Down the Pub: News and Notes from the UK
Pedro Wrobel Mar 28, 2005
LONDON, March 27 – About this time last year Streatham High Street,
in South London, was voted the winner of the Government's "Streets
of Shame" award. I can't remember the particulars of what made this
street shameful. Something to do with the reputed presence of
various grades of criminal. The sad, isolated, lonely and dark feel
of the place. The depressing lack of any recognizable meat in any
of the kebab shops … the usual.
The reason I'm telling you about this is because, at around this time 13 months ago, I remember stepping out of a hot, sweaty, smoky venue called Caesar's Palace (not the original, of course) and finding myself standing in the middle of Streatham High Street at 2 a.m. with no discernible way of getting home.
I'd just been at the Cage Rage 5 show, and had just seen Jean Silva knockout Leigh Remedios with a kick to
the head after a hard-fought battle that could have gone either
way. It was a great evening and, fortunately, I did eventually find
my way home.
I'm saying this because sometimes I find it difficult to assure myself that this really was just 13 months ago. As recently as May 24, 2004, Cage Rage was still being held in that tiny, smoky little venue, with tinny renditions of "Welcome to the Jungle" sparing us from having to live through more live "music" from the worst hip-hop act in the northern hemisphere.
I'm in a happy mood, people. Let's just stop for a moment and think how far we've come in such a short space of time. I wouldn't have believed it if you'd told me then that this was where we'd be now. Isn't it great?
Let's take a look at what some of us are talking about in the pubs across the length and breadth of this little island.
KOTC UK
Another week, another triumph for MMA in the UK. The part of this that I'm having a little trouble visualizing is quite how Aaron Chatfield managed to convince the supremos at King of the Cage that Huddersfield, in West Yorkshire, was their future.
Possibly, it went something like this:
AC: Hello Mr. KOTC Supremo, sir. I'm a fine Northern entrepreneur who has a dream. I dream about a place … somewhere up in the icy Arctic wastes that we like to call "the North of England." In this place men eat chips with gravy, and they talk funny; and women wear far too much fake tan, even in the frigid depths of winter; and these same women wear short skirts in the snow … in this land of industrial heritage, this monument to structural unemployment, in the land where the Macc Lads made their name … here, sir, here shall I plant an acorn that shall bloom into the biggest MMA oak in England. Please sir, realize my dream. Bring that yellow cage to England. Besides, I know this strip joint where the girls … whoa … I mean seriously … whoa.
KOTC: Huddersfield, you say? Sounds great!
AC: Sweet!
Regardless, KOTC will actually be coming to the Huddersfield Sports Centre in Huddersfield on June 11. Names such as Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett, Joey Villasenor and James Lee have been liberally sprinkled into the promotional material, with promoters also emphasizing that "other top UK and European fighters" are being lined up.
Incidentally, fighters are still being sought for the show. So if you think you're hard enough, email [email protected].
CageWarriors Ultimate Force
It's getting quite confusing to talk about CageWarriors these days since I keep having to explain to people that it's not a promotion anymore—it's a franchise. Here I'm talking about the Ultimate Force show, also known as "the northern one." The one that's going to be on April 30, at the Xscape Centre in Castleford. Got it? Good, because they've announced some excellent match-ups.
The most recognizable name on the card is probably that of Michael Bisping, who will be taking on professional boxer Dave Radford in the latter's MMA debut. Although Radford is said to be training hard in MMA, I think it's a little much to ask anyone, no matter how talented, to take on a recognized champion in their debut. Nevertheless, Radford is said to be ready and Bisping is always entertaining.
I was under the impression that the Northern Cartel was the official CageWarriors fight team, but possibly it's now changed to the Ze Marcello/BTT UK team because the latter have now got three fighters competing in the upcoming show. The latest name is Alexandre "Xandinho" Izidro, who has cycled through what is seemingly the entire CW roster before settling on Dave Roche as an opponent, after Roche's original opponent, Kazeka Muniz, pulled out.
