Cage Rage 23
Encyclopedia
Cage Rage 23: Unbelievable was a mixed martial arts
event held by the Cage Rage Championships on September 22, 2007 at the Wembley Arena
in London
, England
. It was televised on Sky Sports
in the United Kingdom.
The event was headlined by former British Heavyweight Champion boxer Julius Francis
vs Gary Turner
. Four title fights were also on the card; Cage Rage World Light Heavyweight Champion James Zikic
was to take on Vitor Belfort
, British Welterweight Champ Paul Daley
faced UK MMA legend Mark Weir
, British Heavyweight Champion Tengiz Tedoradze looked to defend his title against Mostapha Al-turk
, and Matt Ewin and Alex Reid
were to fight for the vacant British Middleweight Championship. Originally, Cage Rage World Featherweight Champion Masakazu Imanari
was set to fight Jean Silva
at the event, but Imanari pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Chris Brennan
. Imanari and Silva would later meet at Cage Rage 25
. Also, Zelg Galesic
was set to fight Alex Reid but he, too, pulled out and was replaced by Matt Ewin.
Mixed martial arts
Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...
event held by the Cage Rage Championships on September 22, 2007 at the Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena
Wembley Arena is an indoor arena, at Wembley, in the London Borough of Brent. The building is opposite Wembley Stadium.-History:...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It was televised on Sky Sports
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
in the United Kingdom.
The event was headlined by former British Heavyweight Champion boxer Julius Francis
Julius Francis
Julius Francis is a former British Heavyweight champion boxer - who participated in many noteworthy boxing matches in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2007 he also participated in a mixed martial arts bout....
vs Gary Turner
Gary Turner
Gary "Two Horns" Turner is an English professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist who fought in the Cage Rage and K-1 promotions. Turner was the K-1 UK Grand Prix champion in 2003 and 2004...
. Four title fights were also on the card; Cage Rage World Light Heavyweight Champion James Zikic
James Zikic
James Zikic is an English mixed martial artist and boxer. He competes in the light heavyweight and middlweight divisions for London Shootfighters MMA Gym.-Career:...
was to take on Vitor Belfort
Vitor Belfort
Vítor Vieira Belfort is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Belfort was born in Rio de Janeiro and studied jiu-jitsu with the Gracie family, namely Carlson Gracie. He received a black belt under Carlson and currently trains with Xtreme Couture, fighting in...
, British Welterweight Champ Paul Daley
Paul Daley
Paul Daley is an English professional mixed martial artist who has fought for EliteXC, Cage Rage, Strikeforce, BAMMA, Maximum Fighting Championship, Cage Warriors, Shark Fights, Impact FC, Pancrase and the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
faced UK MMA legend Mark Weir
Mark Weir
Mark Anthony Weir is an English mixed martial artist usually fighting in the middleweight division at 185 lbs. He has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and Pride Fighting Championships, and is the former Cage Rage British middleweight champion- Biography :Mark Weir lives in...
, British Heavyweight Champion Tengiz Tedoradze looked to defend his title against Mostapha Al-turk
Mostapha Al-turk
Mostapha al-Turk is a retired Lebanese-born English mixed martial artist and submission wrestler. He has trained with London Shootfighters for the past ten years. Turk was the ADCC European Champion in 2005 and was the British Cage Rage Heavyweight Champion, before relinquishing his title to sign...
, and Matt Ewin and Alex Reid
Alex Reid (MMA)
Alexander Aristides Reid is an English mixed martial artist, kickboxer and actor who used the nickname The Reidernator. Reid has fought for Cage Rage, BAMMA and Cage Rage UK...
were to fight for the vacant British Middleweight Championship. Originally, Cage Rage World Featherweight Champion Masakazu Imanari
Masakazu Imanari
is a Japanese mixed martial artist best known for his leglocks. He fights out of Team Roken in Kanagawa, Japan. He currently has a professional MMA record of 24–9–2 with notable victories over Danny Batten, Jorge Gurgel, Mike Brown, Robbie Olivier, Jean Silva and Yoshiro Maeda. He is a veteran...
was set to fight Jean Silva
Jean Silva
Jean "White Bear" Silva is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He held the Cage Rage lightweight title until he lost it to Vitor Ribeiro via arm triangle choke at Cage Rage 13...
at the event, but Imanari pulled out of the bout and was replaced by Chris Brennan
Chris Brennan
Chris "The Westside Strangler" Brennan is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. He was born in Compton, California at the Compton Community Hospital. He was the 3 time King of the Cage Middleweight World Champion where he was at one point the poster boy of that...
. Imanari and Silva would later meet at Cage Rage 25
Cage Rage 25
EliteXC Presents Cage Rage 25: Bring it On was a mixed martial arts event co-promoted by England's Cage Rage Championships and the United States' Elite Xtreme Combat that took place on Saturday, March 8, 2008 at the Wembley Arena in London, England...
. Also, Zelg Galesic
Zelg Galesic
Zelg Galešić is a Croatian mixed martial artist, currently fighting in Bellator Fighting Championships. He has previously fought in Cage Rage, PRIDE, DREAM, and Hero's...
was set to fight Alex Reid but he, too, pulled out and was replaced by Matt Ewin.
