Tommy Maguire Injured, Damir Hadzovic now Meets John Maguire at CW 66

Tommy Maguire Injured, Damir Hadzovic now Meets John Maguire at CW 66
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors

As one Maguire pulls out, another Maguire steps in.

An injury has forced Tommy Maguire to pull out of his Cage Warriors 66 bout with Damir Hadzovic in Denmark. Hadzovic will now face Tommy's older brother John who steps in as a last minute replacement.

Cage Warriors 66 takes place on March 22nd at the Ballerup Super Arena in Copenhagen, Demark, and is is headlined by Sergei Churilov vs. Nicolas Dalby, who meet for the vacant welterweight title. The card will serve as Cage Warriors first event in Scandinavia with 2 further events proposed for 2014.

Five time UFC vet John Maguire fights for Cage Warriors for 3 time since being released for the UFC, where he went 2-3.

Following a successful Cage Warriors debut at Cage Warriors 63 in Dublin where he defeated a game Philip Mulpeter by unanimous decision on New Years Eve, Maguire returned to Dublin most recent for Cage Warriors 65, March 1st, where he was upset by rising prospect Saul Rogers.

A pro since 2006, 30-year old Maguire has been stopped just once in his 26 professional bouts, with 13 of his career victories coming inside the distance.

Speaking ahead of the bout, Maguire said:

“I’m a fighter and, as a fighter, I’m always ready to step in, accept a challenge and compete.”

A pro since 2010, Maguire's opponent Damir Hadzovic makes his Cage Warriors debut on the back of a 7-2 professional record.

Born in Gorazde, Bosnia but fighting out of Fightcenter Esbjerg, Denmark, Hadzovic has taken all but one of his victories inside the distance, with the 27-year olds, two career losses coming at the hands of current undefeated UFC pair Krzysztof Jotko and Andreas Stahl.

MAIN CARD
Sergei Churilov vs. Nicolas Dalby - For the Vacant Cage Warriors Welterweight Title
Mohsen Bahari vs. Bruno Carvalho
Damir Hadzovic vs. John Maguire
Martin Akhtar vs. Toni Tauru
Jack Hermansson vs. Enoc Solves Torres
Robbie Olivier vs. Martin Svensson

PRELIMINARY CARD
Jussi Halonen vs. Frodi Vitalis Hansen
Håkon Foss vs. Per Franklin
Emma Delaney vs. Lina Akhtar Lansberg
Rioo Ibrahim vs. Alexander Jacobsen
Binh Son Le vs. Shamal Tashkilot
Haci Firat Dogan vs. Mathias Lodahl

7 Bouts Confirmed for Cage Warriors 65 in Dublin

7 Bouts Confirmed for Cage Warriors 65 in Dublin  

Cage Warriors Fighting Championship returns to Dublin on March 1 and officials can today confirm the event’s first batch of bouts, including a lightweight contest between John Maguire (pictured) and Saul Rogers.

Cage Warriors 65, which will be the promotion’s second event in 2014, is once again set to take place at The Helix in the Irish capital.

The meeting of Maguire and Rogers, which is likely to have major implications in the CWFC lightweight division, is one of seven fights now announced for the CWFC 65 card, which will also feature Irish favourites Philip Mulpeter, Artem Lobov and Damien Rooney, among others.

On the back of a five-fight stint with the UFC, Maguire (19-6) made his CWFC debut in Dublin on New Year’s Eve and edged out Philip Mulpeter via decision.

The 30-year-old Englishman said: “I don’t want to hang around so I’m getting straight back in there two months after my last fight and I’m ready to take my next step towards the CWFC title.”

Rogers (7-1), a fellow Englishman, defeated Jason Cooledge in impressive fashion in his promotional debut at CWFC 57 in Liverpool last July, taking his sixth submission in seven wins.

“This is a fight against a tough, talented and experienced fighter, and I expect it to bring out the best in me,” said 24-year-old Rogers. “I’ll be bringing my A-game to Ireland in order to get the win and move closer to a title shot.”

Elsewhere on the CWFC 65 bill, Alex Enlund (9-2-0-1nc) will go in search of his fourth CWFC win when he takes on Artem Lobov (8-7-0-1nc) in a featherweight bout, while lightweight action will see Philip Mulpeter (6-4) collide with Lew Long (7-3).

