Alexander has been submitted twice and was TKO’d on his back versus Thiago Silva (15-1) at UFC 78 in Newark in November 2007. As phenomenal as Alexander has been on his feet, he’s been as abysmal on his back. And, the fight will be in the heayvweight division, Pendergarst’s optimal weight class.

It’s rare the UFC allows one of it’s fighters to fight outside the Octagon while remaining contracted to the UFC. It’s rarer still so much is at stake for that fighter. And, remember that it was at Adrenaline MMA 3 in Birmingham 13 June where former UFC heavyweight champion “Maine-iac” Tim Sylvia (24-6) was upset by “Merciless” Ray Mercer (1-0) in a nine-second KO.

Sylvia will return at Adrenaline MMA 4 versus Jason Riley (6-1). Riley knocked out Justin Black (2-2) for the heavyweight title at Caged Vengence 4 in Columbus 3 April.

Adrenaline MMA 4 will be held at the Mid-American Center in Council Bluffs on 18 September. The undercard will start at 7:30 PM; the main card will be broadcast on HDNet beginning at 9:00 PM. Pre-sale tickets start at $33 for general admission, $103 ringside, and $530 for a table of ten. Purchase tickets at Ticketmaster.

The rest of the card includes:

HDNet Broadcast at 9:00 PM:
“Grinder” Chad Reiner (19-8) v “Meat Cleaver” Forrest Petz (13-7)
Alonzo Martinez (22-10-1) v Ryan Williams (10-4)
Jeremy Lang (13-1) v Matt Delanoit (13-6)
Joe Vedepo (9-2) v Webster Farris (1-0)
James Siepel (4-1) v Bob Tuttle (0-0)

Untelevised:
Todd Meneely (0-0) v Corey McDonald (1-1)
Dustin Smith (2-0) v Marcos Marquez (3-1)
Matt Bentley (0-1) v Danny Black (1-0)
John Hansen (3-1) v Gregg Van der Creek (0-0)
Dakota Cochrane (3-0) v Bill Holcombe (1-1)
Ryan Shell (0-1) v Roberto Rojas (4-0)

On a three-fight losing streak and most recently on the horizontal end of a “Merciless” Ray Mercer (1-0) nine-second knockout at Adrenaline MMA 3 in Birmingham 13 June, Sylvia will get to diggin’ himself out of the deepest trench of his underrated career versus Jason Riley (6-1).

Riley knocked out Justin Black (2-2) for the heavyweight title at Caged Vengence 4 in Columbus 3 April.

After three first-round losses in the Octagon, Alexander gets a pass from the UFC to fight “Tank” Sherman Pendergarst (11-14), training partner of Sylvia.

At UFC Fight Night 15 in Omaha in September 2008, Alexander tapped in a arm triangle to “Red” Eric Schafer (12-4-2). Alexander is still under contract to the UFC, but has been given the opportunity to get some action while he awaits his next Octagon appearance.

One-time UFCer Pendergarst has lost five in a row, most recently a first-round TKO to Joey Beltran (7-1) at Bellator 5 in Dayton 1 May.

Middleweight Jake Ellenberger (20-4) was pegged to fight Adrenaline 4 until he was happily poached by the UFC to fight “Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit (23-5) at Fight Night 19 in Oklahoma City 16 September.

Adrenaline MMA 4 will be held at the Mid-American Center in Council Bluffs on 18 September. The undercard will start at 7:30 PM; the main card will be broadcast on HDNet beginning at 9:00 PM. Pre-sale tickets start at $33 for general admission, $103 ringside, and $530 for a table of ten. Purchase tickets at Ticketmaster.

The rest of the card includes:

HDNet Broadcast at 9:00 PM:
“Grinder” Chad Reiner (19-8) v “Meat Cleaver” Forrest Petz (13-7)
Alonzo Martinez (22-10-1) v Ryan Williams (10-4)
Jeremy Lang (13-1) v Matt Delanoit (13-6)
Joe Vedepo (9-2) v Webster Farris (1-0)
James Siepel (4-1) v Bob Tuttle (0-0)

Untelevised:
Todd Meneely (0-0) v Corey McDonald (1-1)
Dustin Smith (2-0) v Marcos Marquez (3-1)
Matt Bentley (0-1) v Danny Black (1-0)
John Hansen (3-1) v Gregg Van der Creek (0-0)
Dakota Cochrane (3-0) v Bill Holcombe (1-1)
Ryan Shell (0-1) v Roberto Rojas (4-0)

In non-tournament action, forty-four-year old original Ultimate Fighter challenger Patrick Smith (15-13) submitted 417-pound “Butterbean” Eric Esch (10-6-1) with strikes.

