Smith, Heagney Victorious at Ultimate Challenge

Ben Smithdefeated Kiane Sabet for the inaugural superfight heavyweight title Saturday to conclude Ultimate Challenge “Mayhem” at the Troxy theatre in London.

Nightclub entrepreneur Sabet, in his first professional fight for a decade, began strongly, utilizing his superior strength to brush off Smith’s repeated takedown attempts and land some solid strikes.

However, when Smith succeeded in taking the fight to the ground, it became clear that Sabet’s prolonged period of inactivity had not been spent grappling. Smith effortlessly transitioned from side control to mount, locking in an arm-triangle choke that Sabet aided in tightening by rolling Smith on to his side. Sabet succumbed to the choke at 3:09 of the first round.

Another new champion was crowned on the card as Francis Heagney overcame Tim Radcliffe for the organization’s lightweight title.

A breathless and highly energetic contest saw both fighters swap advantageous positions on the ground with a series of scrambles and reversals. It ended when Heagney sunk a guillotine from the bottom as Radcliffe attempted to mount at 3:12 of the second round.

Heagney, who trains out of the London Shootfighters gym, improves to 7-3 and ends Radcliffe’s impressive four-fight win streak.

Elsewhere, the final of the Ultimate Challenge light heavyweight tournament will be contested between another London Shootfighter product Mike Edwards and Cage Rage veteran Jake Bostwick, after they overcame Jamie Hearn and Chris Harman, respectively.

Edwards defeated the ever-entertaining Hearn via tapout from strikes at 2:13 of the first round. Hearn, who entered the cage in a coffin with his cornermen doubling as pallbearers, continues to suffer from a non-existent ground game to compliment his professional-level boxing.

After a promising initial exchange for the Windsor-based fighter, Edwards secured the takedown before firing off thirty seconds of unanswered ground-and-pound for the victory.

The bout between Jake Bostwick and Chris Harman made for a comparatively tepid affair, as both fighters began each round with an embrace. That loving sentiment remained throughout an uneventful opening two rounds, before Harman, who took the fight on just two days notice, tired badly and was caught in a rear-naked choke at 2:54 of the third round.

An enlarged crowd, bearing the effect of polarizing media darling Alex Reid, delayed ‘The Reidinator’s’ UK-1 title defense against Jack Mason, by brawling around the VIP section. A further scuffle punctuated the controversial decision in Reid’s favor.

In other bouts:

Wesley Murch def. Mark Smith -- Submission (Kimura) 4:55 R1
Colin French def. Liam Etebar -- TKO (Punches) 2:36 R1
John Kelly def. Keith Singh -- Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) 5:00 R2
Dan Movahed def. Michael Sidwell -- TKO (Punches) 1:37 R1
Jim O’Keefe def. Danny Beevor -- TKO (Punches) 2:54 R1
Mark Adams def. Simon Gill -- Submission (Guillotine) 1:51 R2
Shane Omar def. Marcus Thomas -- Submission (Kimura) 2:24 R1