extreme brawl 2 mixed martial arts event

This was the second instalment of the highly respected Extreme Brawl series of shows from promoter Andy Jardine. Jardine’s shows have always had a reputation as packed full of great fights and last night was no exception, with not a single match going past the second round. British titles were on the line, and in an action-packed night there were a few upsets and a little controversy- more of that later.

The seats were full and familiar faces were at every turn, with appearances from pillars of the MMA community such as Ian Freeman (supporting his Team Freeman fighters of course), Mark Weir, Lee Hasdell, London Shootfighters, Dougie Tuman and many more.

Bizarrely, also in attendance was Paul and Adee, manager and deputy manager of Channel 4s fly-on-the-wall TV show "The Salon"! I strolled over to speak to them at ringside, and it turned out that Alex Reid had invited them after his appearance on the show the other week. When I asked about whether they had any knowledge of MMA, they replied no, however they were enjoying their first time to a cage-fighting show. It turns out Paul had lived in Thailand for a year or so and was a keen fan of going to watch the local Thai-boxing, and was surprised how exciting MMA turned out to be.

A big screen projected on the wall gave everyone a view of the action, and the booming sound system and excellent MC (who when a little excited at times took over the role of commentator!) provided a slick accompaniment to the nights proceedings.

The Fights

Danny Blankley vs. Dominic Morton

The first match of the evening was a cage-kickboxing fight- Blankley came out first along with Alex Reid (proudly wearing his EB championship belt) in his corner. Obviously the crowd favourite, Blankley looked pumped and ready to rock. Morton in comparison looked reserved, despite coming out to the Sex Pistols Anarchy in the UK.

Blankley was like a dog let off a leash, taking centre of the cage immediately and throwing punches from the off. Morton was attempting to counter-punch, but had neither the speed nor the timing to be able to get past Blankley’s attack. With his back against the cage wall and no choice but to cover, Morton was stuck, and Blankley fired a number of hard right hands that dropped him for the eight just before the end of the first round.

At the beginning of the second, Blankley again took centre position, this time firing a long front kick followed again with numerous right crosses again dropping Morton for the eight count. At the restart, you could tell Morton wanted no part of this, and looked to be in survival mode. Pressing him against the fence once more, Blankley stepped up his barrage of left right shots, looking for the opening for his right- before he had the chance to deliver the finisher the Ref stopped the fight, and wisely so. Morton had no answer to the constant forward motion of Blankley.

Result- Blankely by referee stoppage in round 2.

SFUK verdict: Inflated by the home crowd, Blankley drive forward from start to finish. Morton seemed to keep up in the first, but after the knockdown was overwhelmed by Blankley’s clubbing right cross.

Kathy Gifford vs. Theresa Elington

In this ladies submission grappling match-up, successful wrestler Kathy Gifford took on Judo black belt Theresa Elington.

Representing London Shootfighters, Gifford looked confident and from the clinch quickly took Elington’s back. After a failed throw from Elington the action tumbled to the mat, and Gifford landed on top and in half guard. As she worked patiently to pass, Elington (showing her Judo background possibly?) seemed to give her back a little. A little was all Kathy needed to turn her over, sink in the rear naked choke and force the tap.

Result- Gifford by rear naked choke round 1.

SFUK verdict: An easy ride for Gifford. Elington seemed nervous from the start, and maybe succumbed to the pressure of being in the cage for the first time.

Neil McCleod vs. Chris Freebourne

Reigning champ and big favourite Neil McCleod came into the cage to defend his title against the Team Cagewarriors fighter Chris Freebourne. McCleod brought with him an air of determination and tried his hardest to intimidate his opponent in the staredown.

McCleod may well have won the fight before the bell sounded, as the fighters came out and clinched, he took Freebourne down almost immediately and landed in mount. Freebourne wanted to escape but was too close to the fence and after a few punches and an attempted ankle submission (!) McCleod took the armbar at 1.19 of round 1.

Result- McCleod by armbar from mount round 1.

SFUK verdict: McCleod looked in fine form, coming out strong and dominating his opponent. He could possibly do with a tougher opponent to test him as champion material, but for now he’s looking comfortable where he is.

"The Hurricane" back to winning ways, Mcleod wants rematch with Danny Batten and so do we!

