Jim Wallhead took another stride towards a big time contract by taking out Fabio Taldo in the first round. Anyone underestimating Taldo soon saw that he was no pushover. He took full advantage of Wallhead’s ring rust, scoring with some sharp leg kicks. In an attempt to take control of the fight, Judo Jim moved forward and caught Taldo with a right, but also ate one himself. Briefly, the favourite looked dazed and clinched up against the fence to regain his senses.

Having his bell rung seemed to waken the beast in Wallhead as he pushed the pace. A big right hand caused Fabio to stumble. He regained his footing only to cop an even bigger one, followed by a third and final right hand to seal the deal.

KO win for Jim Wallhead. Fabio Taldo will win fights against plenty of fights against people with less resolve and worse sprawls than Wallhead (that’s almost everyone). As for Jim Wallhead- what more does he have to do to get his ticket to the big show?

The main event of the evening saw Danny Mitchel defeat Lee Doski for the Ultimate Force European title. As the pair sat on the canvas looking for submissions, you would have backed the veteran Doski to find the leg lock he was looking for to take the title. Mitchel beat him to it, securing a tight heel hook that had Doski yelling “Yes, Yes” in the style of a World of Sport wrestler.

Proudly wearing his new belt, Danny Mitchel grabbed the mic and addressed the crowd. He said that many people thought he was to inexperienced to be challenging for the belt but he thought he had proved them wrong with that performance. Couldn’t have put it better myself.

Ian Jones is one of the darlings of the Donny crowd. It’s easy to see why after his turn against Tom Maguire. On his first round performance, you would have fancied him to beat King Kong as he put on a dynamic MMA masterclass. From the opening head kick through the total ground dominance, Jones was sensational. A run of brutal unanswered elbows had ref Goddard hovering, but the tough as old boots Maguire hung in there.

Round two. Jones, looking weary after his earlier efforts, came forward. Maguire went for the guillotine. Jones tapped. Ian Jones is the perfect hero. Exciting, but flawed. He may not win every time, but he is always entertaining. Tom Maguire: to even be in the second round was an achievement. To start and quickly finish it with such a smart move is a sign of class.

Another Donny hero had point to prove. After two close defeats against high quality opposition, Jason Ball needed a W and he got it in style. Alexandre Izidro decided to stand up with Ball and “Daddy Cool” was quick to point out that was a poor decision. Jason was always looking to land the big right hand. When he did, Izidro looked unsteady. Ball was not going to let him off the hook. As he chased his man down, he fell into the trap of head hunting, but when Jason landed the right hand again it was curtains. He sealed the deal with a couple of hammerfists on the floor but really, it was all over when the punch connected.

James Bateman put in a gutsy performance on his Dome debut, but was always playing catch up against regular Wayne Murrie. Murrie was in control for the first two rounds and looked comfortable. The third turned into a straight up Muay Thai fight. Normally, this would suit Murrie, but Bateman came on strong. Just when a upset started to look on, Murrie showed his experience. He took the fight to the ground and an arm triangle earned an instant tap.

Neil Fraser v Chris Stringer was a a fight where the comeback was successful. From his physique to his shorts, Stringer looks every inch the stand up fighter. For two and a half rounds, he looked like the lion that had been thrown into the shark tank as Fraser maintained top position on the ground and worked towards a comfortable victory. With a minute and a half left on the clock, Stringer threw his long legs up and secured an unlikely win via triangle.

Swede Martin Wojcik ground and pounded his way to victory in the second round his bout against Pete King.

Chris Fields submitted Gary Enderby with a second round guillotine.

Horace Price displayed heavy hands on his way to a unanimous decision victory over Dave Paddison.

Dan Sliwowski forced Nige Tunningly to tap with an armbar in the first round.

Nathan Howe took the honours in his cage kickboxing match against Andy Craven.


 

Fight of the Night

Jim Wallhead v Fabio Taldo

 

Ring Walk Tune of the Night

Chris Fields: Jailbreak – Thin Lizzy

 

Runner up

Ian Jones: Seven Nation Army- White Stripes

 

Nickname of the Night

Chris “The Killing” Fields

 

Man of the Night

Ian “The Mongoose” Jones

A flawed genuis


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