Royal Navy Combat Sisters – empowering women and helping to end violence against women through sport. Ms Muay Thai.UK and Gym King Women are all on board.

The Combat Sports Initiative (CSI) is expanding its impact through the new Combat Sisters program, aimed at combating violence against women and girls. In collaboration with organizations like Ms Muay Thai.UK and The Jessica Project, CSI will host a special combat sports training session for over 40 women. The initiative, supported by Royal Navy and Marine personnel, focuses on instilling values such as discipline and responsibility in young people while promoting personal safety and empowerment for women. With plans to extend the program to London and Scotland, CSI remains a vital force for positive change in communities, addressing issues like knife crime and youth violence.


The Combat Sports Initiative continues to grow and deliver far-reaching social impact. The anti-knife crime project now includes the Combat Sisters programme as part of a national campaign to end violence against women and girls.

This demonstrates the positive impact that Royal Navy personnel can have within local communities while enhancing their reputation as a force for good.

This will be a special session delivered in collaboration with Ms Muay Thai UK and Gym King Women, with guest coaches and brand ambassadors joining them to deliver combat sports training to 40+ women.

Speaking exclusively to Combat Sports Initiative Ambassador Amber Kitchen said:

Combat Sports Initiative has been a powerful force in supporting the next generation and helping to tackle knife crime and youth violence. I’ve been incredibly proud to be part of its journey for around three years, and it’s been amazing to see how much the initiative has grown and the positive impact it’s had on so many young people.

Dennis and the team go above and beyond to ensure the message is clear and reaches those who need it most. They help young people build confidence, discipline, and a sense of empowerment while showing them that positive choices and opportunities are available.

These guys are modern-day heroes. At a time when communities across the UK need positive role models and meaningful change, their work is making a genuine difference in young lives.

The event is designed to provide a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment where women can learn practical combat sport skills, build confidence and develop greater awareness of personal safety.

The session is also part of a wider national movement to help end violence against women and girls, using sport and female empowerment as tools to help women feel stronger, safer, and more confident.

Importantly, this event also shows how the Royal Navy can be a force for good in communities, using its skills, values, and people to make a positive difference and support initiatives that empower and protect.

A person from behind wearing a navy blue shirt with 'ROYAL NAVY' printed on the back, in a dynamic setting with other individuals in the background.
Royal Navy volunteer at Combat Sport Initiative programme

The Royal Navy and Marines are excited to bring together coaches and ambassadors for what promises to be a powerful, positive session.
Speaking exclusively with Emma, who helps run the Ms Muay Thai.UK Instagram page, she said:

Ms Muay Thai’s mission statement is to create more opportunities for women to train, spar, compete, and grow, while bringing women together and strengthening the Women’s Muay Thai scene.

**This special event will be held on: **

Sunday 27th September

11:00 – 12.30

Unity Thai Boxing

152 Market Street

Newton-le-Willows

WA12 9BU

Through Combat Sports Initiative (CSI), instructors from the Royal Navy and Royal Marines do far more than teach sports: they instil the values of discipline, respect, and personal responsibility in young people. Over the past year, thousands of participants have attended CSI sessions across regions including Merseyside and Teeside.

Building on this success, the team of dedicated volunteers now plan to expand the programme into London and Scotland. CSI is firmly established as one of the UK’s most dynamic and impactful youth engagement programmes.

The Royal Navy and Marines are incredibly excited to bring together coaches, ambassadors, and women from the local community for what promises to be a powerful and positive session.

Combat Sports Initiative continues to grow and deliver far-reaching social impact. The anti-knife crime project now includes the Combat Sisters programme as part of a national campaign to help end violence against women and girls. This demonstrates the positive impact Royal Navy personnel can have in local communities while further enhancing their reputation as a force for good.

About Combat Sports Initiative

The Royal Navy’s flagship youth engagement programme uses sport, fitness and combat sports activities to help tackle knife crime. Through Combat Sports Initiative (CSI), instructors from the Royal Navy and Royal Marines do far more than teach combat sports; they instil the value of discipline, respect, and personal responsibility in young people. Over the past year, thousands of participants have attended CSI sessions across regions including Merseyside and Teeside.

Building on this success, the team of dedicated volunteers now plan to expand the programme into London and Scotland. CSI is firmly established as one of the UK’s most dynamic and impactful youth engagement programmes.

Speaking exclusively with Royal Navy’s Warrant Officer Dennis Harrison, he said:

The Combat Sisters workshops aim to encourage more women and girls to take part in combat sports and empower them by creating “a safe space for them to express themselves.”

He said they hoped to hold more events in the future. Harrison also said the Royal Navy has worked alongside The Jessica Project as part of its work supporting the wider campaign to help end violence against women and girls. The Jessica Project is a survivor-led not-for-profit organisation supporting recovery from sexual violence and domestic abuse.