A third CWFC victory on the trot will be the aim for Bryan Creighton (5-1) as he faces newcomer Damien Rooney (9-3-1) at a 130lbs catchweight, and Martin Sheridan (7-4) will fight in his hometown of Dublin for the first time in a bantamweight bout against Paddy Pimblett (4-1).

Merv Mulholland (10-5) returns to welterweight for a clash with Lee Caers (10-3), with Irish lightweights Myles Price (8-5) and Peter Queally (3-1) also set to square off.

Tickets for Cage Warriors 65 will go on sale shortly so keep track of CWFC on Facebook and Twitter for the latest news and updates.

Cage Warriors 65 (more bouts to be announced)

John Maguire vs. Saul Rogers
Alex Enlund vs. Artem Lobov
Bryan Creighton vs. Damien Rooney
Lew Long vs. Philip Mulpeter
Paddy Pimblett vs. Martin Sheridan
Lee Caers vs. Merv Mulholland
Myles Price vs. Peter Queally

Jack Mason: Cage Warriors 61 post fight interview

Jack Mason speaks to Kingdom MMA after Cage Warriors 61 win

by Ben Heather @benheather

(Photo Copyright: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors)

Last Friday Cage Warriors returned to a very snowy Amman, Jordan for Cage Warriors 61 for its penultimate show of 2013. The event was disrupted by the show with some fighters not being able to make it and a couple of fights ended up unfortunately being called off. However, the fights that did take place certainly delivered.

The co main event of the night was a welterweight battle between Jack Mason and Seydina Seck which saw one of the most controversial points of the night when the referee stopped the fight thinking Seck had been choked unconscious only for him to be fine and the fight restarted on its feet. Today we caught up with Jack Mason to discuss his win, that controversial moment as well as much more.

Ben: Hi Jack, thanks again for your time. How was the camp going in to this fight?
Mason: Camp couldn’t have been much better to be honest. I’ve been pretty busy with my day job the back end of this year delivering some pretty stressful projects but I’ve managed to work out a training schedule that works for me and around work.

I’ve been working a lot more on my boxing with coaches John Tandy and Adam Brearley of the Tandy Boxing team and also the Tsunami boxing coach Stephen Whitwell. I think this has helped my game tremendously and I think it showed with how comfortable I looked on the feet in my last bout.

I feel like my overall game is improving every time out and that’s thanks to all my coaches and team mates at Tsunami Gym and BKK Fighters and also my wrestling coach Nick Albert.

I actually managed to complete this camp without picking up any significant injuries which is a very rare occurrence and I probably owe this to the work I’ve been doing with my strength coach Laurence Irving and my physiotherapist Jon McCornish.

Ben: How did you feel when you was originally asked to be a part of the Baghdad card? Did you have any worries?
Mason: Originally when I agreed to take part in the event I was just simply excited however the closer we got to the event and the more I googled it I must admit I did start to have a few second thoughts! LOL

Ben: What was the reaction from your friends and family when you told them you was going to fight in Iraq?
Mason: Well my girlfriend forbid me to go and I didn’t even dare tell my mum!

Ben: Since the fight was first announced it got moved to Jordan  in the same arena as your previous fight. Do you believe that gave you an advantage going into this fight because of your experience of fighting in Jordan before?
Mason: Not really, a fight is a fight wherever it is as once the cage door is locked it’s just you and your opponent and the location rarely has an impact. It may have been a slight advantage to me because I was able to visualise how I was going to win the fight in a cage I had been before.

Ben: This fight was the first time in a while where you actually got to fight the person you have trained for after your last two fights had a late change of opponent. How frustrating is it to prepare for one guy and have to fight another without training for him?
Mason: Haha, yes that’s a strange circumstance for me fighting the guy I had been training for all camp! Big respect to Seydina Seck for keeping by his word and showing up to the fight well prepared. It’s extremely frustrating to prepare for an opponent all camp only to have him pull out and get a change of opponent last minute. It’s even worse if the guy is a particular specialist in a certain area and the new opponent is very different stylistically, I had that situation when Carvalho pulled out with 5 days to go and I got Ali Arish instead. Hugely frustrating!

Ben: Following on from the last question is it hard to keep focused on a fight when you get a late opponent change?
Mason: Yeah it can be. In the Carvalho/ Arish situation it was literally so close to the fight when the opponent got switched that I had no time to prepare as was just focusing on making weight. I also had Carvalho mouthing off on social media about still wanting to fight me, even though he had failed to show up to the fight because he couldn’t have the corner man he wanted as his passport had expired. That really wound me up and I didn’t focus on the new opponent in Arish like I should have done and I think it showed in my performance. I won’t make that same mistake again and it was a lesson learnt for me.

