- Pat Barry
Following victory over Morecraft, Barry can finally rest easy
Pat “HD” Barry had a lot on the line this evening.
The highly-touted striker entered the cage on a two-fight losing streak and in desperate need of a victory. In his way stood the towering Christian Morecraft, who did all he could to submit the kickboxer in the opening frame of their heavyweight tilt. And he nearly did.
But Barry survived a pair of early takedowns to shoot off a vicious left hook to floor his opponent. The highly energetic heavyweight hopped on Morecraft, landing several more shots to put his opponent out, earning Barry the much-needed knockout. Following the fight, the highly energetic Barry expressed his excitement.
“Very excited right now,” Barry stated. “I had that killer instinct tonight. I had some very accurate punches on the ground.”
Indeed he did, and Morecraft would certainly have to agree. Still, the vicious finish certainly does not overshadow the submission defense of Barry.
Something we rarely see from him, the heavyweight was able to maneuver out of several different positions, avoiding back mount on a pair of occasions and escaping a deep armbar that gave everyone watching immediate flashbacks to Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira II, if only because Barry could not tap with so much on the line. But Barry didn’t have to tap, as his submission defense allowed him to escape, and he has plenty of people to thank for that.
“I want to thank everyone and anyone who ever helped me with my jiu-jitsu over the years, especially my current team,” Barry said. “We drill and drill and drill, and it really helped me escape all those submission attempts tonight. My confidence is always through the roof, and (I) want to always put on a good show for everyone.”
Brimming with confidence that no doubt derives from his recently discovered submission defense, Barry finally gets a chance to relax, forget about the two losses that haunted him heading into this fight, and, most importantly, have a good night’s sleep.
According to Barry, this week featured anxiousness, which led to insomnia. Now that he picked up another huge win, Barry can finally rest easy, at least until his next match up.
“I haven’t slept a wink all week thinking about this fight. I’m going to leave here, go right to bed and enjoy my first good night’s sleep in a while.”
That may not sound like the typical post-fight party for a fighter coming off a win, but Barry’s party comes in the cage. And tonight, what a party it was for the knockout artist.