The crowd were firmly in the corner of local man Robinson but Wain was not distracted from his task. Many expected Wain to take Robinson down in a repeat of their first bout for the then vacant heavyweight title but the Englishman came out swinging and landed a massive left hook that rocked Robinson.

Wain kept the pressure on and used some heavy ground and pound to try and finish but they were back on the feet after a short time only for Wain to put Robinson down again. This time Wain walked away to let his opponent regain his feet as he went looking for the KO. It wasn’t long coming as he again dropped the challenger with big punches and rained down punch after punch before referee Pete Lavery stepped in and stopped the fight.

Wain remains heavyweight champion and moves to 12-4 with the victory.

Alan Keane

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When Moore made his way to the cage to face ‘The Boogeyman’ I very nearly went deaf such was the the volume of the support for the Ballymena man. The King’s Hall was rocking as the fight began and the noise from the fans was non-stop even as Lister dominated the opening round. The UFC vet took the centre of the cage and waited for an opportunity before shooting for and securing a double leg takedown. The jiu-jitsu credentials of ADCC champion Lister were on display as he moved to full mount and spent the majority of the round dropping elbows. Moore demonstrated awesome toughness to absorb the blows and actually escape with seconds left on the clock at the end of the round.

The second round was a totally different story as Lister again went looking for a takedown only to have it stuffed and have Moore unload on him. Moore had found is range during the break and went to work with leg kicks and body shots as well stuffing every attempt Lister made to bring the fight down. Lister showed his appreciation for Moore’s performance with a thumbs up when he stuck out a jab only to eat an uppercut that stiffened him. He shot for another takedown late in the round only for Moore to sprawl and follow up with a hard knee to the chest.

As the third round commenced the roof was ready to come off the King’s Hall. Lister though secured his takedown and quickly went looking for submissions, looking to silence the vociferous home support. He isolated an arm but Moore worked furiously to escape but gave up his leg and in the tensest of finishes was forced to tap out to a heel hook.

Both fighters showed their respect for each other with an embrace after the bout. Lister now potentially faces a mouth-watering title fight with CC middleweight champion Chris Fields.

Alan Keane

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Greg Loughran

In a last minute addition to the CCXIII card, Greg ‘The Hitman’ Loughran stopped BJJ black-belt Jorge Santos in the second round of their lightweight bout.

Santos, who took this fight on short notice and was making his pro debut, will be encouraged by his performance against a vastly more experienced opponent. Loughran was 21-18 coming into this fight and his experience told as he stalked Santos early on and picked his punches.

Santos pulled guard, looking to utilize his BJJ skills but Loughran was quickly back up and Santos went looking for a single but took a hard knee to the body in doing so.  Back on the feet the traded punched before the clinched and Loughran got underhooks before delivering a series of hard knees to the body. Santos kept swinging and they exchanged right up until the bell for the end of round one.

As round two began the calm on the face of Loughran was impressive. Again they engaged and both men exchanged blows before they clinched and Loughran landed a big hook on the break. Loughran sensed blood and worked his left hook/straight right combination to rock the Brazilian. Santos stayed in the pocket and kept punching but another hard left hook dropped him and the referee stepped in to stop the fight.

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Holohan came out with a straight left/right uppercut combo that was directly out of the toolbox of his boxing coach at SBG, Conor McGregor. Rooney was on the back foot and blocked two head-kick attempts before Holohan reset and delivered the devastating right side head-kick on the turn. Just like his SBG teammate John Sheil, Holohan showed a another side to his game with the KO.

Before this bout six of his seven career wins had come by submission. The Dubliner advances to 8-o  and will face Artemij Sitenkov next while Rooney drops to 8-3.

Alan Keane

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Sheil (8-0) was a slight favourite coming into this fight due to his phenomenal finishing record and greater experience over the 2-1 Cooke. There was an added edge due to a pre-fight prediction from Cooke who claimed he’d knock ‘JMS’ in the second round. Straight from the opening bell Cooke closed the distance and engaged with a clinch, looking to stymie the ferocious power of SBG man Sheil. In my preview I wrote that Shiel’s ground game cannot be ignored and he showed why when he wrapped his arms about Cooke and swung his hips to drag Cooke down and quickly started to advance his position from half-guard.

Cooke scrambled and back on the feet there was a furious exchange of blows before JMS executed another takedown. In the ensuing scramble JMS showed his versatility by rolling into a rear-naked choke and forcing the tap just as the 10 second klaxon sounded. A brief exchange of angry words after Sheil released the choke was quickly forgotten when the fighters exchanged handshakes and apologies.

The bout demonstrated the well-rounded skill set of Sheil and shows all at 185 that he has more weapons in his arsenal than just his heavy hands and he advances to 9-0.

Alan Keane

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Jake Ellenberger vs. Martin Kampmann in the Welterweight Division.

