ZT Fight Night: Heavyweights Collide
Hove Town Hall, Hove, Brighton
30th January, 2010.
 

Dave Lethaby gives a run down of the event, fight-by-fight, as the UK's top heavyweights battled for the ZT title and £10,000 winner takes all prize fund.

First Round Fights

Rob Broughton vs. Neil Wain

Rob Broughton came through a tough tournament draw to stake his claim as the UK’s number-one heavyweight. “The Bear” met tough striker Neil Wain in his opening bout which stood out amongst the rest of the first round draws. Wain started quicker and after a brief feeling out process began to beat Broughton to the punch on a number of occasions. Wain’s hands looked crisp and Broughton seemed to be struggling early on with his opponent’s footwork and pace.Renowned for his excellent chin, it was a testament to Wain's punching power that he was able to drop Broughton midway through the first with a well-timed hook.

In a one night tournament involving fighters with differing styles and strengths, the ability to change game plan will always be of huge importance to those looking to progress. Broughton seemed to realise he was getting the wrong end of the exchanges and looked to shorten the distance between the two men, utilising the clinch and dirty boxing. Eventually a number of clubbing left hands began to cause major swelling around Wain’s right eye. The round ended with Broughton picking up more momentum although Wain’s knockdown probably earned him the first period.

Broughton again looked to close the distance early in the second but instead of striking from the clinch "The Bear" looked to sink in a tight guillotine, forcing a tired and bruised Wain to tap 1:16 into the second round.

James Thompson vs. Tengiz Tedoradze

In the same side of the draw, James Thompson took on veteran Tengiz Tedoradze who returned to the cage after a near two year layoff. On paper the matchup looked like a classic striker vs. wrestler contest with big hitter Thompson taking on the wrestler Tedoradze. The matchup would play out differently in reality, however, with Thompson actually shooting in and securing an early takedown. From there Thompson showed excellent ground control moving to side control and later briefly taking Tedoradze’s back.

Tengiz would survive to regain his feet and then began a prolonged period of stand up action. Although both men were landing punches, surprisingly, Tedoradze looked to be landing the cleaner shots, putting together a number of successful left and right hand combinations. For every shot scored by Tengiz, Thompson would answer back with clubbing left and rights that looked to shake Tedoradze on a number of occasions.

The second round began with another fast paced standing exchange. With his first round grappling success in the bag Thompson again looked to take the action to the floor securing another impressive takedown. From there he began to land some heavy ground and pound, eventually stopping Tedoradze 2:55 into the second. The result set up a rematch with Broughton. Thompson suffered a loss at the hands of "The Bear" back in 2006 under the Cage Rage banner.

Joe Vedepo vs. Miguel Bernard

A tragic last minute back injury for Martin Thompson meant the ZT promotion had to look to American Joe Vedepo to save the tournament at the eleventh hour. Vedepo had been part of Michael Bisping’s training camp in the Wolfslair and, despite usually competing at middleweight, the American’s walk around weight of 210lbs proved to be more than enough for his first round opponent.

Taking on debutant Muay Thai fighter Miguel Bernard, the American executed a seamless takedown before using his submission background to end the fight early, securing a slick looking Armbar a mere thirty-three seconds into the first round.

Oli Thompson vs. Steve Day

Former Strongman competitor Oli Thompson also wasted no time despatching his first round opponent Steve Day. Thompson rushed his man from the bell, securing a big takedown before landing some furious ground and pound. With the fight back on the feet Thompson landed a stiff right hand flush on the jaw, knocking Day out just 1:16 into the first.

Semi Finals

Rob Broughton vs. James Thompson

Ever since a three-round war back in 2006, a rematch between two of the UK’s most popular fighters has been eagerly anticipated. With both men looking in fine form in their first round outings and the £10,000 pound prize one step closer, the stage was set for fireworks. James Thompson continued to impress those in attendance with his excellent use of takedowns and ground control.

Taking Broughton down, Thompson spent the majority of the first in top position landing ground and pound. With the fights being fought over 2x5 minute rounds (with a third sudden death round in the event of a draw) Thompson was effectively 5 minutes away from fighting in the £10,000 final.

He looked even closer to the final after securing another takedown in the second and again continuing to work ground and pound from top position. Perhaps realising he would be behind on the score cards, Broughton picked up the pace. Regaining his feet, Broughton tempted his opponent into trading hands and from there the Wolfslair fighter dramatically swung the fight in his favour. Shaking off some stiff Thompson jabs Broughton landed a brutal left-right combination, sending his opponent crashing to the floor.

Broughton followed his man down to the floor to land some further ground and pound with referee Grant Waterman stepping in 2.28 into the second.

Oli Thompson vs. Joe Vedepo

The other semi final perhaps fell short of the first due in part to some unfortunate stoppages. Illegal knees were the culprit with both fighters being guilty.

The first round began with both men engaging in a clinch. With the action hitting the floor, Thompson managed to impressively hold his own against the slick grappler Vedepo. Referee Grant Waterman would have his hands full later in the fight with Thompson initially landing a knee to the groin of Vedepo during a furious stand up exchange. Later Vedepo himself would be deducted a point due to an illegal knee to the head of his downed opponent, Thompson. Add to this the fact that the crowd noise meant the bell to end the round wasn’t heard and you get an idea of the drama involved in this short fight.

Amongst the confusion and accidental shots it also seemed apparent Thompson may have been feeling the pace.

Smelling blood in the second, American stand in Vedepo clinched his man, utilising his dirty boxing and later a heavy looking knee. Grant Waterman had seen enough and stepped in to declare Vedepo the winner via TKO 1:24 into the second round. Waterman’s stoppage would end up a blessing in disguise for Thompson as during one of the stand up exchanges his American opponent suffered a broken hand, leaving him unable to meet Broughton in the final. Due to other fighters on the bill suffering KO losses, Thompson was deemed the most suitable replacement for Vedepo in the final.

Rob Broughton vs Oli Thompson - £10,000 final 3x5 minutes

The big question mark over the final matchup was whether Thompson would have sufficiently recovered from his previous fight to challenge Broughton. We were to get the answer over a three round period as relative newcomer to the sport Thompson showed incredible heart to take Broughton the distance.

Thompson came out swinging in the first period, resulting in Broughton employing similar clinch and strike techniques that he used to shut Neil Wain down in his first victory of the night. Broughton peppered his man with dirty boxing and knees to the body, Thompson (somehow still standing) looked to push his man back and land big shots on the breaks. Broughton took further control of the bout in the second with "The Bear" now controlling the stand up range at distance as well as in the clinch with crisp jabs. Thompson looked to land leg kicks and single strikes from the outside, despite taking shots in all ranges the locally based fighter was still game and in the fight.

The third round followed a similar pattern with Broughton still firmly in control of the action. Thompson’s heart was on show again as a failed takedown attempt would see him caught in a nasty looking standing guillotine with his back against the ropes. Thompson survived the choke only to end up receiving a number of knees to the body for his trouble. As the men separated Broughton was given a reminder that, although clearly up on the cards, Thompson was still in the fight as the former Strongman narrowly missed with a flying superman punch. Broughton ended the round with a number of crisp jabs rocking his oncoming opponent backwards.

The judges returned the unsurprising Unanimous Decision in favour of the £10,000 pound tournament winner Broughton. Credit to Oli Thompson for giving those in attendance a thrilling final and further credit to the event organisers for putting the show on despite a host of pre-event setbacks. 
 

Broughton celebrating his victory, courtesy of MMAPics.com