Emma Bramford

LAUREN MURPHY SIGNED TO UFC; WILL FACE SARA MCMANN AUGUST 16TH

The UFC has signed unbeaten Invicta FC Bantamweight Champion Lauren Murphy to a UFC contract, not only that Murphy will not have to wait long for her UFC debut as she will be facing former UFC title contender Sara McMann on August 16th for UFC Fight Night in Bangor, Maine.

Sara is the number 7 ranked Bantamweight in the world, with her only loss coming from current UFC champion Ronda Rousey. Lauren Murphy is ranked number 8 and is 8-0 in her MMA career so far. Lauren has not fought since December of 2013, after winning the Invicta FC Bantamweight title by defeating Miriam Nakamoto in the fourth round via TKO (Nakamoto was unable to continue due to a knee injury sustained in the third round, but did come out for the fourth round before her knee giving out completely).

There will undoubtabley be questions as to where this leaves Invicta FC with another one of their athletes leaving the promotion and who now will get the chance to compete for the now vacant Bantamweight Title.

Tickets for UFC Fight Night, which is headlined by the light heavyweight bout between Ryan Bader and Ovince Saint Preux, and which also features Tim Boetsch vs. Brad Tavares, are on sale now.

ULTIMATE IMPACT 12 – OFFICIAL RESULTS – 3 NEW CHAMPIONS!

On Saturday June 28th, Ultimate Impact held there 12th event at GL1 Leisuire Centre in Gloucester, to an aswesome, hyped up, vocal crowd.

With three title fights on the card this was one not to be missed, and boy, it lived right up to its name, in fact, the current two MMA title holders lost their belts, two NEW TITLE holders were crowned and of course we had the ladies first ever K1 Flyweight Title fight.

This night did not disappoint, from the amateurs at the start of the card, right through to the Pros on the card, infact with every event it is getting harder to top the last one! I cannot wait for #UIC13 on November 15th at GL1 Leisure Centre.

Here are the Official Results:

Amateurs – Undercard

Lawrence Coates Def Jack Price UD K1

Greg Artis Def Thomas Karminski via Guillotine round 1 MMA

Raymond Nelmes Def Dan Reeves via UD K1

Sophie Tidey Def Camille Schmiez via TKO round 1 K1

Nathan Powell Def Mason Carter via UD MMA

MAIN CARD

Bryn Cooper Def Matt Harthill via TKO round 3 K1

Jack Shore Def Piotor Egert via Americana round 1 MMA

Craig White Def Jon Williamson via Submission round 1 MMA

Aaron Khalid Def Mark Finney via UD MMA

Toby Hartman Def Chris Astley via Split Decision MMA

LW TITLE FIGHT MMA
Terry Doyle Def Wayne Drake via UD
#New #LW #Champion

FEMALE FLYWEIGHT K1 TITLE
Laura Handy Def Cheryl Flynn via UD
#New #FW #K1 #Champion

Laura had this to say after her hard earned win:

Awesome feeling when all the hard work pays off!!

Thanks to my coach Ryan Norwood for all the time and effort and to my good looking corner men! Well done to all the other Fury Fighters, win or loose your all awesome.

WW TITLE FIGHT MMA

Adam Bousiff Def Phil Wells via RNC round 2
#New #WW #Champion

Photo Credits: Force MMA and Fury MMA

Next Event is #UIC13

Saturday, November 15 at 5:00pm

GL1 Leisure Centre in Gloucester, Gloucestershire

Tickets available online at

http://www.ultimateimpactevents.com/index.php/mma/events/ultimate-impact-13

WHY SHOULD YOU GO TO ULTIMATE IMPACT 12 – HERE’S WHY

If you need convincing that little bit more, here is a statement written by Ultimate Impact owner Dan Richards:

Tonight at GL1 lesiure centre we return with one of finest fightcard ever put togther by match maker Paul Sutherland. The card feature some of the very best up and coming K1 and MMA fighters from around the Midlands and South West region. Ultimate Impact 12 kicks off at a slightly earlier time of 4.30pm featuring 4 amatuer MMA and K1 amateur bouts, and the main card starting at 5.30pm

One of our good media partners Split Decision was kind enough to give some of the fighters on the card some media exposure and here is what they had to say;

Phil Wells: “I predict it will be a good fight”

This weekend see’s Ultimate Impact return with their 12th installment, with three main event title fights, and set to defend his Welterweight Championship is Phil Wells.

Sophie Tidey: “I never underestimate any fighter”

Taking to the cage at Ultimate Impact 12 this weekend is Sophie Tidey who takes on Camille Sch in an amateur K1 bout and could easily take away fight of the night honors.

