Matches to make following UFC Fight Night Dublin

Matches to make following UFC Fight Night Dublin

by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

With UFC Fight Night Dublin in the books and McGregor already confirmed to be fighting Poirier at UFC 178, we take a look at additional match ups the UFC should look at following UFC Fight Night Dublin.

Gunnar Nelson vs Damien Maia
Now 4-0 in the UFC after defeating Zak Cummings by 2nd round submission, Gunnar Nelson should draw a top 10 opponent in his next match up, and I would like to see Damien Maia as that opponent. A talented grappler who's striking is ever improving, Maia will likely never challenge for the welterweight title, but still has the skills to present problems for any man at 170lbs.

From a grappling perspective who doesn't want to see Nelson vs Maia? More so though this bout makes sense as Maia will asks all of the questions that need to be asked to Nelson if he is to be a viable title challenger - can Nelson deal with a much larger welterweight, what happens when he faces a guy with better BJJ then him, and what is he like when the pressure is put on him the way Maia would.

Ian McCall vs John Lineker
With John Dodson injured and out till 2015, and Brad Pickett no longer the number one contender in the flyweight division following his loss to Ian McCall last night, the flyweight division is looking a little thin for contender at this stage.

With McCall victorious over Pickett, and John Lineker impressive in victory over Alptekin Ozkilic just a few days prior, a match up between McCall and Lineker to determine the next number one contender makes sense.

Norman Parke vs Diego Sanchez
Following his victory over Naoyuki Kotani, Parke took to the mic to declare he wants to fight Diego Sanchez next. A fight against Sanchez makes a lot if sense for Parke, he is the kind of name that could propel Parke into the top 10 with an impressive win. Parke will know he has the tools beat Sanchez as well having see Alliance teammates Myles Jury & Ross Pearson (just not on paper) recent beat Sanchez.

If the UFC are interesting in promoting Parke, as it seems that they are with the hint of a return to Belfast possible in the near future, they will also see sense in a match between Parke vs Sanchez. And as for Sanchez, we all know he's not backing down from any fight.

Ilir Latifi vs Nikita Krylov
With both men picking up impressive TKO victories in Dublin, a match up between Latifi and Krylov seems a natural pairing for the European 205ers. With both men having similar UFC records, and fighting to the same schedule currently, Latifi vs Krylov would be an exciting addition to the UFC's return to Sweden in October.

Cathal Pendred vs George Sullivan / Igor Araujo winner
Cathal Pendred produced one of the greatest comebacks the UFC has ever seen at UFC Fight Night Dublin defeating Mike King by Rear Naked Choke in the 2nd round, after taking a battering by the much larger man in the opening frame. Pendred will now return to his natural weight category, welterweight, the division where he won his Cage Warriors title.

The winner of September's bout between George Sullivan and Igor Araujo will present an interesting challenge for Pendred in different ways - Sullivan being a knockout artist and Araujo, deadly on the ground.

UFC Fight Night Dublin Results: Cathal Pendred Produces Memorable Comeback to Beat Mike King

UFC Fight Night Dublin Results: Cathal Pendred Produces Memorable Comeback to Beat Mike King

by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Cathal Pendred produced one of the greatest comeback in UFC history to defeat fellow Ultimate Fighter 19 contestant, Mike King by Rear-Naked Choke on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night Dublin.

The bout started with a much larger King silenced the crowd shooting straight in for a takedown which he was able to land, but Pendred was able to get back to his feet almost instantly. With both fighter taking the centre of the Octagon, King landed a nice right hand that pushed Pendred back, but the Irishman was able to wrap King up and lands a take down of his own.

From the feet, King chases Pendred with with punches and drops the SBG fighter with a huge right hand. King swarms looking to end the fight early. Pendred some how manages to survive but King mounts Pendred eventually making his way to the back where he slapped on a Rear-Nake Choke. King took back mount letting the choke go,  and started pounding away wit heavy fist. With Marc Godard taking a close look at the action, a tiring King, attempted and armbar, and when he couldn’t get it and Pendred escaped to his feet, causing the Irish crowd exploded where the round closed. A strong argument could be made for a 10-8 round, with many outlets including ours scoring the bout that way.

The second round started Pendred, who looked like he had recovered from the damage he took in the first round catching a visibly fatigued King with his hand down land a couple of good right hand followed by an uppercut. King fired back with a kick to the body,which left an opening for Pendred to pick him up and slam him to the canvas. Pendred start to looked tired himself and this point couldn't keep King down and the two were back on their feet with 3 minutes left in the round. After a series of sloppy exchanges, Pendred was able to take Kings back for a double leg takedown. Pendred tied up King with a body lock, and sunk in a Rear-Naked choke that tight, and that quick King went unconscious before he could tap.

