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Ray Cooper III Avenges Father, Obliterates Jake Shields in Professional Fighters League




More than a decade after his father submitted to a rear-naked choke from Jake Shields at a Shooto Americas event in Honolulu, Ray Cooper III meted out some vengeance.

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Cooper cut down the former EliteXC and Strikeforce champion with punches in the second round of the Professional Fighters League 3 main event on Thursday at the GWU Smith Center in Washington, D.C. Shields (32-10-1, 1-1 PFL) succumbed to blows 2:09 into Round 2, as the 39-year-old Cesar Gracie disciple lost for the third time in four appearances.

A prohibitive underdog when he entered the cage, Cooper (14-4, 1-0 PFL) floored the Californian with a left hook in the center of the cage early in the middle stanza. Already bloody, Shields hit the deck in no condition to defend himself. Cooper unleashed a barrage of lefts and rights until his counterpart turtled in a show of surrender and forced referee Mario Yamasaki to intervene.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian welterweight Pavel Kusch delivered a massive upset of his own, as he submitted the heavily favored Abubakar Nurmagomedov with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their featured clash at 170 pounds. Nurmagomedov (14-2, 0-1 PFL) conceded defeat 1:23 into Round 2, his run of six consecutive victories at an end.

Kusch (23-5, 1-0 PFL) has rattled off 10 wins in 11 appearances.

Elsewhere, longtime Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Rick Story was victorious in his return from a two-year sabbatical, as he captured a unanimous decision from Yuri Villefort in a three-round welterweight showcase. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 30-27 for Story (20-9, 1-0 PFL), who competed for the first time since August 2016.

The loss snapped a five-fight winning streak for Villefort (11-6, 0-1 PFL).

Finally, Tataev Team prospect Shamil Gamzatov kept his perfect professional record intact with a unanimous decision over Eddie Gordon, as he outpointed “The Ultimate Fighter 19” winner across three rounds at 185 pounds. Gamzatov (12-0, 1-0 PFL) swept the scorecards with 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 marks from the judges.

The 35-year-old Gordon (8-5, 0-1 PFL) has lost four of his last five fights.

In other action, former Ring of Combat champion John Howard submitted Gasan Umalatov with a rear-naked choke 2:59 into the second round of their welterweight confrontation; Magomed Magomedkerimov tapped Herman Terrado with a rear-naked choke 4:54 into the first round of their welterweight scrap; Joao Zeferino put away Paul Bradley with punches 1:58 into the first round of their welterweight encounter; Bruno Santos took a unanimous decision from Sadibou Sy in a three-round battle at 185 pounds, eliciting 29-28 scores from all three judges; Louis Taylor cut down Anderson Goncalves with punches 58 seconds into the third round of their middleweight affair; Rex Harris eked out a split decision -- 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 -- over Andre Luis Leal Lobato in a 15-minute encounter at 185 pounds; Abusupiyan Magomedov disposed of Danillo Villefort with a front kick to the body and follow-up punches 3:37 into the first round of their middleweight duel; and Bojan Velickovic swept away Jonatan Westin with punches 2:50 into the second round of their welterweight showdown.
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