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It’s always hard to see how a MMA fight could be sold out when the rugby is on. Cage Warrior’s first event defied expectations, being at almost capacity and bringing in a well-behaved, but enthusiastic crowd to watch fourteen fighters bang it out in the cage. Bang it out they did; not one fight went to the scorecards. The majority of wins came via TKO or referee stoppage, with a couple of submissions thrown inf or Whoever thought of bringing in British Cage Rage champion Ian Freeman to MC the night deserves a free beer. Ian was the consummate host. He kept the crowd laughing and cheering, and he deftly handled the one moment of technical difficulties that Cage Warrior had on the night. Cage Warrior: Two Worlds Collide was a great first show, technically executed and had a great response from the crowd. My only criticism was that there were some very big weight differences between the fighters on the night, although it was the deciding factor in only one fight. The fights were preceded by an absolutely superb Maori haka, complete with taiaha that got my blood pumping, and I was only watching! Marcelo Lopez (NZ/Brazil) vs. Ryan Heketa (New Zealand) Ryan started this bout well; his crisp Muay Thai kept the ground fighter at bay with well-timed strikes and good foot movement. Marcelo stuck to his game plan though and stalked Ryan around the cage before bringing him low with a double leg take down. Ryan refused to give up striking and delivered some hard elbows and punches from the guard. Marcelo went to pass his opponent’s guard and during Ryan’s scramble to stand he locked in an extremely tight kimura from his own guard. Ryan gamely struggled to escape but Marcelo’s BJJ was spot on and he got the tap at 2.44 minutes into the first round.
Nathan Ashworth (New Zealand) vs. Api Taia (New Zealand) This fight had one of the biggest visible weight differences of the night. This helped Api Taia to slam his way out of two tight armbar attempts in the first round from a very game, but overmatched Nathan Ashworth fighting out of Palmerston North. Api showed good stand up to begin the one and only round, while Nathan pulled guard to get the fight down to the floor. Api then pulled a game plan straight from Kevin Randleman and proceeded to slam and pummel his smaller opponent from inside the guard, eventually pounding his way first to mount and then to a submission at 3.44 minutes into the first round. Ryan Mortimer (Australia) vs Richie Cashmore (United Kingdom) This was far and away the fight of the night. I’d heard that IMA’s Ryan “The Dog” Mortimer was a monster of a fighter and someone to watch in the future. He didn’t disappoint. Equally impressive though was Richie Cashmore from the UK, who displayed a great work ethic and some nice striking and submission skills. Round one started out with some lightning quick exchanges that Richie seemed to get the better of, but Ryan put him on his back and proceeded to spend much of the round belting Richie with some excellent ground and pound. Richie never panicked though and he threw out some good submission attempts. Richie started out round two by trying to kick Ryan’s head off his shoulders. Ryan managed to get under the kick and again got the fight on the floor. The two fighters then went hell for leather. They traded blows and submissions until a slight mistake in the scramble gave Ryan the chance to lock on a rear naked choke that got the tap with just twenty seconds left to go in the second round. Keep an eye on both of these guys in the future.
The crowd had been good up until this point but it was clear from the outset that they were there to see Benji Kney from Bromley Jiu Jitsu do his thing. Matt Toa had other ideas in the first round though. Matt dragged Benji onto the floor after a quick exchange and spent the entire first round on top and in side control trying for a kimura. Benji showed excellent submission defense and brought the fight back from the brink several times before the bell went. The second round began with another sloppy exchange on the feet followed by Benji bringing the action to the ground this time. Matt Toa had obviously given everything he had in the first as in the second round Benji turned Matt into side control, and after a brief attempt at a kimura, proceeded to unleash some of the nastiest elbow strikes I’ve seen for some time. I was ringside and heard the shots echoing off Matt’s head. The ref let several unanswered shots go by before calling the fight halfway through the second round.
The UK fighter came out of the gate with some hard leg kicks and jabs, making Dylan “The Villain” look momentarily uncomfortable on his feet. Dylan however set up a slick takedown and quickly gained mount. Marvin even tried to punch his way out from underneath mount to which Dylan answered with an ferocious and accurate ground and pound stoppage. The ref had no choice but to call the fight at 1.38 minutes into the first round.
BJ Bland’s Muay Thai is excellent. He gave Mark Tucker everything he could handle on the feet, fending off several takedown attempts and landing some excellent knees from the clinch. Mark kept up the takedown attempts and once the fight went to grappling Mark was all over BJ, who despite showing great head movement on the floor was being beaten up and the referee decided enough was enough at 4.39 minutes into the first round. Mark Tucker showed some excellent sportsmanship by helping BJ to his feet and making sure he was ok. Hiriwa Te Rangi (NZ) vs Tyrone Evelyn (UK) Poor Tyrone. Fighting a man twenty kilos heavier and ten years more experienced for your first fight is tough. Hiriwa’s ring entrance was longer than the fight as he knocked over, then pounded out a win over Tyrone just 25 seconds into the first round. The crowd was disappointed and gave out the only booing of the evening. Hiriwa still showed good sportsmanship though and he credited his opponent for fighting him at short notice. All in all I had an excellent night. I even got to talk to Ian Freeman, who I have been a fan of for some time (who wants to see him fight Couture?). He is an incredibly nice guy. Congratulations to Ren Sadlier for running an excellent show. Here’s hoping we see plenty more in the future. One and a half thumbs up from me, with the only demerit being the weight differences on some of the fights.
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