After the bout Cathal Pendred said: 

"Mike came out really strong but even when things aren't going my way, I can never count myself out. The crowd was amazing; it kept feeding my energy. I've shown that I'm an exciting fighter and that you can never count me out. I couldn't believe how excited Dana was about the fight. This is the fairytale start to my UFC career."

 Pendred improved to 14-2-1 overall and 1-0 in his UFC career. He will now like return to his natural weight class, 170lbs where he is currently enjoying a 7 fight win streak with notable wins over Che Mills, Gael Gimaud and Nicholas Musoke. 

Cathal Pendred Signs for The UFC, Meets Mike King in Dublin

Cathal Pendred Signs for The UFC, Meets Mike King in Dublin

by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Fresh off a stint on this season's Ultimate Fighter, Cathal Pendred has signed a contract with the UFC and will join SGB Ireland teammates, Conor McGregor,  and recently signed Paddy Holohan on July's UFC Fight Night card in Dublin.

UFC Officials have today confirmed Cathal Prendred will meet Ultimate Fighter season 19 teammate Mike King at UFC Fight Night 46 at The o2 Arena in Dublin, on July 19. UFC Fight Night 46 will stream live on UFC Fight Pass, and is also expected to be shown on BT Sports in the UK. Irish fans will be able to watch the show on free to air 3e. It is not yet know whether the fight will take place on the events the preliminary portion, or the main card.

One of the hottest prospects in European MMA, Cathal Pendred (13-2-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) was widely tipped to take a place on the UFC roster at some stage following a series of victories which saw him beat some of the finest welterweight in Europe including Che Mills and Gael Grimaud, however the Irishman opted to join season 19 of The Ultimate Fighter rather than wait for the call from the UFC to come.

In a Ultimate Fighter first, Pendred did not have to fight for his place to get into the house, as other did, after the UFC could not find a fighter to take him on for various reasons.

Picked 3rd by Team Penn, Pendred kick-started the season by defeating Hector Urbina in the quarterfinals via unanimous decision. In the semifinals, he lost a razor-thin split decision to now-finalist Eddie Gordon, a bout which many feel, including Dana White should have gone the other way.

His opponent, Mike King (5-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) defeated Nordine Taleb to earn a place in The Ultimate Fighter season 19 house, before losing a close decision in the quarterfinals Eddie Gordon,  in a bout where King suffered a gruesome eye poke but continued to fight despite the injury.

A talented wrestler, Mike King has never been the distance in his 5 professional fight career dating back to 2011 with 4 submission - 2 due to strikes, and 1 TKO. When he steps into the octagon to face Pendred it will be 18 months since his last professional bout, excluding his time in TUF. 

With the addition of Pendred vs King UFC Fight Night 46 includes:
Conor McGregor vs. Diego Brandao
Zak Cummings vs. Gunnar Nelson
Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett
Ilir Latifi vs. Tom Lawlor
Cody Donovan vs. Nikita Krylov
Phil Harris vs. Neil Seery
Trevor Smith vs. Tor Troeng
Naoyuki Kotani vs. Norman Parke
Patrick Holohan vs. Josh Sampo
Mike King vs. Cathal Pendred

Stay tuned to kingdomMMA.co.uk for all the latest on UFC Fight Night 46 Dublin

Kingdom MMA 2013 Awards: Domestic Fighter of the Year

Kingdom MMA Domestic Fighter of the Year Award 2013: Brett Johns

by Ben Heather @benheather

The main reason we set up this website was to help promote the amazing talent which the UK and Ireland has and so this award is one of my personal favourites.

2013 has been a great year for MMA throughout the world and domestic MMA has been no different. Cage Warriors has been on fire this year, this week Cage Warriors 63 will be their fourteenth event of 2013 and the quality of the fighters and the fights that have taken place has been incredible. Also, BAMMA have chipped in with a couple of events this year and although they have not put on the quantity of cards that Cage Warriors have the events they have staged have been just as good again showcasing the talent we have in the UK and Ireland. All you have to do is look at the current roster of British and Irish UFC fighters who have signed in the last couple of years and chances are they have fought for one of these two organisations.

There is nothing I love more than seeing our athletes in this case fighters showcasing their skills to the world and we have picked what we feel are the cream of the crop in 2013.

At the start of the year not many casual fans knew the name Luke Barnatt let alone had seen him fight. That being said, they do now. Luke has had a good year by starting the year in the TUF house and being picked first overall by Chael Sonnen before making his full UFC debut and winning twice this year including a very impressive submission win against Andrew Craig at UFC Manchester. Next up for Luke is a fight on the UFC's return to London in March '14 where he will square off and try to keep his record undefeated against Mats Nilsson.

