Over 4,000 Recaps!

Mister Greco

Battle rap enthusiast living in Timbuktu

Chess defeats Saynt LA

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Recap: Chess versus rising West-coast up-n-comer Saynt had been talked about for a minute now. It was just a matter of getting the former KOTD star on URL. But I’d be lying if I didn’t think that once he finally got here, Smack would give Saynt a tune-up or two before the yung’un got to see the likes of Chess. Guess I was wrong as here they are with Saynt’s URL debut on a Traffic 5 card and for the most part it’s a goodie. Saynt, displayimng confidence throughout the battle, came through with a pretty solid effort (esp. in round 3, his best in the bout), especially scoring with fire personals, gutsy 4-bar setups and rich name flips and all-in-all made things competitive when he wasn’t stumbling a bit with his flow, slipping-up or over-extending himself with elongated turns that were often mired in subpar bars. Still, looking to finish his 2022 with a banger, Chess didn’t come to play. The Young Gawd dialing up a steady and righteous mix of heavy-handed name flips, clever wordplay, sturdy wrestling bars, fiery punchlines and hitting struggle bars/storytelling to pull out both the 1st and 2nd rounds for the win before getting edged to a more haymaker-lit Saynt in the 3rd.

Verdict: Chess (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chess – “See, he really up here trying to rap with me, and that to me is like Cactus Jack on a shirt…Travis tee [travesty]!”

Bonnie Godiva defeats C. Bri

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Recap: While credit goes to C. Bri, who in spite of stumbling a bit throughout this Chrome 23 tournament battle, was still able to unleash some grimy haymakers and solid chain punches to make things competitive. That said, Bri didn’t stand a chance in this one. Because that’s how in her bag Bonnie Godiva was. The Yonkers, NY vet delivering a trio of superb, well-crafted rounds that showcased an exquisite pen what with its aggressive mix of fly rebuttals, fiery lyrical heat, gritty wordplay, hard punchlines and fire/witty personals to handily get the 30 and move on to the next round.

Verdict: Bonnie Godiva (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Bonnie Godiva – “You from Flint right? well as soon as you drive off I’m putting lead in the glass…you homesick?!”

Rum Nitty defeats Emerson Kennedy

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Recap: From WestWorld, a dope back and forth for 3 rounds between Rum Nitty and Emerson Kennedy sees the two stay competitive with a gang of clever punchlines, spicy similes, meandering mayhem and stinging wordplay. A bout between two of the West-coast’s finest that surprisingly took this long to happen, after a 1st round debatable, it’s a slightly more rim-rocking Nitty who egdes both of the latter rounds for the win.

Verdict: Rum Nitty (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Rum Nitty – “I Answer with the fade like Georgetown Iverson!”

Nu Jerzey Twork defeats Lu Castro (Rematch)

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Recap: The battle rap stage hasn’t seen much of Nu Jerzey Twork in 2022. But anyone who witnesses this 3-round rematch against Lu Castro (on both battler’s home league: Showtime Battle Arena) will know right away that Twork still has what it takes to remain a top dog in the game. In this case Nu Jerooz using a steady stream of mocking personals, aggressive gun bars, fiery performance-lit darts and stifling punchlines over the course of 3 rounds to handily get the 30 on an opponent who while still able to light up the ring with rambunctious burners, continues to hurt himself when it comes to lack of preparation and chokes.

Verdict: Nu Jerzey Twork (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Nu Jerzey Twork – “Ain’t no tussling with me G, I’m a up this little piece, he wild strong, head shot…nigga better have muscle memory!”

Young X defeats Swamp

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Recap: Despite often time struggles with his flow and/or one too many slip-ups, with just enough haymakers we’ve seen Swamp survive some of these 1-rounders on smaller leagues with either close win’s or debatables time and time again. But not this time. As while the Swamptown capo delivered a round loaded with a bunch of hardbody punches and raucous darts that often scored, a minute long mid-round collapse that saw an almost handful amount of unforced errors before he got it back together allows an elongated, but forever gritty, witty when necessary, steady with the flow and gun bar savvy Young X to squeeze out this Winter Soldier Event battle from Da Rabbithole Podcast.

Verdict: Young X (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Young X – “The Glock will spark and I keep shooting till the metal lock up like I p ushed the grocery cart!”

B. Magic defeats F.A.T.E.

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Recap: From West World Battle Rap, a couple of hiccups in round 2 and some strong punches from F.A.T.E. made for a debatable. But making good use of a bunch of sizzling rapid-fire, 4-bar set-up/punchlines, stirring name flips and nasty similes/wordplay in both the 1st and 3rd rounds, it’s a consistently nicer B. Magic who ends up handily getting the win.

Verdict: B. Magic (W) 2-1

Favorite line: B. Magic – “You could find me in a park by myself like a ’21 Prius!”

Bonnie Godiva defeats K. Prophet

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Recap: From Chrome 23, a pretty competitive 3-rounder finds K. Prophet spouting a boatload of gritty punchlines and well-finessed wordplay to stay close. But with a more consistently spicy Bonnie Godiva spitting a wide array of fiery name flips, stinging performance (the ‘apple’ ‘pair’ shit was a killer) lines, fierce punches/gun bars of her own, witty personals and some solid freestyles/rebuttals to bat, this one was Bonnie’s all day.

Verdict: Bonnie Godiva (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Bonnie Godiva – “Another dyke bitch I gotta beat on end, looking like somebody uncle friend!”

