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Anjos Slips by Otsuka at Fury FC 6

Rafael dos Anjos was looking to follow in the footsteps of Thiago Silva (Pictures) and Rousimar "Toquinho" Palhares (Pictures) by using Brazilian promotion Fury FC as a springboard to the big stage.

However, the upstart was unable to heat things up in his lightweight title clash with Japan's Takafumi Otsuka on a chilly night inside the Pedro Jahara Gymnasium in Teresópolis, Brazil.

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Anjos looked every bit the star prospect over the first half of the fight, dominating the first round in top position while pinning Otsuka in the corner of the ring and methodically pounding away on top. Early in the second stage, it looked as if it would be more of the same, as dos Anjos elevated Otsuka sky-high for a single-leg slam.

Otsuka was able to stifle dos Anjos' offense late in the second frame, and took the top position to arguably steal the round with a potent salvo of punches and hammer fists on top.

The third period was a copy of the second, as the Gracie Fusion grappler fiercely sought the takedown, but was unable to mount any offense on top. Late in the stanza, Otsuka was able to finish a takedown of his own, and again laid in with a late flurry of punches to make the bout a difficult decision for the judges.

When the scorecards were announced, dos Anjos took a razor-thin split decision, securing both the Fury FC lightweight championship and a mixed response from the Teresopolis crowd.

In a 170-pound affair, Fabricio "Pitbull" Monteiro (Pictures) got back into the win column with a first-round submission of Japanese import Yoshitomo Watanabe (Pictures).

Monteiro had lost three straight, with his last bout being a highly controversial decision to welterweight standout Nick Thompson (Pictures) on Sengoku's inaugural card in March.

"Pitbull" made the most of what amounted to a tuneup fight, trading with Watanabe on the feet before putting his adversary on the canvas and advancing position until he got his opponent's back.

A slick rear-naked choke followed, ending Monteiro's three-fight skid.

In the Fury FC lightweight grand prix opening round, Vitor Toffanelli took a unanimous decision over Paulo Bueno, Henrique Mello (Pictures) stopped Gabriel Veiga with punches in the first frame, and Mauricio Reis took a well-earned unanimous nod over Giovani Diniz (Pictures). The most impressive fighter to punch his ticket to the final four was Gracie Fusion's Eduardo "Edu" Pachu, who battered Adriano Goncalves both standing and on the floor, before finishing his foe with an armbar late in the third.

The promotion's middleweight grand prix also unfolded, and saw Jorge Michelan knock late replacement Matheus Serafim down and out in the second round; Cassiano Tytschyo (Pictures) took a guillotine submission victory over the massively popular Rodrigo Ribeiro Ximbica in the first; and Leandro "Batata" Silva (Pictures) stopped Rodrigo Pimpolho with a short hook in the opening period.

By far the best performance in the middleweight quarterfinals was turned in by BJJ standout Eduardo "Telles" Moreira. The innovator of the turtle and octopus guard in the grappling world showed off his KO power, starching previously undefeated prospect Rafael Sapo with a head kick early in the second.

Fury FC promoter Victor Costa announced to the crowd that the semifinals and finals of the lightweight and middleweight tournaments would be contested later this year, on Nov. 8 in Teresópolis.
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