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Check out these photos from the fights at Dana White’s Contender Series 50 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. (Photos courtesy of Joshua Hedges, UFC)
Agy Sardari and Jack Cartwright retained their titles in contrasting circumstances on an eventful night at Cage Warriors 121 in London.
Cage Warriors lightweight champion [autotag]Agy Sardari[/autotag] was made to work for it, but the 27-year-old Dutchman successfully defended his title after a hard-fought battle at Cage Warriors 121.
Sardari (14-2) was pushed to the limit by short-notice challenger [autotag]Donovan Desmae[/autotag], who answered the call to replace Mehdi Ben Lakhdhar on just 10 days’ notice at the York Hall in Bethnal Green, London. But, after five grueling rounds of action, the champion edged a split decision to hang on to his title and register his first title defense.
The first three rounds of their lightweight title fight were virtual coin-flip calls as Belgian challenger Desmae (14-6) made light of his short-notice preparation by going toe to toe with the champion. But as the fight went into the championship rounds, Sardari turned up the pressure and made use of his takedowns to do just enough to take the victory on the scorecards. The judges scored the bout 48-47, 47-48, 48-47 in the Dutchman’s favor.
And Still ๐
Agy Sardari successfully defends his LW Title at #CW121 ๐๐บ pic.twitter.com/BphTk6NmDr
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) March 19, 2021
Repeated headbutts from challenger Sylwester Miller saw the Pole disqualified as his title tilt ended disastrously at Cage Warriors 121.
[autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] extended his perfect professional record and retained his bantamweight title in the Cage Warriors 121 co-main event, but the fight was anything but plain sailing for the unbeaten Brit.
Cartwright was given all he could handle by Poland’s [autotag]Sylwester Miller[/autotag] in their bantamweight title tussle, but the challenger’s ground-and-pound technique ultimately led to his own downfall when he was disqualified in the fourth round after connecting with repeated headbutts on the champion.
In a grueling encounter, Miller enjoyed significant success with his takedowns and used his shorter stature to duck under Cartwright’s power punches and launch himself into a series of successful takedowns.
The problem for Miller came once the fight was on the canvas, however, as the Pole looked to launch his full body weight into his ground-and-pound. His punches connected with plenty of force to impress the judges, but things started to go awry in Round 2 when he threw himself forward for one particular punch and ended up launching his head into the face of the champion.
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Referee Rich Mitchell paused the action and gave a lengthy warning to the challenger as he returned the action to the center of the cage. However, it wasn’t long before the fight was on the canvas again with Miller landing more ground strikes on the champion. Then, after another hard clash of heads, Mitchell warned Miller once again, this time allowing the action to continue.
Round 3 saw another nasty clash of heads after Miller launched his head into Cartwright’s face again, and this time Mitchell stood up the action and, after a lengthy explanation to Miller’s corner, deducted a point from the Pole.
Despite the sanction, Miller continued his relentless approach, and it wasn’t long before the Pole’s head once again slammed into the Englishman’s chin. Mitchell stopped the action and deducted a second point, while also warning the challenger that a further infraction would result in his disqualification.
One headbutt away from the DQ.
Not the way you want to go out in a title fight!#CW121 pic.twitter.com/dkzKYQLcWz
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) March 19, 2021
Oh no…..#CW121 pic.twitter.com/jmO4UL946M
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) March 19, 2021
Then, in Round 4, it happened. Miller was on top, landing more heavy ground strikes in Cartwright’s guard, but his over-zealous technique got the better of him as he once again crashed his head into Cartwright’s face. Mitchell decided he’d seen enough, stopped the fight and disqualified the challenger.
It meant Cartwright retained his title and extended his undefeated record, as the Manchester man registered his third title defense in just over a year.
Two titles are on the line on the second night of fights at Cage Warriors’ latest “Trilogy” series in London.
The second night of fights at Cage Warriors’ latest “Trilogy” in London boasts a packed card with a pair of title fights at the top of the bill.
The main event of Cage Warriors 121 sees the Cage Warriors lightweight title on the line as newly crowned champion [autotag]Agy Sardari[/autotag] (13-2) looks to complete the first defense of the title against short-notice replacement [autotag]Donovan Desmae[/autotag] (14-5).