A Royal Navy spokesperson said Combat Sisters is the latest community project in Northern England driven by Royal Marines and Royal Navy personnel. It builds on the Combat Sports Initiative, which tackles crime and gang activity in major cities and has run for more than three years.

The Combat Sisters Programme

As part of its wider commitment to ending violence against women and girls, the Royal Navy has worked alongside Ms Muay Thai.UK. The Jessica Project is a survivor-led not-for-profit organisation that supports recovery from sexual violence and domestic abuse.


Combat Sisters is the latest community initiative in Northern England to be delivered by Royal Marines and Royal Navy personnel. The programme builds on the success of the Combat Sports Initiative, which has used sport, fitness, and combat sport activities to tackle knife crime and gang-related violence in major cities for more than three years.


Through practical training, mentorship, and engagement, Combat Sisters aims to empower women and girls while promoting confidence, resilience, and personal safety.

Service Volunteers Making a Difference

A dedicated team of Service Volunteers leads the project, giving their spare time and annual leave to deliver events that create meaningful, lasting impact in local communities. Their commitment reflects the Royal Navy’s broader dedication to supporting young people and building safer, stronger communities across the United Kingdom.


**This event has now SOLD OUT. ** To be on the waiting list, please get in touch with Ms Muay Thai.UK

UFC Fight Night Glasgow Official Results: Bisping picks up a Split Decision Win over Thales Leites


The UFC held its first ever event in Glasgow, Scotland today and saw ‘The Count’ take a split decision win over tough Brazilian Thales Leites in the Main Event.  In the co-main event it was the ever durable Evan Dunham who got the unanimous decision against tough british fighter Ross Pearson.

Joseph Duffy with the Triangle Choke Win on Ivan Jorge #UFCGlasgow

Irish sensation Joseph Duffy, proved yet again why all eyes should be firmly fixed on him in the lightweight division by submitting Ivan Jorge Via Triangle Choke in just 3 mins 05 secs of the opening round.

Here are all the official results:

MAIN CARD

Michael Bisping Def Thales Leites Via Split Decision  48-47, 49-46, 48-47

Evan Dunham Def Ross Pearson Via Unanimous Decision

Joseph Duffy Def  Ivan Jorge Via Triangle Choke 3mins 05 secs Round One

Joanne Calderwood Def Cortney Casey-Sanchez Via Unanimous Decision 30-27, 29-28, 30-27

Leon Edwards Def Pawel Pawlak Via Unanimous Decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27

Steven Ray Def Leonardo Mafra Teixeira Via TKO 2mins 30 seconds Round One

Preliminary Card 

Patrick Holohan  Def  Vaughan Lee Via Unanimous Decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27

Ilir Latifi Def  Hans Stringer Via KO  0.56 seconds Round One

Mickael Lebout  Def  Teemu Packalen Via Unanimous Decision 29-28, 29-28, 30-27

Robert Whiteford  Def Paul Redmond  Via TKO 3 mins 04 secs Round One

Preliminary Card Fight Pass

Jimmie Rivera Def Marcus Brimage Via TKO 1 min 29 secs Round One

Daniel Omielanczuk  Def Chris de la Rocha Via TKO  0.48 seconds Round One

BONUSES $50,000 Each

POTN

Stevie Ray

Joseph Duffy

FOTN

Joanne Calderwood  Vs.  Cortney Casey

UFC Fight Night Scotland Weigh-In Results: Bisping 185 lbs Leites 185 lbs


UFC Fight Night comes from Glasgow in Scotland tomorrow afternoon where English Middleweight Michael Bisping, who has not lost on home soil for 5 years will take on Thales Leites in the Main Event.  The co-main event will see lighweight Evan Dunham face durable, hard-hitting Ross Pearson.

UFC Fight Night Glasgow

In a change to the only female bout on the card Scotland’s Joanne Calderwood will be facing American Cortney Casey due to Australian Bec Rawlings having to withdraw from the card due to injury on eight-day’s notice.

Before any of the fights can take place they all have to step onto the scale first.

Here are the weigh-in results:

MAIN CARD

Michael Bisping (185 lbs) vs. Thales Leites (185 lbs)
Evan Dunham (156 lbs) vs. Ross Pearson (155 lbs)
Joseph Duffy (155 lbs) vs. Ivan Jorge (154 lbs)
Joanne Calderwood (115 lbs) vs. Cortney Casey-Sanchez (114 lbs)
Leon Edwards (169 lbs) vs. Pawel Pawlak (170 lbs)
Leonardo Mafra Teixeira (155 lbs) vs. Steven Ray (155 lbs)

Preliminary Card 

Patrick Holohan (126 lbs) vs. Vaughan Lee (126 lbs)
Ilir Latifi (206 lbs) vs. Hans Stringer (205 lbs)
Mickael Lebout (155 lbs) vs. Teemu Packalen (155 lbs)
Paul Redmond (145 lbs) vs. Robert Whiteford (146 lbs)

Preliminary Card Fight Pass

Marcus Brimage (136 lbs) vs. Jimmie Rivera (135 lbs)
Chris de la Rocha (245 lbs) vs. Daniel Omielanczuk (242 lbs)

BT Sports subscribers can watch the event live via the APP  starting at 3pm or on TAPE DELAY on BT Sports TV at 9pm in the UK.

