LEMOORE, Calif., Jan. 18 — Eric "Butterbean" Esch was able to help put the Palace Fighting Championship on the map and in the history books on Thursday night at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino.

“Butterbean” (8-3-1) gave a sold-out crowd of over 1,500 exactly what they wanted to see — a vicious knockout.

The of Birmingham, Ala. fighter made short work of Madera’s Charles Hodges, knocking out the novice fighter in just 45 seconds of the first round.

Hodges (0-1) pushed the action early, swinging wildly with “Butterbean” covering as Hodges’ corner urged him to back off the pressure.

Suddenly, “Butterbean” opened up and unleashed a brutal combination, which ended with a right hand that put Hodges on the canvas.

In the co-main event, Capital City Fighting Alliance’s and Lemoore native, Poppies Martinez (Pictures) (9-2-0, 1 NC) won by unanimous decision over Josh Gardner (Pictures) (4-8) of Bakersfield in a lightweight bout.

“He was a tough guy,” Martinez said. “I really didn’t doubt him at all.”

Martinez was overwhelming, though, taking down Gardner in every round and putting on a precise demonstration of ground-and-pound skills.

Lemoore's Kenny Ento (Pictures) (6-1) won by referee stoppage due to strikes in 31 seconds of the first round over Tulare's Roy Arriola (Pictures) (1-2) in a middleweight bout.

“I said no armbars,” said Ento, who has won five of his six fights via the armbar submission. “I wanted this standing and it went exactly the way I said it would. I worked my jab, got the Muay-Thai clinch and got it done with knees.”

Shawn Bias (Pictures) (9-3-0, 1 NC) of Oroville defeated Stockton's Brandon Jennies in a lightweight bout by referee stoppage due to strikes in 1:36 of the first round.

In a controversial welterweight fight, Lemoore's Chris Botelho (Pictures) and Josh McCartney (Pictures) of Bakersfield had their bout end in a No Contest in the second round after Botelho was struck with an unintentional groin strike.

“I felt like I could have continued,” Botelho said. “But it was the fourth time that he hit me low. [Referee] Herb Dean (Pictures) didn’t think it was a good idea to continue. I’m just very disappointed that it ended this way in front of my home town fans.”

McCartney landed a nice early flurry that wobbled Botelho in the second round. Midway through the round, though, McCartney landed a knee that was ruled a groin shot by Dean. In the first round, McCartney lost a point for an obvious groin shot.

Clovis’ Ralph Lopez won by ref stoppage due to strikes in 1:15 of the first round over Fresno's Shahob Nasbaradi in a featherweight bout.

Parlier's Mike Moreno (Pictures) won by knockout over Visalia's Francisco Magallon in a welterweight bout in 37 seconds of the first round.

Tulare's Rafael Del Real submitted Madera's Rolando Torres (Pictures) via armbar in a light heavyweight bout in 2:08 of the third round.

Andrew Martinez (Pictures) of Lemoore defeated Taft's Billy Terry (Pictures) in a welterweight bout by unanimous decision.

Taft's Tommy Contreras won his pro debut by technical knockout due to strikes in the third round over Hanford's Brian Huerta.

In bantamweight action, Capital City Fighting Alliance’s Dave Espinosa, who is a former UC Davis wrestler, defeated Sacramento’s Nelson Ocampo by rear-naked choke in the second round.

“I really subscribe to a transcendental approach to life, in that we are always learning, always in a state of becoming,” said Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino Entertainment Director Christian Printup. “And seeing the Palace Fighting Championship go from me scribbling notes and ideas at 3 a.m. about six weeks ago to the live show tonight, a sold-out crowd, exciting fights, and highly energetic production values has been surreal. My staff and I have worked together to produce over 400 events together, but tonight is a day that will really stand out in our careers.”

Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Wes Sims (Pictures) will headline the March 22 card against Tulare’s Anthony Fuller (Pictures).

“I like this show. It’s a great setup,” Sims said. “For this being the first show, I’m very happy with the number of people here. If I had to rate this promotion on a scale of 1-10, I’d give it a 10 for a small show. If it keeps growing, I think it will be a great big show.”