Also making big waves in the UFC and picking up a pair of victories in the octagon was Ireland's Conor McGregor. He started the year (OK it was last year but only a by a few hours) by becoming a two weight Cage Warriors champion as he captured the lightweight title in his home town of Dublin on New Years Eve 2012. Then signed for the UFC making a very impressive debut by Knocking out Marcus Brimmage and securing the KO of the night bonus. He then followed that up in August by getting a unanimous decision win over Max Holloway. Unfortunately for McGregor he got injured in that fight and it ruled him out for the rest of the year but I am sure we will see big things from him in 2014.

Conor's team mate Cathal Pendred has also had a very impressive year and deserves a lot of respect. He started the year as challenger for the Cage Warriors welterweight title at Cage Warriors 52 where he faced then champion Gael Grimaud, he won that fight via unanimous decision to become the new champion. Next up Cage Warriors set him the challenge former UFC fighter Che Mills at Cage Warriors 55. Cathal controlled the fight from start to finish and it was only Che's corner throwing in the towell that prevented the one sided beating from continuing. Like Conor the second half of the year Cathal has not been back in the cage but I am sure you will all see a lot more from him on your Tv's in 2014 alongside BJ Penn and Frankie Edgar....

Brett Johns has also had a perfect year going 4-0 in 2013. He started the year with a submission victory in February before following that up with a TKO victory at Cage Warriors 54 then in September came the highlight of his short career so far. Brett was included in the Cage Warriors tournament for the bantamweight title and fought twice in one night in his home nation of Wales to become the new champion.

Another young fighter who has really made his mark this year is Arnold Allen. Arnold like Brett only became a professional fighter last year and has taken his record to 6-0 with four impressive wins this year. In his last three fights he has also stopped each of his opponents and in the process increasing his reputation as one to watch for the future. At just 19 years old Arnold certainly deserves a lot of credit for the year he has had and always backs up his reputation as an explosive fighter who will fight anyone, anywhere.

Although each of the above fighters certainly deserve the award there can only be one Winner and that is: Brett Johns.

As I have already said 2013 has been a great year for Brett Johns. He has shown he can finish fights this year by finishing his first two opponents of 2013. He showcased his submission skills by finishing Joe Orrey via armbar in his first fight of the year. Then at Cage Warriors 54 went on to finish James Macalister by TKO. Brett won that fight with great ground control before finishing the fight with some brutal ground and pound. Although he won that fight by TKO my personal highlight was when Brett locked in a standing d'arce choke in the first round but couldn't quite get the finish.

Then on September 14th at Cage Warriors 59 Brett was included in the Cage Warriors Bantamweight Championship tournament, a two fight four man tournament to crown the new Cage Warriors Bantamweight champion. The format was a semi final fight which consisted of 2x 5 minute rounds and if required a third overtime round. Then in the final the two winners of the semi finals would meet in a 5x 5 minute round fight to crown the new champion.

Brett went in to the night as a massive underdog and as part of the prelims for the night was first matched up with David Haggstrom in his semi final. That fight ended up going in to the third round but Brett was announced the winner via unanimous decision. In the other semi final James Pennington defeated Kris Edwards but was unable to proceed to the final due to an injury which meant that Jordan Desborough who had also already fought beating Timur Mercanoglu via second round TKO was promoted to fight for the title. Now Brett was going in to a 5 round title fight for the first time in his career against a guy he had not even prepared for. After fighting for all five rounds meaning Brett had fought 8 five minute rounds on the same night. When the decision was announced Brett was crowned the Cage Warriors bantamweight champion.

For any fighter to go a full calendar year undefeated having fought 4 times is impressive enough but to do so the way Brett Johns has deserves a lot of respect for this reason we have named him our domestic fighter of the year 2013.

Congratulations Brett you have been crowned Kingdom MMA’s 2013 Domestic Fighter of the Year – Brett Johns Kingdom MMA we salute you.

Fighter vs Writer: Cage Warriors Champion Cathal Pendred predicts UFC Fight Night 26 (THE RESULTS)

Fighter vs Writer: Cage Warriors Cathal Pendred predicts UFC Fight Night 26 (The Results)

by Ben Heather @benheather

On Saturday night Cage Warriors Welterweight champion Cathal Pendred stepped in to the hot seat to challenge Kingdom MMA in the latest Fighter vs Writer feature.

This week we put forward the big man himself, the man who started it all, our Editer and Co Owner Chris Houten. Not to put any more pressure on Chris than he already had facing a very talented competitor but we hoped he could do better than he did last time out against another Cage Warriors Champion in Jim Alers. In Chris' previous appearance on Fighter vs Writer he lost in what is still Kingdom MMA's only defeat.
Below you will be able to see the results as the fights happened. It was a closely contested battle and Cathal certainly proved to be a respectable opponent for Chris.

The Scoring

If you predict the correct winner of the fight you will get one point and if you predict the correct method of victory you will get an extra point. However, if the fight ends in a stoppage and you predict the round as well the method you could earn a third bonus point. If the fight goes the distance you can only earn a maximum of two points.

