Kenney’s winning streak ends with draw

PHOENIX — Casey Kenney thought he had done enough in the final round to secure victory.

The judges saw the fight differently.

Kenney, a 2009 Jay County High School graduate, and Bruno Gustavo Aparecido da Silva fought to a split decision draw late Friday as part of the Legacy Fighting Alliance 11 card at Comerica Theater.

One judge scored the fight 29-28 in favor of Kenney, another 29-28 in favor of da Silva and the third as a 28-28 tie. The bout ended Kenney’s six-match winning streak to open his professional career.

Kenney (6-0-1), who fights for Rise Combat Sports of Tuscon, Arizona, felt he did enough in the third and final five-minute round to secure the victory.

“Honestly, I’m more upset with myself that I didn’t finish him in the third round than I am at the judges for making what I thought was ultimately a bad call,” Kenney said this morning. “This one’s going to be a good one to learn from.

“I thought I put on a pretty good performance, but it definitely wasn’t my best. For some reason, everything felt a little off. …

“This one was one that I kind of had to dig deep. I think finally in that third round I figured out where I wanted to be and I finally got settled into the fight.”

Kenney took control of the fight late, catching da Silva (8-3-2) with a couple of punches around the 2:38 mark of the third period. He snuck in a high knee to the face about a minute later while the fighters were tied up against the cage.

The Portland native’s best flurry came with 1:18 left, when a straight left hand sent da Silva staggering backward. Kenney stunned his opponent again with a right hand, and then caught him with a running knee to the face.

But da Silva was able to stay alive, tying Kenney up for most of the last 20 seconds to send the fight to the judges’ scorecards.

Kenney reacted in frustration when the scores were announced, throwing his arms in the air.

“Golden rule, don’t leave it to the judges, because you don’t know what fight they’re watching,” Kenney said in a brief interview in the cage moments later.

Most of the opening two rounds were closely contested, with each fighter connecting on a couple of punches and kicks in the first.

Kenney went to the mat once when he was off balance while throwing a punch and da Silva caught him with a right hand, but he was back to his feet moments later.

The fighters traded punches and kicks again in the second round. Da Silva had Kenney pinned up against the cage on two occasions but neither was able to gain a significant advantage, though Kenney said he felt he did dish out far more punishment than he received.

“I’d give him the first round,” said Kenney. “The second round, I thought I won. … And then the third round could even have been a 10-8 round, which was a super dominant round.”

Kenney came out of the fight with some bumps and bruises, but said he should have no problem getting back into the cage for another fight in a few months. That bout has not yet been scheduled, though it could involve defending his Tachi Palace Fights flyweight championship or returning for his second LFA fight.

“I’m just going to take this week to rest up and see what happens,” he said. “A draw on my record, it’s not the worst thing. … It’s not really a setback for me as far as where I’m headed. I didn’t do a whole lot to hurt my career or anything like that, put me back a notch or anything, especially a controversial draw like that.”