The Winter Gardens of Weston-Super-Mare was the small but perfectly formed venue for the latest instalment of MMA from Angrrr Management- ‘Southern Agrrression’.  The cage, garlanded with a crown of fairy lights sat impressively in the centre of  the two tiered, circular event room.  Level with the cage itself sat a ring of spectators, themselves encircled by a raised circle of V.I.P tables.  The room appeared as though built for one single purpose… to house a mixed martial arts cage.

The event itself consisted of seven semi-professional bouts parenthesised by two professional bouts, with an attendance of around three hundred people.  Although largely made up of semi-pro bouts and although held in a rather modest venue, the event itself was anything but small.  The importance of events like these that enable the semi-professional fighter to have a chance of improving his fight record was evidenced by those who were in attendance: Mark Weir was in attendance to support his fighter, Che Mills; as was Paul Jenkins as well as Matt Ewin.  Furthermore, all bouts were overseen by the recognisable face of Grant Waterman.  The bespoke-looking venue and fighter-filled audience made Southern Agrrression resemble a scaled down version of a major pro event.  Overall, everything ran smoothly and there were no delays- there was even interval entertainment.

The aim of the evening was two fold: to push the semi-professional ranks of UK fighters further up to the fully pro circuit; and to give the spectators of Weston a good night of fighting.  Both aims were soundly achieved.  Through talking to lead promoter Mark Stanton it is obvious to see that pushing the sport forwards is of great importance to those at Angrrr Management and they are due to be holding a similar event at the same venue on December 4th.

Dave McLaughlin v Alex Owen
Pro-Fight

Owen, who enjoyed most of the support from the crowd, took Laughlin down within the first few seconds of the bout.  Laughlin’s guard was passed quickly by the home favourite who then implemented some ground ‘n’ pound whilst trying to better his position.  The fight remained in this stage for a while, until- under the encouragement of Waterman to keep the action going- Owen gained the full-mount.  A few seconds later, Laughlin verbally submitted to some accurate ground ‘n’ pound.

Winner: Owen, Round 1(3mins) Verbal Submission

Alex Pullin v Steve Keen
Semi-Pro

The bout opened with a failed take-down attempt by Pullen which resulted in his back on the floor.  Keen, working now from side control managed to gain the full-mount relatively quickly.  Keen then worked some heavy ground ‘n’ pound that would have led to a stoppage under fully pro rules.  Having to reserve his strikes for Pullen’s body only, Keen looked for a submission and quickly found an arm-bar.  Pullen defended well and was tough but in the end Keen was just too strong for him.

Winner: Keen, Round 1(2mins)- Arm-Bar

Nick Davenport v Che Mills
Semi-Pro

The bout started emphatically as both came out throwing.  However, the inevitable occurred and the fighters clinched and went to the ground.  Mills ended up on his back with Davenport in his guard.  Mills then took advantage of the quick pace of the fight and attempted to slip on a triangle choke.  Davenport slammed his way out of danger, but in the melee that ensued fount that the slick Che Mills had taken his back.  Mills wasn’t about to let a chance like this go- No escape for Davenport.
[A rematch would be good.  Both fighters showed a good level of skill- It just wasn’t Davenport’s night.]

Winner: Che Mills: Round 1- Rear Naked Choke

Adan Cole v Adam Stanton
Semi-Pro

In what was easily the best fight of the night, the crowd showed a huge amount of support for local boy, Adam Stanton.  The fighters had a comparatively large feeling out period, each looking for their own opportunities- Cole looking for strikes and Stanton for a take-down.  It was Stanton who was successful first with a huge take-down.  However, it took little time for Cole to bring the fight back to where he felt comfortable.  Stanton then went in for a second take-down which again was neutralised by Cole.  With both fighters finding it difficult to get any real advantage there was much scrambling, until eventually, Stanton found himself on top of Cole in the scarf position.  Again Stanton had difficulty pinning Cole down with reversal after reversal from both men.  Stanton, now on his back, attempted a Kimura and looked as though he might get it.  Unfortunately for him, the submission never came to fruition.

In the first fight to go to round two, those in attendance were treated to more of the same action.  Cole came out for a fight this round and landed a head kick to the left side of Stanton’s head.  Stanton then attempted to take Cole down several times but again faced difficulty in keeping his opponent in one place.  In the ground phases, Stanton’s superiority was evident.  However, during the stand-up period, Cole was able to get off two more good shots- an upper-cut and right cross that both connected with the chin of Stanton.  Towards the end of the round Stanton took Cole down and managed to get the full mount.  The round ended with neither getting a decisive victory.