UFC Fight Night 26 Results

Conor McGregor Def. Max Holloway by Decision

• Cathal Pendred: McGregor by TKO Rd 1 - Score 1
• Chris Houten: McGregor by TKO Rd 1 - Score 1

Score after the 1st fight: Cathal Pendred - 1 Chris Houten - 1

Michael McDonald Def. Brad Pickett by Sub RD2

• Cathal Pendred: Pickett by Decision - Score 0
• Chris Houten: Pickett by Decision - Score 0

Score after the 2nd fight: Cathal Pendred - 1 Chris Houten - 1

Michael Johnson Def. Joe Lauzon by Decision

• Cathal Pendred: Lauzon by Sub Rd 1 - Score 0
• Chris Houten: Lauzon by Sub Rd 1 - Score 0

Score after the 3rd fight: Cathal Pendred - 1 Chris Houten - 1

John Howard Def. Uriah Hall by Decision

• Cathal Pendred: Hall by TKO Rd 2 - Score 0
• Chris Houten: Howard by Unanimous Decision - Score 2

Score after the 4th fight: Cathal Pendred - 1 Chris Houten - 3

Matt Brown Def. Mike Pyle by TKO RD1

• Cathal Pendred: Pyle by Sub Rd 2 - Score 0
• Chris Houten: Pyle by Unanimous Decision - Score 0

Score after the 5th fight: Cathal Pendred - 1 Chris Houten - 3

Urijah Faber Def. Yuri Alcantara by Decision

• Cathal Pendred: Faber by Unanimous Decision - Score 2
• Chris Houten: Faber by Sub - Score 1

Score after the 6th fight: Cathal Pendred - 3 Chris Houten - 4

Travis Browne Def. Alistair Overeem by TKO RD1

• Cathal Pendred: Overeem by TKO Rd 1 - Score 0
• Chris Houten: Browne by Unanimous Decision - Score 1

Score after the 7th fight: Cathal Pendred - 3 Chris Houten - 5

Chael Sonnen Def. Shogun Rua by Sub RD1

• Cathal Pendred: Sonnen by Unanimous Decision - Score 1
• Chris Houten: Sonnen by Unanimous Decision - Score 1

Score after the 8th fight: Cathal Pendred - 4 Chris Houten - 6

FINAL SCORE CATHAL PENDRED - 4 CHRIS HOUTEN - 6

Kingdom MMA would like to thank Cathal Pendred once again for his participation in Fighter vs Writer and would all like to wish him good luck at trying to get in to the house for the next series of TUF. For more on Cathal Pendred, check out and follow Cathal on Twitter - @PendredMMA

Fighter vs Writer: Cathal Pendred - UFC Fight Night 26

Fighter vs Writer: Cathal Pendred - UFC Fight Night 26
by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

Joe.ie & Cage Warriors

Welcome to another Kingdom MMA fighter vs writer challenge.

For this challenge we challenge some of the big names from the world of MMA to give us their picks and fight outcomes for specific MMA events. Then they will be challenged by one of our writers, who will make their own predictions. Previously we have challenged the likes of Luke Barnatt, Jim Alers, Mike Wilkison and Phil Harris. Last time out at UFC 163, Mike Wilkinson was defeated by 2 point by Tommy, leaving Jim Alers the only fighter to beat one of our Kingdom MMA writers.

This weeks opponent needs no introduction. One of the biggest prospects on the European scene, he is the current Cage Warriors Welterweight Champion, holds impressive victories over Gael Grimaud, Che Mills and many more, and is a team mate of Conor McGregor. He is Cathal Pendred and you can expect to see him taking UFCs welterweight division by storm within the next 18 months.

The Scoring
If you predict the correct winner of the fight you will get one point and if you predict the correct method of victory you will get an extra point. However, if the fight ends in a stoppage and you predict the round as well the method you could earn a third bonus point. If the fight goes the distance you can only earn a maximum of two points.

The Predictions


Chael Sonnen vs Shogun Rua

Pendred: You never know what you're going to get with Shogun. He can sometimes look like that world class fighter that won the Pride tournament, but at other times he looks very average and even sluggish. You always know what you're going to get with Chael and his style is generally very effective.

Prediction: Chael Sonnen - Unanimous Decision 

Houten: This is a big fight for both guys, with both needing to avoid a loss to save the curtains coming down on their careers. Shogun has looked up for it in the lead up to the fight, and could knock Chael out if he keeps the fight standing. Unfortunately I don't think he will be able to stop Sonnens relentless grinding style.

Prediction: Chael Sonnen - Unanimous Decision

Alistair Overeem vs Travis Browne
Pendred: These big boys are most likely gonna hit each other with big shots early and one of them will probably go unconscious. If that doesn't happen we might see a 3 round sloppy affair where both guys gas out. Lets hope not.