Danny Myers defeats XO

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Recap: A 1-rounder from the Winter Soldier Event, Danny Myers uses a steady barrage of boastful barbs, slamming punchlines/name flips, random mayhem and hard-hitting amenable darts to beat back a hitting and wordplay-lit at times, but hiccup-prone and mostly basic XO.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 1-0

Favorile line: Danny Myers – “Bar God, I stab his abdomen and test the annihilation, took me a minuet to bring it up…10-second violation!”

Chef Trez defeats Presidential Dubz

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Recap: Against a performance-stunting but less consistently bar-heavy Presidential Dubz, a more steady with the handle Chef Trez uses a plethora of fiery gun bars, sick wordplay, gritty 4-bar set-ups and piercing punchlines to get the win in this 1-rounder from the Fight Back Arena.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Is this bitch sleep?, let this bum play, I’ll let a gun spray, I’m quick to run down stair and grab the meal [mil]…I woke up late!”

E-Hart defeats Chetta

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Recap: Rarely do I go there, but despite a pretty solid effort overall from Chetta, E-Hart clearly got robbed by the judges in this Chrome 23 tourney battle. And that’s even while giving Chetta the edge in round 2. But while the battlers were pretty equal on the name flips during the 3 rounds, Hart’s more intricate punches, clever wordplay, a spicy freestyle to open her final turn and heavy-handed personals/boasts/gun bars definitively added up to more haymakers in the 1st and 3rd rounds for the win.

Verdict: E-Hart (W) 2-1

Favorite line: E-Hart – “Move quick [bobs and weaves] or crack her [cracker] in the mouth, it’s communion!”

C3 defeats 40 B.A.R.R.S.

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Recap: Battling against a 40 B.A.R.R.S. who while hitting at times, consistently struggled with her flow throughout the 3 rounds, C3 decimates her opponent with a flexing bag of stifling punchlines, witty personals, stinging name flips and potent wordplay to score a 30 and advance to the next round of this Chrome 23 $25K tournament.

Verdict: C3 (W) 3-0

Favorite line: C3 – “I don’t know if y’all heard but last night Fonz was whipping on this damn broad, I was watching like goddam it my friend gonna end up back in the shelter the way she struggling with the Landlord!”

T-Top and Leeno Brown [DEBATABLE]

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Recap: In this 1-rounder from Showtime Battle Arena, the hard street rhymes/trap talk, blunt storytelling and gritty punches from Leeno Brown combined with a guttural cadence make for an impressive performance. However, thanks in part to his opponent rhyming twice as long as he did as well as a sublime rebuttal to start off his round that settled into a rich combo of charismatic personals,, rich name flips and hardbody (“I don’t give a fuck who in Sam’s club, I woulda pulled his card at the door!”) punchlines, T-Top does just enough to make this a debatable.

Verdict: TIE

Favorite line: Leeno Brown – “I come from the belly of the beast and selling crack was helping me feed it!”

QB (Black Diamond) and Chayna Ashley [DEBATABLE]

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Recap: From Chrome 23’s $25K tournament, in a rematch from their RBE matchup back in 2019 Chayna Ashley with her bullish punches, fierce wordplay and boastful darts/wordplay and QB with a versatile showing of spicy bars, solid freestyles and fiery (“So Chayna, gimem about a few feet, or it’s gonna remind you of when you bathing suit shopping, I know you scared of the two-piece!”) personals proved that she’s more than just the most disrespectful female battler in the game, put on a competitive and aggressive showing that was close throughout. A cutthroat battle fitting for a tourney setting with a lot of money on the line, after a debatable round 1, QB edging the 2nd and Chayna edging the 3rd, it’s only makes sense that this one ends up a draw.

Verdict: TIE

Favorite line: Chayna Ashley – “And I’m a chanel my anger straight to the source, before Roe vs. Wade I told these bitches abort!”

Chess defeats Saflare Sole

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Recap: The look on Smack’s face when Chass was schooling opponent Saflare Soel on what it takes to be a top tier URL battler was priceless. That said, while the Maryland up-n-comer impressed and showed a lot of moxie throughout this 3-round Final Exam batlle with a boatload of stifling punchlines/name flips, gritty street shit and witty/mocking personals, the Young Gawd’s persistent variant of fly name flips, steely punches/personals, insidious narratives, self-deprecating humor and mayhem-lit wordplay allows him to take rounds 1 and 2 for the win before a slightly more potent and haymaker-rich Sole took the 3rd.

Verdict: Chess (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chess – “Keep the plastic in the couch, that myth about grandma soul for real!”

Hansel defeats Steams

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Recap: From URL’s ‘Final Exams’ card, against a Steams who at times was punch/name flip-heavy and pretty gritty throughout, but had way too many unforced errors (including choking away his 3rd) to keep count, Hansel has an easy time to it. The EFB spitter utilizing a plethora of spicy gun bars, righteous storytelling, boastful barbs, hard street rhymes and a bunch of piercing personals/punchlines to handily score a 30 in this mostly one-sided 3-rounder.

Verdict: Hansel (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Hansel – “Entry wound, size of a shot glass, exit wound look like I shot glass!”

Chef Trez defeats C Dot

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Recap: One-rounder from Body Bag Battle League sees South Carolina emcee C Dot pull up with a strong showing that was littered with a bunch of fierce 4-bar set-up/punchlines, spicy personals and gritty name flips. However, coming off the long overdue announcement that he’s finally returning to URL, Chef Trez puts the celebration aside and with a gang of filthy gun bars, a fistful of off-the-dome bangers, potent name flips of his own and a slightly more steady fleet of mayhem-rich punches, it’s the more haymaker-lit Trez for the win.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Aim then squeeze next, it’s on-sight and me putting Dot on the gun is just a reflex!”

