Rumble Time: Evolution - Event Recap

Eric Irvin emptied his tool belt.

Closing in on a year since his last fight, Irvin was both methodical and effective and showed nearly every offensive aspect of mixed martial arts as he finished Tyler Combs with a third round armbar in the main event of Saturday's Rumble Time Promotions Evolution at the Ameristar Casino.

The win improved Irvin's record to 8-3.

Irvin landed some nice knees in the clinch and connected with some dirty boxing to open the fight. He kept pressing the offense against Combs, who displayed tremendous resolve.

Irvin peppered away at Combs, especially in the second round, but the fighter was in zombie mode, withstanding the punishment and asking for more.

Irvin sensed victory early in the third and jumped on an armbar to seal the win.

The night's co-main event came to a dissatisfied conclusion.

Yohance Flagger was disqualified early in the second round in his fight with Ray Grindstaff. Referee Mike England stopped the bout after Flagger landed his third below-the-belt kick of the fight, seconds into the round that sent Grindstaff to the ground, writhing in pain.

In a choppy first round, Flagger was able to secure two takedowns but the two stoppages for low kicks took out any flow.

Hugh Pulley improved to 3-0 with three quick, first round stoppages. Pulley sent Bill Miller hard to the canvas with a powerful leg kick. From there, Pulley swarmed. Both patient and powerful with punches and elbows, Pulley closed the fight with a TKO.

Jake Roberts drew the loudest of ovations of the night. The highly-touted amateur made his pro debut against New Mexico's Raul Roses.

Roberts landed some nice punches downs the pipe and pinned Roses to the cage. The two traded knees with Roberts landing the bulk of them. When the fight got to the floor Roberts was mounted briefly before escaping and during a scramble, sunk in a fight-ending triangle for the submission victory.

Aside from the first few minutes of the first round, Kendrick Latchman was in control for his pro debut, scoring a unanimous 30-27 win over Juan Aranda.

Latchman showcased strong clinch work early in the second round and then went for the finish with knees and elbows while standing over a downed Aranda. Latchman continued to dominate the round as the pace settled.

Marissa Smith and Gina Begley showed why they were the featured bout of the undercard.

Smith remained undefeated, earning a 29-28 unanimous decision win over a talented Begley.

Begley was slick early on, securing a quick takedown and going for an armbar. Smith was able to slam her way out of it but Begley ended up in side control and began to work and smother. Smith started to generate some offense but Begley again lured her into an armbar attempt but Smith displayed good defense and landed several punches in the process.

Smith started off the second round with a quick combination and worked Begley to the ground. Smith revved up the offense and Begley was only able to slow things down by connecting on a solid up kick. But Smith continued to bring the heat with her ground and pound, nearly finishing the fight in the second round.

Smith kept the pedal down in the third and Begley show resilience, refusing to go away. In the end, the two convincing rounds were undeniable as Smith improved to 8-0.

In other action, Montuelle Prater declared he was going pro after finishing Yerick White with an arm bar in the second round.

Jarrod Thomas won in 45 seconds over Bryan Reynolds. Michelle Pearce won by first round TKO over Janet Lee and Kenneth Kinder guillotined Robert Salamone in the first round.

Rumble Time returns May 31 at the Ameristar.