Aaron Khalid ahead of UIC 12: “Its an honour to be fighting on it”

UIC 12 takes place this weekend with a bumper line up of fights, live from the G1 leisure centre in Gloucester. Competing on the card is Aaron Khalid who looks to showcase his ever developing skill set and ahead of his match up, I caught up with him to get his thoughts on his fight …

Jack Price: “I will be looking to control the fight”

Jack Price is no stranger to the Ultimate Impact show, after competing on the promotion in the past, and this weekend he returns to the show fight in a K1 bout.

Terry Doyle: “I’ve trained my ass off for this fight and I’m coming to win”

This coming weekend see’s Ultimate Impact host their 12th show, with a packed line up of fights, and one of the championship fights on the evening features Terry Doyle as he aims to take home the lightweight championship.

Ultimate Impact 11 was a great event and those that were there will certainly 2nd that… for those that were here is a preview of what went down, and why UIC12 will be yet another great event:

Ultimate Impact 11 was a great event and those that were there will certainly 2nd that… for those that were here is a preview of what went down, and why UIC12 will be yet another great event:

Here is a breakdown of the fightcard for tonights event:

Current UIC welterweight champion Phil Wells fighting out of Swindon Vale Tudo will make his first defence after an impressive and dominate performance at UIC10 when he beat Rob Leybourne with an impressive TKO finish. Looking to take the belt from Phil is highly touted Adam Bousiff fighting out of Force MMA under veteran head coach Daz Jones. Adam scored one of the quickest finishes in Ultimate Impact history when he TKO’d Chris Astley following a pin point accurate hook and followed up with some heavy hammer fists before Leon Roberts stepped in!

In our first female championship fight, Laura Handy and Cheryl Fylnn will take to the cage to become the first ever UIC K1 champion! Laura has been on a tear recently winning her last 3 fights, all of which have been at Ultimate Impact Events and she has shown a determination that is rarely seen. Her style means that she never takes a backward step and just keeps coming round after round until her hand is raised at the end. However she will be taking on Cheryl Flynn who arguably has more technical striking and also keeps coming forward. Cheryl is known for her agressiveness and high volume style so this match up is set for fireworks, which ever lady takes it will have certainly earnt it.

Veteran UIC lightweight champion Wayne Drake seems to improve each and every time he steps inside the Ultimate Impact cage and is the perfect example of someone who does his talk inside the cage. Always very well prepared Wayne will most certainly have the grappling advantage over the heavy hitting challenger Terry Doyle. Terry has knockout power in both hands and Ultimate Impact fans will know all about it! This is a true grappler vs striker match and I personally can not wait to see who comes out the champion.

The rest of the card is as follows:

Chris Astley v Toby Hartman
Craig White v Jon Williamson
Mark Finney v Aaron Khalid
Jack Shore v Piotr Egert
Matt ‘George’ Hartill v Bryn Cooper
Cadre Abdulafur v Duane Barnes

Undercard:

Mason Carter v Nathan Powell
Camille Sch v Sophie Tidey
Lawrence Coates v Jack Price
Thomas Karpinski v Greg artis
Raymond Nelmes v Dan Reeves

Doors open at 4pm and the first fight is at 4.30pm, with the main card starting at 5.30pm.

Tickets are available, just use the link below to purchase your ticket, or tickets are available from the GL1 reception all day and throughout the evening.

http://www.ultimateimpactevents.com/index.php/shop/tickets/category?path=39

If you missed my interview with Laura Handy you catch it again here:

https://fiveroundswithemma.com/2014/06/26/getting-to-kno…st-laura-handy/

GETTING TO KNOW ‘THE BEAST’ LAURA HANDY

Laura Handy is a 28-year-old married mother of one who lives in Stourbridge with her Husband and daughter Ayva [2]. On Saturday 28^th June she will be fighting for Ultimate Impact [UIC 12] K1 Flyweight Title against Cheryl Flynn at GL1 Leisure centre in Gloucester.

Born in Wordsley and raised in Blackheath, Laura and her older sister who both used to swim for Oldbury Swimming Club, would train for four/five times a week then come the weekend it would be Gala time, ‘I think that is where my competitive nature comes from, not necessarily with my sister, but as we were always used to competitions with other clubs’.

Competiveness, I would say runs in the family with Laura, who, also has a younger brother [Dan] who is a black belt in Judo and has represented Team GBR in Judo in his teens, ‘Dan has not competed in the last few years due to university commitments but has travelled to Germany and Belgium amongst other countries whilst representing Team GBR’.

Laura currently trains out of Fury MMA in Stourbridge under head coach Ryan Norwood, who is a veteran in the sport, having had 10 professional fights going back to as early as 2002.

