Dustin draws Akihiro Gono in Yokohama, Japan
This fight was my professional debut and it took place in Deep 2001 2nd Impact, held on August 18, 2001. Gono was a seasoned fighter with much experience, but I confident because I was training w/ many of the world’s best at Brazilian Top Team in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Murilo Bustamante trained me for the fight and two great coaches traveled to corner me, Ricardo Libório and Zé Mario Sperry.
It was an action-packed fight that went back-and-forth, with me trying to win by submission and my opponent surviving me to battle back with strikes.
The judges ruled the bout a draw so my record sets to 0-0-1.
TATAME #67 (translated from Portuguese) – He left a promising career in business in the United States to live in Brazil and dedicate to his big passion for Jiu-Jitsu. “My dream was always to represent Jiu-Jitsu in the real fight,” remembers Dustin “Clean” Denes who, since the first day he stepped foot at the academy of Ricardo de la Riva, and later on, Top Team, always impressed his training partners with his focus to train hard. “He was always the first to first to arrive and the last to leave,” says his friend Minotauro.
Photo courtesy of Susumu Nagao
With so much dedication, the results didn’t take long when Clean became the Brazilian Champion of Jiu-Jitsu (brown belt) and defeated the ever so tough “snowman,” Jeff Monson, at a submission event in the United States. He was relentless in pursuit of submission (three triangles), then invited to debut MMA in the rings of DEEP, facing the experienced Akihiro Gono.
In the ring, the American did justice with his many hours of hard work and show a classic Jiu-Jitsu, avoiding the fight on the feet and dominating the action, especially in the first two rounds, when he was close to finishing the fight with various triangles and arm-locks. He was so preoccupied to win with Jiu-Jitsu that Clean forgot to hit his opponent at the many opportunities. In the end, the judges opted a draw.
GRACIE magazine #56 (translated from Portuguese) – American Dustin “Clean” Denes , Brazilian Champion of Jiu-Jitsu who trains at Brazilian Top Team, also debuted in the event, although having more attacks, he settled for a draw against the tough Akihiro Gono, “In reality Clean beat the guy, only he wasn’t very aggressive with striking, he went for submission. Executed many great techniques, but didn’t strike enough, judges are impressed with punches,” analyzed Paulo Filho.
Photo courtesy of Susumu Nagao
Brazilian Top Team’s new weapon
GONG KAKUTOUGI 10/10/2001 (translated from Japanese) Dustin Denes, who fought with Gono today, is from United States but stayed in Brazil for two years. Dustin became Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion last year and won Arnold Classic Super Fight Champion this year. In Japan, Brazilian Top Team brand is always dependable. Dustin passed Gono’s guard early on and relentlessly looked for triangle choke toward the end. Gono never had a chance to pass his guard and the fight was a draw.
LINK HERE CLEAN @ BRAZILIAN TOP TEAM
Dustin submits George Allen in Lakeland, Florida
This fight took place at Reality Super Fighting 7 on January 26, 2002. It would be my second fight, but first on American soil. I had just returned home from living in Brasil, and this fight marked the mixed martial arts debut of the American Top Team.
Immediately into round 1, I launched a triangle attack, then transitioned to an arm-lock and extended with all of my might. The arm-lock positioned me in an upside down vertical, so I lost sight of my opponent while tightly latched onto his arm. My explosive transition forced him to verbally submit with a symphony of screams.
The official time is 47 seconds into the first round. My record improved to 1-0-1.
Kakutougi Tsushin magazine 3/8/2002 (translated from Japanese) – Dustin Denes, who was a draw with Gono, beat Allen. A MMA event, Reality Super Fighting was held and hosted by Reality Sports Co. and its rival, Fight Gear Co. On January 26, the event was held in Lakeland, Florida. Dustin Denes appeared in the main event. Dustin Denes, who was a draw with Akihiro Gono in 8/8 Deep Yokohama, fought with George Allen. As a result, Denes dominated and submit Allen in Round 1 via arm bar.
Dustin submits Eric Schafer in Evansville, Indiana
This fight took place at Hook n’ Shoot on March 9, 2002. My original opponent pulled out so Eric stepped up to face the challenge. My training for this fight was divided between Florida and Rio de Janeiro.
