Azevedo Claims Cage Gladiators Featherweight Title
LIVERPOOL, England, April 27 -- On a night of fast action and quick
finishes, Pride veteran Luciano Azevedo (Pictures) claimed the vacant Cage
Gladiators featherweight world title Sunday with a first-round
submission victory over Abdul
Mohamed (Pictures).
From the first moments of the fight, Azevedo surged forward like a furious bulldog as he pursued and finally finished an important takedown. His Afgan opponent, however, was in no mood to be held down and soon used his notable strength advantage to force his way off the bottom.
From his back, the Brazilian fought with the same tenacious aggression. He quickly tied Mohammed up in a tight triangle and proceeded to batter him with punches. As the hold took effect, the Sunderland Jiu-Jitsu fighter had no choice but to tap out, handing the title to an elated Azevedo.
The chief supporting bout was over in a matter of seconds. Local kickboxer Carl Morgan landed a mighty yet wholly accidental knee to the groin of Frenchman Aldric Cassata, which sent him crashing to the floor in agony.
Unfortunately, Cassata was in no position to continue, and the bout was declared a no contest as the incapacitated Groove Vale Tudo fighter was helped out of the cage.
The only fight to go beyond the first round also provided some of the more vicious exchanges as late-replacement extraordinaire Mamarizoev Jahongir and Lee Chadwick (Pictures) went to war in the center of the cage.
Jahongir won't be winning any submission grappling tournaments in the near future. But as Chadwick discovered for two tough rounds, if you stand with the hard-kicking Antonias gym fighter, you are in for a real battle. Chadwick was able to turn the tables in the third round, though. He took his opponent down and persisted with a tight-looking rear-naked choke attempt, which helped Chadwick claw his way back to a majority draw.
UFC veteran Dave Lee (Pictures) made a timely return to form by quickly taking down and submitting Team Supreme representative Vaughn Harvey with a rear-naked choke.
A pair of hard slams and some chopping shots on the ground from Lee opened up Harvey's defense. Within a couple of minutes, the Londoner seized control of Harvey's back to score a much needed submission win.
In the night's other title fight, Diane Berry unleashed a whirlwind of aggression to overwhelm game but overmatched opponent Anna Halliday and win the vacant Cage Gladiators women's title.
Undeterred by her opponent's significant size advantage, Berry launched a series of knees in the clinch before piling on the pressure with some hard left hands that forced the referee to call a halt to the contest.
Paul Sass (Pictures) put together some blistering combinations to begin his fight with Will Burke (Pictures). Following a retaliatory takedown form the Predators representative, Sass proved equally dangerous off his back and choked his foe to sleep with a slick triangle after barely a minute of action.
Wolfslair fighter Lucasz Les once again showcased his fast-as-lightning shot, as he took down Outcasts MMA fighter Mark Mills in the opening seconds of the contest.
Once grounded, Les fought bitterly, landing a series of hard punches that soon had his opponent showing signs of distress. Seizing his advantage, the Polish fighter sealed another impressive win with the evening's submission of choice: a rear-naked choke.
Andrew Fisher scored a quick win over the sorely disappointed Gavin Sterrit. He took down the Thai boxing specialist and exposed his defense on the floor before finishing Sterrit with a rear-naked choke.
In undercard action, Nova Forca jiu-jitsu specialist Tim Radcliffe (Pictures) damaged Lee Barnes with some hard elbows early in the first round and then secured a rear-naked choke; Tomasz Kozwolski hammered Andy Warbeck on the floor to set up another rear-naked choke; Mark Glover choked out Mick Bowman; and Jay McGuinness dramatically launched himself into a beautiful armbar to claim victory over Declan Williams.
From the first moments of the fight, Azevedo surged forward like a furious bulldog as he pursued and finally finished an important takedown. His Afgan opponent, however, was in no mood to be held down and soon used his notable strength advantage to force his way off the bottom.
From his back, the Brazilian fought with the same tenacious aggression. He quickly tied Mohammed up in a tight triangle and proceeded to batter him with punches. As the hold took effect, the Sunderland Jiu-Jitsu fighter had no choice but to tap out, handing the title to an elated Azevedo.
The chief supporting bout was over in a matter of seconds. Local kickboxer Carl Morgan landed a mighty yet wholly accidental knee to the groin of Frenchman Aldric Cassata, which sent him crashing to the floor in agony.
Unfortunately, Cassata was in no position to continue, and the bout was declared a no contest as the incapacitated Groove Vale Tudo fighter was helped out of the cage.
The only fight to go beyond the first round also provided some of the more vicious exchanges as late-replacement extraordinaire Mamarizoev Jahongir and Lee Chadwick (Pictures) went to war in the center of the cage.
Jahongir won't be winning any submission grappling tournaments in the near future. But as Chadwick discovered for two tough rounds, if you stand with the hard-kicking Antonias gym fighter, you are in for a real battle. Chadwick was able to turn the tables in the third round, though. He took his opponent down and persisted with a tight-looking rear-naked choke attempt, which helped Chadwick claw his way back to a majority draw.
UFC veteran Dave Lee (Pictures) made a timely return to form by quickly taking down and submitting Team Supreme representative Vaughn Harvey with a rear-naked choke.
A pair of hard slams and some chopping shots on the ground from Lee opened up Harvey's defense. Within a couple of minutes, the Londoner seized control of Harvey's back to score a much needed submission win.
In the night's other title fight, Diane Berry unleashed a whirlwind of aggression to overwhelm game but overmatched opponent Anna Halliday and win the vacant Cage Gladiators women's title.
Undeterred by her opponent's significant size advantage, Berry launched a series of knees in the clinch before piling on the pressure with some hard left hands that forced the referee to call a halt to the contest.
Paul Sass (Pictures) put together some blistering combinations to begin his fight with Will Burke (Pictures). Following a retaliatory takedown form the Predators representative, Sass proved equally dangerous off his back and choked his foe to sleep with a slick triangle after barely a minute of action.
Wolfslair fighter Lucasz Les once again showcased his fast-as-lightning shot, as he took down Outcasts MMA fighter Mark Mills in the opening seconds of the contest.
Once grounded, Les fought bitterly, landing a series of hard punches that soon had his opponent showing signs of distress. Seizing his advantage, the Polish fighter sealed another impressive win with the evening's submission of choice: a rear-naked choke.
Andrew Fisher scored a quick win over the sorely disappointed Gavin Sterrit. He took down the Thai boxing specialist and exposed his defense on the floor before finishing Sterrit with a rear-naked choke.
In undercard action, Nova Forca jiu-jitsu specialist Tim Radcliffe (Pictures) damaged Lee Barnes with some hard elbows early in the first round and then secured a rear-naked choke; Tomasz Kozwolski hammered Andy Warbeck on the floor to set up another rear-naked choke; Mark Glover choked out Mick Bowman; and Jay McGuinness dramatically launched himself into a beautiful armbar to claim victory over Declan Williams.