Laura being the very supportive wife that she is [Luke and Laura have been together for 11 years married for four of those years] used to go and watch husband Luke play football, ‘When we first moved into our house Luke would go and play a lot of football and I would always go and watch; stand on the side-lines in the rain, snow, sometimes the sun [laughs] and all I would hear about would be football’.

Deciding she was getting real bored of football pretty quickly, Laura needed to do something for herself, in steps, Ryan Norwood, who was advertising his new gym Fury MMA, it happened to be just around the corner from where Laura lived, she thought she would give that ago ‘I was the only girl there and got on really well with Ryan and the other lads that attended, I then got addicted to it really and trained for fun for a year before having time off to have my daughter Ayva. When I returned the same year [Oct 2012] Ryan asked if I wanted to fight, I was like ‘of course’ [laughs]’.

Having had no inter-club fights under her belt, Laura got straight into ‘fight’ training mode, for which Laura has already been making huge sacrifices for the sport she has now fallen in love with. Working full time [Thursday – Mondays] in Sales for a Building Contractor selling New Build Houses; her Husband Luke owns a Cleaning business in both the domestic and commercial field, whilst also spending as much quality time with two-year old Ayva as possible.

Laura fits her training in around the time Ayva has gone to bed and before she gets up in the morning so she is not missing out on spending time with her. That in itself is dedication. But, Laura took it one step further and added in weight training to her usual regime ‘I started going because my debut fight with Asha Patel was at 62kg. I was struggling to stay at 62kg, with all the extra training the weight was just dropping off so I thought of just going to lift some weights and I got in touch with a friend of mine Em, who used to train some body builders and she started training with me’.

Laura had her first K1 fight for Ultimate Impact Fight Night 1 on 10^th August 2013 against Asha Patel and won via Unanimous Decision.

Next up was Ultimate Impact 10 and Laura’s opponent was Sammy Donnelly, fighting at 58kg in a K1 fight, so again Laura incorporated her new found ‘dedication’ of weight training into her routine. ‘The shape of my body has changed so much from just weight training, I like the look, the way my muscles fill out, and it is a little bit addictive [laughs], as soon as you start to see your body change you get addicted to that. At 58kg people said I looked scrawny and that was another reason, I wanted to build some muscle. I did not want to look scrawny or skinny at flyweight I just wanted to look toned and lean more than anything else. I am competitive not just against other people but with myself. Every time I go I like to do that very bit more, try a different thing just to push myself that little bit more, it’s all part of the training for me though, I wouldn’t go into a fight not knowing I haven’t put 100% in and I think that adds to my strength, agility and cardio. I find it does help with the weight cut as well. The more lean muscle you have the easier you have to drop your weight, well that is what I find anyway’.

Laura won her second K1 fight against Sammy Donnelly on 16^th November 2013 at UIC 10 via Unanimous Decision. After that fight, it was announced that Laura would be fighting Anya Baker for the K1 Flyweight Title Eliminator on February 22^nd 2014 on Ultimate Impact 11.

Laura fought Anya Baker on February 22^nd 2014 at UIC 11 and won via Unanimous Decision, she would now be fighting Cheryl Flynn on June 28^th at UIC 12 for the first ever female Flyweight K1 Title.

Learning from her past fights, Laura now knows how she is going to train for this title fight, ‘My problem with the way I dealt with Anya’s fight, was that I kept watching her fights over and over, therefore it did not help me with my nerves. This time my coaches will be the ones watching the tapes over and over and I will just go in their direction’.

Speaking of this Title fight I asked if Laura knew anything about Cheryl Flynn, ‘I know that she has had a couple of MMA fights lately and like I just said I’ve seen a couple of videos, I also watched the fight she had with Katie Sendall which was a while ago now and I respect anybody that is going to get in the cage and is going to fight anybody. Cheryl is a respected fighter, a good fighter; she knows what she is doing; to go up in a title fight against someone like Cheryl Flynn who has had as many fights as Cheryl Flynn has, is good for me and is good for my career in K1. I am excited to fight someone like Cheryl Flynn.’

Knowing that Laura will be filled with emotion for her Title fight on June 28^th 2014 she stated, ‘When it was announced that it was going to be a title eliminator against Anya at UIC 11, I was so nervous I couldn’t get it out my head. I just needed to get through this fight first then concentrate on what happens next, but I suffer a lot with nerves; I will be a bag of nerves on the day. I think if you did not get nervous, it does not mean enough to you’. Also adding ‘before the last fight against Anya, Chris Hipkiss, Ryan Norwood and Adam Cartwright had a little chat with me about my nerves just to get me through the first 15 seconds and then said you will be fine; all through the day they had to keep saying little things to me. I was close to tears all day but I got there in the end’.

http://www.njfphotography.com/

‘As a girl, I do wear my heart on my sleeve and I do tell people how I feel. The fight was quite near the end of the night as well; it is the whole build-up of it that makes me nervous; if I could just get in there be the first one on, get in and out and get it done I would probably feel a lot better about it but it is all part of it. Once I am in there, and the ref says off you go, I love every single second of it. It is just getting past those nerves to begin with. I do not want to make a fool of myself or let anyone down. Every fight I’ve gone into I know I have trained my hardest, and I have put in every hour I possibly can’.

