Another action-packed page has been turned on the Cage Warriors calendar! April played host to a pair of incredible fight nights featuring champions, challengers and a whole new generation future superstars.
Before we look forward to May’s CW 189, its time to Rewind the action and take a trip back through April’s highlights. First on the docket, CW 187: Glasgow!
Bungard Back in the Winner’s Circle
It wouldn’t be a proper CW night in Glasgow without an appearance from The Bad Guy. And while the fans who’ve become accustomed to a blast of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s ‘Bad Moon Rising’ during Bungard’s now legendary walkouts might have been initially deflated by its absence, that mood quickly changed.
More to the point, The Bad Guy followed up an epic cage walk with an epic performance, one that he felt he owed the Glasgow crowd. The crowd favourite got the better of the first round, but as the bell for the second sounded, it was all one way traffic.
Bungard had the submission locked on in less than a minute, promptly raising the roof off the Braehead Arena. That it was all done on a badly injured knee that he’d been keeping to himself only made the feat more impressive.
A Stronge Showing
After having one of the most entertaining double-debut fights in recent memory against Jordan Little twelve months prior, Jordan Stronge continued to show his class at CW 187 in a classic striker vs grappler affair.
Despite Chris Hayes’ best efforts it would be the striker’s day. Stronge looked absolutely lethal on the feet whenever he was given room to breathe, and the effort trying to prevent that began to visibly wear on his opponent.
Disengaging to stand up with just seconds left on the clock at the end of the first round, the Progress Martial Arts man had the inevitable shot scouted and countered with an inch-perfect knee to finish the fight.
The Locomotive’s Last Ride
Paull McBain has been responsible for more than his fair share of crowd-pleasing moments in the Famous Yellow Gloves over the years, so when the Aberdeen man announced that he would be strapping them on for one last time when Cage Warriors returned to Scotland, anticipation was high for another rough ‘n’ tumble barn-burner.
With Bailey Gilbert cemented as his opponent, things hit fever pitch. Two men with no reverse gear, who’d never found themselves in a fight they didn’t like; what could go wrong?
Thankfully nothing. Gilbert gave the fans – and McBain – exactly the fight they wanted; a stand-up brawl that left both men bloody and the crowd on its feet.
The Locomotive saw his hand raised at the end of three arduous rounds; the perfect career swansong.
The Wright Stuff
Tom Wright’s Cage Warriors tenure has been a bit of a rollercoaster, to say the least. Bursting onto the scene with an incredible upset victory over Jimmy Quinn in London, the Rossendale man had survived his Southern counterpart’s trademark early onslaught to pull off a highlight-reel submission win.
A loss to Joe Fields followed though and as such, Wright was desperate to set foot back inside the winner’s circle at CW 187. Once again matched against the local favourite – in this case Scotland’s Iain Postlethwaite – all the ingredients were in for another memorable performance.
In his first bout representing Liverpool’s Next Generation, Wright looked to have made significant improvements. Blistering combinations were the order of the day and less that four minutes in, a swift right hook sent a bloodied Ferret to the mat for the final time.
Sean Clancy Jr: All Aboard the Hype Train
All aboard the Sean Clancy Jr Hype Train! Destination: Who knows where? The Contender Series? A Cage Warriors title shot? Straight to the UFC? At this stage, in this sport, none would raise too much of an eyebrow.
The Scottish stud didn’t have everything his own way during his first ever main event appearance, and perhaps that’s for the best. Fans have been itching to see how ‘The One’ would react when put under real pressure, and if CW 187’s main event was anything to go by, they’ll be happy with his response.
Brazil’s Italo Gomez took it to the crowd favourite in the first round, hunting submissions and letting his man know that he wasn’t simply there to be another tally on the Scotsman’s record.
The Clancy that came out in the second was a different beast though; brimming with confidence and not giving his opponent an inch before taking his back and clamping down for the submission victory.
There was plenty more CW action in the month of April: Check out Part 2 of our CW Rewind, coming soon! In the meantime, you can take a closer look at the action from CW 187 with Unfiltered!