Round 1 started and I threw a right hook backed up with q quick double-leg. I took him down and passed to side control, then locked onto an arm, set my leg into his half guard and cranked his arm behind his back. My opponent was forced to tap. The official time is 2:20 into round 1. My record advanced to 2-0-1. VIDEO LINK HERE MMA KIMURA
TATAME #74 (translated from Portuguese) – Clean doesn’t give us much to talk about. The fight hit the floor within ten seconds, twenty seconds to pass the guard, and another forty to win the fight with a kimura submission. Fast and proper!
Dustin submits Tom Jones in Evansville, Indiana
This fight took place at Hook n’ Shoot on May 25, 2002. My opponent was a tough guy out of Oklahoma, but my technique would prove to be much too much for him.
Round 1, and I stepped up to strike with a one-two punch combo and he charged in for a takedown to gain top position. I unleashed an open guard attack and launched a triangle. He stood up to defend so I transitioned to the arm-lock submission. My transition was made with explosive timing, so came his symphony of screams.
The official time is 2:48 of the first round. My record improved to 3-0-1.
VIDEO LINK HERE CLEAN MMA TRIANGLE KING
Dustin submits Rory Singer in Cobb County, Georgia
This fight took place at the World Extreme Fighting Championships on June 29, 2002. I was burnt out from overtraining but pushed forward for another victory.
Round 1 started w/ my takedown attempts and punches coming up way short, while being countered w/ good right hands. Finally, I hit a lateral drop throw off the fence, passed the guard and gained mount position. I pushed hard to lock up a choke, but the round came to an end.
Round 2 began and I immediately looked to close the distance, bringing the fight up against the fence and into the clinch. I transitioned to a high double-leg takedown against the fence. I threw punches inside his closed guard, then passed to half guard to secure a straight arm-lock submission.
The official time is 1:42 of the second round. My record improved to 4-0-1.
Dustin defeats Izuru Takeuchi in Evansville, Indiana
Hook n’ Shoot on September 7, 2002. My training for this fight was split between Florida and Rio de Janeiro. The event was Shooto sanctioned, so bouts counted towards Shooto ranking. My opponent was flown in from Japan, looking to win and earn the next World Shooto title shot.
Round 1 began w/ us battling from the clinch until I secured his neck for a guillotine choke attempt. I worked a great offense from my guard, submission attacks and hard punches.
Round 2 started and I took him down, passed his guard and punished him from side control. Ricardo Liborio called out “mount him Clean, mount him,” so I proceeded to the mount position and pummeled him for the remainder of the round.
Round 3 saw Izuru hustle to earn the top position. At one point, he stood up so I kicked him square in the face from my open guard. I reversed him and took his back in the final thirty seconds.
All three judges scored the bout in favor of me. It was a great victory for the ATT. The win catapulted me to #3 in the World Shooto rankings. My record moved to 5-0-1.
Kakutougi Tsushin magazine 10/23/2002 (translated from Japanese) - Denes defeats Takeuchi in ground game. An MMA event, H n S New Wind, attracted attention of MMA fans. One of the reasons being that Izuru Takeuchi and Kohei Yasumi fought in the event. On September 7th, the event was held at Memorial Colosseum, Indiana. Takeuchi fought with Dustin Denes from American Top Team, who previously fought in DEEP in Japan. Takeuchi is confident in the ground game, but Denes took control on the ground in the whole match and defeated Takeuchi by decision 3-0.
Dustin submits Scott Henze in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place at the debut of Absolute Fighting Championship on December 13, 2002.
Round 1 started and I went after a stand-up fight, Henze clinched me and I transitioned to a standing kimura. I carried the move and momentum to the floor with all confusion in my favor. I lost him in the intricacies of my submission attempt, but he managed to struggle free after a few minutes of hard times. I continued my attack and succeeded with a triangle to arm-lock submission. My record improved to 6-0-1.
ULTIMATE ATHLETE February 2003 – Denes put his undefeated record on the line against this Hook n Shoot veteran pitting his highly regarded submissions against Henze’s ground and pound. Henze appeared to gain standing control of Denes’ back for an early takedown, but “Clean” immediately worked the kimura as the fight went to the ground. Denes pressed on with his relentless kimura attack, attempting to invert the position whenever Henze defended by straightening the arm. When Henze finally struggled out of danger and into Denes’ guard, he was immediately snatched in a triangle choke, which was beautifully transitioned into an armbar for the submission at 3:45 of Round 1.
