With just a week to go before Europe’s Leading MMA Organisation returns to The Toon, fans are anticipating another huge night of action in the Famous Yellow Gloves. From title bouts to big debuts, international super-fights to local derbies, Cage Warriors events in Newcastle have had it all. So what better time than now to look back at some of the promotion’s best moments at the Vertu Arena!
Final tickets for CW 199 are availible here!
Harry Hardwick vs Keweny Lopes
One of the wildest, most memorable Cage Warriors title fights in recent memory, Harry Hardwick’s first defence of his featherweight world championship came against Brazilian buzzsaw Keweny Lopes. With both fighters having long-established reputations for chaotic, violent showings in the cage, expectations were – quite rightly – riding high.
That’s so often the problem with lionising fighters and hyping fights in one of the most unpredictable sports in the world; the chances of it not living up to the loftily-set expectations are high.
Thankfully, not in this case.
The Brazilian knockout artist started strong, taking the first round off Hardwick and leaving the thousands strong crowd on edge. The Teesider was quick to remind them – and Lopes – that this was a five rounder through, and came surging back in the second to even the score.
As the bout wore on, Hardwick went up through the gears and his opponent struggled to find an answer. The referee called it off in the fourth, giving him his first title defence and biggest career victory to date in one fell swoop.
George Hardwick vs Nonato Junior
From one Hardwick to another, and a North East homecoming for the former lightweight world champion. Despite his brother having headlined multiple CW cards close to home, George hadn’t seen CW action within spitting distance of his own bed since joining the professional ranks.
That all changed at CW 193 just a few months ago, as he finally headlined a bill at the Vertu arena. Just like with brother Harry though, getting there wasn’t plain sailing.
Originally scheduled to face hard-hitting Belgian finishing machine Jan Quaeyhaegens, the script was flipped just weeks from the bout as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt Nonato Junior stepped in to replace him following an injury in training camp.
Despite being faced with the propect of an entirely different opponent with an entirely different skillset, Hardwick wasn’t going to let anything spoil his moment in the limelight.
It was a vintage performance from the former champ; a considered, clinical demolition job that ended the night early enough to head to Manjaro’s for a post fight parmo supper.
Kennedy Freeman vs Gisele Libânio
The Queen of North East MMA was crowned at CW 181, when Kennedy Freeman stopped Mafaldo Carmona on her stool to claim Cage Warriors gold.
Still, nothing raises the roof like a good old-fashioned KO, something the fighting Freemans know all too well. Thankfully in that respect Kennedy is very much her father’s daughter.
At CW 172 she was in the midst of an all-out slugfest against Brazilian scrapper Gisele Libânio; the pair had gone back and forth for the first two rounds and the bout was still very much anyone’s to win.
Kennedy came out looking for something big in the third, and with a red hot crowd behind her every punch, she eventually found it, sending her opponent crumpling to the mat and raising the roof off the Vertu Arena.
Chris Bungard vs Perry Goodwin
Not every story has a happy ending. Such was the case when local hero Perry Goodwin faced Scottish fan favourite Chris Bungard at CW 164.
The atmosphere in the building began to noticeably simmer during the pre-fight VTs, but by the time the pair had made their walks to the beat of a brace of iconic tunes, things had hit fever pitch. It isn’t unfair to say that it felt like one of the biggest CW scraps in recent history.
Goodwin and Bungard got straight down to business, just as anyone with past knowledge of their fights would have anticipated. But a heavy leg kick and a straight punch from ‘The Bad Guy’ floored Goodwin, setting up a sublime submission finish.
While the air was sucked out of half of the room, the traveling Scots more than made up for it, and Bungard wanted a piece of the celebrations, vaulting the guardrail and
Harry Hardwick vs Orlando Wilson Prins
While this list is in danger of becoming a ‘Hardwick Brothers’ Greatest Hits’ compilation, it’s undeniable that the pair have been the catalyst for some of Cage Warriors biggest moments in the North East in recent years. It seems only fitting then that this list is book-ended by Harry Hardwick title moments.
‘Houdini’ captured CW gold in less than ideal circumstances, with original opponent Zafar Mohsen withdrawing from the bout at the eleventh hour. In stepped Holland’s Orlando Wilson Prins, leading many to wonder how Hardwick would deal with the pressure of a title shot, a North East homecoming and new opponent combined.
Thankfully the answer was ‘pretty well’. After a back and forth first round, Hardwick ramped up the pressure in the second, overwhelming his man with a barrage of strikes to capture the Big Gold Belt and send the Newcastle crowd into raptures.
Don’t miss more incredible moments in Newcastle when Cage Warriors returns to the Vertu Arena on Saturday, December 6th! Tickets are availible here, with the event airing live on UFC Fight Pass.