Mike Hayes connects with a head kick against Jeff Monson in the main event

Cage Warrior Combat took over the ShoWare Center in Kent WA on Nov 2nd for an epic night of combat sports action. CWC IX saw it all with knockouts, submissions, and plenty more in the 14 professional bouts which featured both legendary and rising NW MMA stars. In the main event, Ring Demon's Mike "300" Hayes took on the one and only Jeff "The Snowman" Monson. Although 42 years old, Monson's wrestling and ground game, plus his experience in nearly 70 pro fights, made him a dangerous opponent for Hayes. Hayes though on his part fought a smart fight against Monson. The fight started with both men moving well and looking for openings. Monson went for takedowns but Hayes defended well, especially as the bout progressed into the later rounds. It turned into a standup battle and in the third, Hayes was able to catch Monson with his hands down, connecting with a head kick and putting him out cold. It was officially recorded as a TKO but this one was a pure knockout all the way.

In the co-main event, Matt Kovacs out-footworked the kickboxing legend and former UFC Heavyweight Champ Maurice Smith who turns 52 next month. Knowing how heavy and dangerous Smith's hands and leg kicks still are, Kovacs circled in and out and never stayed in front of Smith. Instead Kovacs looked to attack and move off on the angles, as well as score with timely takedowns. In the end, the judges awarded all three rounds to Kovacs for the win.

Coming in on short notice at just 177lb in his 185lb fight against Ivan Salaverry, Jerome Jones held his own against the 42 year old MMA legend. Jones had the advantage on the feet and worked from the outside to avoid takedowns. Salaverry used his head movement to avoid some of the big shots thrown by Jones, and was able to land a few punches when he would move in with combos. Jones had effective takedown defense and good ground defense. Salaverry though worked for the takedowns and never backed down, and the judges unanimously gave two rounds to your winner, Ivan Salaverry.

Fight of the Night was the 170lb fight of Ian Williams against 182lb opponent DaMarques Johnson, who was making his first appearance in the cage since getting cut by the UFC in 2012, partially due to problems making weight. In this fight with Williams, Johnson was over by 12 pounds and had heavy hands and lots of weight behind his punches. Williams though would survive the heavy combos when they came, and he landed his own punches and had superior footwork. Williams moved well throughout the fight and kept to a active pace, eventually battling his way to a split decision victory.

Knockout of the Night went to Clint Radovich with his effective gameplan against Josh Hewson. Radovich had a significant reach advantage on Hewson, but circled away every time the two were standing. It was Hewson that was attacking with combos as Radovich eluded him and went for the takedowns. After two solid rounds of controlling the stand-up, Hewson moved in on Radovich at the opening of the third and got dropped with a head kick just 21 seconds in.

Submission of the Night came in an impressive struggle between Amy Davis and Thea Wolfe. For the first two rounds, the pair clinched up and threw some nice knees; Davis securing a couple hip tosses each round. The ending moments of each round had Davis looking for submissions while Wolfe defended. Davis decided to get the takedown early in the third and give herself time to complete a submission against the tough Wolfe. Davis managed to trap an arm and went belly down initially, but Wolfe spun, rolled and stacked to try to escape. Davis held on, transitioning through different positions, but never letting go of the arm and finally getting the tap at 44 seconds of the third round.

Drew Brokenshire out-maneuvered Sterling Ford in their 145 lb bout. It was Brokenshire with the constant attack and range control that frustrated Ford, as well as vicious knees in the clinch. The ground game was Brokenshire's as well, but Ford had extremely effective defense. Any submission Brokenshire went for, Ford defended and forced Brokenshire to attack from a new position. A hard fought battle throughout, it was unanimous in the judges eyes that Brokenshire was the winner.

In a 145 lb matchup, Gabriel Solorio was able to get dominate position on Jonny Gilbertson in their ground scrambles. Gilbertson had a kimura in the first round, but Solorio grabbed onto Gilbertson's shorts to defend the submission. Gilbertson used the leverage to sweep Solorio instead and took top position. While Gilbertson held the advantage standing, it was on the ground that Solorio won the unanimous decision from the judges.

Despite an early stoppage by the referee, Aaron Martin secured a very deep guillotine on Rob Cann. Thinking Cann was out, the referee stepped in for fighter safety. Cann hadn't been hand fighting and was trapped with his back against the cage with Martin's hips in and arms locked in and over Cann's back. Cann protested the stoppage but it goes in the books as a TKO win for Martin at 1:51 of the first.

Zach Conn showed why he is known as 'The Beast' in his bout with Ben Fodor. Conn had cage control and was pushing a hard pace the entire fight. Conn was throwing combos and Fodor was answering with kicks and takedowns. Fodor spent much of the bout bobbing and weaving to avoid Conn's strikes, and at times was literally running away from Conn and back towards his own corner before facing Conn again. Fodor was the only one with takedowns however, while the landed strikes on the feet were close to even, giving Fodor the judges decision.

Andy Paves had a hard time getting Jack Santens to the mat, but when he did, he rode well and managed to maintain good positions. They both did well in the clinch, landing solid knees. Paves was able to get Santens down again in the second round and worked his way into a d'arce choke, forcing Santens to tap at 1:04 of the round. Paves moves to 5-1 with the win.

Nick Ryan and Victor Barajas both made their 145 lb pro debuts, but it was Ryan that came away with the victory. The two exchanged well on the feet with Ryan throwing effective knees in the clinch. Ryan got the takedown, but got swept and spent the rest of the first round breaking Barajas down into his guard and continuously attempting submissions. The second round Ryan positioned himself more dominantly and was able to get Barajas back and sink in a rear naked choke four minutes in.

Two great strikers met at 125 pounds, but Alex Corrales decided to take Chris Wheaton down instead of battling it out on the feet. Corrales was able to control Wheaton on the canvas, attempting multiple submissions that Wheaton defended. In the second round, Corrales continued his ground attack and succeeded in getting the TKO stoppage for his pro debut win at the 4:20 mark.

Debuting pro Ben Egli made short work of his 170 lb fight against Raven Guice. Egli quickly wrapped Guice up and threw on a triangle for the tap in the first minute of the first round.

Cage Warrior Combat returns to The Point Casino in Kingston WA for CWC X on Sat Nov 16th. More info at cagewarriorcombat.com or facebook.com/cagewarriorcombat.