Dustin TKO Shiko Yamashita in Tokyo, Japan
This fight took place in Shooto at Korakuen Hall, on February 23, 2003.
Round 1 was a battle for position in the clinch, pushing and shoving to win position. He cornered me with a good tie in the clinch, but I reversed him witha strong whizzer and trapped him against the ropes. I tightened the clinch with my left arm and threw a sharp right hook that landed flush to the bone above his eye. Seconds past and we continued to jockey for position, but the referee stepped in to freeze the action. The doctors approached the ring and I thought “uh oh, someone is cut, I hope its not me.” At the same time, I felt something hot spilling onto my foot. I turned my head and noticed that Yamashita had an enormous gash above his left eye.
The doctors cleaned him up and restarted the action. Our clinch separated and I pressed forward to unleash a punching combination. The referee stepped in and stopped the fight because the blood was running fast and in excess. I was declared the winner via TKO (cut).
The official time is 3:48 of the first round. The victory moved me into the #1 of the World Shooto rankings. My record improved to 7-0-1.
Shooto official fight video shows the exact result as I gave above. However, six months down the road, Shooto changed my win to a draw. Why? The opponent complained the cut was due to a head-butt that occurred while we battled for position in the clinch. I cut Yamashita with my fist. Some consider the match a technical draw, but I consider a win via TKO (cut).
Dustin loss Akira Shoji in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place at the Absolute Fighting Championship 4 on July 19, 2003.
I pushed forward with hard punches the entire fight. Any lesser of an opponent would have been knocked out. However, he survived my onslaught and played a better strategy with punches of his own, using takedowns and positioning to nullify my ground game.
The official time was completed and all three judges scored the bout in favor of my opponent. My record changed to 7-1-1.
Dustin submits Nick Thompson in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place at the Absolute Fighting Championship 5 on September 5, 2003. I focused on burying him with my last loss.
I walked through a straight right punch and took him down with a double leg. He went through the ropes so the referee restarted us in our corners. I shot for another takedown but recovered to a closed guard. I attacked via triangle and he fell victim to my submission attack. I locked him in for submission and his body made a concerto of convulsions.
The official time 1:45 of round 1. My record improved to 8-1-1.
Dustin submits Adrian Serrano in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place at Absolute Fighting Championship 6 on December 6, 2003. I came into this fight with attitude.
Round 1 started and I came out with hard punch combinations. My punching efforts guided me into a clinch for the takedown, to the mount then back position. I transitioned from the back attack to an arm-lock submission.
The official time is 2:20 of the first round. My record improved to 9-1-1.
Dustin draws Masanori Suda in Honolulu, Hawaii
The fight took place in Shooto Hawaii at Soljah Fight Night on July 9, 2004. This was a Shooto World Championship fight, Masanori Suda the champion and myself as the number one contender.
Suda came out blazing w/ punches and kicks in the first round, but I defended well. I rebounded back w/ a grappling offensive throughout the entire fight. I secured a deep catch for submission in the final round, but Suda held on and struggled his way out at the closing bell.
The final result was a draw, so the Champion retained his belt. My record moved to 9-1-2.
Dustin defeats Pat Healy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place in Absolute Fighting Championship 12, on April 30, 2005. It was my first fight in the welterweight division. It was also a comeback after complete reconstruction of my knee.
Pat fought valiantly. However, my performance showed persistence and was most dominant. I leveled him w/ a huge right hook in the first round, and went on to get his back in all three rounds. I tried hard for the finish, but he resisted the beatings. The last round saw much blood spilling from his ears, but he refused to resist.
I won a unanimous decision. My record improved to 10-1-2.
Dustin submits Darrell Smith in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
This fight took place in Absolute Fighting Championship 13, on July 30, 2005. It would be my second fight in the welterweight division, against another tough opponent from the midwest.
Round 1 began and I came out really flat. I gave up some takedowns and fought too laid back in the opening round, and I paid for it w/ my opponent landing hard punches to my face. I got into a rhythm only at the end of the round.
