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It took just 32 seconds for undefeated Oskar Piechota to win the Cage Warriors middleweight title when he landed a perfect counter on Jason Radcliffe to shock the majority of fans at Cage Warriors 85.

Cage Warriors 85 took place on Saturday, June 24 at the O2 Academy in Bournemouth, England and featured a middleweight title main event for the promotion’s vacant strap between Radcliffe and Piechota as well as the professional debut of highly rated amateur Leah McCourt.

Radcliffe would control the centre of the cage from the opening bell stalking his Polish prey in a menacing fashion. When moving un to attack though, Piechota landed a perfectly placed counter left to the temple of Radcliffe which dropped him in an instant. “Imadlo” jumped on top of the prone Radcliffe and delivered a flurry of strikes which prompted referee Marc Goddard to stop the fight and award the TKO victory to Piechota.

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Now with the Cage Warriors middleweight title round his waist, Piechota is suddenly one to watch on the strength of that performance along with his spotless record. Meanwhile Radcliffe, who was on a six fight win streak previous to this fight, falls to his first defeat since a 2014 loss at UCMMA 39.

In the co-main event, veteran middleweight Martin Stapleton got back in the win column with a complete shutout of Donovan Desmae as he used his grappling to dominate the entirety of the fight.

Desmae’s brightest moments came in the opening seconds as he rocked Stapleton with a heavy right hand and tried going for the standing guillotine. This only gave time for the Mancunian to recover as Desmae committed to the submission and ended up with Stapleton on top. Although he failed to land anything significant, he controlled the entirety of the round and it would prove to be a sign of things to come.

Rounds two and three of this lightweight bout were repeats of the first with Stapleton’s control growing as the fight wore on. Through his relentless grinding and bullying tactics, Stapleton was successful in closing down all of the Belgian’s offence and the score cards told the story as the SBG Manchester fighter took the unanimous decision victory with two judges deeming 10-8 rounds appropriate.

Elsewhere, Moroccan olympian Rizlen Zouak caused something of an upset against World and European IMMAF champion Leah McCourt when she dominated the highly touted prospect on her way to a TKO in round two.

McCourt seemed a step off the pace from the start and Zouak showed the difference having Olympic level Judo skills can make when she utilised her throws despite McCourt herself being a Judo black belt. It was a sloppy performance from both fighters in the striking department and the women’s featherweight bout was a rather turgid affair until Zouak continued her use of heavy top pressure with ground and pound to get the finish over the exhausted McCourt.

In the opening bout of the main card, local fighter Damo Weeden staged one of the greatest comebacks in Cage Warrior history. After being beaten and bloodied in a 10-8 first round by Cameron Else, Weedon came flying out the traps in round two. He completely overwhelmed his tiring opponent with pressure and finished the dramatic fight with a TKO finish when he landed repeated strikes to the grounded Else.

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Also, middleweight contender Lee Chadwick made quick work of Andy Mazolo with a first round submission to stake his claim for his shot at the new middleweight champion. After an explosive takedown from “The Butcher”, Manzolo tried to look for a submission from the bottom however that proved to be a big mistake. Chadwick quickly transitioned into a heel hook and forced the quick tap showing off some impressive technique in the process.

Cage Warriors 85 Results

Middleweight Title Bout: Oskar Piechota def. Jason Radcliffe via TKO (Punches) (Round 1 – 0:32)

Lightweight Bout: Martin Stapleton def. Donovan Desmae via Decision (Unanimous) (30-27, 30-26, 30-25)

Middleweight Bout: Lee Chadwick def. Andy Manzolo via Submission (Heel hook) (Round 1 – 3:50)

Women’s Featherweight Bout: Rizlen Zouak def. Leah McCourt via TKO (Punches) (Round 2 – 3:46)

Bantamweight Bout: Damo Weeden def. Cameron Else via TKO (Strikes) (Round 2 – 0:40)

Welterweight Bout: Jamie Richardson def. Alex Thorne via TKO (Punches) (Round 1 – 1:35)

Welterweight Bout: Josh Stacey McManus def. Romain Bidet via Submission (Rear-naked choke) (Round 1 – 1:39)

Lightweight Bout: Luiz Finnochio def. Sean Luther via Decision (Unanimous)

 

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