Chef Trez defeats Awthentic

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Recap: From URL’s Final Exams card, Chef Trez makes yet another return to Smack and it’s a dope one as opponent Awthentic gives the ATL vet all he can handle. The Connecticut spitter scoring left and right with a buttery, floetic cadence that produced a nice mix of greasy name flips, spirited 4-bar set-up/punchlines and gritty gun bars/personals. And while Awthentic did have some near reaches here and there and almost caught a slip-up in round 2 (which he had enough haymakers/rebuttals to edge), all in all the former Crucible battler certainly kept it competitive throughout, thus making the Chef work for this one. Which he did, displaying a workmanlike performance via a versatile game plan that featured a plethora of piercing heat, fiery punchlines/name flips, hitting personals of his own, nimble at times but effective wordplay, gritty similes, aggressive boasts and of course, steely off-the-dome polemics for all the Trez fans out there expecting such, all the while edging rounds 1 and 3 for the win.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Get a clip, steady aiming set to kill so when the toolie clap, but you can’t guess the gun, dog it’s a mystery machine…they brought Scooby back!”

Cortez defeats Black Aladdin

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Recap: From GOTG, a couple of gritty, boastful and versatile performances from Cortez and Black Aladdin in this 1-rounder makes things competitive. But with a nastier diet of stifling wordplay, fiery street darts, crazy 4-bar set-ups/punchlines and rambunctious haymakers, it’s the veteran Cortez who earns the win.

Verdict: Cortez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Cortez – “It’s Brooklyn, so who you gonna kill?, with twin nina’s, my gun connect had a two-for-one deal!”

Charron defeats Bankhead

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Recap: From The Rap Committee comes one of those outta-nowhere battles as Canada’s Charron crosses the border to face off with Milwaukee, WI’s Bankhead. A pretty competitive 1-rounder thanks in part to Bankhead’s gritty punches and underappreciated humor, with an elongated, but versatile turn that featured a gang of nifty freestyles, flexing name flips, sporty set-up/punchlines and witty personals, it’s the more steadily potent and haymaker-rich Charron who comes out on top.

Verdict: Charron (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Charron – “Jeremy Reed, Geechi’s favorite battler because he wears a weave!”

Jaz The Rapper defeats Viixen The Assassin

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Recap: At this point bar-wise is there anything Jaz the Rapper can’t do? With an extremely high battle IQ that’s more along the likes of Hollow in his hey day and a versatile bar game that’s top-notch regardless of gender, seeing Jaz elevate the game while coming outside more in 2022 should be one of the top stories in battle rap this year. Viixen the Assassin can attest to it. The Milwaukee, WI, emcee fighting through what was pretty much a home game for her opponent, in front of a cheering and locked-in Irving Plaza, NY crowd what with continuously loud aggression and raucous punches/gun bars/personals for 3 rounds. Yet, despite a pretty solid effort that was atypical Viixen, nothing the Assassin did would be near enough as Jaz just displayed throughout that there’s another level to this. The Brooklyn battler stunting on her opp with a punch-drunk, 4-bar setup rich and haymaker-drenched round 1 that also flexed her lyrical acumen. Before taking it even higher with a flawless and sublime (i.e. classic) 2nd that reminded you of just how well-rounded Jaz is, going after Viixen with a gang of killer name flips, hard-hitting punchlines, self-deprecating humor, witty barbs, piercing breakdowns and mocking/stinging personals that clearly hit their mark. Already up 2-0 (clearly) in this URL Homecoming match, Jaz would then use her 3rd round to get nostalgic and boast on her standing in the game before getting back to another barrage of fiery personals, hard boasts and fierce punches that solidified a well-earned 30.

Verdict: Jaz The Rapper (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Jaz The Rapper – “You got 3 kids and 3 baby daddies, you just one dick suck away from being Yoshi!”

Ish Mula defeats First Lady Flamez

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Recap: First Lady Flamez has been taking a lot of battles lately and it may be catching up to her. For example, in this 1-rounder from HitList Battle League versus an always dangerous Ish Mula, where Flamez’ penchant for hardbody punches/wordplay came through a handful of times, but her preparation game (apparently both Flamez and her opponent battled the previous day) wasn’t quite there as she had to stop and recall her bars a couple of times during her round. Thus leaving a more versatile, name flip savvy, gritty punching, 4-bar set-up-lit, personal stunting and bullish Mula with an easy vic.

Verdict: Ish Mula (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Ish Mula – “What’s poppin’ blood?, I give a symbol they gonna find her never, one word will mean everything like Chinese letters!”

O-Red defeats Kapo Bravado

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Recap: No translation bars and he had to survive a gritty, punch-heavy and overall pretty solid effort from Kapo Bravado. But in this 1-rounder from Houston Bar Code, a versatile, name flip-lit, gun bar heavy and wordplay/punchline spicy O-Red lights up the scoreboard with just enough haymakers to earn the win.

Verdict: O-Red (W) 1-0

Favorite line: O-Red – “I got the whole stage looking Macho, look at all of that Bravado, the facial features went from a Di Vinci to a Picasso!”

Zay defeats Swave Sevah

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Recap: Highly consistent for 3 rounds with an aggressive, gritty/gun bar slinging, punch/wordplay-heavy at times and protean when it came to subject matter, after the two split the first couple of rounds while also being helped out by a personal and witty at times, but lazy 3rd from opponent Swave Sevah, Jersey up-n-comer Zay edges the finale of this RBE matchup for the win.