Paul Hopkins vs. Scott Ireland

Ireland was the clear crowd favourite here, a local lad with a big contingent cheering their support. Hopkins, however, was not bothered by this and took the fight to him in fine form.

After a brief trading of punches in the centre of the ring,Hopkins shot in and tried for a single leg. Ireland defended well, and managed to land substantial punches and knees as he broke free of Ireland’s grip. Hopkins reluctantly shot in for a double leg this time, but Ireland saw it coming and sprawled, spinning around to take the back.

Trying for a choke, he couldn’t sink it, but managed to get mount as Hopkins rolled underneath him. Ireland landed one or two shots but none seemed to have any sting on them, and Hopkins rolled him into guard much to the delight of the partisan crowd. Ireland wanted the mount back and took it with a lovely scissors sweep, resuming his attack. This time Hopkins managed to get a knee inside and escape, taking butterfly guard as Ireland stood up but Ireland went straight over the top and back into mount once again. This time Hopkins wasn’t going anywhere and after a few punches the referee pulled him out.

Result: Ireland by Ref Stoppage (punches from mount) round 1.

SFUK verdict: Hopkins did well to escape from such perilous positions, but is probably cursing himself for taking the fight to the mat with an obviously superior grappler.

Leon "The Destroyer" Dickens vs. John Waite

Wearing long black and yellow shorts, Dickens came into the cage looking ready to rock, hitting the padded support as he waited for his opponent to come to the ring. Waite took his time and looked relaxed, but was woken up by a huge opening right hand from Dickens. To his credit he took the shot well and landed a good left of his own, rocking Dickens back a little and clearing some space for him to move away from the fence.

Dickens rushed in for a double leg and landed in Waite’s guard, but after a brief period on the mat Waite managed to stand up and the two fighters clinched, where Waite took Dickens down into side control. Dickens managed to reverse him and stood up and moved away, as the referee allowed Waite to stand and restarted the fight.

Again the fighters clinched, but this time Waite executed a beautiful hip toss, landed in scarfhold. Taking his time, he transitioned calmly from scarfhold into north/south, and then took mount. After a few punches to open Dickens up Waite grabbed an arm and spun off into an armbar.

Result: Waite by armbar from mount round 1.

SFUK verdict: Classic striker vs. grappler match-up. Waite showed fine Judo skills by throwing his opponent effortlessly and taking the easy submission. Dickens maybe had difficulty dealing with the size difference and a good few inches, but in the end it was only going to go one way.

"The Paperboy" looks like a real talent, swapped his PJ's for a sixpack and nails a classy win.

Welterweight Title Match, Ricky Moore vs. Kevin Capel.

This fight promised to be a real war, as last time these two fighters met on UKMMAC Moore lost by armbar, so serious scores were to be settled. Both fighters shook hands pleasantly enough at the beginning of the fight, but as the bell sounded, both fighters came running in with flying kicks to meet in the centre of the ring! Obviously both fighters were looking for an early finish, and after the little kung-fu shenanigans they clinched and fell to the mat.

Moore attempted a triangle from his back, but Capel was wise to the submission and escaped, taking side control as he passed guard. As Moore worked from underneath, Capel seemed to rise to his feet to launch a few strikes, but in the scramble Moore managed to take one of Capels legs. He patiently held on as Capel planted his foot to the mat to avoid the leglock, but Moore manage to shift Capels balance and applied a heelhook of which there was no escape.

Result: Moore by heelhook round 1.

SFUK Verdict: An exciting match with plenty emotion. After the fight I spoke to Ricky, and after congratulating him on his win this is what he had to say:

"I wanted to knock him out man, he came jumping out at me and I grazed my shin a bit, but that didn’t matter… I’m just pissed off I didn’t get the KO!

"I lost to him last time we fought, but I hardly trained back then, so I showed him what I can do tonight. My plan was to knock him out but a wins a win!"

A doubly satifying win for Moore who gets his revenge on Capel and deservedly earns his first title belt. His renaissance is complete. As for Kevin "Capable" Capel - he remains one of the most exciting fighters on the UK circuit.

