A SPINNING HEEL KICK! off the break and
Manny Akpan gets it done in oneA sensational finish here at
#CW120Watch the
#CW120 prelims now on @UFCFightPass
https://t.co/7leygYh4Qa
York Hall, London pic.twitter.com/SazQc1y3Gl
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors)
March 18, 2021
“The Trilogy” is back with a vengeance for Cage Warriors Fighting Championship.
The CW
120 main event saw the promotional debut of Bellator MMA veteran Kent
Kauppinen (13-6), who took on Jamie
Richardson (9-7) at middleweight. Kauppinen worked his
opponent’s legs with kicks on the inside and outside, but they did
not appear to affect Richardson early. “Young Gun” replied with
polished combinations, until he shot in and scored a takedown with
seconds left in the round. Even though Kauppinen got back to his
feet quickly, there was little time for more action before the horn
sounded.
Richardson celebrated some success with his hands early in the
second round, clipping Kauppinen a few times with short
combinations. “Young Gun” also frustrated his opponent by mixing in
an effective takedown late in in the round. In the final stanza,
Kauppinen dropped Richardson with punches with a few seconds left.
Kauppinen invited his opponent to get back up, hoping to finish the
fight standing. Richardson accepted the invitation, but savvily
chose to shoot in and secure a takedown, finishing the round on
top. Kauppinen took home a unanimous decision victory as all three
scorecards indicated 29-28 scores.
In the co-main event, Paul Hughes
(7-1) became the first man to defeat James
Hendin (5-1) in their featherweight affair. Hughes showcased
his polished striking as he knocked down Hendin in the opening
stanza. Partly due to frustration and partly to his impetuosity,
“The Honeybadger” landed a low knee that stopped the action for a
while. Hughes recovered from the shot, only to take another knee
below the belt in the next round. When the action finally resumed,
Hendin had arguably the most successful round, as he did some
damage on the feet.
Round 3 saw a more elusive Hughes as he made his opponent miss, and
when he did, he paid Hendin back with some combinations of his own.
After the Fight Academy Ireland-representative blocked all his
opponent’s takedown, he dragged “The Honeybadger” down to the mat.
From there, he took Hendin’s back and attempted a rear-naked choke,
but it was not successful. After Hughes bailed on the choke, he
hammered his opponent with ground-and-pound until time expired.
Ultimately, all three judges scored the fight 29-28 in favor of the
Australian-born fighter, allowing Hughes to keep pursuing his
dreams of a championship.
Elsewhere, Christian
Leroy Duncan (3-0) locked horns with Will Currie
(5-1) in the middleweight division. After a close first round,
Duncan nailed Currie with a flying knee that rocked him right at
the start of Round 2. As Duncan continued to land punches to try to
end the fight, Currie shot in for a desperation takedown. Before
“Drago” could complete it, referee Daniel Movahedi rushed in to
stop the fight at 18 seconds into Round 2, much to the dismay of
the dazed but still cognizant Currie.
Kieran
Lister (7-1-2) and Declan
McAleenan (7-3-1) fought to a draw in their 155-pound
encounter. The fighters went back-and-forth with relentless action,
with Lister relying on his wrestling skills and McAleenan
retaliating with punches and kicks. The judges were truly split,
when judge David Lethaby scored it 29-28 Lister, judge Jon Hand
28-29 McAleenan and judge Ben Cartlidge 28-28 for a split draw
result.
In a lightweight clash, Michal
Figlak (5-0) stopped Steven
Hooper (5-4) at the conclusion of Round 2. “Mad Dog” slashed
open a gash on the left side of Hooper’s head with elbows in the
first frame. While Hooper kept fighting, he continued to pour blood
as the battle raged on. After the doctor examined Hooper carefully
and advised the contest go no further, referee Rich Mitchell
officially halted the fight at 5:00 of the second round.
Coner
Hignett (9-6) smashed Leigh
Mitchell (3-3) in the second stanza of their 125-pound clash.
Mitchell had his moments in the opening round, capturing his
opponent’s back and nearly securing a rear-naked choke. Hignett
shrugged his opponent’s attacks off, composed himself to ride out
the round. Midway through the second round, Hignett scored a
two-punch combination that shook Mitchell, and followed it with a
powerful knee and a series of punches to force referee intervention
at 3:03.
Manny
Akpan (3-0) kept his record unblemished by stopping Ben Ellis
(3-1) in the opening stanza at featherweight. After jockeying for
position in the clinch against the fence, Akpan let loose his
unorthodox and flashy striking arsenal which included spinning
kicks and wild, looping shots. One haymaker from Akpan clocked
Ellis, and Akpan quickly slammed the door with a barrage of
punches. The official end came at 4:22 in the opening stanza.
In the welterweight division, Mateusz
Figlak (5-1) had no difficulties in taking care of Josh Plant
(2-4). Figlak made the most out of his longer reach to keep Plant
at bay, before landing an electrifying punch to the liver that shut
off “The Power.” The referee intervened to save Plant from
unnecessary damage at the 2:36 mark of the first round.
In the first fight on the card, Matthew
Elliott (1-0) outpointed Scott
Pedersen (0-1) at featherweight. Wrestling was the key to
Elliott’s success, as the Fight Academy Ireland representative
embraced the grind for all three rounds. Elliott swept the
scorecards with a trio of 29-28 tallies from the judges.