This bout takes place at the TUF 15 finale on June 1st and is a dream for those fans who love an all striking matchup. As is the case in nearly all of his fights, Kampmann is the more accomplished striker in terms of his technique but as Jake Shields can attest, Jake Ellenberger possesses ferocious knockout power. In his last bout with Diego Sanchez, Ellenberger completely dominated the opening two rounds before taking his foot off the gas on the third. The always dogged Sanchez kept pressing meaning that Ellenberger was not as confident of the decision victory as he might have been. He did get the ‘W’ but the lesson will have been learned; you can’t take anything for granted in the Octagon. Kampmann did drop a decision to Sanchez but that was more down to his abandoning a game-plan to strike from distance and frustrate the bullish Sanchez than to any dominance on Sanchez’s part. He landed more strikes and stuffed the majority of Sanchez’s takedowns but still the judges contrived to hand ‘The Dream’ the win after the Dane got sucked into a brawl in the third round. His last fight was an impressive submission win over Thiago Alves where he survived almost three rounds of being bullied by a stronger opponent to take advantage of a momentary lapse and secure a guillotine choke, something that bodes well for him against Ellenberger. I can see this going the distance but do not be surprised if either man pulls out a win in spectacular fashion.
Ivan Mejivar vs. Renan Barao in the Bantamweight Division.

This fight goes down at UFC 148 on July 7th and takes place because Jeff Houghland was pulled from fighting Barao to take on Yves Jabouin whose opponent, Mike Easton, got injured in training. While that is a shame for Easton the result is a potential fight of the year for us fans. The numbers say it all about this fight. Menjivar has finished 18 of 24 career wins while Barao has finished 19 of 28. Barao is on a 28 fight win streak if you discount a No Contest ruling in December of 2007. Even if you don’t, that is still a 17 fight streak. Both fighters are very well rounded, quick and extremely aggressive. Weight could be a deciding factor in this fight. Menjivar drops a lot of weight to make 135 – having once fought at welterweight against GSP and Matt Serra, lightweight and featherweight – and his recent bout against Nick Pace was at a catch-weight of 138lbs after he failed to make weight. Barao on the other hand is a natural bantamweight. Menjivar made weight without issue for his last bout if he does so again for this fight it will be a barnstormer. Expect it to be fast and furious and totally thrilling.

Roy Nelson vs. Antonio Silva in the Heavyweight Division.

This fight takes place at UFC 146 as part of the all heavyweight card and when ‘Big Country’ and ‘Big Foot’collide, victory for each man becomes essential. Silva is making his UFC debut after being knocked out by Daniel Cormier in his last Strikeforce bout, while Nelson is coming off a disappointing loss to Fabricio Werdum and is 3-3 in his last 6 fights. What will be encouraging for Nelson is that the Cormier fight showed that Silva is susceptible to power shots from a smaller man. Silva had an 11 inch reach advantage over Cormier but was rocked twice before being finished and that will be cut to 9 inches against Nelson who, as we know, owns a thunderous right hand. To be fair to Nelson he has never fought less than the best in the heavyweight division and he will be eager to get a highlight win over a man that has a victory over the legendary Fedor Emilianenko. Silva possesses a range of skills that belie his size and Nelson is known to have an excellent though underutilized ground game. This fight will be exciting where ever it goes.

Michael Bisping vs. Tim Boetsch in the UFC Middleweight Division.

This is the second bout on this list from a stacked UFC 148 card that also sees Rich Franklin take on Cung Le in a return to middleweight and Tito Ortiz take on Forrest Griffin in the main event. This could well be the fight that sees Bisping fighting for the title should he get the win despite his recent loss to Chael Sonnen. Boetsch has been on a tear since dropping to 185 with 3 wins in a row, the most recent a gutsy comeback against Yushin Okami in which he was out-boxed for 2 rounds before launching a ferocious assault with uppercuts in the third. Bisping is a more technical kind of striker and will not fear the wrestling of Tim Boetsch considering the wrestling skills he displayed in his very close decision loss to Chael Sonnen. This fight will be a striking war and could have a huge impact in the middleweight title picture even if only to decide on one fighter for a title eliminator.

Nate Diaz vs. Jim Miller in the Lightweight Division.

This bout goes down on May 5th and headlines the UFC on Fox 3 card and to say there will be a mix of skills on display is an understatement. In his last fight against a fancied Donald Cerrone, Diaz was utterly dominant landing over 80% of thrown strikes. He also possesses a brown belt in BJJ. Miller on the other hand is a BJJ black-belt and has finished 15 of his career wins, 3 by KO/TKO and 12 by submission. His 3 losses were all decisions meaning of course he’s never been stopped. And when you consider that the three decision losses came against Frankie Edgar, Ben Henderson and Gray Maynard that record is even more impressive. Diaz has moved up and down between the welterweight and lightweight divisions but finally seems to have settled at 155 and Miller will be stiffest test of his overall game to date. Predicting where the fight will go is difficult considering the skill set of each man but no matter what happens, it’s going to be a classic.

Chan Sung-Jung vs. Dustin Poirier in the Featherweight Division.

