HCS 37 Results: Efrain Garcia Wins 135-Pound Grand Prix as Champions Rise at Hudson Fit Expo
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Hammer Challenge Series packed 27 submission-grappling matches into four hours at HCS 37, where Efrain Garcia captured the 135-pound Grand Prix, Brandon Smith retained his 185-pound championship and Paolo D’Alessandro became the promotion’s inaugural 145-pound Superfight champion.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Hammer Challenge Series brought “The House Party of Grappling” to one of New Jersey’s largest fitness gatherings Saturday, Sept. 12, delivering a fast-moving slate of Grand Prix matches, championship contests and regional superfights at the Hudson Fit Expo.
The first match began at 9 a.m. sharp at Saint Peter’s Prep’s James F. Keenan, S.J. Field. By approximately 1 p.m., HCS 37 had completed all 27 matches despite a card filled with regulation submissions and extended overtime battles.
That four-hour run reflected the identity Hammer Challenge Series has worked to establish. Competitors attacked through submission-only regulation periods before HCS overtime forced decisive finishes when necessary. The official HCS 37 results recorded 14 regulation submissions, 12 overtime results and one disqualification.
Efrain Garcia Captures the HCS 37 Grand Prix
Efrain Garcia faced the most demanding assignment on the card and finished the morning as the HCS 37 135-pound Grand Prix champion.
Garcia opened his tournament by submitting Matthew Manna with an ankle lock in regulation. He then defeated Tyler Millas by escape in the second overtime round before meeting Luis Salomon in the final.
Salomon entered the championship match with momentum after submitting Robert Romero with a Ruotolo choke and catching Dallas Ragusa with a flying triangle. Garcia stopped that run in OT3, winning by fastest escape to secure the Grand Prix championship.
Hammer Challenge Series founder Josh Baker previously explained during his JMA Podcast interview that HCS Grand Prix champions can earn a $1,000 payout and permanently keep their tournament championship belt. Unlike the promotion’s defendable divisional titles, a Grand Prix belt belongs to the bracket winner.
Garcia needed three victories against three different opponents to earn that distinction in Jersey City.
Brandon Smith Retains the 185-Pound Championship
Brandon Smith entered HCS 37 as the promotion’s 185-pound Superfight champion and left Jersey City with the title still in his possession.
Smith defended against Dvorovy in a match that moved into HCS overtime. The champion secured the victory by escape in OT1, extending the title reign that Baker discussed during his appearance on the JMA Podcast.
The defense also supported HCS’s effort to create championships with an ongoing lineage. Baker has said the promotion wants its divisional champions to defend their belts rather than treat championship victories as one-night tournament awards.
Smith met that responsibility at Hudson Fit Expo and remained the athlete to beat at 185 pounds.
Paolo D’Alessandro Becomes the First 145-Pound Superfight Champion
Paolo D’Alessandro produced one of the most important regulation finishes of the event.
D’Alessandro defeated Artur Landkoff by heel hook to become the first HCS 145-pound Superfight champion, establishing the starting point for a new championship lineage inside Hammer Challenge Series.
The result continued a run that JMurrayAthletics has followed across multiple HCS events. In the HCS 33 recap, D’Alessandro closed the show with a regulation buggy choke. At HCS 37, he changed the submission but repeated the result, finishing another opponent before overtime and leaving Jersey City with championship gold.
HCS did not publicly itemize separate fight purses for Smith and D’Alessandro in its results announcement. The promotion confirmed the championship outcomes, while the publicly discussed cash-prize structure centered on the Grand Prix.
Luis Salomon Delivers the Submission of the Tournament
Luis Salomon did not leave with the Grand Prix belt, but his run produced one of the defining moments of HCS 37.
After advancing with a Ruotolo choke against Romero, Salomon met Dallas Ragusa in the semifinal. He secured a flying triangle in regulation, immediately creating one of the event’s most replayable finishes.
Salomon then pushed Garcia into the third overtime round in the Grand Prix final. Garcia ultimately won by fastest escape, but Salomon’s two regulation submissions made him one of the morning’s standout athletes.
Familiar HCS Athletes Turn Previous Opportunities Into Wins
Several HCS 37 competitors had already appeared in JMurrayAthletics articles, broadcasts and highlight coverage before arriving in Jersey City.
Dallas Ragusa’s road toward the 135-pound tournament formed part of JMA’s Hammer Challenge Series Fight Night 4 preview. Ragusa defeated Ruiz with a regulation triangle at HCS 37 before Salomon stopped him in the semifinal.
