Welterweight prospect Omiel Brown left the Braehead Arena in Glasgow, Scotland with an extra $50,000 to his name after winning the second-ever Cage Warriors “Prizefighter” tournament.
Brown overcame two opponents in one night to win the four-man welterweight bracket at Cage Warriors 176, earning him a significant payday for a regional-level fight and a future title shot.
Brown had a close battle in the tournament’s finals, using his wrestling to stifle the sharp striking of France’s Bourama Camara and win via split decision. The taller and longer Camara found himself tied up against the cage and on the ground, preventing him from unloading with combinations.
The few times that Camara had room to throw strikes, he would get through with hard shots. He most notably wobbled Brown late in the fight, hurting the British fighter and forcing him to wrestle his way out of the predicament.
Brown had a quick performance in his opening round fight, stopping Finnish prospect Henri Lintula in the first round with a series of punches to the body and follow-up ground and pound to the head.
Camara had a two-round decision victory against Marko Kisic in his semi-final fight.
The wins on Saturday for Brown line him up for a second-ever crack at the Cage Warriors Welterweight Championship. He previously tried to claim the title in late 2023 in a fight against “The Ultimate Fighter” alum Giannis Bachar but ended up losing in 50 seconds due to strikes.
The future opponent for Brown will be decided just later this month when former champ Bachar and current titleholder James Sheehan meet in the main event of Cage Warriors 177.
Hardwick Retains Lightweight Title In Return To Cage Warriors
George Hardwick had a successful five-round showing in his return to the regionals on Friday night, working toward a unanimous decision result against Cristian Iorga to defend his Cage Warriors Lightweight Championship for the third time.
Solid stand-up skills and the ability to stop a constant influx of takedown attempts allowed Hardwick to cruise toward a decision victory.
It became clear early on that Hardwick had the faster, more accurate and smarter striking, allowing him to out-land Iorga throughout the fight. The shots he landed on the feet made him the clear winner in all rounds, with Iorga failing to connect with anything that seemed like a sufficient response.
Iorga frequently attempted to get the fight to the mat, shooting for takedowns throughout the fight. While Hardwick would find himself on the canvas for brief periods of time, he mostly kept the fight at stand-up range.
Hardwick was returning to Cage Warriors after an unsuccessful push to join the UFC roster last year, losing on the 2023 season of “Dana White’s Contender Series.” The win on Saturday continued his reign of dominance in Cage Warriors, where he has been the king of lightweight since July of 2022.
Previous title fights saw Hardwick score finish wins over Yann Liasse and Chris Bungard.
Iorga was receiving a significant step-up in competition this weekend, coming over to Cage Warriors after mainly fighting talent in his home country of Romania.
Scotland went seven-for-nine on the night, including wins from Reece McEwan and Keir Harvie. Airdrie’s Jordan Stronge stopped Wesley Machado during the prelims, causing the nine-fight Brazilian vet to announce his retirement from MMA afterward.
Here are the quick results from Cage Warriors 176:
Main Card (3:30PM EDT / 8:30PM BST) (UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 14: Omiel Brown def. Bourama Camara via Decision, Split (Prizefighter Welterweight Final)
Bout 13: George Hardwick def. Cristian Iorga via Decision, Unanimous (Cage Warriors Lightweight Championship)
Bout 12: Andrey Augusto def. Chris Bungard via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 11: Reece McEwan def. Miguel Haro via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 3, 2:13)
Bout 10: Michael Blair def. Kye Stevens via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 9: Keir Harvie def. Rory Evans via Decision, Unanimous
Preliminary Card (12:15PM EDT / 5:15PM BST) (UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 8: Damon Donald def. Kallum Parker via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 7: Sean Clancy Jr. def. Rafael Aronov via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 1:08) (Tipsport Gamechanger Reserve Bout)
Bout 6: Bourama Camara def. Marko Kisic via Decision, Unanimous (Tipsport Gamechanger Semi-Final)
Bout 5: Omiel Brown def. Henri Lintula via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:43) (Tipsport Gamechanger Semi-Final)
Bout 4: Jordan Stronge def. Wesley Machado via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:12)
Bout 3: Ryan Campbell def. Shahram Hotak via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Charles Joyner def. Branden Guest via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 1: Ryan Hewitt def. Redgie Hingston via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 3:47)
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