Result: Draw (exactly the right decision!)

Mike Poole v Luke Ford
Semi-Pro

This was the second fight to go the full distance with most of the action taking place on the ground.  Poole was much more the dominant fighter and spent the majority of the time on top.  During round one, Ford was warned for striking to the head when on the ground which doubtless hindered his chances of getting the decision.

Winner: Poole, Unanimous Judges Decision (20-18)

Darryl McTaffy v Paul Croft
Semi Pro

Kevin O’Hagan trained Paul Croft came out looking for the take-down but found a guillotine.  After managing to slip out, Croft found himself in McTaffy’s Guard and then proceeded to move his opponent to the edge of the cage where he could implement his ground ‘n’ pound.  The round continued like this until the dying seconds of the round when McTaffy attempted an arm-bar from the bottom.  Round one ended without the submission.

In round two Croft came out and landed a huge single-leg take-down.  Again Croft ended up inside his opponent’s guard.  McTaffy- obviously comfortable on his back- tried a second arm-bar.  Running his feet around the wall of the cage McTaffy had more time to sink in the technique.

Winner: McTaffy, Round 2(1min25sec)- Textbook Arm-Bar

Ed Howard v Danny Irwin
Semi Pro

Both fighters came out swinging for the fences with both landing punches and kicks.  Howard then attempted a take-down that was soundly defended against by Irwin.  Irwin however did end up on his back after a second takedown attempt from Howard.  Irwin pulled guard on Howard to then in a moment of madness or sheer confidence flung himself backwards and attempted a heel-hook.  Unsurprisingly, his attempt failed and after a long scramble, Irwin was now in the dominant position.  The round was seen out by some ground ‘n’ pound from a standing Irwin, still inside the guard of Howard.  Howard attempted a second heel-hook.  The look on Irwin’s face disclosed that it might have worked- but for the horn signalling the end of the round.

Round two saw more domination from Irwin who gained side control early on and even attempted and arm-bar.  Howard’s slickness enabled him to escape, only to be put back on the mat again.  Irwin ended the round with some very heavy body punches and ground ‘n’ pound.

Winner: Irwin Unanimous Judges Decision (20-18)

Peter Jordan v Jack Mason
Semi Pro

Both fighters on their debut were looking to impress; no nerves looked present though doubtless they were.  Both fighters with something to prove came out throwing so big, wild shots with Jordan getting the better of the action.  The fight is taken to the ground as the fighters clinch with each other.  From is back, Mason manages to relieve the pressure put on him by Jordan and get back to his feet.  When Jordan comes in for a second takedown he is welcomed by a guillotine.  Mason pulls guard- job done!

Winner: Mason, Round 1(2mins14sec)- Guillotine

Phil MacCall v Chris Hipkiss
Pro Fight

Both fighters came out rather cautiously; but it was Phil McCall who took the initiative and clinched Hipkiss, taking him to the perimeter of the cage.  McCall put the fight on the ground up against the cage and started implementing his ground ‘n’ pound.  McCall looked as though he likes the big finish, so stood up inside the guard looking for the big shot.  McCall tried to better his position at the same time but the round ended after little progress was made.

Hipkiss was clearly the home favourite with everyone in the crowd offering him their support.  However, the second round took the same route as the first and saw McCall dominate by putting weight on Hipkiss, whilst using ground ‘n’ pound.

The final round really boosted the crowd.  Everyone knew that McCall was winning on points and that Hipkiss needed to pull something big out in the last round.  McCall put Hipkiss up against the fence but looked gassed.  Hipkiss’ corner-men shouted at him to up the tempo but the previous rounds had taken their toll.  McCall again put Hipkiss on the mat and put all his weight on him.  McCall then did just enough in the way of ground ‘n’ pound to stop Waterman bringing it back upstairs.  Despite the enthusiasm of the crowd, McCall lasted out the round.  A failed arm-bar attempt was not enough for Hipkiss to take the round.

A less cautious Hipkiss could cause McCall a lot of trouble.  On the night, McCall was able to employ his game-plan, and it worked.  A re-match between these two would be good but maybe now McCall can move onto bigger things.

Winner: McCall, Unanimous Judges Decision