Derwent Park, Workington, once again played host to a Clash of the Titans event and yet again, after a couple of setbacks, the event did not disappoint.

The event was hit by the late withdrawal of Jan Lysak from the professional MMA main event due to family reasons which left his opponent Tony Mustard having to kick his heels up.

It was instead headlined by an MMA bout between Craig Kenmare, of Whitehaven, and Ike McNeill fighting out of New Blood MMA, Carlisle.

The bout went the distance and was an excellent showcase of striking, grappling and submission defence from both men who gave there all.

The first round was won by McNeill and the third belonged to Kenmare. The second round was a subjective one, with a strong case for both fighters. In light of that the decision to award the contest as a draw was a correct one by the judges at cageside.

That’s the second contest between the two, who showed tremendous class and respect afterwards, with talk of a third bout which all who witnessed would love to see.

In the boxing bouts, Nottingham’s Kev Barker, a tough and skilled operator, was the latest to crumble under the power of Whitehaven’s monster heayweight Gary Wood.

Hurting him with shots to the head and body Barker gamely got up from a knock down but a further huge body blow brought his night to a speedy end.

Wood has now knocked out all four of his opponents with a total of 10 knockdowns scored along the way.

Alfie Poole put on, without doubt, the best performance of the night as he faced off against Blackpool’s Lewis Loftus.

Loftus showed huge heart as he managed to get the contest into the second round after enduring a torrid first round under a barrage of four and five punch combinations that were finding their mark to both the head and body.

And when floored with a body shot for the second time his corner opted to end the contest.

Poole is a real star in the making at only 18 years old, a joy to watch and is improving every time.

Whitehaven’s John Ennis was faced with a late opponent change and whilst losing his unbeaten streak he turned in his best performance to date in taking the experienced and dangerous Wayne O’Neill of Blackpool.

The clash went the distance, Ennis losing on the judges’ scorecards. The fight was a big learning curve for Ennis and he answered alot of questions with his performance even in defeat.

The show’s Prizefighter, in memory of popular local rugby player Kieran “Skully” Poole saw all eight entrants battle to the end.

David Hodgson, Richard Hodgson, Frazer Ross and Daniel Gilmour progressed after doing enough to catch the eye of the judges.

With COTT 19 now in the history books, the next show will be staged on Saturday, July 22 at St Benedict’s Rugby Union Club, Whitehaven. Tickets are priced at £25 with £5 from every ticket sold donated to St Benedict’s.

Tickets can be bought from the club direct or call 07478 654646.

Clash of the Titans would like to thank the Pink Banana tattoo studio of Workington, Isaac the Barberman of Workington and Jim Youngman Carpets, Whitehaven, for their kind support of the event.