The bantamweight belt is up for grabs in the co-main event, as undefeated champion [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] (9-0) takes on Polish challenger [autotag]Sylwester Miller[/autotag] (9-3).
The card also features two semifinals in Cage Warriors’ welterweight title tournament, with two-time lightweight title challenger [autotag]Jack Grant[/autotag] (16-6) moving up to 170 pounds to take on Latvia’s [autotag]Madars Fleminas[/autotag] (8-2). The second semifinal sees unbeaten Irish contender [autotag]Ian Garry[/autotag] (5-0) take on Sweden’s [autotag]Rostem Akman[/autotag] (6-2).
Cage Warriors 121 takes place Friday at York Hall, Bethnal Green, London. The card streams on UFC Fight Pass.
Full Cage Warriors 121 results include:
MAIN CARD
PRELIMINARY CARD
Undefeated bantamweight champion Jack Cartwright will bid to register his third successful title defense at Cage Warriors 121 in London.
Undefeated Cage Warriors bantamweight champion [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] will put his title on the line in the co-main event of Cage Warriors 121 in London.
Manchester’s Cartwright (9-0), who captured the title with back-to-back first-round knockout victories in one night at Cage Warriors Unplugged 2 in 2019, has since defended his title twice in 2020 with victories over Manuel Bilic and Gerardo Fanny at Cage Warriors 112 and 115, respectively.
Now the SBG Manchester fighter will look to complete his third straight title defense when he faces Polish submission specialist [autotag]Sylwester Miller[/autotag] (9-3), who arrives in Cage Warriors riding a two-fight winning streak, with an extended run of form that has seen him lose just once in his past eight outings. Six of his nine career wins have come via submission.
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The matchup will be joined on the card by a middleweight bout, with former Cage Warriors 185-pound champion [autotag]James Webb[/autotag] (8-2-1) looking to continue his winning form since losing the title to Nathias Frederick at Cage Warriors 111 in 2019. Webb has fought twice since that defeat and picked up a pair of dominant victories. He earned a landslide decision win over Mick Stanton at Cage Warriors 112, then followed up with a first-round arm-triangle choke finish of Craig White at Cage Warriors 115.
Now Webb will look to make it three wins in a row against [autotag]Matthew Bonner[/autotag] (8-6-1), who is also on a two-fight winning streak, thanks to victories over George Smith and former welterweight title challenger Matt Inman.
Cage Warriors 121 takes place Friday, March 19 at York Hall, London. The event streams live on UFC Fight Pass.
With the additions, the lineup for Cage Warriors 121 includes:
[listicle id=553856]
Bantamweight champion Jack Cartwright defended his title at Cage Warriors 112, showing a different side to his skill set.
He might not have delivered the explosive finish some expected pre-fight, but Cage Warriors bantamweight champion [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] showed another side as he showcased his grit and determination to outpoint Croatian challenger [autotag]Manuel Bilic[/autotag] over the full five-round duration at Cage Warriors 112 in Manchester.
The pair met in the main event at BEC Arena, with Cartwright claiming the unanimous decision by scores of 48-47, 49-46, 50-45 after a grueling encounter that saw the Bolton man light up the challenger with his heavy-handed boxing early on, then showcase his patience and defensive smarts in the championship rounds.
Cartwright (8-0) looked in superb form early on as he repeatedly dropped Bilic (15-7) with solid punches. It also played into the Croatian’s gameplan as Bilic repeatedly looked to trap the champion in a triangle choke as the Brit followed the challenger to the mat. But Cartwright, whose heavy hands disguise a fighter whose base comes from the wrestling and grappling realms, exercised calmness and composure in tricky situations to ensure he was never fully trapped against his opponent, who came into the bout on the back of two consecutive submission finishes.
The pace began to drop as the bout entered the championship rounds, but while the pace may have slowed, Cartwright’s mind stayed sharp to avoid Bilic’s submission attacks as the bout went all the way to the judges’ scorecards. All three judges scored the fight for the reigning champion, who completed his first title defense with the first decision win of his career.
After the fight, Cartwright told Cage Warriors co-commentator Josh Palmer he was happy to show he had the fight IQ โ and the gas tank โ to go all five rounds.
“It feels very good,” he said. “Everyone was wondering if I could last more than one round, so I thought I’d give people their money’s worth and give them five!