This is quite the intriguing match. Roche trains with John Kavanagh in Ireland, and is considered to be one of the rising stars in UK MMA. One to watch out for. A megastar in the making? All these descriptions have been bandied about, but the truth is that, despite an unbeaten 3-0-0 record, Roche's career has been plagued by ludicrous bad luck. The Irishman has now pulled out of a fight against Gerald Strebendt on four separate occasions, and missed a fight against Dave Elliot, at Cage Rage 7, after being involved in a car accident on his way to the weigh-in.
Izidro is an excellent opponent for Roche at this time. The Brazilian is a black belt in BJJ and is, as this reporter will testify, possessed of some quite frightening ground skills. Izidro's record is 1-1-0, with both matches being decisions at SHOOTO Brazil, the loss coming at welterweight, not Izidro's natural weight. "Xandinho" has only improved since his last fight, and wanted to let all the UK fans know that he'll be ready.
Izidro will be accompanied by Ze Marcello/BTT teammates Danny Batten and Anderson Pereira, both of whom will also be fighting at the show, with the former taking on the undefeated Alex Owen.
The card, as it stands, is as follows:
(MMA)
Dave Roche vs. Alexandre Izidro
Michael "The Count" Bisping vs. Dave Radford
Mark “Spenna” Spencer vs. Ollie Ellis
Ian "Mongoose" Jones vs. Michael "Rocky" Holmes
Gav Keane vs. Sam Bradley
Alex Owen vs. Danny Batten
Anderson Pereira vs. Gav Bradley
Jason Ball vs. Ste Dawson
Martin Wilby vs. Gareth Neale
(Hybrid San Shou)
Andy Cooper vs. Ray Burns
Cage Rage 11
After their recent flurry of activity, Cage Rage has fewer announcements this week. Just the one, in fact, as yet another member of the Ze Marcello/BTT UK team is confirmed to fight on April 30. Henrique "Lagartixa" Santana, last seen defeating Matt Thorpe at the Nightmare Before Xmas show, has been confirmed against James E Nicholle.
Nicholle was due a return after his dominating TKO victory over Suley Mahmoud at Cage Rage 8, but it is something of a surprise to see "Lagartixa" as his opponent. Don't get me wrong—the latter is also long overdue for a return after he quite clearly beat Jeremy "Bad Boy" Bailey at Cage Rage 6. That match almost sparked a riot, and was later ruled a no contest.
Santana is an extremely talented fighter, but I'm not sure that a move up to middleweight against such a daunting opponent is a good move for him. The Brazilian has the edge on the ground, but with Nicholle's crisp stand-up and much longer reach, this will be an intriguing battle of styles.
The card is currently as follows:
Ian Freeman vs. Kristof Midoux
Anderson Silva vs. Jorge Rivera
Curtis Stout vs. Mark Weir
Evangelista Santos vs. Mark Epstein
Pierre Guillet vs. Antony Rea
Sol Gilbert vs. Damien Riccio
Jess Liaudin vs. Abdul Mohamed
Paul Jenkins vs. Paul Daley
Alex Reid vs. Hassan Muridi
Andy Costello vs. Robert Berry
Kuljit Degum vs. Tom Blackledge
James E Nicholle vs. Henrique Santana
Brad Pickett vs. Aaron Blackwell
Atilla Kubilay vs. Richard Bowkett
Urban Destruction
Urban Destruction returns to Southwest England on April 10 at the Whitchurch Leisure Centre in Bristol.
The card will be:
(Pro MMA)
James Thompson vs. Nikolajus Cilkinas
Neil Rennicks vs. Mike Kenny
Paul Taylor vs. Zelg Galesic
Sami Berik vs. Stuart Barrs
Paul Sutherland vs. Sergai Kirieliug
Wezley Murch vs. Mike Clifton
Matt Sellers vs. Steve Cunningham
Dave Van Guess vs. Giddeon Akermans
Ronnie Mann vs. Gary Howe
Clive Moore vs. Kharim Stavron
(Thai Boxing)
Pele Reid vs. Mikael Sergov
Damon Hood vs. Scott “Pit-bull” Clark
Phil Titmus vs. Leoni Williams
Trevor Smandych vs. Murthel Groenhart
Jason Cutbill vs. Wilco Odinot
Julie Livet vs. Cherie Buck
Adam Mills vs. Roodi Troost
The reason I'm telling you about this is because, at around this time 13 months ago, I remember stepping out of a hot, sweaty, smoky venue called Caesar's Palace (not the original, of course) and finding myself standing in the middle of Streatham High Street at 2 a.m. with no discernible way of getting home.
