Dominique Wooding Upsets Nathan Fletcher, Claims Bantamweight Title at CW 127

#CW127 had it ALL!

Check out the 60 second highlight before we do it all again for #CW128.

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The action keeps coming, live on @UFCFightPass. pic.twitter.com/zbEsSGyfUS

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) September 30, 2021

Wicked knockouts, wily submissions and wild comebacks treated fans to kick off this Cage Warriors Fighting Championship trilogy.

The CW 127 main event saw Bellator MMA vet Dominique Wooding (8-4, 2-0 CW) facing Nathan Fletcher (6-1, 6-1 CW) for the vacant bantamweight belt. It took only a few seconds for Fletcher to implement his gameplan, taking Wooding down and keeping him down for the remainder of the round. The Next Generation MMA Liverpool standout punished his opponent with shots from on top before pursuing a rear-naked choke that failed to deliver a finish. The second frame followed the same script as the first, with Liverpool-based fighter grinding his way and spending ample energy staying on top of Wooding.

The tide changed for “The Black Panther” starting Round 3, as a rapidly fatiguing Fletcher shot for several slowing takedown attempts before ultimately landing one. Momentum on his side, Wooding fought his way back up and thwarted off desperate single-leg attempt with a perfectly timed flying knee that rocked his opponent. The Great Britain Top Team stalwart kept landing hammerfists before connecting with a left knee and a head kick that knocked Fletcher back against the fence. Wooding sent his rival crashing to the canvas with a right hook and a blistering uppercut that forced referee Mark Goddard to step in at four minute and 21 seconds into the third round. The comeback for Wooding kept his career knockout rate at 100%, all while handing Fletcher his first career defeat by claiming the bantamweight throne.

How slick was that! Josh Reed displays some serious submission skills and calls for another shot at the belt

"The Crazy Horse" is always must-watch MMA!#CW127 pic.twitter.com/DMfklJALMB

— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) September 30, 2021

In the co-headliner, former Cage Warriors bantamweight title challenger Josh Reed (12-6, 8-6 CW) dispatched Kurban Khizriev (2-2, 0-1 CW) with a first-round rear-naked choke. The far less experienced Khizriev stepped up on short notice at a 139-pound catchweight after Cameron Hardy pulled out of the fight due to injury. Coming into his first fight in six years, the Russian landed some hard shots in the first seconds before “Crazy Horse” slowed him down with takedown. After some back-and-forth scrambling exchanges, Reed took his opponent’s back, sank his hooks in and laced up the rear-naked choke. The tap came at the 3:23 mark in Round 1. The Welshman has finished 10 of his 12 wins inside the distance, and his quick submission may have made a solid argument for another chance at the 135-pound belt.

Earlier on the card, Rory Evans (5-3, 3-1 CW) fought through a potential knee injury and defeated Weslley Maia (6-6, 2-2 CW) via unanimous decision in their 139-pound catchweight contest. Prior to that, “The Welsh Gangster” Oban Elliott (4-1, 4-1 CW) knocked George McManus (2-3, 1-2 CW) out cold with punches at 2:14 of the first round at welterweight; in a 140-pound catchweight affair, “The Silent Assassin” Kingsley Crawford (6-3, 4-3 CW) handed Adam Wilson (5-2, 3-2 CW) his first career submission defeat with a brabo choke that concluded the match at 2:43 of the third frame.

On the preliminary card, bantamweight debutants clashed as Bakhtyaar Oryakhail (1-0, 1-0 CW) tapped Jack Clarke (0-1, 0-1 CW) with a triangle choke at 2:39 in Round 1; in the featherweight card opener, Team KF Martial Arts representative Ryan Shelley (2-0, 1-0 CW) forced Liam Molloy (2-2, 0-1 CW) to surrender to a rear-naked choke at the 3:23 mark in Round 2.