Verdict: Zay (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Zay – “I seen God on a block lit up in a Jesus candle and I came to shoot sever[ed] like Emmanuel Hansel!”

Clone defeats Danny Myers

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Recap: In this 3-rounder from WarTown Battles Clone delivers one of his best performances, 30ing a topsy-turvy Danny Myers with a boatload of hardbody punches, stinging similes, gritty street talk and piercing personals with nothing but sheer consistency to earn an impressive shutout.

Verdict: Clone (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Clone – “I’m not even flexing, you could see a grave right now, we not in Atlanta, don’t be cappin’ like you Brave right now!”

Fonz defeats Filthy

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Recap: In this 1-rounder from No Chill Battle League, Filthy’s round of mostly subpar bars end up not only getting him offtrack to the point of repeatedly stopping his turn, but a fed-up crowd as well. The former gaslighting himself into thinking he wasn’t the problem while the latter’s continuously loud chatter and commotion while Filthy tried to rap proved otherwise. For some added irony there’s the fact that this was a beatable Fonz what with the Landlord (while still unleashing a solid punch game overall to get the win) getting off to a bit of slow start and struggling with his flow towards the end.

Verdict: Fonz (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Fonz – “I’ll bang a ratchet, run down with something stainless clapping, the first hit make a Yung Berg nigga come off his jewelry…it’s a chain reaction!”

Murda Mook defeats Geechi Gotti

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Recap: The way Murda Mook kept reppin’ for NY throughout this battle, you just knew some of this showing was about getting revenge for Loaded Lux’s shellacking at the hands of Geechi Gotti last year in Cali. Well, that’s my guess (hell, Mook did bring Lux out on stage in round 3) anyway. That said, this URL Homecoming bout with the current ‘Face of URL’ going up against the ‘Face of the Smack DVD era’ was a close and exciting one, a definitive crowd-pleaser that was worth the price of admission. Geechi, with his aggressive combo of hardbody street rhymes, gritty punches, brash personals and solid freestyles (which helped him edge round 2) rarely let a turned-up Irving Plaza crowd rattle him. While a versatile and angle-rich Mook, when he wasn’t spouting a gang of fiery NYism’s with his raps to keep the listeners in tune, continuously scored with a bunch of straighforward but potent punchlines, witty personals, steely pontifications and boastful barbs. Surprisingly, what ended up deciding this battle was an elongated Gotti too often leaning on the same gun-centric themes we’ve long heard him spout as well as Geechi letting the raucous away crowd unnerve a little bit which at times effected his flow. And with Mook (outside of the constant crowd interruptions and some indirect shots at notables like NuNu Nells), coming off more condensed and slightly more haymaker-lit in both the 1st and 3rd rounds, it’s the Harlem great who ends up pulling out the win.

Verdict: Murda Mook (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Murda Mook – “Your fight with death, I bet that gonna be your last tussle, Funeral that always wins, you better ask Hustle!”

Swamp defeats Arsonal

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Recap: Gotta admit, really expected Arsonal to be more disrespectful during this URL Homecoming battle, especially with so much to work with considering all the South Carolina ‘raccoon’ shit that’s been in the air of late after Swamp battled Tay Roc just a couple of months back. But perhaps da Rebel saw that battle and decided not to rehash things as instead he seemed more content with flipping it on vet mode and delivering a talking too to Swamp, while also sporting a bunch of witty lines, boastful barbs (the shot at Murda Mook in round 3 was pretty epic, but also fluky when you consier that his opponent dissed him earlier for still not getting a battle Ars has long clamored for) and hard aggressive raps that were mostly hit-n-miss. And for a Swamp who was pretty solid throughout, but not quite on his A-game, Arsonal’s chosen game plan would ironically work to his opp’s advantage. The newly self-proclaimed ‘King of the South’ mixing it up with a bag of highly disrespectful personals of his own, while adding a gang of gritty punches, mocking personals, steely pontifications and brash haymakers sauteed with a slice of Southern pride that got him rounds 1 and 3 (call the 2nd round a debatable) for the win.

Verdict: Swamp (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Swamp – “I got nigga’s in red, white and blue like a Patriot, if I pull up it’s with a ratchet, baretta blazing shit, he gonna see the light then fade to black like an atheist!”

B. Magic defeats Fonz

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Recap: Fonz vs. B. Magic, elite puncher vs. elite puncher for a 1-rounder on URL’s Banned card, turns out to be a goodie with each battler spouting a plethora of head-turning bars to make you feen for more. Competitive with a near equal amount of haymakers on each side, it’s the more condensed and slightly more steadily hitting Magic who edges it here.

Verdict: B. Magic (W) 1-0

Favorite line: B. Magic – “Street nigga, I was straight thugging and you really can’t relate like a play cousin!”

Ave defeats Murda

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Recap: From 7 Cities Sharks/Nuthouse Battle League, in the face of the loud, rambunctious gun bars and aggressive punchlines from Murda, Ave uses a more subtle mix of fiery punches, piercing name flips, rampant boasts and lofty similes to take first couple of rounds for the win, before a more potent and haymaker-lit turn from Murda in the 3rd allows him to avoid the shutout.

Verdict: Ave (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Ave – “See, this don’t do nuthin’ at all for my stock, they ain’t even gonna put Murda [murder] on my record like the charges been dropped!”

