On January 22nd, 2022, Almighty FC 22 took place from the Rainton Arena in Houghton Le Spring. In the main event, Shajidul Haque captured the Almighty FC flyweight championship by stopping Poland’s Igor Wojtas in round four. In the co-main event, Lithuania’s Mantas Kondratavičius defeated Jack Comby by TKO in round two. A fight of the year candidate, which left everyone in attendance on their feet applauding. The opening professional contest saw Liam McCracken kick-start his professional MMA career with a round one TKO over Matthieu Moya.
The rest of the fight card lived up to the expectations. A handful of fighters made the claim for the £300 bonus. Almighty FC promoter, Ray Thompson, will announce the bonus winners on Friday.
Is Shajidul Haque the Best Unsigned European Flyweight?
Leading into the main event, Ace MMA fighter Shajidul Haque was eager to prove he was the best unsigned European flyweight. I think he may have just made the case. After a gruelling back and forth fight, Haque finished Igor Wojtas in round four by TKO.
Haque is known for his relentless pace and brutality, never to take his foot off the gas. He loves to smother opponents with volume and pressure. It took until the fourth round until Haque could really implement that, due to Wojtas eating everything Haque threw and continuing to walk forward and stay in the fight.
Eventually, over the four rounds, the damage taken by Wojtas was too much. Haque had opened up the toolbox using his full arsenal of attacks. Chopping up the legs, digging at the body and landing elbows flush on Wojtas’s forehead, leaving him with a face full of blood. As tough as Wojtas is, it was a great decision to call the fight and live to fight another day.
Haque wanted to prove that he was not done yet in the sport. With two back-to-back wins, it remains to be seen what’s next for the thirty-one-year-old. However, he did express an interest in returning to Cage Warriors for another stint.
Jack Comby and Mantas KondratavičIus Put On a Show
There are memorable fights that always stick with you, and this is one of them. The sheer heart and toughness on show from Jack Comby and Mantas KondratavičIus had the Rainton Arena on their feet.
Lithuania has a new prospect on their hands in Mantas KondratavičIus. KondratavičIus made a huge statement in the co-main event taking out the heavy-hitting Jack Comby. The two middleweights went straight after each other from the opening bell with no intention of feeling each other out. It was blow for blow for two rounds. Both men exchanging bombs, tagging each other, looking to secure that performance bonus.
Throwing everything but the kitchen sink took its toll on both fighters, who were exhausted and slugged it out in a phonebooth type fight until one man fell. Comby showed his toughness and grit to hang in there, but the onslaught from KondratavičIus was too much, and he heads back to Lithuania with 1-0 as a professional.
Liam McCracken Returns With a Bang
The highly-anticipated professional debut of Aspire MMA’s Liam McCracken lived up to the hype at Almighty FC 22.
Before Saturday’s contest, McCracken had been out of action for two years. The question was asked if the twenty-year-old would be rusty due to the long haul of inactivity. But, he shut down any conversation in regards to ring rust.
McCracken displayed a rejuvenated version of himself and seemed to relish the moment and whole process of competing again in front of the bus full of supporters who made the trip to get behind him.
It didn’t take McCracken long before he had Moya against the cage landing vicious elbows, which followed by initiating his grappling. With McCracken on Moya’s back, it seemed like the beginning of the end for the Frenchman, whose corner tried to talk him out of a bad position, but McCracken was always one step ahead.
The finishing sequence occurred in the centre of the Octagon when McCracken had Moya mounted hammering down elbows and punches, which forced the referee to stop the contest, which was followed by a roar from the travelling supporters.
Dylan Cuthbert Has Arrived
Force Fitness’s fighter Dylan Cuthbert put the amateur circuit on notice with his round one TKO victory over Amaan Qayyum and made his claim for the new performance bonus.
The featherweight wasted no time exchanging shots in the centre of the cage, which resulted in Cuthbert and Qayyum being dropped and hitting the canvas together. Both fighters scrambled back to their feet, and within seconds Cuthbert had landed a sniper-like right hand clean on the jaw of Qayyum, which ended the fight.
Considering Cuthbert was making his amateur debut, he looked like someone who had been in there plenty of times before. Cuthbert’s striking looked sharp. His overall body mechanics and movement was on-point for someone that’s never stepped foot in the cage and competed. Force Fitness have an exciting talent on their hands.
Paul Lally Showcases His Potential
Higher Level MMA’s Paul Lally showcased his potential and set the tone for the remaining fights at Almighty FC 22. The young prospect latched on to Joel Storey’s neck multiple times, eventually choking his opponent unconscious in his amateur debut, also setting himself up to snatch a £300 bonus.
Lally’s outing was a testament to the hard work the Scotsman has been putting in behind the scenes. At such a young age, with the great training partners and coaches at his disposal, the sky’s the limit for young Lally, who is hoping to get back in the cage by the Summer.
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Featured image credits to Almighty Fighting Championship