BEC RAWLINGS OUT OF UFC SCOTLAND; JOANNE CALDERWOOD GETS NEW OPPONENT


The UFC has confirmed that Scotland’s Joanne Calderwood will face a new opponent for their promotional debut in Glasgow on July 18th.

UFC Fight Night Glasgow

Originally set to face Australian Bec Rawlings (6-4), she was forced to withdraw from the card due to an undisclosed injury. Stepping in to replace her on eight days notice is new comer Cortney ‘Cast Iron’ Casey (4-1) making her UFC debut.

Casey was last seen picking up a controversial referee stoppage win over UK’s Helen Harper on promotion PXC 47 [watch from 1 hr 25 mins] back in March earlier this year.  The hard-hitting american has not gone past the first round.

UFC Scotland takes place on July 18th in Glasgow which is headlined by Michael Bisping vs. Thales Leite.

UFC® ANNOUNCES 3 GUEST FIGHTERS FOR DEBUT EVENT IN SCOTLAND ON JULY 18TH


With less than two weeks to go until UFC®’s sell-out debut event in Scotland, the organisation has confirmed the names of three fighters who will each travel to the Scottish capital as guest fighters for the event.

UFC Fight Night Glasgow

Women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and top ten ranked featherweights Cub Swanson and Clay “The Carpenter” Guida, will all make the journey to Glasgow to meet fans and media alike, ahead of UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES.

The reigning 115lbs women’s champion, Jedrzejczyk successfully defended her title for the first time just last month, defeating the No. 3 ranked Jessica Penne in spectacular fashion in front of fans in Berlin, Germany. It was subsequently announced that Jedrzejczyk would be the latest fighter to form a partnership with leading apparel brand Reebok.

Cub Swanson, meanwhile, remains the No.6 ranked fighter in the UFC’s featherweight division. Swanson holds wins over some of the biggest names in the 145lbs weight class, including Dennis Siver, Jeremy Stephens and Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier.

Also making the journey to Glasgow will be veteran of the sport Clay Guida. Loved by fans for his colourful personality, Guida is arguably one of the most capable wrestlers within UFC. In April, Guida secured a win over Robbie Peralta at UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: MENDES vs. LAMAS and now holds more than 30 wins in his professional MMA career.

All three fighters will be on hand to take part in a number of activities throughout UFC’s inaugural fight week in Glasgow.

On Thursday, July 16th, the fighters will host an exclusive MMA masterclass for students from all over Scotland. Organised in partnership with Glasgow University, Sport and Recreation, students of all ages and ability levels will attend the seminar, which will include an introduction into a variety of techniques, as well as a Q&A and an autograph and photo session.

The guest fighters will also pay a visit to Antonine Sports Centre, a local sports facility which UFC has supported for many years. There, members of the centre will have the unique opportunity to take part in a training seminar led by the fighters, as well as to have their photographs taken with their heroes.

On Friday, July 17th fans traveling to Glasgow for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES will be invited to take part in a live Q&A with Jedrzejczyk, Swanson and Guida, just before the public weigh-ins begin. The Q&A will take place at the SSE Hydro from 12:45-13:30. Doors open to UFC FIGHT CLUBmembers at 12:00 and to the general public at 12:15.

Following the live UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES weigh-ins, the guest fighters will also take part in a fan signing, which takes place between 14:30-16:00.

UFC® FIGHT NIGHT: BISPING vs. LEITES will take place on Saturday, July 18th at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. Headlined by a five round bout between the UK’s Michael Bisping and Brazilian Thales Leites, the fight card also features three Scottish fighters – Robert Whiteford, Stevie Ray and Joanne Calderwood. Tickets to the event sold out in a matter of hours after going on general sale, so fans can expect a packed out arena on the night.

 

UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES will be aired live from 3:00 p.m. in the UK and Ireland on the BT Sport app.

 

 

UFC FIGHT NIGHT® BISPING vs. LEITES FIGHT CARD

All bouts live and subject to change.