Prediction: Alistair Overeem - TKO (RD 1)

Houten: I think this is the fight Overeem gets found out in - no roids, no good. I expect him to look a little sluggish compared to the athletic Browne. I think Browne grind on Overeem, gets a few takedowns and wins this one.

Predictions: Travis Browne - Unanimous Decision

Urijah Faber vs Yuri Alcantara
Pendred: Faber always brings it. And he is world class, but unfortunately just falls short of being a champion. I haven't seen many of Alcantara's fights, but looking down his record he looks very good. I think this one will go the distance, unless Faber manages to slap on one of his viscous guillotines.

Prediction: Urijah Faber - Unanimous Decision 

Houten:Alcantara is a pretty serious guy, but hes not a patch on Faber. I think Faber will catch Alcantara with a big shot in second and finish the fight by submission.

Prediction: Urijah Faber - Submission

Matt Brown vs Mike Pyle
Pendred: Great welterweight fight here. Both guys are on a serious run here and a win for either will be huge. Pyle definitely has the experience advantage here and I think they'd going to play the difference here. The majority of Pyle's wins have come from submission and the majority of Brown's losses have come by submission.

Prediction: Mike Pyle - Submission (RD 2) 

Houten: This fight could be fight of the night. Both a savy vets who are competent in pretty much all areas of MMA. This fight is a pick 'em if ever there was one, but I'm gonna go with Pyle. I think Pyle has the ability to take more punishment, and might be the deciding factor in what could be an electric fight.

Prediction: Mike Pyle - Unanimous Decision 

Uriah Hall vs John Howard
Pendred: Howard is usually welterweight and I think Hall is a bit over rated because of that infamous KO. I'm really not sure about this one.

Prediction: Uriah Hall - TKO (RD 2)

Houten: John Howard has been knocking fools out since he was cut from the UFC, and say 185 is where he is best at. The problem is he is nowhere the stiker Hall is. I do however think Hall might be a little overrated thanks to the highlight real he produced against a bunch of cans in TUF, and I question whether he has the bottle to hack in on the big stage.

This fight is hard for Hall than people think. I think Howard could take this one - it will be a bit boring the way he does it but I'm having Howard as a dark house.

Prediction: John Howard - Unanimous Decision

Joe Lauzon vs Michael Johnson
Pendred: Lauzon is a submission machine and I don't rate Johnson too much. I actually think this fight is a bit of a mismatch.

Prediction: Joe Lauzon - Submission (RD 1) 

Prendred: The UFC must has decided the want rid of Johnson cause this fight is a major mismatch. Johnson is on a 2 fight losing streak to guys that our half the fighter that Lauzon is. Expect this one to end in Lauzon collection a bonus, and Johnson collection the US equivalent of a P45.

Prediction: Joe Lauzon - Submission (RD 1)

Brad Pickett vs Michael McDonald
Pendred: This is an incredible fight. I can't believe how little attention it's getting! Both guys are awesome, the only thing I can separate them by is experience, which Pickett has more off (although McDonald did fight for the title).

Prediction: Brad Pickett - Unanimous Decision

Houten: The fact that this fight is on the undercard shows how deep the line up for UFC Fight Night 26 is! No. 5 vs No.3 is worth of a main card maybe even main / co-main event on some cards.

I have been thinking about this fight all day, and I' struggling to pick. I can make cases for either guy, and while I deep down I think McDonald is probably the better fighter, I can't go against my man Pickett.

Prediction: Brad Pickett - Unanimous Decision

Conor McGregor vs Max Holloway
Prendred: MY MANNNN!! Conor can finish this fight wherever he wants! Unfortunately for Holloway the fight starts standing. The fight might last 2 rounds because I think Holloway will respect Conor's power and keep his distance. But if I predict anything less than a first round finish for Conor he'll kill me!!

Prediction: Conor McGregor - TKO (RD 1)

Houten: Simple - Holloway way came out in the press this week slating the media attention McGregor has received this week, and I expect him to come out feeling like he has something to prove. I expect Holloway to go toe-to-toe with McGregor in the first round and get knocked out for his trouble.

McGregor deserves the attention he has received, he is a start in the making. Here's hoping a big win sets up a fight on the Manchester card against some one like Nick Lentz or the winner of Poirier / Koch

Prediction: Conor McGregor - TKO (RD 1)

So that's our predictions for the fights, we will be live tweeting on Saturday night as always and we will keep you all informed as to how the challenge is going with latest scores throughout the main card.

Thanks again to Cathal for providing us with his picks for this weekends fights and it just leaves me to say.... May the best man win!!

