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Jason Ball pulled off the most amazing comeback since Lazarus to beat Kam Atakuru, stunning the packed Doncaster Dome into silence. On a night of great action in front of a mad for it crowd, this fight stood out. It was pure drama. Four minutes twenty four seconds of action- four minutes twenty seconds of Atakuru dominance. Up against the cage, in the centre: mount, back, side control. Think of any position and at some stage of the fight, Kam was battering Jason from it. No wild shots- just thoughtful, measured punishment.

A lesser ref would have jumped in to save the apparently desperate Ball from further harm, but Marc Goddard hovered above the action. He could see signs of resistance us lesser mortals missed. With one final effort, Jason slipped a triangle choke on Kam. It was good and tight and Atakura had no option. Tap out.

For a second, both fighters stayed on the canvas. The crowd, for once, were quiet. Breathtaking. Stunning. Keep your Cup Final: this was real sport.

Ian Jones v Sami Berik

It was the same story in the main event: minus the twist. Ian Jones came out guns blazing. The pair went down and Berik showed all his experience to stay in the fight against such an onslaught. Jones would not be denied. After a failed guillotine attempt, he let his hands go. The speed and accuracy of the barrage was too much for Berik. An exciting finish to a night of gutsy performances.

Junior Amateur Superfight of the Century

Andrew Mcqueen v James Saville

Normally, I don’t cover amateurs or juniors on the basis they are only learning, but this was that rarest of events: the eagerly awaited Junior Amateur contest. Both lads came into the cage unbeaten, but it was Andrew who left with his perfect record intact. McQueen took charge from the start and was rarely out of top position. Although he never managed to put Scraps in serious trouble, he bossed the action. Against the run of play, it was Saville who came closest to pulling off a stoppage with a rear naked choke attempt at the close of round one. Despite this, there could only be one winner and the judges unanimously went for McQueen. Something tells me that we will see this match up a few times more over the coming years.

Neil Wain v David Cieplinski

Old School Wain did what you’d expect. Charged in, knocked the Pole down then bombarded him with punches and elbows. All over in 34 seconds. Devastating.

Rafal Dzcibaude v Gary Savage

In the night’s other Poland v South Yorkshire clash, Rafal Dzcibaude put in a solid performance. A display of relentless efficiency. Takedown– Side- Back- Rear Naked Choke. The guy is slick.

Kurt Warburton v Mark Mills

Mills has the stance and the moves of guy who knows his way round a boxing ring. When it became obvious that Kurt was willing to trade with him, it looked like there was only going to be one winner. This seemed even more likely when Mills dropped Warburton early, but he failed to capitalise on the canvas. As the fight progressed, Kurt relaxed, showed impressive cardio and began to take over. He took the honours courtesy of a lovely straight punch to Mills’ chin. Right on the button. A classy end to an enjoyable contest.

Andrew Punshon v Lee Chadwick

Punshon was all over Chadwick from the start. The sheer force and speed of the attack was irresistible, including a right hook that would have knocked out plenty of horses. Somehow, Chadwick not only stayed up, he caught Andrew with a couple of decent shots of his own. Nothing was going to stop Punshon though, and he sent his already wild fans even wilder when he applied a guillotine to force a tap a minute in.

Pro’s- The Rest

Bret Lee ended David Smythe’s unbeaten record with a clear points victory. Mick Sinclair and Rob Sinclair earned first round wins by submitting Paul Cooper and Ben Jagger respectively. Will Burke forced a tap by way of ground and pound in the second round of his contest with James Whiston.

Pick of the Semi- Pro’s

Dave Hill As MMA moves forward, it is important to have more people with hair. Whenever the sport is on TV, all you get are baldies. Dave Hill has good hair- it looks like hair from the future and stands a good few inches above his head. On a less serious note, he looks to have bags of potential as a fighter. He oozed confidence in his win over Lee Wilton and finished with a beautiful triangle.

Venue

Bigtime feel- added to by the light show. Not a bad seat in the house. In fact, I’d say the cheap seats upstairs give you the best view.

Event

As well run as you will find. Despite losing some big names at short notice, the fights were entertaining and well matched.

Crowd

Up for it doesn’t come close to describing them. 1970s Millwall meet a hen part in the Hacienda. When the Donny crowd get going, they are untouchable. Keep your new Wembley. No empty seats here- packed till midnight.

Quote of the Night

“You got the shit kicked out of you there”

MC Sledge presenting Fighter of the Night to Jason Ball.

Man of the Night

Paul Murphy Promoter, Referee, Manager, Cornerman, Kick-Ass Vigilante, Charity Fund Raiser. The bloke is everywhere. It’s a bit like one of those old films where Peter Sellers would play all the parts.

Young Man of the Night

James Scraps Saville

Fought hard. Celebrated losing with a back flip. Immediately acknowledged he was second best on the night and took his first defeat in great fashion. A credit to the sport.

Results

PRO MMA
Ian Jones bt Sami Berik (R1, 2:06, GnP)
Jason Ball bt Kam Atakuru (R1,4:24,Triangle)
Rob Sinclair bt Ben Jagger (R1, 3:44, Tap)
Neil Wain bt David Cieplinski (R1, 0:34, TKO ) Mick Sinclair bt Paul Cooper (R1, 2:32, Rear Naked Choke) Rafal Dzcibaude bt Gary Savage(R1, 3:58,Rear Naked Choke)Kurt Warburton bt Mark Mills (R1, 3:42, Ref Stoppage) Bret Lee bt David Smythe (Points) Andrew Punshon v Lee Chadwick (R1, 1:09, Guillotine)
Will Burke bt James Whiston (R2, 1:30, Tap due to GnP)

Kick Boxing
Craig Lawrence bt Paul Smith (R3, 2:20, TKO)
Danny Ball bt Robin Robson (R1, 0:07, KO)

Semi Pro
Ollie Mclean bt Greg Letch (R2,3:48, Tap)
Ashley Nelmes bt James Martin (R1 3:55, Tap) Dave Hill bt Lee Wilton (R1, 4:40, Triangle) Adam Botterill bt Nathan Martin (Points)

Amateur
Andrew Mcqueen bt James Saville (Points)

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