 

Heavyweight Bout

Daniel Omielanczuk (POL) vs. Chris De La Rocha (USA)

Bantamweight Bout

Jimmie Rivera (USA) vs. Marcus Brimage (USA)

Featherweight Bout

Robert Whiteford (SCO) vs. Paul Redmond (IRE)

Light Heavyweight Bout

Ilir Latifi (SWE) vs. Hans Stringer (NL)

Lightweight Bout

Teemu Packalen (FIN) vs. Mickael Lebout (FRA)

Flyweight Bout

Paddy Holohan (IRE) vs. Vaughan Lee (ENG)

Main Card

Lightweight Bout

Stevie Ray (SCO) vs. Leonardo Mafra (BRA)

Welterweight Bout

Leon Edwards (ENG) vs. Pawel Pawlak (POL)

Women’s Strawweight Bout

Joanne Calderwood (SCO) vs. Bec Rawlings (AUS)

Lightweight Bout

Joe Duffy (IRE) vs. Ivan Jorge (BRA)

Lightweight Bout

Ross Pearson (ENG) vs. Evan Dunham (USA)

Middleweight Bout

Michael Bisping (ENG) vs. Thales Leites (BRA)

 

For the latest information on this event, please visit www.ufc.com or follow @UFC_UK on twitter.

UFC® ANNOUNCES SERIES OF FAN EVENTS AHEAD OF UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES


Ahead of UFC®’s highly anticipated debut event in Scotland, UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES, the organisation has today confirmed a series of fan events which will take place during the lead up to the event on Saturday, July 18th.

On Wednesday, July 15th fans will have the opportunity to watch their favourite fighters from the UFC Fight Night Glasgow line-up train, as UFC hosts an exclusive open workout evening at The Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow. Fighters including Michael Bisping, Thales Leites, Joanne Calderwood, Stevie Ray and Robert Whiteford will all take part in individual workouts in front of fans and media, as well as facing off against their opponents for the very first time.

 UFC Fight Night Glasgow

Doors to the event open at 17:30 BST. The event is free to attend but fans will need to secure a free-of-charge ticket in order to gain entry. Tickets can be secured by clicking this link: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/official-ufc-open-workouts-for-ufc-glasgow-tickets-17602663039

 

On Friday, July 17th fans are invited to attend the official UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BISPING vs. LEITES live weigh-ins at the SSE Hydro. Doors will open to UFC Fight Clubmembers at 12:00, with general admission following at 12:15.

 

Ahead of the fighters stepping onto the scales, there will be a live Q&A with UFC guest fighters, between at 12:45-13:30, while an autograph signing will follow between 14:30-16:00.

The weigh-ins, Q&A and fan signings are all free to attend and open to the public.

Summary of fan events during UFC FIGHT NIGHT: BISPING vs. LEITES fight week:

Wednesday, July 15th

Ultimate Fan and Media Day

Details: Free to attend and open to all.

To secure a free ticket: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/official-ufc-open-workouts-for-ufc-glasgow-tickets-17602663039

Location: Old Fruitmarket, Candleriggs, Glasgow, G1 1NQ

17:30: Doors open to fans

18:30 – 19:30: UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites open workouts

19:30 – 19:45: UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites fighter face offs

Friday, July 17th

Weigh-ins, Q&A and fan signings

Details: Free to attend

Location: SSE Hydro, Glasgow, G8 8YW

Times:

Doors open to UFC Fight Club members                      12:00

Doors open to general public                                    12:15

UFC Guest fighter Q&A                                             12:45-13:30

UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Leites weigh-ins                14:00-14:30

UFC Guest fighter autograph signings                           14:30-16:00                          

 

For the latest information on this event, please visit www.ufc.com or follow @UFC_UK on twitter.

UFC Fight Night 64 Poland adds Female Strawweight Bout – Joanne Calderwood Vs Maryna Moro


UFC Fight Night 64 in Poland has just added another female strawweight bout to their line up.

Joanne Calderwood
Joanne Calderwood

Scotland’s Joanne Calerwood [9-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC] will face Ukrainian Maryna ‘The Iron Woman’ Moro [5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC] on April 11th at Krakow Arena in Krakow, Poland. The entire event streams on UFC Fight Pass. [Those in the UK maybe also able to watch via BTSports; subject to viewing restrictions].

With today’s announcement this is how UFC Fight Night 64 is now shaping up:

  • Mirko Filipovic vs. Gabriel Gonzaga
  • Jan Blachowicz vs. Jimi Manuwa
  • Krzysztof Jotko vs. Garreth McLellan
  • Sergio Moraes vs. Peter Sobotta
  • Daniel Omielanczuk vs. Anthony Hamilton
  • Pawel Pawlak vs. Sheldon Westcott
  • Seth Baczynski vs. Leon Edwards
  • Marcin Bandel vs. Jason Saggo
  • Aisling Daly vs. Claudia Gadelha
  • Joanne Calderwood vs. Maryna Moroz