While every Chan Sung-Jung fight is entertaining, this bout at UFC on Fuel 3 on May 15 is even more exciting because the winner will potentially earn a shot at Jose Aldo. Aldo’s next opponent has yet to be announced but with his next fight scheduled for July 21st then its possible the winner here could be next in line for ‘Scarface.’ Another possible Aldo opponent is Hatsu Hioki who looked extremely dangerous against Bart Palaszewski last time out. But all that aside, this fight is going to be a cracker. Poirier leapt to the fore of the 145 scene when he stepped up to face Josh Grispi who was at the time the featherweight number one contender. Aldo got injured and Poirier was a short-notice replacement and a huge underdog. He completely upset the odds by dominating Grispi on the feet for three rounds and has won three fights since. He is capable of finishing by submission or strikes and has only lost once – via decision – in 13 pro fights. ‘The Korean Zombie’ as we all know is as unpredictable as they come, finishing Leonard Garcia with a ‘twister’ submission in their rematch before knocking out Mark Hominick in just 7 seconds. That last KO came after Jung declared himself the best MMA striker in the world. Any man who refuses to put his hands up is asking for trouble – see his loss to George Roop – but Jung seems to get it done lately anyway. One can only imagine the sort of carnage that would result in a fight between Jung and Aldo.

Che Mills vs. Rory McDonal in the Welterweight Division.

This fight takes place at UFC 145 and sees Mills coming off the back of a vicious knockout of Chris Cope in his UFC debut, improving his record to 14-4. McDonald is coming back from injury having defeated the always tough Mike Pyle back in August. It is a huge step up in competition for Mills but the encouraging thing for him is he really has nothing to lose. MacDonald already has a win over Nate Diaz, was seconds from beating Carlos Condit before Condit shocked him with a late barrage of strikes and is already known as ‘the new GSP.’ Should he beat Mills it won’t raise any eyebrows and the Englishman will have earned valuable experience for his next UFC bout. But, should Mills defeat the Canadian then the 170lb division will be instantly aware there’s a new contender on the block while MacDonald will have to deal with a loss in his first fight in 8 months. Perhaps it’s unfair to put such pressure on such a young fighter but MacDonald has made himself a target by being so impressive in his career so far. There is no doubt he is a future champion but he will have to step carefully around Mills.

Honorable Mentions: Mark Hunt vs. Stefan Struve UFC 146 (Hunt by KO I reckon), Evan Dunham vs. Edson Barboza UFC 146, Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le UFC 148, Vitor Belfort vs. Wanderlei Silva UFC 147.

Alan Keane

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Various GAA clubhalls, the Helix and the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght are the usual fare as far as MMA venues go. It most be said the august hotel conference centre where Battlezone 5 was held does allow for the suspension of belief long enough that fans may think they are witnessing a chandelier lit, Vegas casino calibre fight card.

Unfortunately discerning fans attending the fifth card of the burgeoning Battlezone promotion will not be under the thrall of such illusions.

The card went too quickly with only two fights reaching the third round, indicating that there were some mismatches on the card.

However that is a systematic problem inherent in all Irish MMA promotions at the moment and not a criticism that should be laid solely at the feet of Battlezone.

Some resolution will need to be found to deal with the standardisation and regulation of match-making and ranking in Irish MMA, as well as dealing with issues of refereeing and judging. (Although the latter two were not issues evidenced at Battlezone 5)

That is a discussion for another night and promoter Andy Ryan should be justly proud of what is an incredibly well-presented and organized event, which featured one of the most enjoyable main-events likely to be witnessed in Ireland this year between Philip Mulpeter and John Donnelly.

Undoubtedly the kudos will come, with a sell-out 550 punters leaving well-served by some exciting, if at times uncompetitive fights. Some great footage was caught by the cameras of Setanta Sports that should further enhance the reputation of Battlezone and cement its position as the second-best indigenous MMA promotion behind Cage Contender.

UNDERCARD

FEATHERWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

Wayne Nash V Dean Knight
(Tuatha Dé Danann) (Legends MMA)

The first fight on the undercard would be the longest bout until the main event and produced a competitive fight between two physically equally-matched competitors, with Dean Knight perhaps having a slight reach advantage.

Nash made the early impression, hitting some quick-fire combos to back Knight into the cage; from there Nash tied Knight up with an over-arm and worked well on the inside with his free arm, while avoiding some foot-stomps from Knight.

After breaking the clinch, Nash eagerly looked to press his advantage, but Knight hit some slick counter punches fighting off the back foot.

An accidental low-blow momentarily called a halt to proceedings in the second round, but on resumption Knight’s counter punching managed to control the pace of the round, leaving the scores evenly poised heading into the final round.

In the third round Knight acknowledged another near-accidental blow with an apologetic raised arm in an example of the mutual respect that was shown throughout by the two fighters.

At this stage Nash’s conditioning prevailed as he countered and rolled through a weary, uncontrolled takedown attempt by Knight and sinked in an arm triangle.

Knight struggled to fend off the submission, but in reality Nash with the proper, tightened technique could have finished this thirty seconds later.

It was ironic that a great, high-tempo stand up-fight finished in awkward fashion on the ground.

Winner: Wayne Nash (Via arm triangle choke in 3rd Round)

LIGHTWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

Martin Downey V Liam Kelly
(Team Balance) (Coolmine BJJ)

Downey entered the cage first in understated fashion, taking his place in the blue corner where he stood still, solemn and supremely conditioned awaiting his opponent.

Liam “The Dream” Kelly entered to “The Boys Are Back Town” by Thin Lizzy with huge support from the ebullient-as-ever Coolmine BJJ supporters.

Focused, Kelly nonchalantly tossed his red baseball cap to his supporters on the way to the cage as Downey stared on impassively.

The message was clear: Kelly was here to make an impression on his C-Class debut, but Downey was also here to do business.