“It’s almost a mental game, isn’t it? Stay switched on the whole time, don’t make any silly mistakes. I know I’m more than capable of beating 99% of fighters in the world, so as long as I don’t rush and stay patient … I did that tonight, and I’m quite pleased with myself to not rush for the knockout the entire time, and just accept some positions and stay clever. It’s that self-belief and that grit that I know I’ve done this since I was 5 years old. If I’m feeling tired, they’re (expletive) exhausted.”
Cartwright then sent a message to UFC president Dana White, as he called for a chance to join the promotion and be a part of the upcoming fight card in Dublin.
“Dublin loves some fighters, don’t they? So, August 15, Dana White, give me a ring, and I’ll go and put on a show for those Irish fans (and) knock out some of your bantamweights, man,” he said. “Just give me a call!”
Rising welterweight contender [autotag]Adam Proctor[/autotag] dominated proceedings throughout his co-main event bout with U.K.-based Latvian [autotag]Madars Fleminas[/autotag], but despite his efforts, “The Love Doctor” couldn’t quite secure the finish after 15 minutes of action.
Proctor (12-1) used his reach advantage well in the striking exchanges as he edged the first two rounds, but the main difference between the pair came when the South Shields man took Fleminas (7-1) to the canvas.
Proctor totally dominated on the mat, particularly during a lopsided third round, but found the previously-unbeaten Fleminas a tough nut to crack as the pair battled all the way to the scorecards, with the Englishman claiming 30-26 scores on all three scorecards to secure his seventh straight victory.
SBG Manchester’s [autotag]George Smith[/autotag] showcased his grappling acumen as he submitted England-based Pole [autotag]Lukasz Marcinkowski[/autotag] via armbar submission in the dying seconds of the opening round of their middleweight contest.
Smith (5-1) was caught by surprise when Marcinkowski (4-2) pulled guard and dragged the fight to the mat during the opening striking exchanges. But once the fight ended up on the mat, the Mancunian dominated proceedings and, after looking to lock up an omoplata, he swiftly transitioned to an armbar as Marcinkowski looked to roll his way to safety. The tap quickly followed as the 25-year-old stated his case as a dangerous contender in Cage Warriors’ 185-pound division.
Out of nowhere ๐ฒ
George Smith closes out a scramble with the armbar victory at #CW112๐บ Watch LIVE on @UFCFightPass
โก๏ธ https://t.co/VJgS9HIZyh
๐Manchester, England ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ pic.twitter.com/muOkXtZgKh— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) March 7, 2020
Former middleweight champion [autotag]James Webb[/autotag] returned to action with a win as he dominated [autotag]Mick Stanton[/autotag] over three rounds to claim a dominant decision victory following his defeat to new champ Nathias Frederick at Cage Warriors 111.
Webb (7-2-1) hurt Stanton early with a knee to the liver, then proceeded to dominate the action on the mat throughout the three-round fight as he smothered “The Huyton Hammer” and scored with a host of ground strikes from mount, while also threatening with a host of submission attempts. Stanton (6-4) is not a man to be finished easily, however, and the gritty Liverpudlian showed his toughness as he took the fight all the way to the scorecards, and even threatened to turn the tables on the former champion with a couple of heel-hook attempts.
But the result was in little doubt when the scorecards were collated, as Webb earned scores of 30-26, 30-26, 30-27 to claim a shutout victory and put himself back on a path to his old belt.
It was a night to remember for Liverpool’s [autotag]Adam Wilson[/autotag], who extended his unbeaten record with a rear-naked choke finish of former title challenger [autotag]Scott Malone[/autotag].
After a tricky opening round, Wilson (5-0) launched into attack mode at the start of Round 2. Almost immediately, he caught a kick from Malone (6-4), then launched into a flying back-take before locking up a tight rear-naked choke that eventually forced the tap 18 seconds after the restart.
The star of the show on the preliminary card was undoubtedly [autotag]Paul Hughes[/autotag] (5-0). The undefeated Irish featherweight finished [autotag]Youri Panada[/autotag] (4-2) with a thumping head kick in the second round before serving notice on the top names in the Cage Warriors 145-pound division, including reigning champion and former UFC 145er Mads Burnell.