Bonnie Godiva defeats Kausion

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Recap: A dope, competitive 3-rounder from RBE sees up-n-comer Kausion use a barrage of steamy personals, aggressive (esp. that fire ‘peacock’ line in round 3) punchlines, boastful barbs and flagrant gun bars to stay in the fight despite a few dry spots here and there. But armed with a flexing arsenal of stinging freestyles, hitting name flips, witty personals, gritty wordplay and back-to-back-to-back hard-hitting punches of her own throughout the match, it’s the veteran Bonnie Godiva who earns the 30 for the win here.

Verdict: Bonnie Godiva (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Bonnie Godiva – “Listen Invisible Woman, it’s about time to be clear with yaself, like are you hearing yourself?, you burned me mean you buried yaself, I’ll put caution tape all around Kausion…have you wearing yourself!”

Cortez defeats Danny Myers (Rematch)

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Recap: From URL’s Banned card, in this 1-round rematch Cortez a gang of stifling gun bars, gripping mayhem, lofty personals/punchlines and nasty boasts/wordplay to handily beat back a raucous punching and rebuttal-lit at times, but overall mostly pedestrian Danny Myers.

Verdict: Cortez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Cortez – “Llama’s hurl, erasing DM, I got a girl!”

Cortez defeats Cali Smoov

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Recap: In this 1-rounder from IEvolveTV, another solid punching and aggressive showing from Cali Smoov gets handily beat back by Cortez’s more steady and gritty mix of bold street raps, nasty wordplay, lofty name flips, boastful darts and hitting punchlines/personals.

Verdict: Cortez (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Cortez – “Your motivation, you can’t mirror me, I’m a miracle!”

Chilla Jones defeats JDK

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Recap: Against the mostly braggadocious (and basic) raps of JDK, Chilla Jones unleashes a steady stream of stinging personals, righteous 4-bar setup/punchlines, witty barbs, reckless violence and a hard-hitting 3rd round rebuttal to easily catch a 30 and take this 3-rounder from VLMG & Tha Kulture.

Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “You just gonna find a way to lose, I mean usually I battle names, I don’t get points for JDK, this ain’t Scrabble game!”

Hollow Da Don defeats Aye Verb (Rematch)

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Recap: A decade and some change after their memorable 2-round battle back in St. Louis, Aye Verb and Hollow Da Don meet up again for a 1-rounder at URL’s Summer Madness 12. And it’s a goodie with the two battle vets keeping things competitive with Verb using a bunch of righteous boats and solid 4-bar set-up/punches to stay in there while Hollow utilized a stream of fly performance bars, witty personals and gritty punchlines to show he still has it. A close one with a near equal amount of haymakers, it’s the more condensed and versatile Hollow who gets the edge here.

Verdict: Hollow Da Don (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Hollow Da Don – “Are we getting yoga Verb or Yoda Verb?, could any one of them go to Verb and tell ’em we tired of that spoken word!”

Tink Da Demon defeats Danny Myers (Rematch)

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Recap: From URL’s Lite Work card, both Danny Myers and Tink Da Demon spout a bunch of mayhem, gore, spiteful gun bars and spirited boasts/punchlines over the course of three rounds to keep you captivated. But in what was a close battle throughout, it’s the slightly more consistently hitting Tink who edges rounds 1 and the deciding 3rd for the win.

Verdict: Tink Da Demon (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tink Da Demon – “Clip full of bald heads preying over your bald head like a skinhead convention!”

O-Red defeats Villa

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Recap: In this fiery and competitive one-rounder from Our Society Battle League O-Red simply wilds out, using an omnipresent barrage of fire schemes, stifling name flips, killer set-ups/punhclines, grandiose gun bars, flexing wordplay/similes and mocking personals along with a spitfire rebuttal in the latter half of his round to beat back a gritty and punch-lit at times, but too often haphazard with the bars Villa.

Verdict: O-Red (W) 1-0

Favorite line: O-Red – “His energy lyrically ain’t enough to get rid of me, Eren Yeager, I ain’t the typical Titan your ten will see [Tennessee]!”

Chef Trez defeats The Saurus

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Recap: From GTX, giving the fans what they craved with spicy rebuttal games unleashed on both sides, after a debatable round 1, punch-for-punch it’s a wordplay-lit Chef Trez who flexes more, out-scoring and outlasting a pretty solid effort from The Saurus to take both of the latter rounds for the win in what was a competitive 3-rounder.

Verdict: Chef Trez (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chef Trez – “Paul, Peter, Roll, I’m snatching hope from him, but I’ll never rob Peter to pay Paul…I’m getting both of ’em!”

Danny Myers defeats Aktive

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Recap: Overall, the name flips from the Bar God were kinda topsy-turvy. But after splitting the first couple of rounds with a bullish and boastful but witty at times Aktive (who also had a couple of surprising rebuttals), in the deciding 3rd round of this Bizzle Barfest battle, Danny Myers (helped a bit by a shortened turn from his opponent) continues with a steady barrage of stealth-worthy punches and blazing gun bars to gain the win.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Danny Myers – “How the fuck are you active [Aktive], I know we both from the era of G-funk but this when I screw the silencer on the pump and boom-bap him!”

Cortez defeats Jayyohh

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Recap: From Beastmode, always able to paint a bloody scene no matter where he’s at, Cortez uses a steady barrage of fiery schemes, flashy gun bars, ruthless boasts/name flips, stinging similes and fierce Brooklyn-laced punchlines to easily get the 30 while beating back an earnest and aggressive at times, but overall topsy-turvy trio of rounds from Canadian up-n-comer Jayyohh.

Verdict: Cortez (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Cortez – “We ain’t close, bro I give a fuck if the opps watching, I’m talking guns and butter, those my kind of stock options!”