Kelly started like the Tasmanian devil, a whirlwind of stylish and varied kicks – each one executed with eye-catching flair.

The very active Kelly also mixed it up with some purposeful hooks thrown in to measure.

However, Downey’s movement was good and alert and one had to wonder if Kelly was getting back enough dividends for all his high tempo, innovative offense.

An uppercut landed by Downey and a standing guillotine attempt that was well defended by Kelly, warned that Downey wasn’t here to make up the numbers.

Kelly started the second round like he finished the first unloading a plethora of kicks, albeit with less tempo.

Meanwhile Downey had found the panacea to Kelly’s innovative offense, constantly utilizing an efficient low-kick on the counter.

These well-positioned kicks slowed Kelly down and drew noticeable swelling above one of Kelly’s knees.

Kelly was now fighting on the back foot, but managed to defend a takedown attempt well and despite the tide turning in Downey’s favour, Kelly showed extreme stoicism by hitting a combo of hooks after defending the takedown.

Kelly couldn’t ward off the subsequent takedown from Downey, who transitioned smoothly to sidecontrol and patiently applied the second arm-triangle finish of the night.

In the end both men achieved their aims.

Downey had efficiently done the business and picked up the win.

While Kelly certainly did make an impression in his debut fight, showcasing a unique fighting-style, as well as some serious bravery at the close of the fight.

As one ringside judge said observing the welts on Kelly’s leg afterwards, “Tough kid.”

But the night was deservedly Downey’s.

Winner: Martin Downey (Via arm triangle choke in 2nd Round)

LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

David Murphy V Sean Enright
(Arena Wexford) (Universal Warrior)

The Wexford man shot for the takedown early on, but Enright was alert to it and used his strength to reverse it.

The fight had only begun and Murphy was in the turtle position, with the bigger bulk of Enright bearing down on him.

Enright didn’t pick his shots or use his big frame to his advantage by distributing his weight over Murphy, allowing Murphy to get to his feet again having sustained only a few rapidfire hammer-fist strikes.

It was evident that Enright, had expended a lot of energy in the attempt to finish the fight early and in not pacing himself looked to have gassed out.

Enright had no fuel in the tank to defend an explosive takedown from Murphy whose textbook ground and pound won him the fight in a
quick, but exciting fight.

Winner: David Murphy (Via TKO in 1st Round)

LIGHTWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

Dave Hanney V Paddy McBride
(Primal MMA) (Rilion Gracie)

McBride started out with a few ineffectual leg kicks, as Hanney came forward with real intent.

Hanney had fought only three weeks ago on the Cage Contender XII card, where his supporters felt aggrieved for his efforts only being scored a split-draw against Islam Bisayev.

This time Hanney wasn’t looking for the fight to go to the judges scorecards.

Hanney was coming forward like a bull, swatting away McBride’s shots like irritating bluebottles and landing some heavy hooks to the body.

McBride needed a new strategy, but it came to him by accident rather than design.

Hanney took the fight to the ground, where McBride maintained a composed active guard. A near armbar attempt should have been enough to convince Hanney to take the fight back to it’s feet where his dangerous, stand-up game had made the fight look ominous for McBride.

He didn’t heed the attempt and McBride sunk the Triangle from his guard, to see another first round finish.

Winner: Paddy McBride (Via Triangle in 1st Round)

WELTERWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

Gavin Dunne V Jason Hurly
(Killer Factory) (Next Generation)

Some sporting matches are exciting due to the quality and finesse of the skills on show, others are exciting due to the adrenaline-fuelled mistakes made by the two competitors.

This match up was an example of the latter and more akin to the Liverpool versus West Ham FA Cup Final of 2006, than a typical El Classico and therefore thoroughly enjoyable.

Despite eating a big right-hand from Dunne in the first, Hurly was able to trade punches with Dunne who came out slightly the better of the exchanges. Two big takedowns would have scored the round to Dunne.

The second round was as helter-skelter as the first, but Dunne didn’t show enough caution after another successful takedown and Hurly took advantage forcing Dunne to tap from the kimura lock.

Winner: Jason Hurly (Via kimura in 2nd Round)

WELTERWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

John Regan V Chris Boujard
(Team Balance) (Team Ryano)

There was an expectation that this could be the show stealer of the undercard.

A classic clash of styles between the stylish, judo and jiu-jitsu of Chris “The French Revolution” Boujard and the scrappy, dogged Regan.

“Don’t ever right off Regan,” a former opponent could be overheard saying of the slight underdog, “He’s always game and will get you.”

The man called “The French Revolution” had Regan scouted though and was clinical and ruthless enough to prevent any uprising against his pre-fight favourite tag.

Boujard scored an early takedown and worked his way to a high mount, showing great stability to avoid being swept.

Boujard picked his punches and chipped away against Regan’s defence, opening him up for an armbar.

The biggest compliment that can be given to Boujard is that his finish was reminiscent of top MMA prospect Gunnar Nelson’s win against Alexander Butenko in last month’s Cage Contender Main Event in Dublin.

Regan, given his reputation, will be back in the cage to entertain sooner rather than later.

