Report Cage Raged 25
LONDON -- Robert "Buzz" Berry shocked sold-out Wembley Arena on Saturday and knocked out MMA legend Ken Shamrock in the first round at Cage Rage 25.
Berry started with some hard low kicks before using a pistonlike jab to keep his veteran opponent at a distance. Shamrock, however, did not appear to be troubled for the first couple of minutes, as he repeatedly caught the punches and looked for his chance to surge forward.
A wild flurry of punches from Shamrock, a forefather of modern MMA, gave the 44-year-old heavyweight a chance to get inside. Berry, however, used his 20-pound weight advantage to manhandle Shamrock and escape from the clinch.
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Berry Shamrock
Jim Page/Sherdog.com
Berry, right, took the fight to Shamrock and never let the veteran fighter get settled.
After three minutes, Berry began to taste some success in the standup. A glancing right hand from the Sunderland fighter put Shamrock on his back foot.
Soon after, a hard jab from "Buzz" swiftly followed by another right hand sent his opponent crashing to the floor and forced referee Grant Waterman to stop the contest.
"I said in the interviews, 'I'm gonna knock him out,' and I did that tonight," a jubilant Berry told Sherdog.com. "I've worked really, really hard. I believed in myself. I knew I could do it, and now I want to move on to bigger and bigger things … Gary Shaw said he was going to make me into a superstar."
Asked whether he would now replace Shamrock as a potential opponent for vicious brawler Kimbo Slice, Berry smiled from ear to ear and said: "If it's Kimbo … it's Kimbo."
Imanari submits Silva
In the chief supporting bout, Masakazu Imanari defended his Cage Rage world featherweight title in an incredible display.
He stamped his authority on the bout against Jean Silva from the outset with a trio of hard low kicks. However, it was on the ground that the Japanese leglock expert would do his most impressive work.
He worked a beautiful omoplata attempt from rubber guard before sweeping his way into top position. Imanari proceeded to impress every section of the arena with his sublime skill and topped off his crafty display with a nasty inside heel hook that forced Silva to tap out frantically and howl in agony.
Broughton brings the pain to Grove
Rob Broughton made his return in impressive fashion by weathering a first-round storm of hard low kicks and punches from Neil Grove to bash his way back into the contest and claim a well-earned majority decision.
Grove looked extremely dangerous in the first five minutes. His work rate appeared to drop off in the next two rounds, though, allowing Broughton the chance to score with some hard shots.
To his credit, Grove soaked up the punishment like a dry sponge, but Broughton fought like a man possessed, charging in with looping left hooks and straight right hands to seal an impressive win.
Watson stops Guillet with up-kick
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Watson
Jim Page/Sherdog.com
It looked spectacular, but Guillet, right, paid dearly for his acrobatic attack.
In one of the most unusual conclusions to a fight in Cage Rage history, Tom Watson knocked out UK-stationed American serviceman Pierre Guillet with a stunning up-kick two minutes into the contest.
Guillet looked to be in good form when he took his opponent down with unexpected ease in the opening seconds of the fight. However, as the aggressive U.S. serviceman leaped in the air to deliver a brutal flying punch on his downed opponent, he was met with a perfect kick to the jaw from Watson that brought his night to an abrupt end.
Al Turk makes short work of Turner
Mustapha al Turk made short work of Gary Turner in their heavyweight encounter, bashing the overmatched former K-1 fighter and forcing him to submit with a stream of hard punches from rear mount.
The London Shootfighter caught an attempted kick from Turner and drove him into the mat with a well-timed takedown. Al Turk then applied some extremely effective pressure on the floor and gave Turner no choice but to give up his back.
Once in position, al Turk hammered his opponent relentlessly. After a vicious flurry of right hands, Turner understandably called it quits.
Son of Ken loses as well
Ryan Shamrock -- the 18-year-old son of headliner Ken Shamrock -- put in a gutsy but ultimately losing performance as he went toe-to-toe with aggressive Londoner Georgio Andrews.
In a wild contest, both fighters enjoyed success on their feet while the action flowed from one side of the cage to the other. However, after an entertaining first round, Shamrock could not continue because of a broken left hand.
Risultati
Robert “Buzz” Berry batte Ken Shamrock via KO R1 3:26
Masakazu Imanari batte Jean Silva via Reverse Heel Hook R1 2:30
Rob Broughton batte Neil Grove via Majority Decision R3 5:00
Tom Watson batte Pierre Guillet via KO R1 2:05
Mustapha Al-Turk batte Gary Turner via GNP R1 3:19
Ivan Serati batte Roman Webber via KO R1 0:48
Henrique Santana batte Michael Johnson via Unanimous Decision R3 5:00
Aisling Daly batte Aysen Berik via GNP R1 1:49
Giorgio Andrews batte Ryan Shamrock via TKO R1 5:00
John Hathaway batte Marvin Arnold via GNP R1 1:32
John Phillips batte Jake Bostwick via GNP R1 4:10