Christian Leroy Duncan Retains 185-lb Title, Jim Wallhead Crowned at CW 146

Christian Leroy Duncan retains his title in dramatic fashion. In the final seconds of round one he TKO's his opponent, in style 🕹💥

The sky is the limit for The Champ ☝️#CW146 pic.twitter.com/oBnKQuLawx

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) November 12, 2022

Cage Warriors Fighting Championship’s return to Manchester saw 11 finishes on a 14-bout card.

In the CW 146 headliner, Christian Leroy Duncan notched his first middleweight championship defense after vanquishing Marian Dimitrov. Duncan (7-0, 7-0 CW) showcased composure and good striking skills, putting his adversary through difficulty on different occasions. In turn, Dimitrov (10-3, 0-1 CW) looked for a knockout blow that never came, even though he clipped Duncan a few times. Right before the end of the opening period, Duncan came up with a well-timed spinning-back elbow that visibly shook Dimitrov. Smelling blood, Duncan pushed forward with heavy strikes and dropped his Bulgarian opponent on the canvas. Referee Rich Mitchell jumped in to save Dimitrov as the official time indicated four seconds left in Round 1.

🤯 JUDO JIMMY WITH A HUGE KO! 💥
Jim Wallhead is the interim Cage Warriors Welterweight Champ 🏆 #CW146 pic.twitter.com/IHR28A7IcJ

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) November 12, 2022

In the co-feature, Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Jim Wallhead captured the interim 170-pound championship thanks to a first-round knockout over Mateusz Figlak. Wallhead (33-11, 13-6 CW) was never in trouble, keeping his opponent at distance while looking for an opening to unload his well-known power. The perfect occasion came when “Judo” connected with a nice two-punch combination that immediately put Figlak on his back. Figlak (7-2, 4-2 CW) capitulated 99 seconds into the opening frame.

Elsewhere, 205-pounder Chuck Campbell (5-1, 1 NC; 2-0 CW) battered Andrew Clamp (11-2, 1 NC, 0-1 CW) with punches at 4:35 in Round 1; Stipe Brcic (11-3, 1-1 CW) outclassed Aaron Aby (13-6-1, 2-3 CW) en route to a unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) at flyweight; welterweight Adam Cullen (6-0, 6-0 CW) demolished Martin Causse (3-3, 1 NC; 0-2 CW) with punches and elbows at 4:05 in Round 1; Luke Riley (5-0, 5-0 CW) scored his fifth finish after overcoming Karol Kutyla (6-5, 0-1 CW) with punches at 2:01 in the opening frame at featherweight; the 145-pound bout between Antonio Sheldon (5-3-1, 0-1-1 CW) and Jordy Bakkes (5-2-1, 0-0-1 CW) ended with a rare split draw (29-27, 28-29, 28-28); at bantamweight, Sam Kelly (3-1, 1-0 CW) choked out Jack Eglin (2-2, 2-2 CW) thanks to a guillotine-choke maneuver at 1:31 of the second period.

In preliminary action, former 145-pound title challenger James Hendin (7-2, 6-2 CW) tapped Araik Margarian (25-12, 0-1 CW) via rear-naked choke at 2:48 in Round; Lukasz Kopera (11-7, 1-1 CW) submitted Aaron Johnson (7-3, 0-1 CW) thanks to a slick heel hook at 3:42 of Round 3 at lightweight; Reece McEwan (5-2, 2-1 CW) forced Teodoro Scolieri (3-3-1, 0-1 CW) to tap due to a guillotine choke at 4:05 in Round 2 of their 145-pound clash; featherweight Samuel Bark (6-1, 2-0 CW) crushed Manny Akpan (4-2, 3-2 CW) with a knee-punches combination TKO at 2:50 in Round 2; Milad Ahady (5-1, 2-0 CW) upended Tom Mearns (9-8, 4-6 CW) on all scorecards (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at featherweight; 145-pounder Liam Gittins (9-4, 7-4 CW) defeated Faisal Malik (5-1, 0-1 CW) with punches at 3:53 in Round 1.