Ben: Was the plan for this fight to get Seydina Seck to the ground and unload some of your brutal ground and pound which you showcased in the previous fight against Vladimir Opanasenko?
Mason: I had planned to use my boxing more and to try and show my improved hand skills on my feet but yes I ultimately saw the end to the fight via ground and pound. Seck did an amazing job of tying me up, not giving me any space and neutralising my ground and pound so that’s something I have to take away and improve on from this fight.

Ben: Ahead of this fight what did you make of Seck's skills and what did you expect from him? how did your thoughts compare to what he did in the fight?
Mason: The fight panned out very much how I had visualised and rehearsed it over and over except for the lack of finish! I had watched loads of tape on Seck and knew his was very dangerous as he’s knocked out UFC vet Simeon Thorensen, beaten former Cage Warriors champ Gael Grimaud and other top European fighters such as Florent Betorangel who gave Jim Wallhead a run for his money last weekend too.

I knew he’d be looking to kick me to the legs and throw overhands to try and knock me out, I also expected him to be difficult to take down as he’s a short, strong guy and that’s pretty much how the fight went. I was very disappointed that I didn’t get the finish but I’m very glad to end the year with a good win over a very solid opponent.

Ben: There was an incident in the third round where you almost had the fight won, the choke was locked in and the ref stopped the fight only for it to be restarted again but not on the ground where you had control instead back on the feet.

Please can you talk us through what happened and your thoughts on the incident?
Mason: I’ve actually had a chance to watch the fight back and as I am rolling Seck to get the top position with the guillotine it really does look like Seydina goes limp so I perfectly understand why referee Rich Mitchell thought the fight was over right there. It’s a really tough situation because as Rich asked me to let go of the choke it was clear that Seydina was still conscious and he couldn’t give me the win there, the only fair thing to do was to restart it on the feet as with any other restart from a different position would have been debated at length between me and Seydina I am sure as we were mid-submission and mid-roll!

It’s an unfortunate situation but I’d much rather have restarted where we were rather than it be called a no contest or something.

Ben: How worried were you while waiting to hear the judges scorecards after the fight? I believe if the fight wasn't stopped prematurely in the third and restarted you would have won by submission. Did any doubts cross your mind that you were not gonna get the win?
Mason: I knew the 1st round was close but I was absolutely confident that I’d won rounds 2 and 3 so I was very confident that I’d get the unanimous decision but very disappointed in myself that I didn’t get a finish in the fight.

Ben: You are 6-1 in your last 7 fights and 9-2 from your last 11 fights. Do you believe you now deserve a shot at the Cage Warriors welterweight title?
Mason: It’s a fact that I’ve got more wins on Cage Warriors FC than any other Welterweight that is currently on the Cage Warriors roster including the current champ. It’s also a fact that I have won more fights on Cage Warriors FC than any other fighter in 2013 (so far).

I will leave it up to the Cage Warriors bosses to determine when I have earned my shot, I feel am ready for it now though.

Ben: As well as fighting you also coach a lot of up and coming talented fighters. What do you get more enjoyment from, seeing your students win or winning your own fights?
Mason: That’s an easy question to answer! Watching Arnold Allen win by knockout on the same event that I fought on gave me far more enjoyment and satisfaction than my own victory! I hope to be coaching MMA for years after I retire from competing myself and am sure the lads at BKK Fighters will go on to achieve things in the sport I could only dream of!

Ben: This fight was your 6th fight in the space of 12 months,  that must make you one of if not the most active fighter in cage warriors. Would you like to be as active next year?
Mason: Whilst I am still young (sort of), injury free and have no kids I want to fight as often as is possible and enjoy my MMA career as much as I can. As soon as I have kids there is no way I could devote the time to training for fights, coaching and hold down a full time job as well and something will have to give and that is likely to be the competing. Therefore I want to get the most enjoyment from my MMA career as I can in the short period of time I have left!

Ben: Finally, with it coming to the end of the year what has been your highlight of 2013 and what is your main goal in 2014?
Mason: I’ve had a great 2013 and my highlights of the year so far are headlining a Cage Warriors card in the UAE, getting a great TKO finish over a tough Russian in front of an insane capacity crowd on Cage Warriors in Jordan, watching Arnold Allen and Sean Carter make their impact on their respective Cage Warriors divisions and seeing Luke Barnatt demolish the highly ranked Andrew Craig at the UFC in Manchester. I hope we end the year on an even bigger high with a John Maguire and Sean Carter double victory on New Years Eve.