Laura also gives a lot of credit to Ultimate Impact, ‘It means a lot that Paul Sutherland and Dan Richards have thought enough of the girls fights to think they need recognition for what we have achieved so far. I think all the girls’ fights on all of the UIC shows everyone has enjoyed them. Every single fight has been worth watching and matched fairly, it means a lot that Paul and Dan have put that together and said you guys are good enough to have a title shot at UIC’.

Laura would like to thank the following people:

Ryan Norwood, Chris Hipkiss, Wayne Drake, Karl Evans, Matt Harthill, Lee Sherwood, Adam Cartwright everyone at Fury MMA, my husband who has been to all my fights and does not moan that I am off out training all the time and my New Sponsor Armour Wash.

http://bodyarmour-uk.com/

Photo Credits: http://www.njfphotography.com/

Ultimate Impact 12 is this Saturday June 28th at GL1 Leisure Centre, Gloucester, tickets are available online on the below link.

http://www.ultimateimpactevents.com/index.php/shop/tickets/category?path=39

Doors open 4pm

First bout 4.30pm

If you have missed any of Laura’s previous fights you can watch them here:

Laura Handy v Asha Patel UIFN1

Laura Handy v Sammy Donnelly UIC 10

Laura Handy v Anya Baker UIC 11

ULTIMATE IMPACT 12 FIGHT CARD DETAILS

On June 28th the GL1 Leisure Centre in Gloucester will play host to Ultimate Impact 12 for an awesome night of MMA and K1 including three title fights [two MMA] and the first ever female Flyweight K1 Title fight.

Phil Wells [C] v Adam Boussif WW Title
Laura Handy v Cheryl Flynn Vacant Flyweight k1 Title
Wayne Drake [C] v Terry Doyle LW Title
Chris Astley v Toby Hartman
Craig White v Jon Williamson
Mark Finney v Aaron Khalid
Carl Swaby v Aaerion Orme
Jack Shore v Piotr Egert
Matt ‘George’ Hartill v Bryn Cooper

Undercard

Mason Carter v Nathan Powell
Greg Artis v Thomas Karpinski
Camille Sch v Sophie Tidey
Laurence Coates v Jack Price
Raymond Nelmes v Dan Reeves

Here is a little taster for what you can expect at UIC12 this weekend:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIg-Uqupqlk#t=11

You can still get tickets from some of the fighters [listed above] alteratively click on this link to purchase online:

http://www.ultimateimpactevents.com/index.php/shop/tickets/category?path=39

Doors open at 4pm

First bout 4.30pm

BAMMA FIGHT NIGHT 1 EVENT REVIEW

Saturday 7^th June saw Bamma hold their first ‘Fight Night 1’ Askham vs Nunes for the Bamma World Middleweight Title at the 02 Guildhall in Southampton to a packed out crowd.

The atmosphere at the 02 Guildhall was friendly, welcoming and very electric. Being at a smaller venue than their usual arena tours, you really got a sense of no matter where you were seated you were part of the action and boy was there was a lot of action.

Photo Credits: Graham Finney 2.3.4

BAMMA MIDDLEWEIGHT WORLD TITLE FIGHT

MAX NUNES 12-2 SCOTT ASKHAM 12-0

Round one opens up and it’s Nunes who is in first with his punches, he then slips and Askham is in Nunes guard, Nunes is attempting to set up a Triangle but to no avail. Askham postures up and starts to land some meaningful punches to Nunes but he is staying active and busy, Askham delivers more punches to Nunes but he manages to get back to his feet. Askham has Nunes against the cage landing punches whilst Nunes is trying to gain wrist control and lands some knees to Askham, which Askham also returned himself. The canvas appears to be slippy as Nunes is now using more of his striking ability and again nearly slipped. Askham manages to get Nunes back against the cage to try to control Nunes just as the bell goes for the end of round one.

Round two opens up with Nunes coming out with leg strikes and has Askham up against the cage. Nunes throws an awesome knee but Askham turns it around where both guys are trying to fight for underhooks and a better position but the referee steps in and splits them up – back to the centre of the cage and Nunes is trying to keep it long but gets caught by Askham who takes him down. Askham has Nunes against the cage and drops him albeit briefly as Nunes pops right back up, at this point Askham tries to take Nunes down again but Nunes takedown defence was too much for Askham this time as he himself dropped to his knees, the referee once again splits them up. Back to the centre again with some striking action from both fighters whom both clearly are looking tired coming towards the final seconds of this second round, Askham attempts a spinning elbow which misses, then the bell goes for end of round two.