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I'm saying this because sometimes I find it difficult to assure myself that this really was just 13 months ago. As recently as May 24, 2004, Cage Rage was still being held in that tiny, smoky little venue, with tinny renditions of "Welcome to the Jungle" sparing us from having to live through more live "music" from the worst hip-hop act in the northern hemisphere.
These days we're complaining about rubbish security at Wembley,
complaining about how the highlight show on Sky Sports 1 didn't
show the Remedios-Silva match fairly. How this or that ref call
could have gone the other way.
I'm in a happy mood, people. Let's just stop for a moment and think how far we've come in such a short space of time. I wouldn't have believed it if you'd told me then that this was where we'd be now. Isn't it great?
Let's take a look at what some of us are talking about in the pubs across the length and breadth of this little island.
KOTC UK
Another week, another triumph for MMA in the UK. The part of this that I'm having a little trouble visualizing is quite how Aaron Chatfield managed to convince the supremos at King of the Cage that Huddersfield, in West Yorkshire, was their future.
Possibly, it went something like this:
AC: Hello Mr. KOTC Supremo, sir. I'm a fine Northern entrepreneur who has a dream. I dream about a place … somewhere up in the icy Arctic wastes that we like to call "the North of England." In this place men eat chips with gravy, and they talk funny; and women wear far too much fake tan, even in the frigid depths of winter; and these same women wear short skirts in the snow … in this land of industrial heritage, this monument to structural unemployment, in the land where the Macc Lads made their name … here, sir, here shall I plant an acorn that shall bloom into the biggest MMA oak in England. Please sir, realize my dream. Bring that yellow cage to England. Besides, I know this strip joint where the girls … whoa … I mean seriously … whoa.
KOTC: Huddersfield, you say? Sounds great!
AC: Sweet!
Regardless, KOTC will actually be coming to the Huddersfield Sports Centre in Huddersfield on June 11. Names such as Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett, Joey Villasenor and James Lee have been liberally sprinkled into the promotional material, with promoters also emphasizing that "other top UK and European fighters" are being lined up.
Incidentally, fighters are still being sought for the show. So if you think you're hard enough, email [email protected].
CageWarriors Ultimate Force
It's getting quite confusing to talk about CageWarriors these days since I keep having to explain to people that it's not a promotion anymore—it's a franchise. Here I'm talking about the Ultimate Force show, also known as "the northern one." The one that's going to be on April 30, at the Xscape Centre in Castleford. Got it? Good, because they've announced some excellent match-ups.
The most recognizable name on the card is probably that of Michael Bisping, who will be taking on professional boxer Dave Radford in the latter's MMA debut. Although Radford is said to be training hard in MMA, I think it's a little much to ask anyone, no matter how talented, to take on a recognized champion in their debut. Nevertheless, Radford is said to be ready and Bisping is always entertaining.
I was under the impression that the Northern Cartel was the official CageWarriors fight team, but possibly it's now changed to the Ze Marcello/BTT UK team because the latter have now got three fighters competing in the upcoming show. The latest name is Alexandre "Xandinho" Izidro, who has cycled through what is seemingly the entire CW roster before settling on Dave Roche as an opponent, after Roche's original opponent, Kazeka Muniz, pulled out.
This is quite the intriguing match. Roche trains with John Kavanagh in Ireland, and is considered to be one of the rising stars in UK MMA. One to watch out for. A megastar in the making? All these descriptions have been bandied about, but the truth is that, despite an unbeaten 3-0-0 record, Roche's career has been plagued by ludicrous bad luck. The Irishman has now pulled out of a fight against Gerald Strebendt on four separate occasions, and missed a fight against Dave Elliot, at Cage Rage 7, after being involved in a car accident on his way to the weigh-in.
