CAGE WARRIORS 73 - Saturday 1st November

An article by student, Will Charnley, Northumbria University... Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is an exciting and vast world to be a part of, escpeically if you're new to it, like me. Being a Literature student, I could do with more extreme sport in my life. Luckily, this Saturday November 1st, Newcastle Metro Radio Arena is hosting the Cage Warriors 73 event. Newcastle based www.fightstorepro.com, one of the UK’S leading suppliers of MMA and sporting equipment, has asked me to look into Cage Warriors 73 as an MMA virgin. At £35 a ticket (purchased on the www.cagewarriors.com website) it seems a decent price for any arena-based show. The last time I attended an arena-production it hardly seemed worth it (Nickelback have wained in their later years) so it is interesting to come across a performance with a bit more punch to it, if you can allow me the pun. Cage Warriors 73 hosts fourteen different fights throughout the night, two of which are unaired, which puts the value at around £2.50 a fight. If this is your kind of show, it sounds like a pretty good investment. Divided into two main halves, Saturday’s event focuses on the vacant Featherweight world title bout, and the Lightweight world title bout. The Lightweight championship continues on from Cage Warriors 60. It is being defended by current CWFC lightweight world champ, Stevie Ray, and challenged by Curt Warburton. The Featherweight category currently has no champion. Saturday will see the succession of either Alex Enlund or Nad Narimani. Though initially viewed by some as a simple and aggressive sport, I have come to see this as something of an art or performance. Not that what is happening isn’t real, but more that it is carried by the confidence and the skill of the fighters involved, just as with any performance. Alex Enlund was quoted as saying "I can't see myself not being the Cage Warriors champion” with reference to Saturday night. He reminds me of a rockstar working himself up into a state of surety and determination that makes all the most memorable musical events stick in our memories. Who knows if he will live up to his strong words, but certainly MMA, in its own way, whisks its fans away in the sheer epic display of proficiency in these fights. Northumbria University even has an MMA squad taught by Steve Ritson and supported by Northumbria Sports. With students from all backgrounds taking part and getting active, Newcastle seems like a prime location to hold such an event. Our student population could probably use a powerful show, and definitely a kick up the bum. Cage Warriors 73 will be the 12th Cage Warriors event of 2014, with other fights recurring in London, Denmark, and Jordan. 73 will be broadcasted globally with most of Europe, the USA and Canada, Africa and the Middle East tuning in via live TV. The Mail Online will be live streaming it globally. Doors open at 4:30pm. Will Charnley