Results
- Welterweight bout (K-1K-1K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
rules):
Jason Barrett vs. Lee Doski
- Doski defeated Barratt via unanimous decision.
- Welterweight bout: Ross Mason vs. Che MillsChe MillsChe Mills is an English mixed martial artist. He is a former Cage Rage British welterweight champ, and holds 2 notable KO wins over DREAM Welterweight Champion Marius Zaromskis.-Early career:...
- Welterweight bout:
- Mills defeated Mason via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:07 of round 1.
- Light Heavyweight bout: Ed Smith vs. Roman Webber
- Light Heavyweight bout:
- Webber defeated Smith via unanimous decision.
- Super Heavyweight bout:
Neil GroveNeil GroveNeil Grove is a South African-born English heavyweight mixed martial artist currently signed with Bellator Fighting Championships. He holds a black belt rank of shodan in Gōjū-ryū karate...
vs.
Domagoj OstojićDomagoj OstojicDomagoj "Buco" Ostojić is a Croatian Super Heavyweight kickboxer and heavyweight mixed martial artist.-Kickboxing record:- Mixed martial arts record :| Loss|align=center| 3-2| Miodrag Petkovic| Submission...
- Super Heavyweight bout:
- Grove defeated Ostojić via TKO (punches) at 0:34 of round 1.
- British Middleweight Championship: Matt Ewin vs. Alex ReidAlex Reid (MMA)Alexander Aristides Reid is an English mixed martial artist, kickboxer and actor who used the nickname The Reidernator. Reid has fought for Cage Rage, BAMMA and Cage Rage UK...
- British Middleweight Championship:
- Ewin defeated Reid via unanimous decision to become the new British Middleweight Champion.
- Middleweight bout:
Xavier Foupa-PokamXavier Foupa-PokamXavier Foupa-Pokam is a French mixed martial artist from Paris. Foupa-Pokam is best known for his brief career in the Ultimate Fighting Championships in their middleweight division, and his long career in British MMA with promotions such as BAMMA and Cage Rage...
vs.
Pierre Guillet
- Middleweight bout:
- Foupa-Pokam defeated Guillet via KO (kick to the body) at 1:02 of round 1.
- British Heavyweight Championship:
Mostapha Al-turkMostapha Al-turkMostapha al-Turk is a retired Lebanese-born English mixed martial artist and submission wrestler. He has trained with London Shootfighters for the past ten years. Turk was the ADCC European Champion in 2005 and was the British Cage Rage Heavyweight Champion, before relinquishing his title to sign...
vs.
Tengiz Tedoradze (c)
- British Heavyweight Championship:
- Tedoradze defeated Al-turk via unanimous decision to retain the Cage Rage British Heavyweight Championship.
- Lightweight bout: Chris BrennanChris BrennanChris "The Westside Strangler" Brennan is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division. He was born in Compton, California at the Compton Community Hospital. He was the 3 time King of the Cage Middleweight World Champion where he was at one point the poster boy of that...
vs.
Jean SilvaJean SilvaJean "White Bear" Silva is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He held the Cage Rage lightweight title until he lost it to Vitor Ribeiro via arm triangle choke at Cage Rage 13...
- Lightweight bout:
- Silva defeated Brennan via TKO (punches) at 2:26 of round 2.
- British Welterweight Championship: Paul DaleyPaul DaleyPaul Daley is an English professional mixed martial artist who has fought for EliteXC, Cage Rage, Strikeforce, BAMMA, Maximum Fighting Championship, Cage Warriors, Shark Fights, Impact FC, Pancrase and the Ultimate Fighting Championship...
(c) vs. Mark WeirMark WeirMark Anthony Weir is an English mixed martial artist usually fighting in the middleweight division at 185 lbs. He has fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and Pride Fighting Championships, and is the former Cage Rage British middleweight champion- Biography :Mark Weir lives in...
- British Welterweight Championship:
- Daley defeated Weir via TKO (punches) at 2:14 of round 2 to retain the Cage Rage British Welterweight Championship.
- World Light Heavyweight Championship: Vitor BelfortVitor BelfortVítor Vieira Belfort is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Belfort was born in Rio de Janeiro and studied jiu-jitsu with the Gracie family, namely Carlson Gracie. He received a black belt under Carlson and currently trains with Xtreme Couture, fighting in...
vs. James ZikicJames ZikicJames Zikic is an English mixed martial artist and boxer. He competes in the light heavyweight and middlweight divisions for London Shootfighters MMA Gym.-Career:...
(c)
- World Light Heavyweight Championship:
- Belfort defeated Zikic via unanimous decision to become the new Cage Rage World Light Heavyweight Champion.
- Super Heavyweight bout: Julius FrancisJulius FrancisJulius Francis is a former British Heavyweight champion boxer - who participated in many noteworthy boxing matches in the 1990s and 2000s. In 2007 he also participated in a mixed martial arts bout....
vs. Gary TurnerGary TurnerGary "Two Horns" Turner is an English professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist who fought in the Cage Rage and K-1 promotions. Turner was the K-1 UK Grand Prix champion in 2003 and 2004...
- Super Heavyweight bout:
- Turner defeated Francis via submission (punches) at 2:17 of round 2.