Cage Warriors 208 Results: Nik Bagley Retains Title as Favourites Dominate Card

Cage Warriors 208 saw the promotion return to London in style, with reigning champion Nik Bagley successfully defending his title and Jordan Vucenic inching closer to a UFC return.

Cage Warriors 208 made a triumphant return to London tonight, with favourites at the top of the night delivering a handful of finishes.

The promotion quickly returned after a busy last weekend which saw Cage Warriors 206, 207 and their new promotion, Cage Warriors Amateur Academy take place over a hectic few days.

Fighters scoring finishes at the top of the card made for a memorable night in the capital.

Bagley Defends on Home Territory

The main event saw defending featherweight champion Nik Bagley (8-1) defend his freshly claimed title against the dangerous 25-fight veteran Aiden Lee (15-10).

A back and forth opening sequence in the first round led to Bagley securing a takedown – which was quickly capitalised on by Lee, who synched in an arm-in guillotine from bottom position.

After the champion was able to defend, Lee let go of the submission attempt and accepted position for the next few minutes. Late in the round Lee was able to escape via a leg-lock attempt, with the final few seconds ending in a flurry of strikes between the two men.

Round two opened with Bagley throwing powerful combinations from the offset, which Lee attempted to stifle with his jab. Lateral movement then ensued until a takedown attempt from Bagley was able to move the two men against the fence.

From here, Bagley maintained the clinch, holding position for the next few minutes. The round ended with the men separated and the champion capitalising an already dominant round with hooks and uppercuts.

Round three’s crowning moment came about halfway through when Bagley landed a head-kick that badly dropped Lee. Despite Lee trying his utmost to survive the barrage that came his way, his back was eventually taken and a rear-naked choke sunk in – forcing the challenger to tap.

Bagley successfully defended his title for the first time in front of a hometown crowd.

Main Card Favourites Dwarf Opponents

Tariq Pell (7-2) opened up the main card with a victory over Luan Duarte (14-11). Pell made his welterweight debut following his a loss at lightweight earlier this year. After a rocky first round, Pell showed much improved grappling – maintaining control over his Brazilian opponent to glide to a unanimous decision victory.

Tipped as one of the next hot prospects, Manuel Del Valle (7-1) was able to overcome grizzled 28-fight veteran Michael Dubois (16-12). Dubois was able to use his physicality early to find success in grappling exchanges, before soon getting caught by the young Spaniard. After nearly finding a finish on the feet, Del Valle locked in a standing guillotine to get the win.

Ollie Sarwa (8-1) was able to bounce back following his first career defeat in March. The Stevenage man took on Italian Pietro Mochetti (5-2), who was riding a three fight win streak. Sarwa dominated from the opening bell, mauling Mochetti from top position before landing an elbow, followed up by ground and pound to earn the first round stoppage.

Former Cage Warriors lightweight champion Jordan Vucenic (15-4) was able to extend his win streak to three inside the promotion. ‘The Epidemic’ scored a knockdown in the first 24 seconds against short notice opponent Nonato Junior (19-13-1). After surviving momentarily, Junior was caught by a brabo-choke whilst scrambling, forcing him to tap.

Now 3-0 since his UFC departure, Vucenic will be eyeing a comeback to the organisation.