Eddie Cummings Submits Everybody, Retains EBI Featherweight Championship

There wasn’t a man that Eddie Cummings couldn’t submit Saturday night throughout the Eddie Bravo Invitational 7 featherweight tournament.

Cummings looked nearly invincible on the white EBI mat as he steamrolled everybody he faced en route to retaining his featherweight championship. Cummings was so precise, so smooth that he made his four opponents all tap out in a combined eight minutes, 46 seconds. And it wasn’t like Cummings was taking on a steady diet of stiffs, either; top-shelf grapplers Sergio Hernandez, Chad George, Mike Davila and Bill Cooper all had to bail in their matches to either the heel hook or rear-naked choke.

Cummings first opposed Hernandez, who took the eventual tournament champion the longest to put away. At the 4:20 of their encounter, Hernandez fell victim to the RNC. George was next in line but he succumbed to a heel hook in just 20 seconds, followed by Davila exiting their semifinals match at 2:41 courtesy of the RNC as well.

Cummings barely broke a sweat and was as fresh as possible entering the finals against Cooper. After landing a rear-naked choke against Ian Sanders in overtime, followed by a relatively quick dispatching of Jose Gutierrez via heel hook at 3:32 (Gutierrez filled in for the injured Denny Prokopos, who had to withdraw from the bracket thanks to a broken rib), Cooper punched his ticket to the finals when he snatched Geo Martinez’ arm in overtime and forced the tap.

It was a polar opposite manner in which both combatants made it to the finals but considering how little energy Cummings expended compared to Cooper, it seemed like a no-brainer that the champ would retain his crown. He did, forcing Cooper to opt out of the match with another nasty heel hook just 1:45 into their fight.

With the string of regulation time submissions, Cummings pocketed an extra $20K ($5K per submission) on top of the $20K he got for winning the entire tournament. His performance electrified the capacity crowd inside The Orpheum in downtown Los Angeles and likely did the same to those who watched on UFC Fight Pass.

EBI 7 scattered three outstanding special matches featuring the young ladies of jiu jitsu, all teenagers with immense talent and bright futures in the sport. In the first super fight, Cora Sek battled with Zoey Chiles tooth and nail until Sek landed an armbar in overtime. Danielle Garcia went to war with Jasmine Johnson and eventually got an overtime submission via rear-naked choke. Finally, Grace Gundrum latched on an armbar against Janelle Tkacuk and forced the tap at 6:58.

Full results of EBI 7:

Featherweight tournament opening round
Eddie Cummings def. Sergio Hernandez via rear-naked choke at 4:20
Chad George def. Geoff Real via quickest escape in overtime
Mike Davila def. Joao Marinho via heel hook at 4:51
Baret Yoshida def. Alex Ecklin via rear-naked choke at 2:20
Bill Cooper def. Ian Sanders via rear-naked choke in overtime
Denny Prokopos def. Jose Gutierrez via rear-naked choke in overtime
Rafael Domingos def. Ashley Williams via rear-naked choke in overtime
Geo Martinez def. Mikey Main via heel hook at 9:00

Quarterfinals

Eddie Cummings def. Chad George via heel hook at :20
Mike Davila def. Baret Yoshida via armbar in overtime
Bill Cooper def. Jose Gutierrez via heel hook at 3:32 (Gutierrez replaced Prokopos thanks to a broken rib)
Geo Martine def. Rafael Domingos via triangle choke at 9:03

Semifinals

Eddie Cummings def. Mike Davila via rear-naked choke at 2:41
Bill Cooper vs. Geo Martinez via armbar in overtime

Finals

Eddie Cummings def. Bill Cooper via heel hook 1:45 to retain EBI featherweight belt

Special Matches

Cora Sek def. Zoey Chiles via armbar in overtime
Danielle Garcia def. Jasmine Johnson via rear-naked choke in overtime
Grace Gundrum def. Janelle Tkaczuk via armbar at 6:58