SET FOR FEBRUARY 26, 2022 (Saturday) is the Daisy Fresh Vs Europe event set up by one of the premier British grappling promotions, GrappleFest. Daisy Fresh, also known as Pedigo Submission Fighting is one of the rising American talent developing academies in jiu-jitsu, whose competitive success and popular YouTube vlog series have raised thousands of fans and followers. Led by Heath Pedigo, PSF has been the driving force behind big names of the BJJ world such as Andrew Wiltse, Jacob Couch, Tad Kravens, Jakob Brooks, to name a few.
Although the event is marketed as “Daisy Fresh Vs Europe”, there are a couple of tiny caveats to this tag, considering that a few of the names on the lineup are not full members of the PSF squad. More recognizable names such as IBJJF World No-Gi Champion Kendall Reusing – who you probably have seen representing Gracie Barra – and ADCC US Trials winner John Hansen (of Axious). Nevertheless, these are mere technicalities as both Reusing and Hansen do train with the PSF crew somewhat regularly and will undoubtedly do their very best to represent the Mt. Vernon, Illinois, team.
Check the full main-card matches below, as well as a short preview of what you may expect from the main clashes on offer, come February 26.
DANTE LEON V MATEUSZ SZCZECINSKI U80KG (GF TITLE)
Arguably the most fun match on the card is the clash between Leon and Szczecinski, which has all the ingredients for a Match Of The Night award. Dante is rarely in a boring match. Strong, fast, aggressive, experienced, and highly proficient at taking people’s backs, the Canadian has the tools required to retain the Grapple Fest 80 kilogram belt but don’t sleep on Mateusz. Although not a big star on the international scene (yet), Sczecinski is one of the finest grapplers in Europe today, being particularly well prepared in the leg-locking game.
This will be an interesting clash of styles between the more traditional positional hierarchy approach of Leon (jiu-jitsu), if you may, versus the more leg-locking / submission-only style of the Polish grappler.
KENDALL REUSING V FFION DAVIES OPEN WEIGHT (GF TITLE)
The always tenacious Ffion Davies will face one of America’s rising talents in Kendall Reusing. Both athletes prefer to play from the top, and both have excellent stand-up. That said, we might see Davies opting to play from her back given Kendall’s size and wrestling pedigree. Time will tell.
Although this is a super-heavyweight (Kendall) vs a featherweight (Ffion) clash, the favoritism here might very well be on the smaller athlete, given the type of competition she’s beaten and the titles she has held in the sport. Regardless of who comes out with her arm raised, this should be a very fun fight to follow.
MIKEY MUSUMECI V KEV CORKHILL U60KG
Sadly we have no information on Mr. Corkhill as we have never seen him compete. Mikey, on the other hand, is arguably the most prolific roosterweight athlete of his generation, so expect him to be a heavy, heavy favorite in this clash.
JOHN HANSEN V JAMIE HUGHES OPEN WEIGHT (GF TITLE)
Another fun match between two very big boys with fun grappling styles. Hansen is the most decorated of the two, particularly without the gi, being a 2x ADCC Trials winner in the US. Hughes, on the other hand, is one of the most well-respected jiu-jitsu veterans in Britain, with a wealth of experience on the European circuit and a worthy opponent.
JACOB COUCH V SANTERI LILIUS U90KG
The sleeper match on the card is the clash between America’s rising talent “The Hillbilly Hammer” Couch and Europe’s veteran athlete, Santeri Lilius of Finland.
Residing in Spain over the past few years, Lilius brings a wealth of experience to the table, having competed extensively and successfully across a range of grappling rulesets, from IBJJF and ADCC to submission-only. His experience will be fully tested against the brown belt Jacob Couch.
Extremely proficient at the leg-lock game, Couch will have a size advantage while also being an absolute killer from the 50-50 guard. Santeri would be wise to avoid a leg-locking battle with the crafty guard player, but time will tell what type of strategy will favor the Finn. Tip-top match-up.
MATTY HOLMES V BRAD SCHNEIDER U90KG
JORGE VALLADARES V JACK TYLEY U80KG
OWEN LIVESEY V PAUL LUKOWSKI U100KG
CHRIS HAYES V TOMMY YIP U60KG
NADINE TAVARES V SIMONE CAFFREY U60KG
BEN HILLS V DES PARKER U80KG
HARRY McNIGHT V REECE DORAN U80KG
SHELBY MURPHY V MARA KELLY U50KG
CIARAN BROHAN V JAY BUTLER U70KG
ROSA WALSH V MARINA MAVROU U60KG
SHANE CURTIS V JEREMY PARES U80KG
When is the undercard?? Cant wait!!