Izidro is an excellent opponent for Roche at this time. The Brazilian is a black belt in BJJ and is, as this reporter will testify, possessed of some quite frightening ground skills. Izidro's record is 1-1-0, with both matches being decisions at SHOOTO Brazil, the loss coming at welterweight, not Izidro's natural weight. "Xandinho" has only improved since his last fight, and wanted to let all the UK fans know that he'll be ready.
Izidro will be accompanied by Ze Marcello/BTT teammates Danny Batten and Anderson Pereira, both of whom will also be fighting at the show, with the former taking on the undefeated Alex Owen.
The card, as it stands, is as follows:
(MMA)
Dave Roche vs. Alexandre Izidro
Michael "The Count" Bisping vs. Dave Radford
Mark “Spenna” Spencer vs. Ollie Ellis
Ian "Mongoose" Jones vs. Michael "Rocky" Holmes
Gav Keane vs. Sam Bradley
Alex Owen vs. Danny Batten
Anderson Pereira vs. Gav Bradley
Jason Ball vs. Ste Dawson
Martin Wilby vs. Gareth Neale
(Hybrid San Shou)
Andy Cooper vs. Ray Burns
Cage Rage 11
After their recent flurry of activity, Cage Rage has fewer announcements this week. Just the one, in fact, as yet another member of the Ze Marcello/BTT UK team is confirmed to fight on April 30. Henrique "Lagartixa" Santana, last seen defeating Matt Thorpe at the Nightmare Before Xmas show, has been confirmed against James E Nicholle.
Nicholle was due a return after his dominating TKO victory over Suley Mahmoud at Cage Rage 8, but it is something of a surprise to see "Lagartixa" as his opponent. Don't get me wrong—the latter is also long overdue for a return after he quite clearly beat Jeremy "Bad Boy" Bailey at Cage Rage 6. That match almost sparked a riot, and was later ruled a no contest.
Santana is an extremely talented fighter, but I'm not sure that a move up to middleweight against such a daunting opponent is a good move for him. The Brazilian has the edge on the ground, but with Nicholle's crisp stand-up and much longer reach, this will be an intriguing battle of styles.
The card is currently as follows:
Ian Freeman vs. Kristof Midoux
Anderson Silva vs. Jorge Rivera
Curtis Stout vs. Mark Weir
Evangelista Santos vs. Mark Epstein
Pierre Guillet vs. Antony Rea
Sol Gilbert vs. Damien Riccio
Jess Liaudin vs. Abdul Mohamed
Paul Jenkins vs. Paul Daley
Alex Reid vs. Hassan Muridi
Andy Costello vs. Robert Berry
Kuljit Degum vs. Tom Blackledge
James E Nicholle vs. Henrique Santana
Brad Pickett vs. Aaron Blackwell
Atilla Kubilay vs. Richard Bowkett
Urban Destruction
Urban Destruction returns to Southwest England on April 10 at the Whitchurch Leisure Centre in Bristol.
The card will be:
(Pro MMA)
James Thompson vs. Nikolajus Cilkinas
Neil Rennicks vs. Mike Kenny
Paul Taylor vs. Zelg Galesic
Sami Berik vs. Stuart Barrs
Paul Sutherland vs. Sergai Kirieliug
Wezley Murch vs. Mike Clifton
Matt Sellers vs. Steve Cunningham
Dave Van Guess vs. Giddeon Akermans
Ronnie Mann vs. Gary Howe
Clive Moore vs. Kharim Stavron
(Thai Boxing)
Pele Reid vs. Mikael Sergov
Damon Hood vs. Scott “Pit-bull” Clark
Phil Titmus vs. Leoni Williams
Trevor Smandych vs. Murthel Groenhart
Jason Cutbill vs. Wilco Odinot
Julie Livet vs. Cherie Buck
Adam Mills vs. Roodi Troost