Round three, both fighters raise their hand and touch gloves for a sign of respect in this third and final round. They both come out landing kick for kick, and then punch for punch. Askham looks to clinch and hold Nunes for which he succeeds and again forces Nunes against the cage where he starts to unleash his fists of fury on Nunes which then sees him slumped to the canvas and Askham carries on until the referee steps in.

WINNER SCOTT ASKHAM 1MIN 50 SECS Rnd 3 VIA TKO

WINNER AND STILL BAMMA WORLD MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION SCOTT ASKHAM

ALEXEI ROBERTS 10-6 ARTEM KOTOV 3-2

Roberts comes out with few left jabs then Kotov comes in to go for a single leg takedown but it ends up being a full on single leg with a suplex followed by some GnP. Roberts get back to his feet but Kotov still has his back then Kotov lifts up Roberts and then full on body slams him. The crowd are going wild shouting ‘Artem’ ‘Artem’ ‘Artem’. Roberts is back up to his knees and Kotov continued to unleash Gnp on Roberts until the referee called a stop to the fight.

WINNER ARTEM KOTOV 1MIN 04 SECS Rnd 1 VIA TKO (STRIKES)

DRAGAN PESIC 3-2 ASHLEIGH GRIMSHAW 16-8-1-1

Pesic comes out and lands a straight punch, Grimshaw pushes Pesic against the cage, Pesic landing some knees, Grimshaw takes Pesic down and Pesic in full guard there is not much going on so the referee stands them both up. Pesic lands a solid punch and kick to Grimshaw. Pesic tried to jump and pull guard but it was Grimshaw who got the better of this and took Pesic down by slamming Pesic to the canvas where Grimshaw got Pesic in an Arm-Triangle Choke and he was forced to tap.

WINNER ASHLEIGH GRIMSHAW 3MINS 35 SECS Rnd 1 VIA ARM TRIANGLE CHOKE

TIM MENZIES 2-1 ALEX MONTAGNANI 7-1-1

Both guys come out punching, Montagnani gets Menzies against the cage trying to fight for a position then all of a sudden Montagnani knees Menzies followed by a flying knee and it’s all over for Menzies.

WINNER ALEX MONTAGNANI 1MIN 28 SECS Rnd 1 VIA KO (FLYING KNEE)

MICHAEL CUTTING 5-2 ED ARTHUR 4-0

First of all there was a lot of build-up and ‘hype’ to this fight. Mike Cutting entered the cage first to a very vocal crowd of Cutting fans, next was the turn of Ed Arthur who let’s just say his fans were more vocal and were ‘raising the roof’ of the 02 Guildhall. Once both fighters were in the cage, neither fighter took their eyes of one another, Cutting in his usual crouched down position and Arthur pacing back and forth and the crowds are chanting ‘Eddie’ Eddie’ Eddie’ from the stalls.

As round one gets under way it was Cutting who got the initial takedown. Cutting gets a warning for striking Arthur with accidental knee whilst Arthur’s hand is placed on the canvas, Referee speaks to Cutting and Arthur the fight is resumed. Cutting is working well of his back trying to set up a sub but to no avail all the while Arthur is landing ferocious punches to Cuttings face for which the crowd are going wild and chanting ‘Eddie’ Eddie’ Eddie’. Both guys scramble with Arthur in side control raining shots, Cutting turns it around and ends up in Arthur’s guard who locks up a triangle attempt on Cutting for the remainder of round for which Cutting just rides out.

As soon as we start round two Arthur comes out with his hard punches backing Cutting against the cage adding in some knees also. Cutting attempts a seated guillotine which Arthur defends as there is a scramble, Cutting is on his knees, Arthur scoops round to Cuttings back to secure a RNC.

WINNER ED ARTHUR 1MIN 58 SECS Rnd 2 VIA RNC

AMATEUR FIGHTS

NICK JONES 2-1 MARCUS MITCHELL 1-0

Both came out exchanging strikes, Jones took Mitchell down, both guys scrambled which resulted in Mitchell in full and Jones on top position, Mitchell shrimped backwards managing to get back to his feet where both guys started punching, Jones went down, Mitchell capitalized on this and continued to GnP until the referee stopped the fight.

