A huge win for Justin Burlinson! After a
bell to bell war, he gets the win via submissionWhat do you think is next for Justin?#CW135
pic.twitter.com/KYGn1v2zNv— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors)
April 1, 2022
Cage Warriors Fighting Championship returned to
the BEC Arena in Manchester, England, with a card chock full of
finishes. In the CW
135 headliner, Dana White’s Contender Series alum Justin
Burlinson took on Daniel
Skibinski in a welterweight tilt. Skibinski (18-7, 0-1 CW)
relied on his fast hands to bust up his opponent’s face and ensure
that Burlinson could not get off his powerful counters. In turn,
Burlinson (7-1, 2-0 CW) kept advancing, and ended up waiting for
the right moment to fire off a big right hand. Skibinski hurt his
foe with a swarm of punches, coming inches away from notching a
stoppage. Ultimately, Burlinson’s durability and youth advantage
allowed him to survive and change strategies, where he began to
unload with thudding body kicks before the round concluded.
In the second frame, Skibinski landed a single-leg takedown and
kept the action on the floor for some time. Burlinson remained
active off his back, laying into his opponent with elbows and palm
strikes until he hunted for an omoplata attempt. In the subsequent
scramble, Burlinson surged back to his feet, and momentum was
turning in his favor as “Skiba” appeared fatigued. Noticing that
his foe was tiring, Burlinson scored with knees, punches and elbows
until his Skibinski exposed his neck by dropping to the floor. In a
split-second, Burlinson snatched up a guillotine choke and, after
wrenching the fight down to the mat, forced a tap before the Polish
fighter passing out. Only six seconds remained in Round 2 when
referee Marc Goddard
stepped in, and the Brit kept his perfect 100% finish rate intact
by recording the submission.
Matt ‘The Beast’ Bonner is back in the win
column!
He finishes his opponent with a RNC for the win!#CW135
pic.twitter.com/2uhn77iHXf— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors)
April 1, 2022
The co-headliner featured a 177-pound catchweight clash between
former middleweight titleholder Matthew
Bonner and promotional newcomer Hugo
Pereira. Bonner (11-6-1, 8-4-1 CW) came in with a significant
height advantage, and Pereira attempted to nullify this by
attempting to take the fight to the canvas. The Portuguese fighter
caught an errant kick from his adversary, and took advantage of
this by tripping Bonner’s other leg out and claiming top position
in a hurry. Pereira (5-4, 0-1 CW) spent several minutes on top of
his opponent, but he never looked to endanger “The Beast” with his
offense. Bonner kicked off and fought back to his feet, where he
subsequently got off several solid combinations to end the round on
a high note. In the second round, Bonner turned the tables on
Pereira, taking the initiative to drag the fight to the floor on
his own terms. After claiming his opponent’s back, Bonner locked in
a tight rear-naked choke attempt and elicited the tap shortly
thereafter. The official time of the stoppage indicated 51 seconds
in the second stanza.
Elsewhere, Milad Ahady
(4-1, 1-0 CW) spoiled the promotional debut of Antonio
Sheldon (5-3, 0-1 CW) with a clear-cut unanimous decision
(30-27, 30-27, 30-27); Giuseppe
Ruggeri (8-0, 1-0 CW) took home a unanimous decision victory by
dominating former 145-pound beltholder Dean
Trueman (10-8, 4-6 CW), receiving 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 nods
from the judges; 135-pounder Liam
Gittins (9-3, 5-3 CW) outpointed Edward
Walls (10-8, 0-3 CW) to earn a win on all three scorecards
(30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
In the featured lightweight preliminary battle, Adam
Shelley (2-1, 1-0 CW) smashed Steven
Hooper (5-5, 2-3 CW) with heavy punches with 39 seconds left in
the second frame. Italy’s Federico
Pasquali (7-0, 1-0 CW) battered Paull
McBain (7-3, 4-3 CW) with elbows until the referee stepped in
at 2:17 of the first round in their 150-pound catchweight affair;
the light heavyweight clash between Matthew
Byfield (3-1, 1 NC; 0-0, 1 NC CW) and Hugo
Guillon (1-0, 1 NC; 0-0, 1 NC CW) ended with a no-contest
result following an accidental knee to the groin at 2:57 of Round
2; at welterweight, James
Sheehan (4-2, 4-1 CW) knocked out Karol
Michalak (3-1, 0-1 CW) at 2:18 of the opening frame; Caolan
Loughran (5-0, 1-0 CW) stopped Bakhtyaar
Oryakhail (1-1, 1-1 CW) with punches at 2:29 of Round 2 in a
bantamweight scrap; featherweight Ryan
Shelley (4-0, 2-0 CW) wrecked Magdi
Gereev (2-1, 0-1 CW) with elbows and knees until the referee
intervened at the 2:12 mark of the third round; to start off the
night, Ander
Sanchez (1-0, 1-0 CW) shellacked Connor
Wilson (2-2, 0-2 CW) with a left hook a mere 30 seconds into
their 125-pound encounter.