Looking to follow in the footsteps of Matt Serra (Pictures), Frank Edgar (Pictures) and Josh Koscheck (Pictures) among others, upstart lightweight Jim Miller solidified his status Friday as one of the Northeast's best young talents. The native of Sparta, N.J., successfully defended his Ring of Combat lightweight championship against Chris Liguori (Pictures) at the Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.

Miller and Liguori first met last November, when they traded rounds in a competitive affair. However, late in the second, a Miller elbow from the bottom opened a deep gash over the right eye of Liguori. The fight was halted, giving the 24-year-old Miller the victory but not a sense of fulfillment.

The two were again competitive in the rematch Friday. A back-and-forth opening round saw each fighter trade takedowns and time in top control, with each also opting to employ the rubber guard from the bottom.

The champion seized an opportunity in the second round. A southpaw, Miller connected with a sharp straight left that forced Liguori to shoot in for a takedown.

Miller then quickly locked up a deep guillotine with the arm in as Liguori tackled him to the mat. On the floor, Miller, who had taken seven of his nine victories by submission, turned to the side to extend his hips and forced a quick tap for the win at 2:22 of the second round.

In what turned out to be a miserable, foul-laden affair, Krzysztof Soszynski (Pictures) picked up his second straight DQ victory after Alex Andrade (Pictures) was disqualified for repeated low blows.

Although both men showed a willingness to throw heavy punches from the outside, the majority of the fight took place from the clinch, where the fighters looked to score with knees to the body. Andrade twice landed hard knees square on the cup of Soszynski, which dropped the Team Quest product to the mat in considerable pain.

After being docked a point by referee Dan Miragliotta for his first two transgressions, Andrade again dropped his opponent early in the second round with an errant kick to the groin that left Soszynski writhing in pain on the canvas.

Although he was warned that another foul would end the bout, Andrade again sought the clinch after Soszynski landed a volley of punches that backed him up and through the loose and problematic ring ropes. Working again with knees to the body inside, Andrade appeared to connect with another knee to the groin of Soszynski. He erased any doubt with two more knees square on the cup that forced Miragliotta to disqualify him at 4:46 of the second round.

Gregor Gracie had been tabbed as the "Next Generation Gracie" after beginning his career with two impressive victories. The 22-year-old was the victim of a vicious knockout, however, at the hands of Doug Gordon in his third pro bout.

Beginning the fight with an outside trip to the full mount, Gracie put two rounds in the bag via grappling and top control, taking side and full mount several times in a steady if not exciting fashion. Presumably down two rounds and thus needing a finish to win, Gordon struck with thunder early in the third. He launched a right high kick that caught Gracie flush on the jaw line, toppling him to the mat and out of consciousness. Referee Kevin Mulhall intervened just 12 seconds into the round.

Gregor's older brother, Igor Gracie, was also unable to notch a victory in his MMA debut against Tom Gallicchio. After opening with a takedown, the elder Gracie was strong from top position, stepping over Gallicchio's head and looking to finish with a kimura.

Gallicchio assumed top control after thwarting his opponent's submission attempts and began to pepper the BJJ black belt with shots from the half guard. Ill-prepared to face the tax of an MMA bout, Gracie's offense from a weak half guard became diminished over the last 10 minutes, and Gallicchio dominated both rounds with a sustained, methodical attack on top en route to a clear unanimous decision victory.

Full Results:
Jim Miller def. Chris Liguori submission (guillotine) 2:22 R2
Krzysztof Soszynski (Pictures) def. Alex Andrade (Pictures) disqualification (groin strikes) 4:46 R2
Doug Gordon def. Gregor Gracie KO (kick) 0:12 R3
Lyman Good (Pictures) def. Alexis Aquino unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) 3R
John Howard def. Jose Rodriguez KO 4:07 R1
Dan Miller (Pictures) No Contest (accidental headbutt) Mike Guerin R1
Tom Gallicchio def. Igor Gracie unanimous decision (29-28, 29-26, 29-27) 3R
James Jones def. Al Buck submission (kimura) 1:59 R1
Mike Medrano def. Rich Ashkar KO 0:17 R1
Ricardo Romero def. Randy Durant TKO 1:13 R1