2015-06-20
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Highland Challengers 5 Review

Event Review: Highland Challenge 5
Highland Challengers
2015-06-13, The Island, Wild Bob's Bar - The Island
Attendance:630, Event Rating:91
Author:Callum McGregor

 Highland Challenge 5 was a night to remember as the first ever Highland Challengers Champion was crowned. In addition to the championship, we had 9 fights of guys looking to make an impact on such a high profile card. With 70% of the fights being finished before the judges needed to get involved, it was an exciting piece of action for sure.

 

Welterweight Roger Boss (2-0) def. Young bjj (0-0) by TKO (Strikes) at 1:40 of Round 2

Two 18 year olds butted heads in this contest. Boss was 2-0 and had shown some very solid clinch skills, while Young BJJ had not entered the cage professionally but his moniker tells the tale of what his strategy would be. While he jockeyed and squirmed, Bjj couldn’t secure a takedown or pull guard successfully, leaving Roger Boss open to land elbows and body punches until he eventually found a finish.  

 

Middleweight DJ Palmer (1-1) def. Woo Kidd (1-1) by Submission (Kimura) at 2:43 of Round 2

DJ was coming off of a very tough submission victory over Mr Pro while Woo Kidd had went the distance with kickboxing specialist Conny Larsson, dropping the fight. Palmer is a capable striker but was easily out matched early in this one. Kidd was easily the more advanced striker and was solid at defending takedowns.

However, in the second round DJ countered a combination and got a takedown. He quickly took side control and locked in a tight kimura for a SOTN victory.  

Heavyweight Archie MacDuff (0-1) def. Jet Force (1-1) by Unanimous Decision

From their previous fights, we know both Archie and Jet would be capable in the clinch. Just like when he fought Phil Hellmuth Jr, another clincher, Archie opted to use his boxing at range rather than force a clinch. When he did close the distance, it was a very close and even inside game with similar numbers being landed but much more activity from Archie’s camp.

In the end, it was the accurate and tight boxing skills of Archie MacDuff which was favoured by the three officials at ringside.  

 

Heavyweight Slade Wilson (1-1) def. Pat Sinlet (1-0) by TKO (Strikes) at 1:39 of Round 3

Pat is a native of Glascow. As a Scotsman myself, I’m going to inform everyone in America or Canada that Glascow is not a place, nor is it the correct pronunciation of Glasgow. I felt this is something that had to be stated . In this fight we saw a boxing masterclass from Slade who was coming off a knockout loss to title contender Dave Ysengrin.

Pat was a tough guy in hung in there, but essentially  he didn’t have enough skills in any one area to force the action into his wheelhouse.  

 

Middleweight Pekka Pyy (1-0) def. Takakazu Nakamoto (1-1) by KO (Punch) at 3:24 of Round 1

This was a routine win from inside the clinch for Pekka. Nakamoto tried his best to work from the outside but neither man really appeared to have the boxing acumen to land on the target. Pyy worked from inside the distance with shots to the head and body to score a first round finish.

It seems that LightHeavyweight, Barney Gumble and Serge Ibaka really inspired a new generation of Island fighters to engage in the clinch.  

 

Middleweight Kimmo Kirruna (1-1) def. Joao Gouveia (0-0) by TKO (Strikes) at 2:26 of Round 1

After avenging his submission loss debut to Bear Grylls with a second round knockout of Bear Grylls, Kimmo got in close, clinched up and put a beating on his opponent. It’s interesting to note that Gouveia, a BJJ Purple Belt, managed to get a quick takedown and actually stood up from it.

You have to wonder that if he hadn’t made such a big error, if we could have had a different outcome of this contest.  

 

Featherweight Hugh Janus (1-1) def. Kazushi Imanari (1-1) by Submission (Kneebar) at 4:18 of Round 1

Hugh is a bit of an early Highland Challengers favourite of mine, and with 3 fights inside the company already he is an active and interesting competitor. After being submitted by Fred Alsop, Hugh managed to bounce back with an extremely slick first round knee bar.

Kazushi himself came to the cage as a BJJ Brown Belt, so this is just another impressive feather on the cap of the Australian competitor.   

 

Welterweight Alexander Stubb (2-0) def. Gunnar Lasson (4-2) by KO (Punch) at 0:14 of Round 1

It was a surprise that Lasson was knocked out quickly by Kobe Bryan in the main event of Highland Challenge 3. It was even more surprising here when he lasted just 14 seconds. This essentially means that Lasson has only spend 37 seconds inside the HC cage in two contests, a very bad start to his promotional career.

Alexander Stubb, training partner to Pyy and Kirruna who also picked up victories on this card, in addition to former Highland Games Middleweight Champion Massa Hurmaaja, earns a Knockout of the Night bonus for his efforts.  

 

Middleweight Rodney Jackson (4-0) def. Oliver Queen (2-1) by Unanimous Decision

Two of our standout contenders at Middleweight competing here. Oliver Queen had won two straight and uses a varied kickboxing style. He also likes to throw in a takedown or clinch to keep opponents on their toes. Jackson is less of a question mark, utilizing a less than complex ‘Punch you in the face’ style.

I imagine that before the fight, bookies would have favoured Oliver Queen if the fight went the distance but wouldn’t have ruled out an effortless early KO from the undefeated Jackson.

Interestingly enough, this wasn’t the case. Despite a rapid knockdown which seemed like it would end the fight predictable for Rodney, Oliver Queen held on and recovered well. Jackson used an all-round striking game, blending kicks and punches with fluid precision.

Queen did what he always does and was very effective at landing body kicks, keeping Jackson honest throughout the entire fight. Really, the fight could have been different depending on who was judging it, but the varied technique of Rodney Jackson seemed to be what caught the eye of the officials and they gave put all three rounds in that camp.   

Light Heavyweight Championship Charles Crawley (2-0) def. Mel Gordon (3-0) by Unanimous Decision

And in our main event, we witnessed the first ever Highland Challengers Championship contest. Charles Crawley was 1-0 in HC after defeating Xavier Oliva over 3 rounds. He actively sought out the knockout but his opponent was intelligent and elusive. Mel Gordon displayed shades of his brother Louis by winning all 3 of his fights by cuts, including two victories in Highland Challengers.

Gordon was the favourite going into the fight due to the methods and domination he displayed in his previous three encounters. Gordon was ridiculously active at seeking the clinch, attempting to secure it a staggering 155 times. He’ll really need to mask his intentions in future fights. None the less, he did lock up 9 times and it would appear that when he did as such, Crawley would probably eat a lot of nasty elbows.

Charles surprised us all though, being highly effective at dodging the elbows and breaking the clinch. From there, he was able to work his boxing from the outside and catch Gordon on his way in. After 5 rounds, Charles Crawley had done enough to take the unanimous decision, winning the inaugural Highland Challengers Light Heavyweight Championship as he did so.  

KNOCKOUT OF THE NIGHT Alexander Stubb  

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT DJ Palmer  

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT Slade Wilson Vs Pat Sinlet  

A champion is crowned and all of us associated with Highland would like to congratulate Charles Crawley on making history. The event was entertain and enjoyable all round. Every single event we hold in these early stages could bring about the arrival of a new legendary competitor so I can’t wait to see and witness each new revelation. 

 

 

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