Pendred vs Mills now a 3 round non title fight after Mills misses weight

Cage Warriors 55 weigh in results

Cathal Pendred and Che Mills (Photo: Dolly Clew | Cage Warriors)

Cathal Pendred’s CWFC welterweight title will no longer be on the line at Cage Warriors 55 after Che Mills failed to make weight this afternoon. The pair were scheduled to do battle for Pendred’s belt in tomorrow evening’s main event at The Helix in Dublin.
However, while the fight will still go ahead over three rounds instead of five, Mills’ failure to make the contracted weight means the strap unfortunately won’t be at stake. Mills will also surrender 25 percent of his purse to Pendred.

Mills later took to twitter to apologise "Firstly I must apologise to @CageWarriors & the fans. Nobody to blame but myself & making no excuses." He then went on to say "I just hope that everyone still tunes in to cagewarriors.tv". Mills finished by saying "It is gunna be a war which I will WIN no doubt about it!"

Elsewhere, there were no problems for Neil Seery and Mikael Silander ahead of their historic CWFC flyweight title fight, with both fighters coming in under the 125lbs limit.

MAIN CARD

Welterweight: Cathal Pendred (champion, 169.5lbs) v Che Mills* (170.7lbs)
Flyweight: Neil Seery (124.8lbs) v Mikael Silander (124.1lbs) – inaugural CWFC flyweight title bout
190lbs catchweight: Chris Fields (188.7lbs) v Norman Paraisy (189.3lbs)
Lightweight: Marc Allen (154.7lbs) v Paul Redmond (155.8lbs)
139lbs catchweight: Steve McCombe (139.2lbs) v Jean N’Doye (140lbs)

FACEBOOK PRELIMS

Welterweight: Piotr Ptasinski (168.8lbs) v John Redmond (170.9lbs)
150lbs catchweight: Stephen Coll (148.9lbs) v Liam James (147.5lbs)

NON-STREAMED PRELIMS

Middleweight: Sam Francis (183.8lbs) v Konrad Iwanowski (184.8lbs)
Bantamweight: Gavin Kelly (135.9lbs) v Ben Rees (135.7lbs)

*Mills initially came in at 171.2lbs but failed to make the contracted weight within the two-hour limit; now a non-title bout to be contested over three rounds and Mills surrenders 25 percent of his purse to Pendred

Pro Picks: UK MMA Cream of the Crop Weigh In on Pendred vs Mills

Pro Picks: UK MMA Finest Weigh In on Pendred vs Mills
By Chris Houten - @kingdomMMAChris 

On Saturday night Cathal Pendred will attempt to defend his Welterweight belt against Che Mills at The Helix, Dublin Ireland in possibly the biggest fight on the European MMA scene this year.

For weeks I have been debating who's going to win the fight, when I convince myself the striking of Mills will prevail, I can't help but remind myself of Pendreds wrestling skills. Over and over, I have decided then changed my mind again, to the point where you could confuse me for the summer weather in Britain.

So I decided to catch up with some of finest fighters in Britain, from Bamma Champions, to a Cage Warriors Champion, to a couple guys in the UFC and more, to see who they think will win on Saturday.

We surveyed 18 of the finest UK fighters..... and our surveys said:

Paul 'Semtex' Daley:
"I thinks it's a very interesting fight between to great UK fighters, both very powerful and athletic. In my opinion Pendred will win this fight with takedowns, dominance in the clinch and ground control."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

John Maguire:
"I Think Che Mills by TKO in the later rounds!"

Pick: Che Mills

Bradley Scott

"I don't think Pendred will be able to get Che down, he's a nightmare. Che will stay by the fence on purpose because he's strong defending takedowns. Pendred's no where near as Good a Riddle at wrestling. Che defo gonna win this."

Pick: Che Mills

Colin 'Freakshow' Fletcher:
"I'm going with Che! It's hard to adjust to the way the UFC do things I do think we saw the best of him in the UFC."

Pick: Che Mills

Jim Alers:
"I have my money in Pendred. I feel that he has what it take to beat anyone in the 170lbs division and have him grinding out a decision."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Rob Sinclair:
"I'm going with Che Mills."

Pick Che Mills

James Brum:
"I will definitely be tuning in to watch this fight. Both Pendred and Mills are very talented and dangerous fighters. I'm a big fan of Pendred so my money is on him. I believe he will be victorious and the Champion will retain his title."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Leeroy Barnes:
"I'm going with Mills."

Pick: Che Mills

Danny Roberts:
"The fight between Mills and Pendred will be a good fight. Mills good stand up and accurate striking where as Pendred  possesses the better grappling, he's more intense and will smother Mills work. Think Mills will start of strong but I can see Pendred capitalising with the pace and grappling taking it to a decision win for Pendred."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Matt Inman
"Pendred all the way for me."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Jack Mason:
"I am a big fan of Che Mills but I honestly think Cathal will just use his constant pressure, takedowns and pushing Che up against the cage to get the decision win and retain his belt."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Martin McDonough:
"My prediction is a decision win for Pendred. Even though I like Mills an he is a good fighter, I have been on the same Card as Pendred twice an he is really good at shutting people's game down and getting the win. I think he is a bit of a cardio machine as well and he is a unit for a welterweight."