Winner: Chris Boujard (Via armbar in 1st Round)

MAIN CARD

MIDDLEWEIGHT C-CLASS FIGHT

Kevin Doyle V Dennis Perry
(Coolmine BJJ) (Strabane)

Doyle’s debut took place in the same venue back in November. In it he won via a first round TKO, impressing with his raw physicality and an eye-catching array of takedowns.

This time he was fighting a more experienced opponent in Denis Perry of Strabane, who was also extremely impressive physically, looking like he could easily contend in the light-heavy weight division.

Doyle started at his implacable, snarling best looking to force the issue and notch up another first round TKO. Looking dominant in the clinch Doyle hit successive body blows as he forced his opponent against the cage.

Doyle’s trademark slams were on display and he was constantly looking for the big takedown from the single-leg hook. At one stage he performed what can only be described as a professional wrestling-style vertical suplex, that will look impressive on camera, but from which Denis Perry bounced straight up from.

Doyle looked to follow up with a belly-to-back slam, but Perry managed to lock Doyle’s leg up and defend from half-guard.

Towards the end of the round Doyle looked for the big haymaker, but Perry looked comfortable to wait until the bell.

In the second round, Doyle again swung wildly looking for the big knockout blow, but looked jaded from his exertions in the first round.

Doyle then tied Perry up in the clinch against the cage yet again, but the vigour which he worked within the clinch in the first round was gone and his offense was looking futile against the fresher Perry who had weathered the earlier storm.

After the referee broke the clinch due to inactivity, Perry jumped into life hitting a strong jab that had Doyle blinking and dazed.

Perry followed with a lethal combo of four shots to the head and as Doyle’s gum guard flew across the cage, the referee called a stop to the fight.

Doyle protested that he could have continued, but it was the right call.

For the entertaining Doyle there will be other fights.

For Perry he pushes his record to 4-0-1 and may soon have to look to gaining some silverware to adorn his waist.

Winner: Dennis Perry (Via TKO in 2nd Round)

Welterweight C-CLASS FIGHT

Rob Wynne V Anzor Atsaev
(Primal MMA) (Lucan MMA)

Wynne was psyching himself up like a man possessed upon entering the cage, exuding physical aggression.

Atsaev looked equally focused, if less riled up in a match where real venom was displayed.

Both men sought to feel each other out on their feet, with jabs and straight punches being thrown out to test distance.

When Atsaev and Wynne did exchange spectators at ringside were left asking if there was genuine dislike between the two fighters.

Wynne did manage three successful takedowns in the first round, but was not able to stabilize on top and each time Atsaev sprung back to his feet.

As the round ended Wynne could have got Atsaev’s back, but couldn’t manage to sink his hooks in to mount a serious offensive, as Atsaev looked elusive on the ground.

The pattern of the second round followed the first with both men showing themselves adept on their feet.

Wynne managed to do well to sidestep Atsaev and get to his side to score a big takedown, but again was overzealous and failed to stabilize mount as his momentum made him overshoot and Atsaev rolled through.

Atsaev then took his opening by stabilizing mount and working Wynne towards the cage where he eventually finished with an arm triangle.

Winner: Anzar Atsaev (Via arm triangle choke in 2nd Round)

LIGHTWEIGHT PRO FIGHT

Alan Duffy V Stephen Coll
(SBGI) (Rilion Gracie)

After a tentative start from both fighters, Coll hit a nice double leg takedown on Duffy.

Coll’s excellence as a grappler had preceded him, but Duffy under the tutelage of John Kavanagh wasn’t going to submit easily.

Coll remained composed on top as Duffy defended intelligently from guard.

Duffy then managed to manoeuvre his way out of Coll’s mount with a mixture of technique and strength, striking a pose like Atlas lifting the world on his back.

Before the end of the round Coll scored another takedown that was again defended well by Duffy.

In the second round Duffy grabbed a single and tossed Coll to the ground as if to say he had had enough.

Coll sprang to his feet immediately, but was met by two decent headshots by Duffy.

Buoyed on perhaps by spending most of the first round on his back, Duffy again went in for the kill with a flying knee, but miscalculated and missed.

Coll took advantage and worked his opponent into a D’Arce choke to win.

Despite a herculean effort and some of the best defence on show on the night Duffy lost to a very classy, clinical competitor in Coll in one of the most high quality matches on show on the night.

Winner: Stephen Coll (Via D’Arce Choke in 2nd Round)

BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT

Barry Crossan V Peter Doyle
(Strabane) (Team Ryano)

It only took 1.58 minutes, but it meant the world to Peter Doyle of Team Ryano as it was the 118 seconds that made him the Battlezone champion.

For what it’s worth here’s the brief story of the fight: Crossan was taken down early, Doyle transitioned quickly to a high mount, whereupon he reigned down a flurry of punches to the head forcing the referee to call an end to the match.

The most memorable moment of this match came afterwards when the newly crowned champion paid tribute to his coach and Battlezone promoter Andy Ryan.

“I just want to say thanks to my coach, who saved my life in many different ways.”

Winner: Peter Doyle (Via TKO in 1st Round)

LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT

Tom Maguire V Paul Redmond
(Spirit MMA) (Team Ryano)

There was a serious buzz around cage-side for this Lightweight title fight.

“Fight of the night right here.”

“Watch out for that one.”

“I’m not sure, but maybe I’d give the edge to Redmond…just about.”

For all the hype, the fight was quick, but not lacking in quality.

