Well, UK fight fans were wondering how Cage Rage promoters would top their Cage Rage 24 event which saw Jimi ‘The Poster Boy’ Manuwa sign off from UCMMA with a punishing victory over Nick ‘Headhunter’ Chapman. Their questions were answered with a stunning night of MMA finishing up with the eagerly anticipated Jake Bostwick / Denniston Sutherland rematch.

Undercard

With the early part of the evening given to the up and coming fighters on the UK MMA scene, it wasn’t long before fight fans were on their feet as both Jason Radcliffe and Brendon Katz defeated their opponents (Peter Craete and Huseyin Garabet) with first round submissions. Next up was a contest between Nathan Greyson and Steve Brazier with all eyes fixed on the Jimi Manuwa trained Greyson who didn’t disappoint dispatching of his opponent quickly in the first round. Three more quick victories for Esi Moradi (submission) over Mickey Miller, Lee Caers (guillotine choke) over Ben Craggy and Wendle Lewis (rear-naked-choke) over Andy Cona had the crowd at the Troxy primed for the main card. With the hastily switched bout between Carl Hunt and Spe McMorris finishing off the undercard, a quick and punishing victory for the well-supported Hunt set things up nicely for the main card.

Main Card

When it comes to the fight game Andre Mcintyre is a seasoned-pro so, while some punters became frustrated at his slow start, those who know the fight game could see he was just picking his moment to finish off his opponent Miguel Bernard. Stalking around the cage, McIntyre took until the second round before a quick and devastating finish saw the fight stopped with Bernard feeling the full wrath of McIntyre on his return to the cage.

Iain Martell is one of the UK’s rising MMA stars with big things predicated for the hard-hitter. Taking on Earl Brown it wasn’t long before Martell and Brown had gone to ground and Martell was bulldozing his way to another victory. After the fight, Martell admitted he wasn’t bothered who he fought next and, with the confidence he is currently showing in the cage, you really wouldn’t want to be his next opponent.

Dropping down a weight after two bloody fights, Ben Smith took on Ricky Campbell hoping to put his fight career back on track. Clearly the stronger opponent, Smith soon took the fight to the ground and through sheer strength alone, forced his opponent to tap out through a rear naked choke midway through the second round. With Smith clearly satisfied with his victory, now is the time for the fighter to put a tough few months behind him and start the New Year ready to stamp his mark on the MMA scene again. Speaking of stamping his authority on the scene, Louis King wasted no time in demolishing the highly respected Mark Weir with the fight being stopped after a mere 18 seconds.

“It was like being hit by a train” admitted Chris Harman shortly after his defeat to Mark Potter. With a clear size advantage to Potter, Harman quickly went down the damage limitation route as Potter relentlessly battered him with blows to the head and body. With Harman floored on four occasions, you had to wonder how long the fight would continue but, to his credit, the shell-shocked fighter fought back rocking Potter as he found his second wind. His comeback, which brought the venue to its feet, was short-lived though as Potter stepped it up a gear forcing the ref to stop the fight much to the annoyance of Harman who, in all honesty, did not look like he could withstand more punishment from Potter.

The main event of the night and 2011 promised so much, considering the controversial history between these two fighters. Despite Denniston Sutherland claiming the fight was not a revenge fight, the look on his face right up to the start of the first round suggested he knew what he was here to do. Jake Bostwick on the other hand was here to prove that his previous controversial victory against Sutherland was no fluke and he did not disappoint. Flooring his opponent midway through the first round, Sutherland was left looking stunned on the floor of the cage as the ref called a halt to the fight leaving fans in no doubt this time around as to who the winner was.

Complete Results:

Jake Bostwick def. Denniston Sutherland via KO – round 1

Mark Potter def. Chris Harman TKO (body punch) – round 2 (UK-1 heavyweight title fight)

Louis King def. Mark Weir via KO – round 1 (UK-1 middleweight title fight)

Ben Smith def. Ricky Campbell via submission (rear-naked choke) – round 2

Iain Martell def. Earl Brown via TKO- round 1

Andre McIntyre def. Miguel Bernard via TKO – round 2 (UK-1 fight)

Wendle Lewis def. Andy Cona via submission (rear-naked choke) – round 1

Lee Caers def. Ben Craggy via submission (guillotine choke) – round 1

Esi Moradi def. Mickey Miller via submission (key lock) – round 1

Nathan Greyson def. Steve Brazier via TKO (ref stoppage) – round 1

Jason Radcliffe def. Peter Craete via submission (strikes) – round 1

Brendon Katz def Huseyin Garabet via submission (rear-naked choke) – round 1