Cage Warriors’ resident bodysnatcher claimed another victim as George Hardwick registered the first defense of his lightweight title with a crushing body shot finish of Chris Bungard at Cage Warriors 147.
Fighting in the main event of Cage Warriors’ latest “Unplugged” event at the BT Sport studios in Stratford, London, England’s Hardwick showed off his slick striking skills as he loaded up and ripped to the body of Scotland’s Bungard to earn the second-round stoppage.
Hardwick’s victory gave him his second consecutive body-shot finish after his attack to the body stopped American Kyle Driscoll to win the lightweight belt last time out at Cage Warriors 141 in July.
And his latest effort, a vicious left to the ribcage, folded up Bungard in the final minute of Round 2 to give Hardwick his first title defense, his seventh career finish, and improve his career record to an impressive 11 wins, one loss
All fifteen minutes were required in the night’s co-main event, as former featherweight champion Morgan Charriere was pushed all the way to the scorecards by Croatia’s Daniel Bazant.
Both men went back and forth as they went the three-round duration at a breathless pace as they traded big shots and scrambled on the mat in a bout that left the judges split in their final verdicts.
In the end, it was Charriere who got the nod, with scores of 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 to keep him in the title mix at 145 pounds. But, after such a competitive bout, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see them run it back at some point further down the line.
The earlier bouts on the card produced a trio of finishes, as Omran Chaaban, Jan Quaeyhaegens, and Will Currie all picked up stoppage victories.
Chaaban left it late to score his knockout of George McManus, but eventually got the job done with a crushing body shot mid-way through the third and final round, but things were much faster in the two bouts that followed.
Belgium’s Quaeyhaegens needed just 24 seconds to knock out Brazil’s Erick da Silva with a flying knee, while Will Currie bounced back from being dropped early to finish Michael Tchamou with vicious elbows from the mount mid-way through the first round.
Cage Warriors 147: Unplugged – Show 2 Results
- George Hardwick def. Chris Bungard via knockout (body shot) – Round 2, 4:37 – for lightweight title
- Morgan Charriere def. Daniel Bazant via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Will Currie def. Michael Tchamou via TKO (elbows) – Round 1, 3:05
- Jan Quaeyhaegens def. Erick da Silva via knockout (flying knee) – Round 1, 0:24
- Omran Chaaban def. George McManus via knockout (body shot) – Round 3, 3:12