In the initial stand-up exchanges Redmond opened a cut on Maguire’s forehead, which if focused on could have caused problems for Maguire depending on the length of the fight and the continued accuracy of Redmond’s shots.

Maguire, with SBG coach John Kavanagh in his corner, focused on taking down the Team Ryano man who would have been encouraged by his team-mate Peter Doyle’s win in the previous fight.

Redmond did well to get to his feet after Maguire had worked him into side-control.
Though after delivering two light uppercuts to Maguire, Redmond again found himself fighting off his back.

Maguire coolly worked top position and applied an uncomfortable crossface.

Maguire’s strategy and jiu-jitsu skills were operating at a peak level at this stage.

When Redmond attempted to sweep, Maguire innovatively manoeuvred himself into crucifix control, from there he hit a few precise, powerful hammer-blows to capture the belt.

The crowd was pleased that Maguire, a very well-respected fighter on the Irish MMA circuit, had some gold to show for his endeavours in what was a very slick performance over a dangerous opponent

Next up for Maguire is Bellator FC veteran Greg “The Hitman” Loughran at Cage Contender XIII in Belfast next month.

Winner: Tom Maguire (Via in 1st Round)

WELTERWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT

Philip Mulpeter V John Donnelly
(SBGI) (Team Ryano)

Sometimes the stars align and the Main Event of the card is also the Fight of the Night.

This was one of those occasions.

Philip “The Honey Badger” Mulpeter put together an impressive display against Sebastian Torres in his last outing in Dublin, while Donnelly has earned a sizeable fan following for his frenetic style.

The added spice was that this was to be the first 5-round championship fight to be held in Ireland.

In an explosive start both men traded blows, with Mulpeter picking up a swollen eye early on.

John Donnelly bounced up from a double leg-takedown into a good combo from Mulpeter, whose educated quick hands forced Donnelly onto the back foot.

Mulpeter managed another takedown on Donnelly, but Donnelly using the cage to his advantage managed to get feet yet again.

“Weight, heavy, weight distribution Phil” was the cajoling call from John Kavanagh and Chris Fields in the SBG man’s corner, urging Mulpeter to be more dominant from top position.

Another takedown from Mulpeter followed soon after, although yet again Donnelly scrambled to his feet as Mulpeter attempted a knee-on-belly to pass his opponents guard.

Despite the first round being decidedly lop-sided in Mulpeter’s favour a cut had opened around his mouth, a warning that Donnelly still possessed potent weapons.

Mulpeter had another successful takedown towards at the end of the round and struck on a formula to avoid Donnelly wriggling free by pinching Donnelly’s knees between his own and firing blows from a standing position.

Donnelly will have been relieved to hear the bell signalling the end of the first round as Mulpeter hammered three punishing blows from above.

*************

“Same again Phil,” was the message of John Kavanagh to his fighter before the second round and indeed the second round did largely follow the pattern of the first.

A heavy takedown early on had the crowd wincing as the sound of Donnelly’s shoulder blades crashing against the floor echoed throughout the venue.

Donnelly again showed his evasiveness, rose to his feet and had some joy with counter punches, but none that were halting the rabid Honey Badger.

Mulpeter managed to take Donnelly down into a similar position, in which he ended the first and legs pinched, struck down at Donnelly.

As Mulpeter leaned back to power a finishing blow, Donnelly used the delay to scramble to his feet yet again

The round ended with a sixth successive takedown for Mulpeter and Donnelly was left with a lot of work to do.

*************

Donnelly knew he had to turn the tide in the third round and went about doing so immediately.

Mulpeter looked noticeably tired from winning the first two rounds leaned against the cage as he took instructions.

Perhaps sensing the toll the previous two rounds had taken on his opponent, Donnelly sprung into life with a lightening flurry and powerful right hook sending Mulpeter into retreat, Donnelly followed this with a flying knee.

The crowd roared into life sensing that a sensational knockout was on the cards, Mulpeter desperately looked for a takedown to take the sting out of Donnelly’s attack, but was hit again.

“Calm, Phil, calm!” was the call from Chris Fields.

Mulpeter heeded the advice and composed himself.

In the skirmishes that followed Mulpeter’s punches lacked their earlier intensity and Donnelly looked dangerous fighting on the inside.

Saliently Mulpeter’s tired hands had dropped and Donnelly’s blows were connecting with dangerous frequency.

*************
With the previous round fought primarily from a standing position, round four was fought in the trenches.

This offered a respite to a tired Mulpeter, as he was able to conserve energy by staying in top position following an early single-leg takedown

Eventually Donnelly managed to escape, but a rejuvenated Mulpeter used an effective jab to back Donnelly up against the cage, Mulpeter then dispelled any notions of tiredness with a double leg sweep and hitting a few vicious elbows from full guard.

Mulpeter showed his ground-savvy by faking a punch and attempting to get Donnelly’s back. Donnelly was quick to rectify the error and regain full guard again.

After the lethargy of the previous round Mulpeter was back and alert physically and mentally.

*************

“Come on John you need to finish this,” called the Team Ryano corner as Donnelly walked to the centre of the cage to recommence hostilities with Mulpeter.

Mulpeter had won at least three of the previous four rounds, yet despite this it was a more tentative start for both fighters than in previous rounds.