WINNER MARCUS MITCHELL 1 MIN 19 49 SECS Rnd 1 VIA TKO (PUNCHES)

ANDY HANNON 0-1 JOSH ROE 1-0

The opening round sees Roe push Hannon against the cage and takes him down, Hannon straight away is working on an armbar against the cage fence, Roe is trying to adjust the position by using his knees to deter him but Hannon is still holding on trying to gain that armbar even shifting his position slightly.

Round two and Hannon is straight out striking with his kicks but its Roe who drops Hannon with a brutal kick, but in return fires back with a up kick. It is back to standing and Hannon lands a few low kicks whilst Roe returns with punches. Roe is winning the striking department and seems Hannon wants no part of it until he catches Roe with a lovely right cross. Great striking round.

Round three and Hannon lands an accidental low blow to Roe, Roe recovers and were back to a standing war. Hannon is landing more of his punches to Roe’s face and goes in for a takedown but is defended well; there is a scramble both guys give it their all as Hannon is looking for the sub as the fight ends with Roe in top position.

WINNER JOSH ROE VIA UNANIMOUS DECISION 29-28, 29-28, 30-27

DAMIEN KORYGA RICKY MITCHELL

Round one and its Mitchell straight in with a 1,2 combination then takes Koryga down he attempts a guillotine to no avail, Koryga fights back and attempts to get Mitchell in a guillotine himself but to no avail. Koryga slams Mitchell and is working hard on the ground. They manage to get back to their feet briefly but its clear Koryga is getting the better of Mitchell in this opening round.

Round two and its Koryga straight out and gets Mitchell down, Mitchell get backs to his feet and Koryga forces him against the cage fence, Koryga is landing some knees then manages to lock in a standing guillotine.

WINNER DAMIEN KORYGA 1 MIN 35 SECS Rnd 2 VIA GUILLOTINE

Ashleigh Grimshaw Getting his Hands Wrapped 😉

Max Nunes getting his Hands Wrapped 😉

Me and the BAMMA world Champion Belt

Best seats in the house 🙂

ANDY OGLE ‘READY OR NOT’

This original piece took place on June 2nd 2014 after the May 31st fight.

Andy Ogle (9-5) vs Maximo Blanco (10-6-1) was a fight in which was billed as a ‘must-win’ fight for both fighters with all to lose; at the weigh-ins, we saw a lot of ‘alleged’ ‘trash’ talk by Andy Ogle to Maximo Blanco but was this one-sided? The only people there were, of course, the fighters themselves, their management and UFC representatives, I doubt we will ever know the true story, but this is what we do know for sure.

On fight night when the cage door closed there were only three men in the octagon; Andy Ogle, Maximo Blanco and Referee Wolf Menninger.

Wolf Menninger gave his usual instructions ‘fighter ready Maximo’ ‘Fighter ready Andy’’ the camera is on Andy Ogle and he nods. He then gives a thumbs up in the direction of Maximo Blanco (Wolf Menninger is against the octagon fence to Ogle’s left so the thumbs up are not for him), Wolf Menninger calls ‘fight’, what happens next is what is open for debate.

Ogle moves in to near the centre of the octagon with his left hand raised to touch gloves with Blanco but Blanco is already coming out with all guns blazing, running straight for the centre of the octagon and landed a flying kick to Ogle’s mouth.

Ogle went down and Blanco then proceeded to pounce on him to unleash some brutal ground and pound for the 20 odd seconds or so but Ogle weathered the storm, got back to his feet albeit briefly but he recovered from the initial flying kick that started this opening round and continued to take Maximo the full three rounds.

Okay so first things first, that was an awesome Flying Kick from Maximo and congratulations on his win. Secondly props to Andy for recovering from the initial onslaught and surviving the round. His manager, Brian Butler, commented earlier today when I posted my sentiments up on my Facebook page, he was short and to the point, “As maxis manager, I say If your gonna “respect” your opponent then do it all the way through. The kid talked a lot and showed no respect early on so maxi blasted him. Well done. I think it was obvious maxi was on attack mode when he ran across the cage… If he couldn’t see that coming then he is blind…”

‘Fighting is all about winning’. Although touching of the gloves is a sign of respect, you have plenty of time for that before the fight such as ‘weigh-ins, when the ref faces you off and explains the rules again and more importantly after the fight’ when the bell sounds it is down to business it is a FIGHT.

UFC 174 WEIGH-IN RESULTS

Tonight Demetrious Johnson takes on Ali Bagautinov for the UFC flyweight championship in Vancouver, Canada at UFC 174.

Also on the card is Tyron Woodley who will face Canada’s own Rory MacDonald in a welterweight fight.

