PAC MMA'S-LUKE "BUZZY" AUSTIN: NEW INTERIM FCE MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION

In the Main Event at Cross The Line, Luke Austin, a member of PAC MMA fought against Justin Hanlin for the Interim FCE Middleweight title.

Austin, who also defeated Mickey Martin in the 1st Round at Final Conflict was originally scheduled to fight Jeremy Godina, the FCE Middleweight champion, but Godina was not able to fight due to medical reasons. 

Hanlin, a member of Airwolf Martial Arts and Team Ramrod stepped up and accepted the fight one day before.

At the beginning of the 1st Round, Hanlin was ready and moved in a "ready-to-charge" position and as soon as the bell rung- both fighters quickly engaged and wasted no time in getting to work.

Strikes were exchanged, clinches, slams and the fans cheered on, but in 1:14 of the 1st Round, Austin defeated Hanlin by Tap Out, due to a Rear Naked Choke.

Hanlin said he felt a little rust in his skills during this fight since it has been a long time since he last fought in Kickboxing.

Austin: 

Performance: 

"I feel good. I think my performance was not the best it could've been, but good enough obviously. I could've done better out of the clinch. We did work on getting out of the clinch but he was just really strong. He (Hanlin) knew exactly what he was doing once he had me pinned, he knew what he wanted to do and he kept really good control of me. So it was hard for me to do what I wanted to do. Eventually when I got the chance, he said I may have hit him in the chest or the arm while he was throwing a knee, he was just off balance and fell, but again, I was able to take advantage of the opportunity like I was trying to do," said Austin.

When asked at what point did he feel he took the advantage in the fight, Austin said, "Absolutely when he hit the ground and we talked about it beforehand with my trainers that it would probably be to my advantage to go to the ground with him because I do have good transitions, decent submissions and nobody really knows that."

Rear Naked Choke: 

"As soon as I knew he was going to go for my back, I put one hand in and tried to pull him away. He got in pretty quick, he used his upper body strength to get around my neck but because he couldn't lock up the hooks, I pulled his leg up to the side and I turned at the same time allowing me to slink out. As soon as I was able to get out the back door, even though I was on top, then I just took immediate advantage.  I spunned, I work with Chris Sizemore a lot so he teaches me the sit out style turns and as soon as I turned, I turned faster than he did and I took advantage," said Austin.

Final Comments: 

"I feel great. I feels good to be the Champ, what can I say?," said Austin.

Hanlin: 

Performance: 

"Coming from a Kickboxing background, I didn't throw like I should've. He's a tough dude (Austin), I should've thrown more but I'll learn from this and be back, that's for sure. I got called last night at about 10 p.m to take the fight but no excuses though, I'll come back to fight on March 20th and be in way better shape than this," said Hanlin.

Although some fans thought Hanlin got knocked down during the fight, Hanlin said he just made a mistake and slipped.

"I messed up, I didn't let my hands go. I clinched and I tried to throw a real strong knee and slipped and I didn't recover. I'll be back though, I haven't fought for a few years since fighting Kickboxing. That was just my mistake. Good on his part, bad on my part. So definitely want to be back," said Hanlin.

When asked what skills will he now improve, Hanlin said, "Straight ground, straight ground and not just that but my boys are just great training partners."

Final Comments: 

"Thanks for the opportunity, like I said, I got a short notice call last night and I'll be in better shape next time I fight," said Hanlin.