Danny Myers defeats Metaphor

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Recap: At first I thought that was Prep underneath the old man disguise. But it turns out it was actually St. Louis emcee Metaphor here in this 1-rounder from GOTG against Danny Myers. And while the former’s pointed gun bars and righteous punches made for a solid performance overall, one too many subpar bars from Metaphor and a Myers mired in raucous haymakers, stinging pontifications/storytelling, boastful barbs and aggressive personals/punchlines gets Danny the win.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Danny Myers – “My nigga’s love thugging, ain’t no surviving on my block, we’ll turn this shit into White Castle if you bring rider’s on my block, I’m talking shooting K’s and grave chase ’em, that’s 30 sliders in a box!”

DNA defeats K-Shine (Rematch)

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Recap: Grafting the energy of a BET crowd that for the most part probably aren’t ardent battle rap fans with fiery punchlines and effervescent current event bars that even your average recluse could keep up with, in this 1-rounder from BET’s Hip Hop Awards show, a more steady hitting DNA is able to beat back (and get a bit of revenge from their earlier match on URL almost a decade ago) a gritty and pretty solid, but a bit too deliberate with the pace and less haymaker-lit K-Shine.

Verdict: DNA (W) 1-0

Favorite line: DNA – “I’m a dump a Glock, he gonna hit with a bunch of shots, then I’m a make him disappear outta nowhere…like the monkeypox!”

Danny Myers defeats Fonz

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Recap: From URL’s Summer Madness 12 card, a close battle between Danny Myers (who could probably be a rock star on the side, the way he gets charged up and interacts with the crowd) and Fonz comes down to a rambunctious punching, more direct and spicy rebuttal game from Danny (after losing round 1 thanks to a stellar second-half to his turn in the opener by Fonz) that in addition to a couple of elongated rounds from Fonz, that while hitting at times punch-wise, couldn’t manage to keep up with the Bar God’s more steadily robust lines (esp. in round 2 where a longwinded and mostly subpar Fonz fought with the crowd over being able to spout a tired T-Rex angle), thus allowing the EFB battler to come back and take round’s 2 plus 3 for the win.

Verdict: Danny Myers (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Danny Myers – “Hey, let me talk to my opposition, he look like one of them landlords that when a woman don’t have all the rent, he offers them a proposition!”

Eazy The Block Captain defeats Calicoe

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Recap: Continuing a sizzling run of late that has him swiftly rising up the top tier charts, Eazy The Block Captain uses a gang of witty/hardbody personals, steely life tutorials, gritty storytelling, fiery schemes/trap talk, stifling street barbs and flippant gun bars/punchlines to take both of the latter rounds and get the win in this Summer Madness 12 matchup against Calicoe. The Detroit, Michigan emcee and SM vet showing up with 3 rounds of conversationalist/analytical rhymes that were even more heavy-handed when loaded with abstract darts, nimble gems and piercing personals. But outside of an opening round by Cal equipped with enough haymakers to force a debatable, it would be Eazy’s constant shiners via a barrage of versatile and hard-hitting bars that his opponent simplky couldn’t keep up with that’d allow the Philly battler to continue his blazing win streak.

Verdict: Eazy The Block Captain (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Eazy The Block Captain – “Why does the gym feel like trap shit?, machine’ s and diet’s in my plan, cuz I put on gloves to lift weights and still found some powder on my hands!”

First Lady Flamez defeats Kid Chaos

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Recap: 3-rounder from URL’s Lite Work card. Fire ‘Ginuwine’ bar from Kid Chaos in the 3rd, which in the midst of a boatload of stinging boasts/punchlines/set-ups throughout the match, got him the finale and made for a pretty solid showing overall. But with a bit of a quicker 1st step when it cames to the punches, in addition to some fire name flips, better transitions, spicy wordplay, righteous gun bars and zero reaches (unlike her opponent who had a couple) it’s First Lady Flamez who also lands a couple of more haymaker in each turn to edge both the 1st and 2nd rounds for the win.

Verdict: First Lady Flamez (W) 2-1

Favorite line: First Lady Flamez – “Nose up as soon as I walk in the door like I don’t like shit!”

Tsu Surf defeats JC

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Recap: From Summer Madness 12, a highly anticipated and long awaited style (‘pen’ vs. ‘AMG mode’) clash between Tsu Surf and JC ends up being a mostly one-sided affair after the veteran Michigan emcee got off to a hot start with a barrage of stifling personals in the 1st half of his opening round. And while it was a bit surprising seeing JC get so personal with an opponent, considering all the hype and back-n-forth yapping between him and Surf (well actually it was mostly Surf doing the promoting and shit talking beforehand) leading up to the battle, the EFB member’s change in tone and strategy seemed fitting. Yet stunningly it quickly went downhill from there as the usually boastful, wordplay-lit and God-centric pen of JC’s would succumb to a boatload of subpar punches.personals during the next two-and-a-half rounds that not only left him down and out, but had him pop-locking on stage. All the while Surf, already on an impressive run of 5 wins in a row against top tier opponent’s, would back up months of smack talk with a gritty, punchline-savvy, performance-heavy/crowd-controlling, metaphorically fire at times, street rhyme-lit and personally cold trio of rounds to handily get the win.

Verdict: Tsu Surf (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Tsu Surf – “This must be another JC, it gotta be, the JC I know had me covered when they shot at me!”