Before all the main action can take place, the all important weigh-ins took place last night, here are the results:

Main Card

Demetrious Johnson 125 lbs vs Ali Bagautinov 124.5 lbs
Rory MacDonald 171 lbs vs Tyron Woodley 170.5 lbs
Ryan Bader 205 lbs vs Rafael Cavalcante 204.5 lbs
Andrei Arlovski 249.5 lbs vs Brendan Schaub 238 lbs
Ryan Jimmo 204.5 lbs vs Ovince St. Preux 205.5 lbs

Prelims

Daniel Sarafian 171 lbs vs Kiichi Kunomoto 170 lbs
Elizabeth Phillips 135 lbs vs Valerie Letourneau 134.5 lbs
Yves Jabouin 136 lbs vs Mike Easton 135 lbs
Kajan Johnson 155 lbs vs Tae Hyun Bang 156 lbs

Fight Pass Prelims Only

Roland Delorme 135 lbs vs Michinori Tanaka 135 lbs
Jason Saggo 155.5 lbs vs Josh Shockley 155.5 lbs

BAMMA ‘FIGHT NIGHT 1’ – RESULTS

BAMMA held their first ‘Fight Night 1’ series at the 02 Guildhall in Southampton on Saturday 7th June. Here are there quick results with a full in-depth event review being released shortly.

BAMMA MIDDLEWEIGHT WORLD TITLE

SCOTT ASKHAM DEF. MAX NUNES

via TKO, ROUND 3, 1:50

CATCHWEIGHT BOUT [ 75.5KG/ 166.4)

ARTEM KOTOV DEF. ALEXEMarcus I ROBERTS

via TKO (Referee Stoppage), ROUND 1, 1:04

FEATHERWEIGHT BOUT

ASHLEIGH GRIMSHAW DEF. DRAGAN PESIC

via ARM TRIANGLE, ROUND 1, 3:35

WELTERWEIGHT BOUT

ALEX MONTAGNANI DEF. TIM MENZIES

via KO, ROUND 1, 1:28

BANTAMWEIGHT BOUT

ED ARTHUR DEF. MIKE CUTTING

via REAR-NAKED CHOKE, ROUND 2, 1:58

MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT

MARCUS MITCHELL DEF. NICK JONES

via TKO, ROUND 1, 1:49

FEATHERWEIGHT BOUT

JOSH ROE DEF. ANDY HANNON

via UNANIMOUS DECISION (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT

DAMIEN KORYGA DEF. RICKY MITCHELL

via GUILLOTINE CHOKE, ROUND 2, 1:35

MARIO SAEED THE ‘ARM COLLECTOR’ IS TAKING NAMES! HE’S BACK FROM INJURY AND RARING TO GO CWFC 67

Pre catch up with Mario Saeed – Interview was carried out on Tuesday, April 8th, 2014 before his Cage Warriors Debut on April 12th 2014.

Mario Saeed (5-1) from Bristol and riding a four fight-winning streak will be making his long over-due debut for promotion Cage Warriors on Saturday April 12^th at The LC, Swansea, Wales.

Coming back from a career threatening injury sustained back in October last year, whilst training for what was going to be his then debut fight for Cage Warriors in Jordan. Mario sustained a Fractured Neck, since then Mario has been under strict instructions to take things easy, let time heal his injuries with the proper help and guidance.

Training, out of Trojan Free Fighters in Cheltenham, with the guidance of Head Coach and Mentor Paul Sutherland . Managed by UI Management, I managed to catch up with, a full of beans, Hyper active, fully motivated Mario Saeed for our scheduled interview – judging by the very good mood he is in, I have no idea on, how serious at all I can get him to answer every single question I have for him, but here is the final cut for you all to read.

Look out for the one motivational ‘quote’ that was put in nicely by mario

EB. Hey, Mario thanks for your time. It has been awhile since I have spoken to you how, are you?

MS. Hello Emma, I am doing great now thank you.

EB. The last time we spoke you were about to have your last fight for the promotion Ultimate Impact Cage fighting against Wayne Drake. How did that go?

MS. It went very well thank you, it was a real hard fight but I got the win in the end.

EB. Prior to that fight, it was then announced that on June 19^th, you had been signed to fight for the promotion Cage Warriors, with your debut to be in Jordan on October 25th, but a serious training injury occurred just two weeks before. Can you talk me through what happened?

MS. Everything was going great until 2 weeks before the fight, I suffered a fracture in my neck, this meant I had to take a break from training for quite a while! Now I am back stronger than ever.

EB. Being a very positive and motivated person that you are, what kept you going through the ‘dark times’ you would have experienced on your road back to recovery?

MS. Everything happens for a reason. I believe in myself and this keeps me staying positive. I am looking forward to my next fight.

EB. Your teammate Mark Godbeer had also gone through a very similar experience to yourself; did you take advice from him on any part of the recovery process?

MS. We are all teammates. We help each other and sh*t happens. We all motivate each other. Teammates stick together no matter what.