That's how to make a statement! @paulhughesmma with a hum-dinger of a head kick to knock out Youri Panada at @CageWarriors 112 in Manchester. #CW112 pic.twitter.com/Da7YqCTfNG
— Simon Head (@simonhead) March 7, 2020
Bantamweight [autotag]Nathan Fletcher[/autotag] (3-0) also produced an impressive display as he handed fellow undefeated prospect [autotag]Johan Segas[/autotag] (3-1) his first loss with a first-round TKO finish.
There were also notable inside-the-distance victories for [autotag]Steven Hooper[/autotag] (5-3) and [autotag]James Sheehan[/autotag] (2-2), who secured second-round submission finishes of [autotag]Tom Mearns[/autotag] (6-4) and [autotag]Kyran Sturrock[/autotag] (0-1) respectively, while in the featured prelim Danish debutant [autotag]Jonas Magard[/autotag] claimed a landslide unanimous decision win over [autotag]Liam Gittins[/autotag].
Full Cage Warriors 112 results include:
MAIN CARD
PRELIMINARY CARD
Check out live and official results from Cage Warriors 112 in Manchester, England.
European promotion Cage Warriors heads to Manchester for its latest show, Cage Warriors 112, with one of the city’s homegrown stars returning to defend his title.
Bantamweight champion [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] knocked out former title challengers Scott Malone and Marko Kovacevic on the same night to capture the vacant 135-pound title at Cage Warriors Unplugged 2 in September 2019. Now the SBG Manchester-trained fighter will look to cement his position at the top of the division when he takes on Croatia’s [autotag]Manuel Bilic[/autotag] at the BEC Arena on Mar. 7.
Rising welterweight prospect [autotag]Adam Proctor[/autotag] (11-1) gets the chance to showcase his skills in the co-main event, when he looks to extend his six-fight win streak with victory over undefeated U.K.-based Latvian [autotag]Madars Fleminas[/autotag] (7-0).
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Former middleweight champion [autotag]James Webb[/autotag] (6-2-1) makes a swift return to action after losing his title to Nathias Frederick in his last outing at Cage Warriors 111. Webb takes on Liverpool’s [autotag]Mick Stanton[/autotag] (6-3) in a bout that could propel the winner into a title shot later in the year.
Meanwhile, on the preliminary card, former Bellator lightweight [autotag]Tom Mearns[/autotag] (6-3) kicks off his exclusive Cage Warriors contract against SBG Manchester’s Steven Hooper (4-3), while undefeated Irish lightweight prospect [autotag]Paul Hughes[/autotag] (4-0) will bid to continue his good form with victory over Frenchman [autotag]Youri Panada[/autotag] (4-1) in a 150-pound catchweight bout in the first fight of the night.
The Cage Warriors 112 main card will be streamed live on UFC Fight Pass, with the preliminary card streamed live via Cagewarriors.com.
Full Cage Warriors 112 results include:
MAIN CARD (4 P.M. ET, UFC Fight Pass)
PRELIMINARY CARD (1:30 P.M. ET, Cagewarriors.com)
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey starts long before they strap on UFC or Bellator gloves.
Every champion in MMA history started out somewhere.
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey starts long before they strap on UFC or Bellator gloves. Modern-era fighters progress through the regional ranks with hopes of accomplishing the highest accolades. Many will try, but few will succeed.
This month, five fighters on the verge of achieving major-promotion notoriety return to the cage for what could be their stepping stone fights. There are dozens of fighters inches away from making the jump in the coming weeks, but these five are particularly exemplary.
This month:
Cage Warriors bantamweight champion Jack Cartwright is ready to return to his home town of Manchester to defend his newly-won title.
The city of Manchester has produced some big-name fighters who have gone all the way to the top. Ricky Hatton, Tyson Fury and Michael Bisping have all been embraced by the city as they have reached the pinnacle of their respective sports and captured major titles for themselves, for the U.K., and for Manchester, itself. Now the city has another gritty warrior to throw its weight behind.
Cage Warriors bantamweight champion [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag] trains under the railway arches at the city’s SBG Manchester gym and has developed into one of the most dangerous bantamweights in Europe. Now he’s all set to take center stage in his hometown when Europe’s leading regional promotion heads to Manchester for Cage Warriors 112.
Cartwright takes on Manuel Bilic in the main event at the BEC Arena on March 7, when he puts his newly-won bantamweight title on the line, and the home-grown Mancunian says he’s ready to deliver on home soil.
