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Ommac 4 Victorious: Review
07 Mar 2010
By Martin Smith
In what was another cracking night of mixed martial arts action in Liverpool, it was Paul Sass who retained his OMMAC British Lightweight title after a fast-paced war with UK MMA veteran Jason Young in the main event.
Sass, who has won all but one of his fights by submission, stuck to the game plan straight away, faking a punch and quickly grabbing the waist of his opponent for the takedown. However, Young almost expected such a start to the fight and sprawled incredibly well to keep the fight standing. The two grappled for position, with Sass relentlessly throwing his legs around the waste of his opponent looking to pull guard. After a minute clenching, Young pushed Sass against the fence, while the champion again flung his legs up and wrapped his arm around the head of his opponent looking to pull the fight down to the ground.
Young was game for the fight, landing punches to the side and moving quickly to avoid the takedown. However, Sass eventually grabbed a leg and pulled guard, sticking to his game plan of taking the fight to the floor. Young tried to escape, but Sass began twisting the right leg almost immediately. After a brief scuffle, Young sensed danger and stood up, but this allowed Sass to move him away from the cage and in an instant, the master of the “Sassangle” swept his body to the left, pulled his opponent back to the mat and he grabbed the right leg even tighter for the submission win. Another impressive victory that edges Sass towards an inevitable invite to the big leagues with fellow Kaobon lightweights Paul Kelly, Terry Etim and Paul Taylor.
Wayne Murrie captured the vacant OMMAC British Welterweight title with a unanimous decision victory over Pete Irving. The pair traded leg kicks early on, with both men trying to work combinations into their stand up striking. Murrie eventually connected with a right head kick, before getting a takedown and working his ground and pound in side control. The round finished with Murrie almost securing a reverse arm triangle, although Irving battled hard and had his opponent in a crucifix as the round came to an end.
In the second round, Murrie utilised more of his ground and pound, with some vicious elbows connecting through Irving’s guard and his stand up combinations also looking sharp. The round was almost close to being stopped following a tight guillotine choke on Irving, but the Cage Warriors veteran battled through, eventually getting mount before the round ended. It was much of the same in the third, with Irving’s big takedowns scoring well and Murrie’s ground and pound once more causing damage. A unanimous decision victory was awarded to the man from Yorkshire, in what was one of the best fights of the night.
Jay McGuiness and Declan Williams had a good fight, but it was the Kaobon lad who picked up the win towards the end of the first round. McGuiness went for a takedown early on, but Williams had a strong sprawl and managed to keep the fight standing. McGuiness was relentless and eventually got the fight to the mat, working through to side control and securing the armbar for the win in round one.
Neil McGuigan and Chris Fishgold both made their debut in this fight and it was Fishgold who started his career with a good victory. The Next Generation fighter looked solid on the mat, almost winning the fight by guillotine and then triangle, before taking the back and earning a rear naked choke submission victory.
Ronan McKay upset the odds and ended Jay Gladden’s previously unbeaten record by submission in round two. The first round was slow, with McKay attempting a superman punch during the early stages, and then connecting with several punches that managed to sneak through Gladden’s defence. The Kaobon fighter decided to take the fight to the mat with a takedown, and although scoring well with the judges, it was McKay who almost pulled off the armbar submission towards the end of the round. He eventually got that same submission in the second, less than a minute into the action.
Jay Manning picked up another submission victory on his win record with an impressive victory over Jason Muldoon. The Kaobon fighter got the takedown early, passing to side control with relative ease on the ground. With his corner ordering him to move to the north-south position, the welterweight sunk in the choke and he earned the win inside the first round.
Nij Wright and Danny Sweeney had a good scrap in a quick fight. Wright started off the brighter, testing his opponent with a head kick, before taking him down to the mat. However, it was Sweeney who looked more comfortable on the ground, as he worked for the triangle from the bottom. The Next Generation fighter eventually took an arm and managed to secure an armbar submission win in his first professional fight.
Mike Wilkinson showed excellent ground skills in his first round submission victory over Neil Spring. The Atherton Submission fighter got the takedown quickly, utilising his position in side control before switching to mount. As Spring tried to struggle free on the ground, Wilkinson managed to switch his position to the back and he sunk in his hooks to take home the rear naked choke win.
Michael Reid and Neil Dutson battled a gruelling three round war that went the distance to the judges’ scorecards. Dutson started the fight brightly, landing several right kicks and swinging punches towards his opponent without causing too much damage. The Blackledge MMA fighter eventually got the takedown, but found himself mounted by Reid, who proceeded to lay in some ground and pound through his opponents defence. Dutson stayed active however, and after a brief scuffle on the ground, which including being mounted once more, he finished the round grappling for position.
It was much of the same in the next two rounds, with both men deducted a point - Reid for persistently hitting the back of the head, and Dutson penalised in the third for consistently grabbing the cage. A tiring contest and a victory that was awarded to Michael Reid by unanimous decision.
Richie Downes added another victory to the win column with a near-dominant win over Paul Ramsdale by technical knockout. Downes managed to secure the takedown early on, utilising his ground and pound effectively before the referee stopped the contest with less than a minute gone on the clock.
Semi-pro bantamweights Pietro Menga and Brent Crawley lived up to the hype in an entertaining two round contest that went to the judges. Menga started the fight with a number of early kicks, pushing the pace a little harder with his muay thai. It was a solid opening from the Kaobon fighter, but Crawley remained game with his opponent, landing a solid right hand as the round progressed.
However, it didn’t faze the man nicknamed Pitbull, who attempted a superman punch and landed some impressive combinations as round one came to an end. In the second, Menga continued to push forward with high leg kicks, utilising his punch-kick combinations, before taking home the unanimous decision with the judges.
In the opening fight of the night, local lad Louis Jenkins defeated Malli Richardson by TKO with an impressive performance. The Kaobon semi pro managed to land a number of high leg kicks and finished the fight with two knees that ended the contest in the first round.
Results –
Semi Pro - Louis Jenkins def. Malli Richardson by TKO RD1
Semi Pro - Pietro Menga def. Brent Crawley by UD
Pro - Richie Downes def. Paul Ramsdale by TKO RD1
Pro - Michael Reid def. Neil Dutson by UD
Pro - Mike Wilkinson def. Neil Spring by RNC RD1
Pro - Danny Sweeney def. Nij Wright by Armbar RD1
Pro - Jay Manning def. Jason Muldoon by N/S Choke RD1
Pro - Ronan McKay def. Jay Gladden by Armbar RD2
Pro - Chris Fishgold def. Neil McGuigan by RNC RD1
Pro - Jay McGuiness def. Declan Williams by Armbar RD1
Pro - Wayne Murrie def. Pete Irving by UD
Pro - Paul Sass def. Jason Young by Heel hook RD1
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