I came out feeling better and unleashed into the second round. I imposed my takedown then submission attempts, eventually transitioning to submit w/ a triangle choke.
VIDEO LINK HERE MMA TRIANGLE
The official time is 3:43 of the second round. My record improved to 11-1-2.
Dustin loss Shiko Yamashita in Boca Raton, Florida
The fight took place in Absolute Fighting Championship 16 on April 22, 2006. This was a Shooto World Championship fight, my opponent and I contending for the vacant title.
Round 1 flashes back as so fast paced in my mind, consisting of punches, takedowns, and sweeps. I slowed the action in the final minute of the opening round, securing a devastating choke. Yamashita felt the devastation but managed to buck his way free.
Round 2 was a striking fight, punches and kicks. I rushed in and paid for it, knocked down w/ a flush right towards the end of the round. The action stopped to acknowledge the Shooto standing eight count. I immediately bounced back and the referee re-started the action.
Round 3 was a back-and-forth battle. I landed hard 1-2 punches and gained good position throughout, but my opponent finished stronger.
I lost a decision. My record moved to 11-2-2.
Dustin submits Todd Carney in Boca Raton, Florida
This fight took place in Absolute Fighting Championship 17 on June 24, 2006. The show format would change for the first time, from a ring to a cage.
Round 1 saw me get after it, getting the fight to my game and looking to submit. I punished his right arm w/ a Rocky Marciano punching technique. Figured it was a good move, because he was strongest w/ his right punch. I dominated the round w/ takedowns, punching and submission attempts.
Round 2 saw me pushing to finish the fight. I brought my opponent to the ground game and into a midst of confusion, then landed a triangle choke submission.
The official time is 2:08 of the second round. My record improves to 12-2-2.
Dustin submits Franz Mendez in Orlando, Florida
This fight took place at Combat Fighting Championship on July 15, 2006.
We briefly engaged with big punches, but the real action commenced when the fight hit the floor. I secured a lock on his knee, but he refused to submit so the knee separated and I took the sweep. I worked from top only to be reversed in a scramble. He connected with monster elbows at my point of re-entry into half guard. My eyes caught sight of the canvas where I was spitting blood out of my breath, mouth and nostrils. The sight motivated me to get a move on and finish the fight. I cut an angle and immediately transitioned to my opponent’s back, forcing the bone blade of my forearm across his neck. I locked hand-to-hand to submit him with an aggressive rear-naked choke, machete-like.
The official time is 3:20 of round 1. My record improved to 13-2-2.
Dustin loss Brian Foster in Portland, Oregon
This fight took place at the International Fight League on September 9, 2006.
My opponent wasted no time and came out striking with absolute aggression. His first kick was a roundhouse that landed flush to my groin. I dropped in serious pain and discomfort. The referee gave me recovery time, but my ego and adrenaline cut the time short. The fight resumed and I gave my all to secure a submission, knee-locks and arm-lock. I locked his knee out a couple times, but he absorbed the pain and pushed through the moments. The fight turned into a war, maximum hostility and bad intentions.
The fight continued back and forth, submission attempts and strikes. The fight returned to the stand-up. I blocked a leg kick and dodged a right hand, but got nailed on the temple w/ a left hook that I never saw. The punch dropped me. I was okay and still in the fight, preparing for the next action to come. The referee stepped in and stopped the fight.
The official time was 3:30 of round 2. My record moved to 13-3-2.
Dustin loss to Nick Thompson in Costa Rica
The fight took place at Bodog Fight on February 18, 2007. Nick came into the fight on a serious win streak, but I was confident because I’d already beat him by submission. He was blood thirsty and looking for revenge.
Round 1 started and I circled, looking for my right time to close the distance. Everything unfolded like our first fight, but this time around was different because he was better and more in control with ground skills. I worked hard to move him, sweeps and submission. His base was solid, and improving more with every attempt I made to better myself. He positionally trapped me, I looked up and saw his right fist loading with the most violent of intentions. Had I not covered up to protect, he would have obliterated me. I protected my head and the referee stopped the fight. His win tied our series.
The official time is 1:27 of round 1. My record moves to 13-4-2.