Tay Roc defeats Swamp

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Recap: Even with the win, not sure what was going on with Tay Roc in during much-hyped Summer Madness 12 battle versus Swamp. And no, we’re not talking about all the ‘raccoon’ mention’s. First (and a bit surprisingly) there was a highly personal and stellar round 1 from Roc, who while always on point regardless of who the opponent is, usually saves his best rounds for the latter (more on that later) rounds. Then there’s the sheer bewilderment of seeing Roc continuously get into it over all the raccoon talk with a Charlotte, North Carolina crowd that was clearly prideful of their Southern culture. A move we’ve witnessed from Roc before (like against Geechi Gotti in Philly after he took a shot at Cassidy), but one that made zero sense back then and made zero sense here, especially when you consider the fact that the raucous crowd cheered for many of Roc’s bars and wasn’t showing Swamp (who’s from nearby South Carolina) any bias seeing as he got booed too. Lastly, even with just enough haymakers to edge the deciding 3rd and gain the vic (call it a moral victory for Swamp, especially after he came back to take round 2 after getting overmatched by Roc in the opener) in an aggressive battle knee deep in fiery gun bars, highly-spirited personals, solid name flips and gritty punchlines from both sides, the idea that Roc seemingly took Swamp for granted going into this matchup and thought his 1st and 2nd rounds would be enough for a clear win is a move any vet should be wary of making.

Verdict: Tay Roc (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Tay Roc – “Talk to me nice or your jaw I’ma break, nothing’s impossible, God isn’t fake, I can’t take a lake in a swamp, boy but I can toss a Swamp in a lake!”

Shotgun Suge defeats Chess

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Recap: Where to start with this one? Well, that’s actually pretty easy. I’m in agreement with Bones Brigante and Jimz. If he hasn’t already Chess needs to make a doctor’s appointment and try to figure out WTF is going on–whether it’s acid reflex or anxiety or whatever–that’s causing him to freak out and throw up on stage. Forget that the fact that’s hindering his battles (to be fair, it’s only happened about 3 times that I can recollect), it’s Chess’ overall health that should be his number one priority. Moving on, a rematch from their competitive EBC battle back in 2018, this one was all Shotgun Suge. The Jersey-to-ATL vet taking advantage of a trio of unforced errors (i.e. breaks in play due to the aforementioned performance issues) by Chess (who did kick some spitfire bars during the opener) in round 1 as well as the frazzled Gun Titles member surprisingly stopping both his 2nd and 3rd rounds short with a steady barrage of stifling name flips, some fire wordplay, rambunctious punchlines, hard-hitting personals, witty barbs and hardbody gun lines/boasts to get a well-earned 30.

Verdict: Shotgun Suge (W) 3-0

Favorite line: Shotgun Suge – “What his life like?, I don’t understand who hyped dude, how you like dude, muthafucka we been following you since you was 15 and we never seen you graduate high school!”

Fonz defeats Real Name Brandon

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Recap: Fonz vs. Real Name Brandon (aka Ultimate Madness 1 tournament winner versus UM4 tourney winner) from The Riot contains a gang of stifling punchlines, spirited gun bars, lofty set-ups and graphic mayhem from both battlers in make things interesting for the 1st couple of rounds (with a maymaker-lit Fonz edhing round 1 before a 2nd round debatable). But thanks in part to RNB choking away his 3rd, it’s the Landlord (who also added some sizzling wordplay and fire name flips to the mix) what with another round of stealthy punches, who gets the win in the end.

Verdict: Fonz (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Fonz – “Bro stop it, acting like this nigga the one, no this nigga my son, but he not me, he Jaheim, this R&B nigga a bum!”

Adolph Jr. defeats Fonz

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Recap: In this close 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden, both Adolph Jr. and Fonz bring the fiery gun bars, ill boasts and hard-hitting punchlines to make thinsg competitive. But despite a near equal amount of haymakers to his opponent and saving himself from a choke by recycling a bar at the end of his turn, it’s a slightly less cleaner Fonz who ends up getting the loss in lieu of an impressive performance from Adolph Jr.

Verdict: Adolph Jr. (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Adolph Jr. – “You think I’m playing nigga?, Robert Downey, Tropic Thunder, just watch what you saying nigga!”

Cortez defeats Drugz (Rematch)

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Recap: A 3-round rematch between Cortez and Drugz from URL’s Lite Work card goes the former’s way as the veteran Brooklyn emcee not only takes it back to his old Grind Time days with a boatload of gritty street rhymes, but with an addition of a bunch of spicy name flips, some sizzling wordplay/Spanglish and more consistently hard-hitting punches manages to take rounds 1 and 3 (call round 2 debatable as a pretty and aggressive Drugz stepped it up there) for the win.

Verdict: Cortez (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Cortez – “Fuck I look like wrestling with drugs…Eddie Guerrero!”

Don Marino defeats Bill Collector

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Recap: Showing off more performance with his punches while flexing with a wide array of hitting bars, in this close 1-rounder from Gates of the Garden, it’s a slightly more haymaker-lit and versatile Don Marino who beats back a very witty (esp. when it came to the Mexican jokes), but mostly one-dimensional Bill Collector.

Verdict: Don Marino (W) 1-0

Favorite line: Don Marino – “When you move how I move you don’t have to fight, they lift the gat and they spark it, the clip got a curve like a neck on an ostrich!”

O-Red defeats Wise

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Recap: From Gates of the Garden, Wise who made a nice impression against Tay Roc sometime back, does the same here versus O-Red, using a bunch of fiery schemes, boastful barbs and gritty punchlines to make things competitive in this 1-rounder. But equipped with a barrage of stifling wordplay, rigid sports bars, potent set-ups, sizzling trap talk/gun bars and hard-hitting punches/name flips, it’s a more versatile and steadier with the handle Red who ends up getting the win.