Pick: Cathal Pendred 

Jason Cooledge:
"Pendred win decision."

Pick: Cathal Pendred

Matt Ewin:
"I can see Pendred trying to close the distance ASAP and try to bully Che up against the cage and work for the takedown from there, he won't be able to shoot in on Che with Che's reach and great foot work. But saying that Che's far to strong for Pendred and with his excellent striking the only way I can see the fight going is Che stopping Pendred in the first or very early in The second."

Pick: Che Mills

Mike Neun:
"I think Che Mills will win. My gut tells me TKO."

Pick: Che Mills

Jim Wallhead
"I have never watched Pendred fight but I hear good things, but I gotta back Che he is my mate I'm excited to see how it goes."

Pick: Mills

Curt Warburton:
"Pendred on points."

Pick: Pendred

Andrew Punshon:
"Mills to win by decision."

Pick: Che Mills

So there you have you have it 18 asked - 9 picked Pendred, 9 picked Mills... and I'm still none the wiser. All I know is we the fans can expect a hell of a fight on Saturday.
 

Mills on Pendred "He is determined to be in the UFC, I think when I punch him he'll have second thoughts"

Kingdom MMA interview Che Mills ahead of his Cage Warriors 55 Welterweight title fight

by Ben Heather @benheather

Today Kingdom MMA caught up with Che Mills and spoke about a range talking points including the UFC, signing with Cage Warriors, his fight this weekend and the UK MMA Expo to name a few subjects including an exclusive announcement about the UK MMA Expo.

On Saturday night Che makes his return to the cage at Cage Warriors 55 after being released by the UFC and he goes straight in to fighting Cathal Pendred in Cathal's hometown of Dublin, Ireland for the Cage Warriors Welterweight title. This fight is one of the most anticipated fights in UK MMA of 2013 and it has a really big buzz around the whole event.

Ben: This will be your first fight since being cut from the UFC. How did you find out you had been cut as some people found out on twitter?
Mills: I was also one of those that found out on twitter, then my manager rang saying he’d just seen it and it was then confirmed about an hour after that officially from Joe Silva via my manager.

Ben: Dana White criticised you for not trying to finish Matt Riddle at the end of your last fight and jumping on him. Did that bother you?
Mills: At the time yes, but not anymore. He is entitled to his opinion, and I respect that.

Ben: Did you feel harshly treated by the UFC? After all you went 2-1-1 in your time and then got cut. That's far from being the worst record in the UFC.
Mills: To be honest I don’t even think about it. It is what it is at the end of the day, and there is nothing I can do about it regardless of how I feel about it. I now look back at the whole thing as a learning experience.

Ben: Once you had been released did you get any offers from other organisations?
Mills: Yeah, my manager said that a few things had been offered, and not just in MMA! lol

Ben: What made you sign with Cage Warriors?
Mills: They have the most professionally run show in Europe. They consistently put on events and have a proven track record for doing so. They have a great distribution through all their media partners and have already shown that they provide their fighters with great exposure, such as the MTV documentary that I did. 

Ben: Do you feel your last performance against Matt Riddle was effected by it being shortly after your father passed away?
Mills: When I look back now, I think so, plus a few others things, such as injury and so on, but at the time I was focused and was ready to fight, so I did. I have no excuses, I got beat and that’s that. There is no shoulda woulda coulda!

Ben: In your last fight you were out wrestled by Matt Riddle. Have you changed anything in your training since that fight especially as Pendred has a decent wrestling game?
Mills: I am always working on my wrestling, as well as everything else. We have a great set up at Trojan Free Fighters and cover everything throughout the week and consistently work hard to improve in all areas.

Ben: How has the camp gone for this fight? How long ago did you start your camp for this fight?
Mills: Training camp has gone really well. It started beginning of April officially, but I am always training and stay in shape.

Ben: Do you expect Pendred to focus on using his wrestling as part of his game plan come Saturday night?
Mills: I would think so, that is what he tends to do, but I’m ready for everything. It’s about what I am going to do, that’s my focus.

Ben: What is your game plan for the fight on Saturday night?
Mills: Punch him in the face HARD, and win the title

Ben: We saw in your UFC debut that you have knockout power and with over half of your wins being by knockouts. Do you think you will be able to stop Cathal Pendred on Saturday night?
Mills: Yes

Ben: Would you say you feel more or less pressure heading in to this fight than you did during your spell in the UFC?
Mills: Now I feel less pressure all round, I spent a lot of time think about what I should say or do, rather than what I actually felt. This has all been part of the learn experience. I talk about this in the MTV documentary quite a bit so go check it out…. http://www.mtv.co.uk/sports/mma/video/the-che-mills-story

Ben: When will you be travelling over to Ireland?
Mills: We all travel on Thursday morning

Ben: Will you be taking a big group of friends and family with you as you will be going to fight in a hostile environment fighting Pendred in his home town of Dublin?
Mills: There is a few of the family and friend coming over, I know a few of the guys from the gym are coming over too. However I know that they’ll all be watching from home on cagewarriors.tv so I’ll certainly have the support with me.

