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Cage Warriors 172: Hardwick stops Prins, crowned featherweight king

Harry Hardwick joins his brother George as a Cage Warriors world champion after capturing the 145-pound title in Newcastle.

Harry Hardwick

Harry Hardwick joined his brother George as a Cage Warriors world champion after a relentless performance earned him a second-round TKO at Cage Warriors 172 in Newcastle.

Hardwick faced replacement challenger Orlando Wilson Prins after both men lost their original opponents for the event, with Dutchman Prins agreeing to move up the card to challenge for the vacant featherweight title at the Vertu Motors Arena.

Despite the short-notice nature of the matchup, the tension was sky high when Hardwick made his walk to the cage, as Prins stared him down from inside the cage throughout the walkout. When referee Marc Goddard read the pair their final instructions and invited them to touch gloves, both men declined.

But when the action got underway, it was virtually one-way traffic, as Hardwick put his foot on the gas and pushed the pace on Prins from the very start.

Hardwick mixed up his boxing smartly, working to the body and the head as he kept Prins on the back foot with controlled forward pressure and a near-constant striking output. For his part, Prins attempted to counter, and found a home for his punches on numerous occasions, too. But nothing the Dutchman connected with appeared to trouble the Englishman in the slightest as Hardwick continued his relentless forward pressure.

And, after Hardwick came close to getting the finish at the end of Round 1, he poured on yet more pressure after the restart to claim the victory mid-way through the second round.

Prins was already looking in trouble when he appeared to take a stray Hardwick finger in the eye. The action continued, however, and Hardwick unloaded more shots on Prins against the cage. Remarkably, Prins survived and escaped the predicament before unleashing big strikes of his own.

But Hardwick would not be denied. A spinning backfist from Prins connected clean and Hardwick responded by blowing his adversary a kiss. Then a head kick from the Dutchman also found its mark. Once again, Hardwick ate it with ease, then stepped into the pocked and folded his man with body shots to claim the TKO finish, and the vacant 145-pound title.

Harry Hardwick

Dolly Clew/Cage Warriors

The co-main event served up one of the fights of 2024 so far, as James Power and Daniel Kolanski delivered an instant classic in the first round of their lightweight battle. Kolanski came out firing as he threw everything but the kitchen sink at Power, who looked to respond in kind.

The Pole appeared to be in the ascendancy early, but as the round wore on, Power rose in stature and started to overpower his opponent with heavier, more destructive shots as he loaded up on his punches. And, as the first round came to a close, it looked like Power was mere seconds away from claiming a buzzer-beating finish.

Somehow Kolasinski survived, but his resistance was all but finished, and a jumping body kick at the start of the second round sent the Pole down against the fence, where a barrage of ground strikes finished the job for Power, who put himself right in the frame for a shot at the lightweight title, and a mouth-watering clash with reigning champion and fellow crowd-pleaser George Hardwick.

The night also saw a memorable finish for Kennedy Freeman, who battled back and forth with Brazil’s Gisele Libanio through two and a half rounds before unloading a huge punch to drop her foe and force a TKO stoppage in their bantamweight clash.

The rest of the card saw a feast of finishes with only one bout on the 12-fight card requiring the judges’ input. At lightweight, Leon Hill claimed a rear-naked choke finish of Tommy Hawthorn, while American Chasen Blair showed his continued evolution with a first-round armbar finish of Arturs Leisans. The other main card lightweight clash saw Aiden Lee claim his 12th career win with a rear-naked choke finish of Josh Abraham.

The prelims saw five out of six fights produce finishes. Jordan O’Neill and Charles Joyner both claimed body-shot finishes, while Joe Fields and Jack Humphries claimed submission victories via rear-naked choke. There was also a first career submission victory for Michael Tchamou, who defeated former amateur prospect Joe Ambler via anaconda choke.

Harry and George Hardwick

Dolly Clew/Cage Warriors

Cage Warriors 172: Official results

MAIN CARD

  • Harry Hardwick vs. Orlando Wilson Prins via TKO (body shots) – Round 2, 2:18– for vacant featherweight title
  • James Power def. Daniel Kolasinski via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 0:10
  • Kennedy Freeman def. Gisele Libanio via TKO (punch) – Round 3, 3:08
  • Leon Hill def. Tommy Hawthorn via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:28
  • Chasen Blair def. Arturs Leisans via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 2:12
  • Aiden Lee def. Josh Abraham via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:46

PRELIMINARY CARD

  • Jack Humphries def. Joao Dos Santos via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:00
  • Michael Tchamou def. Joe Ambler via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 2:27
  • Joe Fields def. Tom Wright via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 1:55
  • Charles Joyner def. Albert Serpeti via knockout (knee to the body) – Round 1, 1:07
  • Jackson Clarke def. Faudel Bentayeb via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-26)
  • Jordan O’Neill def. Thodoris Serdes via knockout (kick to the body) – Round 1, 1:18

A sports editor and MMA reporter with 25 years' experience in sports media, Simon has covered mixed martial arts since 2009 for a host of national and international outlets, including UFC, BBC Sport, MMA Junkie/USA Today, BT Sport and the Daily Mirror.

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