That same Fight Night 4 preview featured Matthew Manna, Jalin Badillo, Chris Collins and Tyler Millas. Each returned at Hudson Fit Expo:
- Badillo defeated Vorbach by armbar in OT2.
- Collins submitted Rolfini with a rear-naked choke in OT1.
- Millas advanced through a disqualification before Garcia eliminated him in OT2.
- Manna entered the Grand Prix but fell to Garcia’s opening-round ankle lock.
Cole Allem also returned after defeating Antonio Covello at HCS 33. Shiomos stopped Allem at HCS 37 with a no-gi bow-and-arrow choke in regulation.
Anthony Mitchell and Sebastian Gallegos offered another clear example of the promotion’s developing roster. Mitchell defeated Gallegos in OT2 during their 170-pound professional match at Fight Night 5, a technical battle previously featured through JMurrayAthletics’ HCS coverage.
Both athletes rebounded with regulation finishes at HCS 37. Mitchell submitted De Los Santos by rear-naked choke, while Gallegos defeated Wiggins by ankle lock.
Instead of allowing one result to define either competitor, HCS brought both back quickly and gave them opportunities to build new momentum.
HCS 37 Results
- Lora def. Dang — Escape, OT1
- Fernandez def. Valinotti — Arm Triangle, Regulation
- Young def. Noriss — Escape, OT2
- Purnell def. Zink — Straight Ankle Lock, Regulation
- Collins def. Rolfini — Rear-Naked Choke, OT1
- Badillo def. Vorbach — Armbar, OT2
- Estrada def. Ehlrich — Mother’s Milk, Regulation
- Travinsky def. Chiaravolti — Heel Hook, Regulation
- Corcan def. Bui — Rear-Naked Choke, OT1
- Scrom def. Singh — Kneebar, Regulation
- Millas advanced by disqualification
- Garcia def. Manna — Ankle Lock, Regulation
- Salomon def. Romero — Ruotolo Choke, Regulation
- Ragusa def. Ruiz — Triangle, Regulation
- Zennaro def. Romero — Armbar, Regulation
- Backman def. Liamero — Escape, OT2
- Shiomos def. Allem — No-Gi Bow-and-Arrow Choke, Regulation
- Mitchell def. De Los Santos — Rear-Naked Choke, Regulation
- Salomon def. Ragusa — Flying Triangle, Regulation
- Garcia def. Millas — Escape, OT2
- Liamero def. Loor — Rear-Naked Choke, OT1
- Princiotta def. Romero — Escape, OT2
- Gallegos def. Wiggins — Ankle Lock, Regulation
- Milione def. Soley — Escape, OT2
- D’Alessandro def. Landkoff — Heel Hook, Regulation
- Smith def. Dvorovy — Escape, OT1
- Garcia def. Salomon — Fastest Escape, OT3
JMurrayAthletics Brings HCS 37 to Viewers
JMurrayAthletics handled the HCS 37 livestream production, bringing the entire Jersey City card to viewers who could not attend Hudson Fit Expo.
The replay is available through the Hammer Challenge Series YouTube channel. Fans can revisit Garcia’s Grand Prix run, Smith’s championship defense, D’Alessandro’s title-winning heel hook and the full 27-match lineup.
JMurrayAthletics also photographed the event. Athletes, coaches and spectators can find images through the JMurrayAthletics event photo collections, with additional HCS 37 highlights and social content continuing to roll out.
The HCS Road to Rahway Continues
HCS 37 showed why Hammer Challenge Series has become an important stage for regional submission grappling.
The card gave returning competitors another chance to build momentum, introduced new champions and placed a full Grand Prix in front of the wider Hudson Fit Expo audience. It also connected another numbered event to the larger Academy Season and the Road to Rahway.
Hammer Challenge Series has already identified Fight Night 6 as the final opportunity for academies to earn qualifying points before the playoff field takes shape. Wins, submissions and performance bonuses could determine which teams advance toward the Academy Season playoffs.
For the athletes, the next opportunity has already started taking shape. For the promotion, HCS 37 delivered another four hours of evidence that regional grappling can remain technical, decisive and entertaining.
Stay connected with Hammer Challenge Series and JMurrayAthletics for upcoming event announcements, Road to Rahway updates, match highlights, photography and live regional combat-sports coverage.
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