Verdict: O-Red (W) 1-0

Favorite line: O-Red – “Fuck humble Red, you’ll get the cocky side, in them Philly streets with the Tommy gun…it get Rocky 5!”

K-Shine defeats Bill Collector

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Recap: Rare to see a battler go up against Bill Collector and stand out with a more performance-heavy round. But in this competitive 1-rounder from The Battle Academy, K-Shine uses some eletric storytelling, a bunch of witty barbs/personals, gritty punchlines/gun bars and stifling name flips to beat back a pretty solid (esp. towards the end of his turn) overall and punch-heavy at times, but less consistent and much less stage-lit B.C.

Verdict: K-Shine (W) 1-0

Favorite line: K-Shine – “Just like a nigga, put an extension on Bill right after I got paid!”

Nunn Nunn defeats Mike P

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Recap: Some white-on-white crime here as Nunn Nunn takes on Mike P in a battle from URL’s Battle in the Bayou card. A long anticipated bout that featured a plethora of local New Orleans’ references from Nunn Nunn, a gang of rambunctious/abstract punches from Mike P, a couple of solid rebuttals from both sides and as to be expected a bunch of aggressive personals from Mike and Nunn (tho the latter making use the now tired angle on Mike’s wife was a bit surprising). Both a crowd-pleasure, set-up rich and a close one throughout with Nunn Nunn taking round 1 and Mike edging round 2, despite a pretty solid and punch-heavy turn by Mike in the 3rd, it’s the more versatile and haymaker-lit Nunn Nunn who takes the 3rd for the win.

Verdict: Nunn Nunn (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Nunn Nunn – “Why take this pussy in New Orleans?!…it’s Mystikal!”

Geechi Gotti defeats Dizaster

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Recap: Highly anticipated, especially on the West coast, Geechi Gotti and Dizaster face off for 3 rounds (last round unlimited) on GTX and to the crowd’s delight, dish a trio of fiery, competitive turns littered with plenty of mayhem, boasts and aggressive punches. Diz in his 2nd battle back after a long hiatus, delivered on his usual checkpoints of graphic violence, fierce storytelling, slick talk and rigid set-ups/personals/schemes. While the versatile Gotti consistently brought the heat with a barrage of hard-hitting/mocking personals, witty barbs, potent street talk, stinging punchline, boastful gun lines and a couple of spicy rebuttals. Altogether a close one, still it’s a more haymaker-lit Geechi who takes rounds 1 and 2 for the win before an equally syrupy on both sides 3rd round debatable.

Verdict: Geechi Gotti (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Geechi Gotti – “We Crips, Bloods, Esai’s, Asian’s, listen you don’t be in them streets enough, I don’t give a fuck much languages you know, bitch you don’t speak for us!”

Chilla Jones defeats Quban

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Recap: While Chilla Jones versus Quban on OSBL can definitely be filed under those ‘Out of Nowhere’ matchups, this 3-rounder is still a fire battle nonethess. Indeed, a turned-up Quban would make his mark throughout the bout with a barrage of gritty punches (esp. in round 2 which he somehow edged after a dope turn by Chilla), graphic mayhem and hitting name flips. While Chilla was…well just Chiila, dishing a plethora of stinging gun bars, cold euphemisms, witty barbs/personals, sturdy name flips of his own, fly smiles and hardbody punchlines. Three competitive rounds provided by both battlers, it’s a slightly more condensed, haymaker-lit and consistently scoring Chilla who edges the 1st and 3rd round’s for the win.

Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “So get popped or get whipped back to back like gridlock!”

Chilla Jones defeats Dre Litez

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Recap: From Takeova Battle League, a bit of a memory lapse the second round (which he managed to freestyle his way through) cost Chilla Jones a debatable there, but a round 1 and 3 enriched with a steady barrage of sizzling 4-bar setups/punchlines, flexing mayhem, stinging name flips and spicy similes/wordplay handily gets him the win over an overall soild-puinching, but too drunk on the pontifications Dre Litez.

Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “But don’t worry, we’ll cheer [wheelchair] for you and give you a push [applause], see how I got this platform ramped up?!”

Chilla Jones defeats Heat

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Recap: Despite the rare sight of Chilla Jones struggling to remember his bars (as he does here in round 2 which would lead to him having to save face and freestyle his way through), in this 3-rounder from Alaska’s Sitka Battle League, Mr. Top Tier from the Proving Grounds’ well-finessed schemes, rigid punches and stinging name flips/boasts in rounds 1 and 3 would easily get past a cadence and aggressive-lit, but mostly subpar punching Heat.

Verdict: Chilla Jones (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Chilla Jones – “So do y’all mind that I tried switching?, cut out a whole round just to make this up for debate like ice fishing!”

Arsonal defeats DNA (Rematch)

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Recap: Remnants of the Grind Time era here with URL’s new ‘Lite Work’ battles, that will still feature 3 rounds, but with a minute-and-a-half time limits per round. A fly concept without a doubt, it’s only right that a couple of GT graduates, in this case Arsonal and DNA, set it off. And this rematch from their infamous Don’t Flop battle almost a decade ago was just as competitive and fiery with a slightly more punch-heavy and trap-talking Arsonal taking the first, before a personal and set-up-lit DNA returned the favor in the 2nd. The 3rd round while also close, would get edged to Ars here as his opponent’s penchant for taking a little too long to get to the punch to go along with da Rebel’s more steady/rapid punching power ends up giving the Jersey capo the win.

Verdict: Arsonal (W) 2-1

Favorite line: Arsonal – “Even tho I don’t get nuthin’ but head, I like Beavis!”