And, “The Russian Bear” Oleg Taktarov (16-5-2) also won by submission over “The Titan” Mark Kerr (15-7).

The tournament featured one-round fight-offs into the semi-finals.

Wiuff drew Brazilian Marcel Pereira (0-1) and pummeled the jits player on the mat over five minutes for the unanimous decision.

The tourney had commenced with an Alexey Oleinik (7-4) front-choke submission of “The Tank” Sherman Pendergarst at 4:18.

Chris Tuscherer (13-1) had dominated Tony Sylvester (10-2) for a unanimous decision.

And, former UFC Heavyweight Champion “Suave” Ricco Rodriguez (28-9) had taken George Bush (5-1) down at will to score a UD.

The second round also featured one-round fight-offs pairing Oleinik versus Tuscherer and Wiuff versus Rodriguez.

Again, Tuscherer dominated his opponent in G’n'P fury for a unanimous decision; and, Wiuff similarly overwhelmed the veteran Rodriguez, also for a UD.

In the three-round tournament final, Tuscherer didn’t do more than frustrate the seemingly fresher Wiuff.  Wiuff closed out round one with a left-right combo that bloodied Tuscherer.  Rounds two and three were fought mostly on the mat, with Wiuff unloading ground’n'pound in spurts while Tuscherer was somewhat effective tying him up.

At the final bell, Wiuff took all three judges’ cards 30-27 twice and 29-28.

In the event’s “Masters Superfight” main event, Smith shredded Bean’s pillar-like legs with kicks that eventually fell the massive man.  Esch was helpless on his back as Smith beat him to verbal submission at 3:17 of round one.

After absorbing a massive right from Kerr in the other “Masters Superfight”, Taktarov swept into a side kneebar to tap “The Titan” at 1:50 of round one.

The night had popped-off at the end of a “Philly Badass” Lamont Lister (4-3) overhand right that dropped Russian Oleg Savitsky (1-2) in a tournament alternate bout.  “Badass” finished him on the mat for a 33-second TKO.

In the other tourney alternate bout, Bryan Vetell (4-3) won a one-round unanimous decision over Antwain Britt (3-1).

The event will air live from the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on April 11, 2008.  Tickets for the event will go on sale March 8, and can be purchased through  Ticketmaster.

This first matchup will witness two MMA legends battle in a totally new and unique arena.  The veteran fighters will face off in one of the ‘Masters Superfights’, one-on-one matches that feature some of MMA’s most illustrious and legendary fighters. 

“Don Frye needs to do only two things: fly to Russia and stay there for ten years to study Sambo.  Then, maybe he’ll be ready,” said Oleg Taktarov about his upcoming face off with Frye.

In addition to the Superfights, the 11 April event will showcase the skill and endurance of eight fearsome competitors in a tournament match for the title of YAMMA Heavyweight Champion.  Tournament fighters include:

“Pato” Marcelo Pereira – a multiple world and Brazil BJJ champion known for his strong chin and very heavy hands with an MMA record of 5-0-0.

Sherman Pendergarst – a 6’1 230-pound former collegiate wrestler and state high school wrestling champion with a background in BJJ, boxing, and kickboxing with an MMA record of 10-8-0.

Rex Richards – a former lineman for the Indianapolis Colts and Machado BJJ brown belt.  Richards is a veteran of Strike Force and Art of War with a professional mixed martial arts record of 4-1-0.

Tony Sylvester – a boxing/wrestling expert who is considered to be one of the top up-and-coming heavyweights in the nation with a MMA record of 10-1-0.

“The Diesel” Travis Wiuff – a UFC, Pride and IFL veteran, and current IFO World Champion with an MMA record of 47-11-0.  He is known for his well-rounded fighting style with vicious elbows on the ground

The additional three tournament fighters will be announced in the coming weeks.