Cage Warriors 106 was dubbed “Night of Champions,” but it perhaps may have been more aptly-titled “Night of Drama,” as the U.K.-based MMA promotion served up a quite remarkable night of action that produced some spectacular – and unusual – results at Eventim Apollo in London.
None were more unique than what we saw in the main event, when defending welterweight champion Ross Houston and interim champ Nicolas Dalby went toe-to-toe in a bloody war that ended up being ruled a no contest by referee Marc Goddard.
The opening round saw Houston (8-0) connect with a slicing elbow that left Dalby (17-3-1) with a nasty gash above his left temple. But after some sterling work in the corner between rounds from the cutman, the gushing blood was stemmed, and the cut was suitably closed for the doctor to rule “Lokomotivo” fit to continue.
In the second round, a huge right cross from the Dane left Houston with a broken nose that started to bleed profusely, as well. It led to remarkable scenes as the canvas of the cage was turned blood red, with both fighters struggling to get a foothold on an increasingly slippery surface.
With both men bleeding heavily and the action becoming increasingly farcical as the third round unfolded, Goddard called a stop to the action and waved off the fight as a no contest. It meant both men retained their titles, and they both agreed that a rematch was in order, with Dalby suggesting they fight on the UFC’s upcoming card in Copenhagen.
The pair then celebrated/commiserated with each other on top of the cage as the night came to a bizarre end. But that wasn’t the only highlight on a packed night of fights.
Herbert turns up heat, claims lightweight strap
Birmingham lightweight Jai Herbert stepped up to the plate in some style to finish fellow highly-rated British lightweight Jack Grant in a thrill-a-minute battle in the night’s co-main event.
Grant (15-5) looked to mix up his striking with takedown attempts but found Herbert’s (9-1) footwork and slick counters a tricky proposition to handle. Herbert’s striking looked on point throughout the fight, as he connected with a succession of heavy strikes that eventually set up the finish in the third round.
When it came, the finish was a decisive one, as the Birmingham lightweight loaded up with power strikes, forced his man against the face, then finished him with strikes up against the cage as the referee stepped in to spare Grant further punishment.
Burnell ties up Trueman to capture featherweight title
The featherweight title fight between reigning champion Dean Trueman and Danish challenger Mads Burnell was always expected to deliver fireworks, and the two dueling 145-pounders didn’t disappoint.
Trueman (10-4) and Burnell (12-3) went toe-to-toe on the feet, and hold-for-hold on the mat, in a thrilling back-and-forth opening to their title fight. But, just as it looked like Trueman was beginning to take charge, Burnell struck.
The champion had just connected with a huge spinning back elbow, then a powerful knee up the middle, when the bout went to the canvas once again. This time Burnell went to one of his go-to submissions, the Japanese necktie, to force the tap midway through the round.
It was the second straight win via that technique – and the fourth of his career – as he captured the Cage Warriors featherweight title and potentially put himself in the frame for a UFC recall with an event in his hometown of Copenhagen just a matter of months away.
Webb survives shocking piledriver to retain middleweight title
A breathless, controversial middleweight title fight between reigning middleweight champion James Webb and Nathias Frederick saw the defending champion recover from twice being dropped on his head to retain his title via majority draw.
In a grapple-heavy contest, the challenger’s first big statement came at the end of the second round, as Frederick (7-2-1) connected with two huge knees, but his next high-impact move, a slam to the canvas, was right on the borderline of being an illegal spike. Referee Marc Goddard, however, was perfectly placed and ruled the move to be legal.
But when Frederick repeated the technique at the start of the final round and dropped Webb (6-1-1) on his head in a move more akin to a WWE move, referee Goddard stepped in immediately and deducted a point from a clearly irate challenger.
The deduction would prove crucial, with two of the scorecards reading 47-47 and the third 49-45 for the champion, meaning Webb retained his title via majority draw. Without the spike, we’d be looking at a new champion, but instead, the belt stays around the waist of the Dublin-based Englishman after the most grueling bout of the night.
Faiddine stuns Creasey with picture-perfect right hand
The biggest underdog on the fight card cashed in a big way as French flyweight Samir Faiddine produced a huge one-hitter quitter to stun longtime contender Sam Creasey and capture the vacant Cage Warriors 125-pound title.
Creasey struck first in the opening round as he caught a Faiddine kick and decked his man with a beautiful straight right. Once on the mat, the Englishman threatened with a D’Arce choke that forced the Frenchman to smartly scamper his feet across the canvas to avoid the hold being tightly applied.
But, after a second round that saw Faiddine find his rhythm, the Frenchman exploded in the third with a huge right hand that sent Creasey crashing to the canvas. A salvo of ground strikes was all it took for the referee to wave off the contest as Faiddine produced a world title shock in the first fight on the main card.
Bukauskas claims 205-pound title with comeback win
The first title fight of the night saw British-based Lithuanian Modestas Bukauskas capture the vacant Cage Warriors light heavyweight title with a superb come-from-behind performance to stop Norwegian wrestler Marthin Hamlet in the fourth round of the featured bout on the night’s preliminary card.
The bigger, stronger Hamlet (5-1) dominated the early rounds with his wrestling and looked to wear down Bukauskas (9-2) with his heavy top game. But Bukauskas did well to avoid damage against the fence and used his time in the standup effectively to find his range on the Norwegian prospect.
Bukauskas cashed in that early range-finding capital in the fourth round, as he dropped the tiring Hamlet to his knees with a well-placed right hand before finishing his man with a flurry of strikes to his downed opponent to claim a TKO finish, as well as the Cage Warriors light heavyweight title.
Cage Warriors 106 results include:
MAIN CARD
- Ross Houston vs. Nicolas Dalby declared a no contest (excessive blood on canvas) – Round 3, 2:57
- Jai Herbert def. Jack Grant via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 3:22 – claimed vacant Cage Warriors lightweight title
- Mads Burnell def. Dean Trueman via submission (Japanese necktie) – Round 2, 3:04 – claimed featherweight title
- James Webb vs. Nathias Frederick ruled a majority draw (47-47, 47-47, 49-45) – Webb retained middleweight title
- Samir Faiddine def. Sam Creasey via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 0:35 – claimed vacant flyweight title
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Modestas Bukauskas def. Marthin Hamlet Nielsen via TKO (strikes) – Round 4, 3:56 – claimed vacant light heavyweight title
- Alex Lohore def. Aaron Khalid via submission (modified guillotine choke) – Round 2, 4:26
- Adam Amarasinghe def. Darren O'Gorman via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Jason Radcliffe def. Hakon Foss via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:02
- Thomas Robertsen def. Michael Younis via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:01
- Morgan Charriere def. Lewis Monarch via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- James Hendin def. Kingsley Crawford via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For additional coverage of Cage Warriors 106, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