Shane Tovill vs. Uri Gabunia (Georgia)

Hailing from Georgia, Gabunia was somewhat of an unknown quantity, yet as he squared off against the English fighter one thing was apparent; the huge size advantage of the Cambridge based fighter.

At the bell the Tovill attempted a jumping knee, possibly anticipating a quick takedown, but the stocky Georgian was a mite quicker and shot in with a textbook double leg takedown, lifting Tovill up high and slamming him onto his back. Tovill however was unfazed and took guard easily, catching a guillotine and getting the quick submission.

Result: Tovill by guillotine round 1.

SFUK verdict: A quick match up, and hard to judge. Gabunia seemed to display great wrestling ability in the brief seconds before he tapped but was obviously unwise to the submission attempt, otherwise would not have kept his head down leaving his neck exposed. Tovill showed no sign of flustering after being slammed, and was very business-like about the choke.

Terry McDougall vs. Lars Besand (Denmark)

Representing Team Freeman and accompanied by the Sunderland hard-man and UFC veteran himself, McDougall strode into the cage looking ready for action. As he waited for his opponent, the eerie cries of "Warriors, come out to playyyyeeeeeeaaaayyyyyy" came through the sound system, signifying the arrival of the Team Warriors representative.

As both fighters took their place in the cage, there was a short delay due a problem with Besands gloves, requiring cornerman Andy Foreman to dash backstage for a replacement pair. When the action finally began, Besand wanted to take the fight to the floor early, and shot in narrowly missing a knee to the face.

As the fighters clinched against the fence, Besand worked his arms under and got the double underhooks and took McDougall down. As he dropped, Terry managed to catch hold of Besands neck, and started to apply the guillotine. Besand seemed to signal to referee something was wrong, possibly indicating he was in trouble and the referee stepped in to declare McDougall the winner by submission.

Result: McDougall by guillotine round 1.

SFUK verdict: Speaking with Lars later, it seemed that was some confusion as to what the rules allowed. Lars was under the impression that neck cranks were forbidden, and said the choke was not applied. He claims he signalled to the ref to point out the infraction and the referee took it as a submission.

Whether this is the case or not is debatable, a guillotine is a technique where there is a fine line between choke and crank (I know I’ve lost to one as a neck crank when they were supposed to be illegal- it sucks). Regardless of the controversy, the referee was right to step in if he believes a fighter is in trouble, and with such a potentially dangerous move, it is probably safer to err on the side of caution.

However the result was gained, the win is still in McDougall’s favour, and nothing can take that away from him.

Paul "Hands of Stone" Jenkins vs. Mario Stapel (Germany)

Jenkins is one the busiest fighters on the UK scene, making it his mission to fight in a show every month of the year if possible. Enjoying mixed success, Jenkins is an entertaining fighter who loves to bang. I met with Jenkins as he was weighing in, and asked him what he knew of his opponent.

"Well he’s a Thai boxer, an a BJJ brown belt- so…" Jenkins replied with a shrug. Asked if he had a plan for the fight, I was treated to the painfully honest answer "I’ve never had a plan in my life!"

As the fighters met in the centre of the ring, the German had a considerable size and reach advantage, and as the action began used his long legs to fire a kick to Jenkins head. Catching only his gloves, Jenkins seemed unperturbed by the aggressive start, and both fighters met in the clinch. Employing his long legs once again, the Thai-stylist brought his right knee up, catching Jenkins on the side of the forehead. Another knee almost struck the mark, but didn’t seem to carry as much venom as the last.

Close to the fence, the two fighters broke from the clinch and Jenkins seemed to stumble back a little. At this point the referee decided he had seen enough and jumped in to stop the fight, much to the protests of a clearly lucid Jenkins.

Result: Stapel by referee stoppage round 1.

SFUK Verdict: Somewhat of a quick call on the referee’s part. True Jenkins caught a knee flush to the head, and from the referee’s angle the second would have seemed to connect as well. However Jenkins was certainly not in any danger as the German had backed off and while it seemed that Jenkins stumbled, this may have been a push from the German as they broke from the clinch. The referee was right to stop the action if he thought the fighter was in danger, but as Jenkins was not in a position to be struck he could have kept his distance and jumped in a second later after getting a better look at him. A tough call on Jenkins’ part, and possibly a lucky one for Stapel.

Part 2 of report