Cage Carnage 8 Event Report
by Graham Ingledow

Once again I was in attendace at one of the Hokushinko's promotions; this was Carlisle's Cage Carnage event that was held at the Hilltop Hotel.

This was the busiest show I had been to in Cumbria - a total sell out, You couldn't move, so I knew this was to make for a great atmosphere.

And I was right. The support that was given to all fighters was amazing and I think even those that don't normally join in with the cheers and the boos had no choice but to get involved and enjoy the whole night.

The promoter also had to deal with the usual nighmares of people getting injured prior to the event -- which is the nature of the beast and can't be helped -- and finding ways in the last week or two to fill these voids. With the help of local clubs like Stuart Hall's Vale Tudo and Hokushinko Fight Academy they mangaged to do well and give the fans a great night.

On the flip side, you often come across guys that we like to call 'no shows' who, on the day, don't show up, leaving it almost impossible to find a replacement. But putting all that aside, the guys managed to put on a spectacular night of action which produced some amazing KO's and submissions, and also some close decisions.

Top of the bill was a Cage Carnage welterweight British title fight which saw Stuart Hall's local fighter Andy Plimmer take on Carl Latcham.

Latcham entered the cage to a mixed reception and looked cool as he stood waiting for Plimmer. Plimmer came out to an enormous reception and it was clear the home fighter had the lions share of support,

Entering the cage, Plimmer proceded to walk up to his opponent for a stare down as both fighters were head to head, with the ref being forced to intervene. This had war written all over it and this is what the crowd came to see.

There was no touchy feely or trying to work each other out, this was high-octane action from the word go. Both fighters landed punches and kicks, and Latcham found some range and landed a flying knee as Plimmer looked to slip a punch. This knee would have put a lot of fighters on the canvas but this only seemed to infuriate Plimmer, who went straight on the offensive.

He pushed Latcham to the other side of the cage with an array of punches amd found a couple of good shots which caused his man a lot of trouble. As Latcham's legs crumbled beneath him, Plimmer landed and landed until there was no more movement left in his opponent. The referee pulled Plimmer off, and the local favourite was delighted and lept out of the top of the cage into the crowd.

Latcham was still on the floor for the following 2-3 minutes and Plimmer went over to show his concern. Finally Latcham was up onto his feet and Plimmer shook his hand and raised it it the air. This was an impressive first round KO win for Plimmer, taking him to 5-0 in his pro career. I'm predicting a bright future for him.

Speaking to Plimmer after his victory, he said he would like to thank all the guys in his camps, Stuart Hall and Christian Percivile and also his sponsors GDM Hosting and 7thdaymma.

The co-main event saw another fighter from Stuart Hall's Vale Tudo in action, as Gaz Jones took on James Bennie.

This fight ended in just over a minute as Jones came straight out for his pro debut. He exchanged a couple of shots with Bennie before picking him up and slamming him to the floor and unloading some nasty ground and pound. The assault seemed to go on for ages, with the referee giving Bennie plenty of opportunity to better his position and defend himself, but the speed and power of Jones left the referee with no option but to step in and call a stop to this one.

Jones may be small but when he gets in that cage he's a beast...TKO, round 1.

Another fight covered in controversy was Carlisle fighter Amin Attig against Hokushinko's Davy Turner in this middleweight semi-pro bout. These two guys are like chalk and cheese, with Attig being very quiet and softly spoken (as I got chance to chat to him last week regarding his training) and Turner who is the complete opposite. Turner thrives on a bit of trash talking and this guy really turns up to fight and gets the crowd going with his dancing and gestures towards his opponent.

Attig looked unfazed by Turner's peacock display. When the fight got going both men landed jabs on each other before Attig decided to try and take Turner down, He worked hard for the single and then the double as he kept Turner pressed against the cage.

Turner showed great takedown defence and started landing shots into Attig's head which caused him to pull guard. It looked to be a bad idea as Turner worked to side control and then secured a mounted crucifix which had Attig tapping. A great submission win for Turner in round 1, 4:28.

The bantamweight match up between local fighters Daz Walker and Dan Grierson was a rematch from last year, in which Grierson won via guilotine. Walker was out to prove a point and started well with some crisp strikes and leg kicks, and at one point looked to have Grierson in trouble.

Fifteen year old Grierson was not giving up and again tried for a standing guilotine but Walker picked him up and slammed him to the ground and landed in side control straight away Grierson looked to work off his back and Walker got caught in a tight triangle. Good submission for Grierson, Round 1, 2:07.

The next bout was a cage boxing bout between local fighter Marlon Ramsey who fights out of Young Blood martial arts, against the experienced Blackpool boxer Timmy Pappa.

This fight went to a decision which Ramsey won pretty easily. He kept pushing the pace and had Pappa on the floor in the first round. Pappa proved he was one tough dude and stayed in there as Ramsey kept punishing him.

Debut fighters Lewis Dobson and Martin O'Neil (not the football manager) had a semi-pro welterweight MMA bout which was a decent stand up war with both men landing big shots. Dobson secured a takedown but failed to capitilise on it, but once they were both standing again, it was Dobson who landed some heavy shots, causing O'Neil to crash to the canvas with the referee stepping in. Great win for Dobson via TKO in round one.

The next bout was a cage boxing bout between Chris Chan and Cain Short. This was a brief encounter and a bit of a mismatch as Chan was far superior to Short, and had Short on the floor within 5 seconds and just dominated him until his TKO win at 1:34 in round 1.

We were also introduced to the art of shoot boxing from two young lads from the Hokushinko Fight Academy, Jordan Holmes and Danny Griesdale, If you haven't seen it before, this is set at a high pace with both fighters showing there array of kicks and punches and ground work, along with spinning heel kicks and spinning back fists. I'd like to see a bit more of this and if you would too contact Mark Hodgson at Workington's Hokushinko.

Another Newblood martial arts fighter was Micky Nolan, who was taking on Blackpool fighter Mally Richardson, This started off a little slow with both men trying to find their range, and as both men settled in it took a turn for the better.

Nolan was first to rock Richardson. The first round went to Nolan and the second round was very close. It looked like Richardson found his range maybe a round too late, and in the third round Nolan caught Richardson with a sweet shot right on the button which had Richardson given a standing eight count. Nolan got the nod from the judges.

To start the night off we had a junior boxing bout with Dom Smallwood and stand in boxer Ainsleigh Murdoch. Both guys were showing their skills to the crowd and it was a good atmosphere and a great fight to start the night off. The decision was rendered a draw.

Another top night from Mark Hodgson and his Hokushinko Promotion; all the fighers turned up to fight and put on a great show. The crowd had their money's worth as they always do at the Hilltop Hotel.

A big shout to Stuart Hall and his fighters, as well as the Hokushinko lads who always put on a show and are ready to step in when others let you down. Also for New Blood martial arts who got a clean sweep, and to some of the sponsors for the night Funkygums.com and 7thdaymma.com along with others.