Cage Warriors – Europe’s Leading MMA Organisation – has today confirmed the addition of a huge lightweight title bout to its already stacked CW 169 event at London’s indigo at The O2.
Returning champion George Hardwick will attempt the third defense of his 155lb crown, when he meets American challenger Lucas ‘Cassius’ Clay (10-3).
The bout will take place over five rounds at London’s indigo at The O2, on Saturday, March 30th, and airs live on UFC Fight Pass and international broadcast partners.
27-year-old Hardwick, from Middlesbrough, UK, last competed in the famous yellow gloves in April of 2023, stopping Luxembourg’s Yann Liasse with a barrage of unanswered punches in the very first round.
Prior to that, he captured the vacant title in a brutal war of attrition against Kyle Driscoll, before making a successful defense against Chris Bungard.
Hardwick last saw action in a spirited defeat to the UFC’s Abdul-Kareem Al-Selwady on Dana White’s Contender Series in August.
He’ll now return to the European leader in a bid to claim his championship outright with a third successful victory, kickstarting another UFC run in the process.
Challenging Hardwick will be St Louis, Missouri’s Lucas ‘Cassius’ Clay.
The 28-year-old, a product of St Charles MMA, initially came to prominence as one of the first fighters of note to hit a buggy choke in MMA competition.
A gifted amateur, Clay compiled a 9-1 record before making the leap to the pro ranks, where he has thus far achieved ten victories including four by way of submission.
“It’s a big weekend of sport in the UK, so we’ve got a big main event lined up for our return to the O2…” said CW President Graham Boylan.
“George Hardwick has an incredible opportunity to cement his legacy in Cage Warriors by becoming the first fighter to win a championship outright since Chris Fishgold in 2017.”
“He’s got a huge test ahead of him in Lucas Clay, an unorthodox prospect who’s never been finished.”
“This one has all the makings of a classic on March 30th!”
The bout joins a number of high-profile contests previously announced for the card, including Jordan Vucenic vs Simone D’Anna, Lone’er Kavanagh vs Shawn Da Silva, Will Currie vs Leon Aliu, Matt Figlak vs Kamil Dołgowski and more.
Tickets are available via CageWarriors.com, with the entire event airing live on UFC Fight Pass and international broadcast partners.