Nothing says Tuesday like a comfy couch and Bodog on the tube. We’re coming from lovely Costa Rica and, man, that looks like it beats the poop out of my soggy town. Summer can come around anytime.

Bodog has really, REALLY improved their intro. If you don’t recall what last season looked like click here.

Anyway, on to tonight’s show. First up, we have heavyweights. Bodog’s heavyweight fights have traditionally been train wrecks. This one might prove a little differently as both fighters look to be in decent shape. Dan “The Viking” Evensen takes on Jeremiah “Good Ol’ Boy” Constant.

Evensen is 6’5” and looks like an absolute psycho. Unlike many in his division, he has that rare gift, charisma. Constant looks like a game opponent, but in the run-up to the fight, it is mentioned that he wants to fight on the ground and, of more concern, he runs out of gas easily. This is mentioned several times and I wonder if this is a bit of foreshadowing. Evensen has lost his last two and is anxious to get back on track. Constant has four wins all by submission. In any case, the fighters tromp out to the ring and we’re ready to go.

1 – DAN EVENSEN (5-2, 3 TKO, 1 Sub) vs. JEREMIAH CONSTANT (4-1, 4 Sub)

ROUND 1 – They’ve split up the Vanilla Twins and Lazenby has developed a personality. From time-to-time they cut to Jeff Osbourne, who is elsewhere on the beach. Osbourne is the fight commissioner and, by the looks of things, he’s doing a great job. But, please, he’s not adding much to the broadcast. Let him work behind the scenes. What happened to Royce? OK, on to the fight. Evensen is much taller than Constant and looks to be in better shape. Constant drives in and eats a jab for his trouble. Despite this, he plows Evensen into the corner. Evensen shows some good takedown defense and pops Constant with a big knee to the gut that drops Constant. This allows the fighters to break and create some space. Constant charges in again and eats a punch again. Evensen backs off as Constant has a hold of his left leg. He grabs the top rope to keep from falling far and maintains his balance on one knee. Constant’s head is open and Evensen lands a flurry of hammerfists. During the eighth or ninth, Constant flops to the canvas and it is all over.

RESULT – Dan Evensen by TKO in Round 1

RATING – (**) Evensen looked pretty good. He’s big and has some heavy hands. Constant looked pretty marked up afterwards. Plus, he is good on the mic. His post-fight interview was very entertaining. He calls his hammerfists the “Pimp Hammer” and has a shirt to match. Constant was meh. He gave it a good go and that’s all you can ask. I like Evensen’s panache. Shoot, if he improves a little, I’d put him in my top ten just for being entertaining.

We go to a commercial break and return to sunny Costa Rica and the lovely scenery that is in residence. I wonder if they need any docs in Costa Rica?

We go to fight number two. Welterweights this time with Stephen Haigh against Takuya Wada. Wada is a Shooto and Pancrase veteran, although he has eight draws on his record. How does that happen? Most of his fights seem to go the distance. Haigh, on the other hand, is the trainer for Bodog champ Eddie Alvarez. The rumour is that Haigh is a very good fighter in his own right and is drawing all sorts of attention to his fight camp, The Fight Factory, in Philadelphia. Osbourne calls it another striker against grappler matchup. So far, strikers have done pretty well which goes right in line with my cage vs. ring theory. Did I say theory? Didn’t mean to bore you. Really. Let’s get to it.

2 – STEPHEN HAIGH (3-2) vs. TAKUYA WADA (14-7-8, 5 Sub)

ROUND 1 – The air horn sounds and the fighters circle which leads to some interesting commentary. We get some gems as “Each fighter is showing the other a lot of respect” and “That was an exploratory left jab”. Exploratory. I like that. The fighters explore for about the first three minutes of the round. Haigh is more active and lands more jabs and leg kicks. There’s an unintentional low blow for Wada. No harm done, it seems. The action picks up with about a minute or two left, when Wada throws a good right leg kick and Haigh counters almost simultaneously with a right hook. Both shots connect and they go to the ground. Wada’s on top and Haigh furiously scrambles to get guard. He does, but Wada is very active and is landing a bunch of punches. Haigh hangs on and the round ends. I thought it was a very tough round to score and so does Osbourne who reluctantly calls it even at 10-10. No shame there, Jeff, I think you’re right.

ROUND 2 – The fighters return to exploring for the second round. With about three and a half minutes left, we get another double strike. It’s an exact replay from round one with a kick from Wada and a punch from Haigh. They don’t go down though. They just keep exploring. The pace has slowed considerably and Wada hasn’t done much at all. With around a minute to go, Wada lands a front kick, but it was a slow round for both. Haigh probably won the round though with a little more activity.

Before round 3, we get more scenery (Hey, Calvin, do you need a fight doc? Gimme a call!). The Bodog founder comments on Bodog’s commitment to broaden MMA exposure to the masses and increase the fan base. He admits that he’s a fan and the show gives him a chance to be a fan. I will say that they are doing a very good job in increasing availability and exposure. The fights have been better this year. You can’t beat free replays of the fights online. And, you can’t complain about them overpimping their product. They advertise and get your attention, but it doesn’t feel like it’s been days between fights.

ROUND 3 – Haigh is tired of exploring and stakes his claim by wading right into Wada to start the round. He cracks Wada with a good right hand and pushes the pace. Wada, getting the signal, shoots and Haigh falls down into Wada’s guard. He quickly passes to half-guard and is throwing punches into Wada’s rib cage. The rib shots turn into hammerfists as Wada rolls over. Haigh quickly gets Wada’s back and secures a nasty looking rear-naked choke. Wada turns the color of avocado and taps. Lazenby is amazed that the striker has submitted the ground guy. Hey, it’s MMA, dookie happens. We are informed that Wada ralphed when he got up due to the deep choke he had just experienced.

RESULT – Stephen Haigh by submission at 1:36 of Round 3

RATING – (**+) A bit too methodical for my taste, but it showed some decent skills on the ground and standing, plus it had a super finish. Haigh seems very well rounded and he beat a guy who definitely has been around. I suspect we’ll see him in the ring again with Bodog.

Overall, another good show from Bodog. Season three has been certainly above expectations and if they continue with the solid fights and better production, they will continue to grow. And, the very best part is that you can watch these fights for the low, low cost of free at bodogfight.com.

We’ll see you next week!