Rising black belt Kody Steele took on Gracie Barra star Edwin Najmi at 3rd Coast Grappling 5 in an action-packed match that was filled with big submission attempts and a nail-biting slam.
After some hand-fighting on the feet, Najmi made the first big move, scooping up a single-leg for a takedown attempt. Steele defended, and Najmi tried again, and though Steele defended the single-leg again, Najmi managed to chase him to the ground. Steele scrambled to get the top position, ultimately winding up in a loose triangle. However, since the competitors had tumbled out of bounds, they were reset in the center in a neutral standing position.
Steele then went for a takedown, but ended up in what seemed to be a tight guillotine. Still, Steele defended well, breaking free from the guillotine and going for a single-leg of his own. After trying to sweep Najmi’s other foot out from under him, Steele lifted Najmi off the ground and slammed him nearly on his neck, getting two points for the takedown. Najmi, however, seemed unfazed and went for a leg, with Steele defending and going for a leg himself. After going out of bounds again, they were again reset neutrally.
Najmi sat and pulled half-guard, eventually coming up and chasing Steele down to impose a guillotine on him again. He switched to a d’arce as Steele tried to sprawl out, and Steele managed to get out and move to side control, where he went for a head-arm choke of his own. Though Najmi seemed to try for a buggy choke, he wasn’t able to land a submission before time ran out in regulation. Steele, up on points, chose the standing neutral position to start in overtime.
Steele made the first big move in overtime with a takedown shot, though Najmi was able to avoid danger. Steele then grabbed a body lock and tried repeatedly to slam Najmi down, but Najmi was able to scramble his way out, pulling guard after going out of bounds and being reset. After neither competitor was able to get anything done, Najmi returned to his feet with about a minute left in overtime. Najmi repeatedly shot for takedowns, all of which were defended by Steele, who countered with a takedown attempt of his own. The back-and-forth action didn’t yield any points or submissions, though, and OT finished with the scoreboard at 0-0.
Steele was awarded the victory by judges’ decision.