That status was cemented when he exploded into the one-night Cage Warriors bantamweight title tournament, as he starched two former title challengers en route to the title at Cage Warriors Unplugged 2 in September 2019.
But while his knockout power was on show in London that night, his ability to submit his opponents is equally strong, with his overall record showing four submissions and three knockouts. The Brit said that his wrestling base has proved crucial in his rise but says he now prefers to use that skillset to set up his hands, as he did to such impressive effect in the tournament
“I’m a wrestler, first and foremost,” he said. “I grew up wrestling, so I kind of lean on that to not really be bothered by my opponent’s wrestling and rely on my own strength. So I just believe in my wrestling and let my hands go from there.
“Like you saw in my last fight, if somebody gets on my hips, I’m more than capable of getting them off my hips, get back up, and put someone out standing up. That’s what everyone likes the most, isn’t it? Everyone likes a striker, so I’d rather be a fan favorite than a boring little crotch hugger.”
That desire to be an entertaining fighter comes from his respect from the aforementioned trio of Mancunian stars. Hatton, Bisping and Fury each had their own style, but their grounded personalities, combined with their love for a good old-fashioned tear-up, made them heroes in Manchester. Now Cartwright wants to follow in their footsteps.
“Growing up, I was a big Ricky Hatton fan,” he remembered. “I can remember staying up and watching him when he fought Kostya Tszyu, and when he came back and fought Juan Lazcano at the Etihad, I went and watched that. Obviously I like Bisping, but I’ve never gone to see him live. I’ve never been to a UFC event yet, so I’m still waiting for that one.”
A self-described “martial arts lifer,” Cartwright started kickboxing at 5, wrestling at 8, boxing at 13 and MMA at 18. He was never interested in any other sports, and that focus has helped him build his skillset, turn pro and win his way to the Cage Warriors bantamweight championship, when he defeated two former title challengers in one night to capture the vacant title in London.
Now he puts his title on the line for the first time, and he does so in his backyard. It’s a dream come true for the modest Mancunian, but one that he always believed would come true.
“Yeah, I’m buzzing that I get to fight in Manchester,” he said. “If you’d have asked me a year ago that it would have happened this soon, well, I would have believed you, because I always believe in myself. But I thought I was going to take a lot longer than it has done.
“But there’s no extra pressure with it being in Manchester. It could be in Manchester, in London, in Vegas. It can be anywhere. I’ll always turn up and I’ll always put a show on.”
Recap a memorable year of action from European promotion Cage Warriors in their 2019 highlight film.
European promotion Cage Warriors has forged a well-earned reputation as one of the key regional promotions for fighters looking to launch their careers to the world stage.
The London-based organization has seen 93 of its fighters graduate to the UFC over the years, including former UFC champions Conor McGregor, Michael Bisping and Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and continues to produce UFC-ready talent, with former champions Jack Shore and Nathaniel Wood tipped for stardom on the big stage in the months and years ahead.
The promotion had a big year in 2019, holding 11 events in total, including an historic night at the iconic Hammersmith Apollo in London for “Cage Warriors 106: Night of Champions” and a return to the BT Sport studios for their “Cage Warriors: Unplugged 2” event that featured a one night tournament that crowned its new bantamweight champion, [autotag]Jack Cartwright[/autotag].
As well as bantamweight, the organization crowned new champions at flyweight, featherweight, lightweight, middleweight and light heavyweight, as [autotag]Samir Faiddine[/autotag], [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag], [autotag]Jai Herbert[/autotag], [autotag]Nathias Frederick[/autotag] and [autotag]Modestas Bukauskas[/autotag] all captured championship gold in their respective weight classes.
And Scotland’s undefeated welterweight champion [autotag]Ross Houston[/autotag] held on to his 170-pound title after his epic back-and-forth war with interim champion [autotag]Nicolas Dalby[/autotag] was ruled a no contest after the cage floor became flooded with blood from both men after one of the most punishing contests ever seen inside the Cage Warriors cage.
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It all added up to a spectacular year for Cage Warriors, who have already announced a packed schedule of events for 2020, including a return to London’s Indigo at The O2 on Mar. 20, just one day before the UFC packs the main O2 Arena the following night for UFC London.
Relive the best of Cage Warriors in 2019 via the video above.
