Teddy “Bear” Ash avenged a December loss to Dominique Steele in a middleweight championship bout at the River Cree Resort and Casino in Enoch, Alberta on Friday, March 1, 2019.
Doctors at Unified MMA 36 ruled Steele unable to continue following the fourth round.
“It feels great man,” said Ash in a post-fight interview with Liberty Multimedia. “Nothing better than coming off a big win like that. When we fought in December, I feel that I never really got a good representation of me as a fighter. That was the real me in the cage there.”
Bowks Talking Bouts #140
Ash currently holds both the Unified Middleweight and Light Heavyweight titles. He rocked Steele in the second round and nearly finished the fight, however Steele showed great resolve and managed to recover.
“I knew he was really tough and that I wasn’t going to knock him out the first time [I rocked him], so I was just being patient and maintaining composure,” said Ash. “I’ll take the kill when it’s there, but you don’t want it to get that taste of blood and gas yourself out either, right?”
The fight went back and forth between Ash controlling the striking and Steele constantly pressing him against the cage, though he didn’t land much damage from this position.
In the fourth round, Ash defended a powerful takedown attempt by Steele that ended up compromising the structural integrity of the cage.
“I swear, I see in the cage went about a foot away from the canvas at one point and I had a little laugh,” said Ash. “I almost said something to Dom there when we were in there for a joke, but I just kept it to myself and decided to keep my mind on the task at hand.”
Ash’s team Shaved Bears MMA were well represented by both fighters and fans at Unified MMA 36. The roars “Teddy, Teddy!” could be heard from their section throughout the bout.
“I owe it all to the Shaved Bears, who are the high level martial artists that are turning me into a high level martial artist,” said Ash. “I’ve always been a tough hard-headed football player. I like being aggressive in there, that’s just my nature. These guys are making me control my aggression and really use it, and I’ve become so much better at striking, better at grappling, my wrestling is getting better, and it’s only up from here.”
Ash said his plan is to continue building his career in the middleweight division.
“I walk around under 205 now and I’m going to look to make my name at middleweight, “ said Ash. “A huge thank you to all my training partners and coaches, friends and family, anyone out there that’s cheering for me and loves watching me fights. I’m just going to keep making the more and more exciting and fights.”
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