Cage Warriors FC welterweight gold is my only personal MMA goal in 2014. I also plan to help the BKK Fighters and Tsunami Gym teams go unbeaten next year.

Ben: Would you like to thank anyone?
Mason: Thanks very much for the interview and thanks to my management, coaches, team mates, family and friends and to everyone for all the support for this fight and my career so far!

I’d also like to say a huge thank you to my sponsors, please check out their websites and follow them on Twitter:

         www.britishfighter.co.uk                        @BritishF1ghter
         www.chelmsfordphysio.co.uk                @ChelmsforPhysio
         www.blankmmauk.com                         @BlankMMAUK
         www.qntuk.com                                    @QNTUK
         www.funkygums.com                             @FUNKYGUMS
         www.ignitept.co.uk                                @LI_Strength
         www.coconoil.co.uk                              @Coconoil

Thank you very much for your time Jack, we all wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and we look forward to seeing you fight again in 2014 and hopefully we will see you achieve your goals.

Lewis Long on Tommy Maguire "I believe I am better in all areas"

Kingdom MMA speak to Lewis Long ahead of Cage Warriors 59 clash with Tommy Maguire

by Ben Heather @benheather



Photo: Cage Warriors

Earlier today Kingdom MMA caught up with Lewis Long to discuss his fight this weekend at Cage Warriors 59, which takes place at the Motorpoint Arena Cardiff, Wales. Lewis fights on the main card and takes on Tommy Maguire, the brother of former UFC fighter John Maguire.

Ben: For those people reading this that haven't heard of Lewis Long yet or seen you fight before can you tell us a little about yourself and what they can expect to see on Saturday night?
Long: I'm Lewis Long, proud Welshman, true martial artist.

Ben: On Saturday night you will be fighting for the third time at a cage warriors event, cage warriors is widely regarded as the number one promotion in Europe. How does it feel fighting for such a well respected organisation?
Long: Oh it feels damn good, if you want to be seen it's the only place to be. The first event i ever went to was Cage Warriors in Nottingham, and since then it has been the only place I've wanted to be and since that show in Nottingham it's grown five times as big but still has the values that drew me to the promotion in the beginning.

Ben: Both of your previous cage warriors fights have been in wales and you will have the home country advantage fighting in Wales again on Saturday night, from past experience does the crowd spur you on as you walk out to the cage?
Long: The home crowd is awesome, the motorpoint arena is a top venue for MMA. Love hearing the crowd chant "Lewis "Lewis" because that's my name.

Ben: You are fighting Tommy Maguire on Saturday night, what do you know about your opponent and how do you think your skill sets compare?
Long: I know he has "2 Gunz" but unfortunately for him under the unified rules of MMA weapons are banned, so unlucky for him. As for skill set, I believe I am better in all areas.

Ben: How has the training camp gone for this fight and have you done anything different to prepare for the fight with Maguire?
Long: My BJJ coach Rob Taylor got his black belt, so i can say I train with a black belt now. I've taken my nutrition more seriously now too so I'm more prepared come fight night.

Ben: I believe both of your loses have come from submissions and Maguire has won nearly a third of his fights by submission have you focused on submission defence at all for this fight?
Long: He'd have to get me to the floor first and if by a miracle he does then I'm more that prepared you know, don't know if I've mentioned this but i do train with a black belt these days.

Ben: Last time out you defeated Mark Glover who was made famous by his appearance on The Ultimate fighter, how did you rate that performance?
Long: The game plan went perfectly, my boxing was crisp and even though he had the range I managed to get on the inside and get my shots off.

Ben: Is TUF something that would interest you or are you focused on working your way up the ranks within cage warriors and trying to earn a CW title shot?
Long: I applied for the Smashes but didn't hear anything back so didn't attend the trials in London. Then a few of the lads who went up said they called my name out and i wasn't there. If i had been there I would of made the final for certain. But things happen for a reason, my time will come.

Ben: How's the weight at the minute, are you on schedule and where you want to be ahead of the weight cut at the end of the week.
Long: I would like to be at 155lbs by the end of the week and I am on target at present so all good in the hood.