Perhaps both fighters had sensed the tension in the crowd, who were witnessing an Irish MMA fight reach the fifth round for the first time.

Donnelly had the first successful attack of the round with a kick to the solar plexus connecting, Donnelly was hitting often and hard as he stalked Mulpeter around the cage.

Mulpeter, needing only to stay out of trouble, gamely returned blows, but Donnelly was more vigorous and sharp needing the knockout.

John Kavanagh urged one last takedown of his charge, Mulpeter duly obliged and attempted one last time to get Donnelly’s back for a rear-naked choke or to wait out the remainder of the fight.

Donnelly did well to scramble to his feet to look for the knockout blow.

Donnelly hit numerous big overhand blows in succession urged on by crescendo of crowd support, who now knew they were watching something special.

Donnelly drew blood from below the eye of Mulpeter, whose face was swollen and marked from the accurate striking of Donnelly.

A hook rocked Mulpeter, as the crowd looked on aghast.

Mulpeter backed off, still standing, as the final bell rang and the crowd rose to its feet to appreciate the effort of the two unrelenting gladiators.

The judges scored unanimously in Mulpeter’s favour 48-47 on all cards; the SBG man’s early dominance had won him the fight and the welterweight belt.

This will be recorded first five round championship fight in Irish MMA history.

The fight will be remembered as one of the best to ever take on Irish soil.

Winner: Philip Mulpeter (Via Unanimous decision)

Credit: Mark O’ Toole.  Image Credit: “In Cage” Photography

By Harry Minogue.

On Sunday the 5th of February 2012 the first Filipino Martial Arts Exchange (F.M.A) seminar was held. Students from all styles in of these venerable arts travelled from all over Ireland to New Ross Co. Wexford to meet fellow members of their community and to exchange some ideas, training and tactics from each other’s respective styles of Filipino Martial Arts. The event was organised by Guro’s Noel McHugh and Jon O’Neill and was hosted by Celtic Dragon Martial Arts, New Ross and spanned over 4.5 hours long.

The Filipino Arts are less well-known in Ireland as compared to other previous influxes of Asian fighting arts such as Karate, Tae kwon do or Kung fu. However, these arts are gaining momentum and popularity for their effective defences and use of impact and edged weapons within the Irish Martial Arts Community.

The use of these Arts in “Action film choreography” can be seen in such films as the “Bourne Identity series” and the recently re-launched “Batman: dark knight series” franchise. Likewise, there has been a surge of interest coming from Documentaries such as “Human Weapon”, “Fight Quest” and “Ancient Warriors” all aired by the Discovery Channel and History Channel in Ireland.

Speaking from a World-wide perspective, the release of the Action/Documentary film “ Eskrimadors” (Director Kerwin Go) and the upcoming “The Bladed Hand” (Director Jay Ignacio) will also serve to inform and entertain the public on the rich history and depth of these profoundly effective and time tested Arts from the Phillipines.

The seminar was kicked off by Guro (instructor) Miso Crkon, student of Grandmaster Epifanio “Yul” Romo, teaching the arts of Bahad Zubu & Kalis Ilustrisimo. This system does not use straight attacks and raw force, but instead it is fully based on counter-reactions on opponent’s attack in combination with the use of subtle use of various angles of attack and weapon disarms.

The use of the stick in the art focuses on hitting stick to body rather than stick to stick as in other systems as the art is based primarily on the use of the blade (hence the name Kalis-which means scrape or blade). Kalis Ilustrisimo is a bladed art made famous by the deceased GM Antonio “Tatang” Ilustrisimo. Tatang Ilustrisimo was a fierce and revered warrior, and this warrior tradition continues to evolve under Grandmaster Epifanio “Yul” Romo (one of the four pillars of the lineage of Antonio Ilustrisimo’s revered fighting method).

Guro Crkon demonstrated (on his crash test dummy, the author) the usage of bladed weapons, stick-work, counter blade-work, disarms and double blade methods. Guro Crkon also brought along to show attendees of the seminar a number of Traditional and Antique Filipino blades, including the pisaw, baraw and Kampilan sword.

The second section of the seminar was given by Guro Noel McHugh teaching Nickelstick Balintawak Eskrima. Balintawak Eskrima is a style developed by Venancio “Anciong” Bacon in the 1950s from earlier tutelage of Lorenzo Saavedra. Bacon was a maverick and this can readily be been seen by the workings of this up close and “in your face” stick-fighting style.
The style employs close in-fighting, along with short distance striking and use varied range of empty-hand techniques in conjunction with the stick such as elbows, knee’s and head-butt’s. It is a very personalized style breaking away from the more popular school of Doce Pares which was famous for multi-weapons study, “Anciong” Bacon preferred to focus on the single stick and make it “his own”.

Guro Noel covered the Nick Elizar or Nickelstick method of Balintawak, covering the Agak (or leading/guiding drills) and basic angles of attack. Throughout the study of the Agak we were advised to mix/ match and try to free play the movements, later on inserting various disarms, tie-ups and fight finishers.
Coming to the end of Session Guro Noel and his demonstration partner Adam McGuire gave the attendees a thoroughly entertaining free-style demo of the 12 count Agak along with disarms, tie ups and empty-hand attacks.