EB. You also took to posting a few updates via a video blog on your Facebook of your recovery in the very early days. Have you watched any of them back at all? Alternatively, are they too painful memory for you to watch?

MS. I would not say they are too painful to watch, I have not watched them back. I do not look back I always look forward.

EB. What was your rehab/recovery process like? Did you try to rush the process?

MS. Laughs! I listened to the doctor’s advice and took plenty of time out and now I am good to go and ready to fight again.

EB. Once you were all cleared to leave the hospital and take it easy, I heard you were back at the gym sat watching your teammates train. Can you tell me how you were feeling at this point?

MS. A mixture of frustration and just glad that I was there, also I was happy to support the other lads, but I did want to be fighting myself; I had to be tied to the chair to stop me from moving! (Laughs)

EB. Motivation, dedication and hard work have got you where you are now. I mean it is not everyday someone fractures their neck and 6 months later they are back doing what they love.

MS. I am very lucky to be coming back stronger than ever doing what I love; these things test you in life, and it is all about how bad you want it, how hard you are willing to work for it. I cannot wait to show the world what I am about.

EB. On April 12^th, you have your long overdue debut for Cage Warriors in Swansea, what are you looking forward to the most.

MS. I am looking forward to every minute of it, Cage Warrior’s is a great show and I cannot wait to get back in the cage and get the big W.

EB. Do you know anything about your new opponent Sean ‘Sexy Curls’ Carter?

MS. I know that he comes from a great gym and I am friends with a few of his teammates. He is a good fighter but I am a great fighter, come fight night, he will find out.

EB. Now, that your Co- Main event does that, put any more pressure on you? (you’ve crept up the card and now you’re Co-Main Event)!

MS. Co- Main, it makes no difference, as I have been main event before. It is just another fight to me.

EB. With a late change in opponent, (1 week before fight day) does that change anything in you as a fighter and the fight you have already prepared for? (original opponent was Rikki Fortuna 2-2-1)

MS. Not particularly as I train to fight and it does not matter who I fight. I will fight anyone who Cage Warriors choose to put in front of me, but remember my name WILL BE going the Cage Warriors GOLD!

EB. Being, the Champion at Ultimate Impact Cage fighting, is there any pressure to be the Champion at Cage Warriors or is that the Goal/DREAM?

MS. No, it is just a matter of time!

EB. Sean has had nine fights, and his only loss was for the lightweight title, if you win against Sean on April 12th do you see yourself in title contention?

MS. Hell yes I will be after that belt.

EB. This will be your first fight back since your training accident, some may say in at the deep end. What would you say?

MS. I am a very good swimmer.

EB. What is it about the promotion Cage Warriors that keeps fighters on their roster?

MS. Cage Warriors are the best promotion in the UK and Europe. Cage Warriors, is viewed by millions around the world, the promotion speaks for itself.

EB. You are ‘known’ as ‘The Armbar Collector’ would you like to be ‘known’ for more than just that one awesome submission.

MS. I am an all-round fighter, but the armbar is my signature move! The best is yet to come. “Don’t fear the man who does 1000 techniques; fear the man who does 1 technique 1000 times”.

EB. You have crazy fans that I for one have witnessed. Can you tell me of a time when things have been just a little bit too crazy at one of your fights?

MS. When I fought and won the UIC title, my fans rushed to see me, to congratulate me in the cage, let us hope Cage Warriors have plenty of security, Laughs!

EB. Training to you is second nature, what keeps you going and motivated?

MS. My family and friends, the fact I love what I do and I get to do it every day.

EB. Is there anyone you would like to thank?

MS. I would like to thank my coach who is my mentor, Paul Sutherland, my best mate Chris Astley and all my teammates at Trojan and finally my sponsors DiscountMMA, BRITISHF1GHTER, SynergiFitness, SCIMX.

You can follow Mario Saeed on Twitter, who in my opinion is well worth the follow, if for just all the motivational quotes he tweets everyday on @MarioRudeboy7

You can watch Mario ‘Rudeboy’ Saeed take on Sean ‘Sexy Curls’ Carter at The LC, Swansea, Wales, Saturday April 12^th for those of you who have purchased tickets, alternatively you can watch the Main Card via www.cagewarriors.tv which is FREE this weekend for UK viewers. Main Card is at 9pm. Who will be showing 6 out of the 7 fights in total for FREE that night. Any more information go towww.cagewarriors.com

This event is now SOLD OUT so unless some of the fighters have any spare tickets left that will be the only way you will be able to see the whole event LIVE.

PHOTO CREDIT 1,2,3 – HUW FAIRCLOUGH

PHOTO CREDIT 3 CAGE WARRIORS

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