Ben: Finally Lewis, give us a prediction of how you see the fight going on Saturday night and how do you see yourself getting the win?
Long: My prediction would be to stop Tommy making the fight a snooze fest by dishing out my own brand of Lew-jitsu then being announced the winner by Joe Martinez.

Ben: Would you like to thank anyone?
Long: I always forget people but those who have helped me know who they are. Thanks for the interview. Follow my twitter @Lew_Long

Thank you very much to Lewis for taking the time to answer our questions and all the guys at Kingdom MMA wish you all the best on Saturday night.

Pro Picks: UK MMA Cream of the Crop Weigh In on Pendred vs Mills

Pro Picks: UK MMA Finest Weigh In on Pendred vs Mills
By Chris Houten - @kingdomMMAChris 

On Saturday night Cathal Pendred will attempt to defend his Welterweight belt against Che Mills at The Helix, Dublin Ireland in possibly the biggest fight on the European MMA scene this year.

For weeks I have been debating who's going to win the fight, when I convince myself the striking of Mills will prevail, I can't help but remind myself of Pendreds wrestling skills. Over and over, I have decided then changed my mind again, to the point where you could confuse me for the summer weather in Britain.

So I decided to catch up with some of finest fighters in Britain, from Bamma Champions, to a Cage Warriors Champion, to a couple guys in the UFC and more, to see who they think will win on Saturday.

We surveyed 18 of the finest UK fighters..... and our surveys said:

Paul 'Semtex' Daley:
"I thinks it's a very interesting fight between to great UK fighters, both very powerful and athletic. In my opinion Pendred will win this fight with takedowns, dominance in the clinch and ground control."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

John Maguire:
"I Think Che Mills by TKO in the later rounds!"

Pick: Che Mills

Bradley Scott

"I don't think Pendred will be able to get Che down, he's a nightmare. Che will stay by the fence on purpose because he's strong defending takedowns. Pendred's no where near as Good a Riddle at wrestling. Che defo gonna win this."

Pick: Che Mills

Colin 'Freakshow' Fletcher:
"I'm going with Che! It's hard to adjust to the way the UFC do things I do think we saw the best of him in the UFC."

Pick: Che Mills

Jim Alers:
"I have my money in Pendred. I feel that he has what it take to beat anyone in the 170lbs division and have him grinding out a decision."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Rob Sinclair:
"I'm going with Che Mills."

Pick Che Mills

James Brum:
"I will definitely be tuning in to watch this fight. Both Pendred and Mills are very talented and dangerous fighters. I'm a big fan of Pendred so my money is on him. I believe he will be victorious and the Champion will retain his title."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Leeroy Barnes:
"I'm going with Mills."

Pick: Che Mills

Danny Roberts:
"The fight between Mills and Pendred will be a good fight. Mills good stand up and accurate striking where as Pendred  possesses the better grappling, he's more intense and will smother Mills work. Think Mills will start of strong but I can see Pendred capitalising with the pace and grappling taking it to a decision win for Pendred."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Matt Inman
"Pendred all the way for me."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Jack Mason:
"I am a big fan of Che Mills but I honestly think Cathal will just use his constant pressure, takedowns and pushing Che up against the cage to get the decision win and retain his belt."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Martin McDonough:
"My prediction is a decision win for Pendred. Even though I like Mills an he is a good fighter, I have been on the same Card as Pendred twice an he is really good at shutting people's game down and getting the win. I think he is a bit of a cardio machine as well and he is a unit for a welterweight."

Pick: Cathal Pendred 

Jason Cooledge:
"Pendred win decision."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Matt Ewin:
"I can see Pendred trying to close the distance ASAP and try to bully Che up against the cage and work for the takedown from there, he won't be able to shoot in on Che with Che's reach and great foot work. But saying that Che's far to strong for Pendred and with his excellent striking the only way I can see the fight going is Che stopping Pendred in the first or very early in The second."

Pick: Che Mills

Mike Neun:
"I think Che Mills will win. My gut tells me TKO."

Pick: Che Mills

Jim Wallhead
"I have never watched Pendred fight but I hear good things, but I gotta back Che he is my mate I'm excited to see how it goes."

Pick: Mills

Curt Warburton:
"Pendred on points."

Pick: Pendred

Andrew Punshon:
"Mills to win by decision."

Pick: Che Mills

So there you have you have it 18 asked - 9 picked Pendred, 9 picked Mills... and I'm still none the wiser. All I know is we the fans can expect a hell of a fight on Saturday.