The Third section of the seminar was given by Guro Jon O’Neill of “Na fianna Finn Combat Academy” teaching excerpts from the empty-hands curriculum of Maphilindo Silat and Mande Muda Silat from the Guro Inosanto (Maphilindo silat) & Guro Herman Suwanda (Mande Muda Silat) lineages respectively. Maphilindo Silat is a fusion of Silat styles from Malaysia, the Phillipines and Indonesia and is a synthesis of styles fused together by the world renowned Guro Dan Inosanto. Mande Muda is also a fusion of Silat styles founded by GM Herman Suwanda, including ideas from Pukulan and Cimande Silat. Silat is essentially a counter fighting style and incorporates empty-hand techniques along with the use of such weapons as the short stick and sarong.

The general idea is to manipulate and destroy the attacking weapon or hand in minimal period of time. This goal is achieved by a flow of techniques and movement through the phases of entering, takedown and finishing. The emphasis is on the concept of flow, which is the smooth transition through a series of movements or techniques.

We covered a considerable amount of material in the hour which we hand in such evasion entries, a Series of Entries to tie-ups called the Gaje Series, Gunting (scissors strikes), throws, take-downs and some of the most simple & painful joint locks which Silat is famous for. Guro Jon demonstrated a few more few alternate versions of the entries and joint locks, including the Elephant style applications (a neck crank joint lock which is the shape of an elephants head) to round off the lesson.

Gurus Paul Cox and Dave Hedges gave a demonstration and insight into Doce Pares and talked about the links in Cebuano Eskrima between Doce Pares and other styles (Paul noted Doce Pares was a club and not a style) including the San Miguel Espada y Daga, the Corto Linear (which is the style Balintawak is derived from) and Modern Corto Curvada. Focusing on one passing drill we did the applications between knife, stick and empty-hand and with a little variation showed how so many moves in Filipino martial arts can be readily transferred from different ranges and situations.

In between demo’s and explanations Guro Paul cracked us all up with his funny anecdotes and experiences from the Filipino Martial Arts and some words of Wisdom which ring quite true from his Doce Pares teacher GM Danny Guba “How do you know the winner of a knife fight,-answer-he’s the guy who dies in the hospital two to three days after the fight”-a very sobering thought.

Guro John Fitzgerald of Kombatan taught the final section of the seminar. We were shown some of the basic and more intricate parts of a very Filipino martial method called Sinawali which equates in Tagalog to “Weaving” and is practiced in wide variety of Filipino arts such as Arnis, Kali & Eskrima.
Kombatan was founded by Ernesto Presas, brother of Remy Presas (the founder of Modern Arnis ). The style is known for its double stick techniques but features other stick and blade techniques, as well as empty-hand methods. The head of Kombatan Ireland, Guro Jesi Pablo also came in for a quick visit to wish us all well, but due to prior commitments could not stay.

We covered three counts, four counts, single stick versus double stick and too many variations of the drills to mention here. Suffice to say the Guro John taught was very entertaining and widened the breadth of drills that anyone else who would have done Sinawali or Doble Baston before.

As Guro Noel emphasised with the other Guro’s present at the handing out of the seminar certificates, “The group was formed to provide a network for those of us who have an interest in F.M.A. It is not restricted to any particular art and is open to all, be they amateur, professional, enthusiast. Its main aim is to share knowledge & information and to help us better understand, preserve and promote F.M.A in Ireland. It is no ego and non-political, we’re here to share and promote the arts we love. No committees, no association, no board of directors, no constitution. That stuff only gets in the way.”

Long may the seminars continue….

If interested in attending future seminars or lessons
Search for F.M.A EXCHANGE on Facebook.
Links of Interest:
Na Fianna Finn Combat Academy
http://www.nafiannafinn.com/

Bahad Zubu Ireland
www.bahadzubuireland.com

Kombatan World Page
http://www.kombatan.info/

Nickelstick Eskrima International page
http://www.nickelstickeskrima.com/

Wild Geese Martial arts
http://www.wildgeesema.com/eskrima.html

In a fight that aired lived on Icelandic television, Nelson showcased the skills that have made him a sensation across Europe. The Iceland native has been away from MMA for the last twelve months to concentrate on his grappling training but there was no evidence of ring rust. With SBG head coach John Kavanagh in his corner, a visibly relaxed Nelson opened in a Lyoto Machida style stance, displaying the karate side of his martial arts background.

He landed two hard outside leg kicks before securing a leg trip takedown and landing in side control. He transitioned to mount and made certain of isolating an arm before securing an armbar to force the tap. He improves to 9-0-1 and it will surely not be long before the jiu-jitsu black belt is fighting for a certain international promotion.

Alan Keane

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Serving as the show’s c0- main event, this bout did not disappoint as both men exchanged bkows in the center of the cage. Pointon landed a heavy overhand fight but JMS is known for his chin and shrugged off the blow to drop Pointon with a left uppercut that rocked the more experienced fighter. Pointon regained his feet after surviving some ground and pound but he was clearly affected by the earlier uppercut and JMS dropped him a second time, finishing the fight with some vicious ground and pound as Pointoin gave up his back.

Shiel improved to 8-0 as a pro with the win  and told the gathered crowd that he will fight anyone Cage Contender cares to put in front of him.

Alan Keane

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