Jake Hadley controlled Luke Shanks for five rounds on Thursday to become the new Cage Warriors Flyweight Champion.
The unanimous decision win for Hadley was in the main event of Cage Warriors 117 from the York Hall in London, England.
Hadley was able to control Shanks for most of the rounds with takedowns, forcing Shanks to always be defending. The grinding performance from Hadley won him most of the rounds on the scorecards.
Hadley had Shanks in trouble late in the first round, attempting a rear naked choke before the round ran out of time. Hadley scored a takedown earlier in the round after being rocked by an uppercut.
The win for Hadley continues his undefeated run as a pro, earning him his seventh victory.
Shanks’ previous fight was in September, where he defeated Samir Faiddine via decision in a one-sided title bout.
Hadley won his Cage Warriors debut in September, stopping Shajidul Haque within one round.
Creasey Stops Aramasinghe In The Third With Punches
Sam Creasey earned a stoppage victory in the co-main event, defeating Adam Amarasinghe in the third round with strikes. Creasey closed out a back-and-forth striking battle with a combination of punches on the feet that forced the referee to step in and stop the fight.
A right hand dropped Amarasinghe halfway through the second round, although he was able to work up to his feet a minute later. Creasey was put together strong strikes on the feet for the rest of the round.
The loss concluded a two-fight win streak for Amarasinghe which was developed in 2020 with wins over Jake Bond and Connor Hignett.
Creasey had won on Cage Warriors’ previous card as well, defeating Nicolas Leblond in September.
Martignoni Protects Undefeated Record In Comeback Performance
Undefeated Italian talent Michele Martignoni made a comeback to win his Cage Warriors debut on the card, defeating Weslley Maia via decision. Martignoni bounced back from a rough first round, defeating Maia in the following rounds to tip the scorecards in his favour.
Maia landed a right hook in the first round that dropped Martignoni. Back on the feet, Martignoni was hit with a flying knee from Maia.
Martignoni had a strong second round, landing a series of punches and attempting a rear naked choke from the back of Maia.
Riding the momentum of the second round, Martignoni scored a takedown early in the third round to get on the back of Maia again.
Martignoni’s most well-known win is a six-second knockout over Simone D’Anna on a Bellator card in 2018.
Maia’s previous bout saw him defeat Adam Wilson with punches.
Lakhdhar Delivers Explosive Left Hook To Defeat McIntosh
Mehdi Ben Lakhdhar extended his undefeated pro record on Thursday, stopping Steve McIntosh with a left hook in the first round.
Hurting McIntosh with a series of punches late in the round, Lakhdhar closed the show with the left hook that dropped McIntosh and finished the fight.
The lightweights were in firefights early in the bout, with both fighters landing hard punches in the opening minutes of action.
Lakhdhar’s Cage Warriors record is now three wins and one draw.
McIntosh entered the fight after a seven-fight run on the regional scene.
Stephen Out-Grapples Sonmez For Win
Aiden Stephen returned to the win column to kick off the main card, taking a decision win over Emrah Sonmez. The grappling heavy matchup saw Stephen do the best work throughout.
A large portion of the second and third round consisted of Stephen on the back of Sonmez.
Stephen’s previous fight was in September, where Paul Hughes submitted him with a rear naked choke.
Sonmez last competed in November of 2019, where he defeated Daryl Golding.
Full Results:
Bout 7: Jake Hadley def. Luke Shanks via Decision, Unanimous (Cage Warriors Flyweight Championship)
Bout 6: Sam Creasey def. Adam Amarasinghe via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 2:51)
Bout 5: Michele Martignoni def. Weslley Maia via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Mehdi Ben Lakhdhar def. Steve McIntosh via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:38)
Bout 3: Aiden Stephen def. Emrah Sonmez via Decision, Unanimous
Preliminary Card
Bout 2: Michal Figlak def. Anthony O’Connor via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 0:17)
Bout 1: Adam Cullen def. Oscar Ownsworth via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 2:53)
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