Ben: Pendred seems to be talking about fighting in the UFC a lot ahead of this fight. Even going as far as discussing which UFC event he wants to make his debut on. Do you think he is looking past you and in his head already has the fight won?
Mills: Haha… I don’t know, he is determined to be in the UFC…. I think when I punch him he’ll have second thoughts.

Ben: what you think about Paul Daley saying you are not on his level?
Mills: I don’t think anything about it…. 

Ben: Without looking past Pendred but if you win on Saturday and become champion, would a fight against Daley be something that interested you? That's if it was possible for Cage Warriors to make the fight happen.
Mills: I would happily fight him, and if it’s on Cage Warriors then great.

Ben: Do you still have aspirations of getting a few wins under your belt and back in to the UFC?
Mills: At the moment all my focus is with Cage Warriors and becoming the champ, then defending the belt and continuing to fight the best in world

Ben: We recently broke the news on our site that in July you will be doing a signing/ meet and greet at the UK MMA Expo in Manchester. Do you have anything to say to the fans that will be coming to meet you at the expo?
Mills: I’m looking forward to it, it’s not often you get the chance to meet the fans all in one go like this so I’m excited. I will also be doing a seminar so come along to that too.

Ben: If you win at Cage Warriors 55 can we expect you to bring your belt along to the UK MMA Expo so the fans can get a picture with you and your title?
Mills: There is no if about it…. 100%

Ben: Would you like to say thanks to anyone or any sponsors?
Mills: Yes thanks a lot. Want to say thanks to Dan my manager (UI Management) and Paul Sutherland my head coach at Trojan Free Fighters, he puts everything together to ensure that I am ready. All my sponsors, Sci-MX Nutrition, Pride or Die, MMA Apparel, Vita Coco UK, Sport Kitchen, Smuggling Duds, Glos Pain Relief Clinic, NutriFit, UK MMA Expo. Of course all the guys at Trojan Free Fighters and Paul Middlewood for all the beasty conditioning sessions.

Thank you very much to Che Mills for taking the time to answer our questions so close to his title fight.

As Che mentioned the exclusive announcement regarding the UK MMA Expo is that he will not only be there to meet fans for photos and autographs but he will also be at the UK MMA Expo to run a seminar too. Full details of the seminar will be released on the UK MMA Expo website in the next few days and tickets for the Che Mills seminar will be on sale very soon.

For all the details about the UK MMA Expo check out their website http://www.ukmmaexpo.co.uk/.

Che Mills first fight for Cage Warriors since UFC release announced

Che Mills gets a welterweight title shot at Cage Warriors 55

By Ben Heather @benheather

Cathal Pendred (12-2-1 MMA) will put his Cage Warriors welterweight title on the line against Che Mills (15-5 MMA). This will be Pendred's first title defence and will be against Mills who has recently been cut from the UFC. Mills will fight for his first time since signing for Cage Warriors.

Promotion Officials announced the bout on Friday. The fight will headline the Cage Warriors 55 show which will take place on June 1st at The Helix in Dublin.

Pendred is 5-0-1 fighting for Cage Warriors and will look to defend the title for the first time in front of his hometown crowd. He won the title at Cage Warriors 52 where he won a unanimous decision over Gale Grimaud.

Pendred spoke about the announced fight "Fighting in my own backyard in a venue full of crazy Irish fans against a guy who was in the UFC until very recently, I couldn't have asked for a better way to defend my title for the first time, I can guarantee that the calibre of my opponent and the atmosphere the Irish fans will create is going to bring out the best in me."

Mills this past month was cut from the UFC following a loss to Matt Riddle at UFC on Fuel TV 7, although this fight was later changed to a no contest when Matt Riddle tested positive for Marijuana after the fight. Now Mills will return to Cage Warriors to fight for the first time in more than two and a half years, having last fought for Cage Warriors at Cage Warriors 38 in October 2010.

Mills stated "I'm really excited about the opportunity, this fight will be a war but I'm not leaving without the belt."

Along with the welterweight title fight as the main event, the co main event is likely to be the final of the recently announced four man one night flyweight tournament which will also be a title fight. The winner of this tournament will be the inaugural 125lb champion. The format of the tournament is likely to see two fights take place in the prelims with the winner of each fighting each other in the final.

Keep checking KingdomMMA for more news on Cage Warriors as well as all the latest news from the world of MMA.