CageworX MMA put on their second fight event 'Olympic Combat Challenge', with 13 MMA and 3 kickboxing matchups going down. A full turn-out at Vern Burton Gym in Port Angeles WA got to witness two of the most impressive amateur MMA fights of the year in the Co-main and Main Event title fights.

First up was the 185 pounders, Andrew Ramm (Hybrid MMA) and Larry Perreira (NW Elite). Perreira was sharp on his feet, side-stepping and counter-striking Ramm repeatedly, forcing Ramm to pressure Perreira to the cage in a clinch. While Perreira used uppercuts and hooks, Ramm softened up his opponent's legs and body with a succession of knees. Ramm captured a single-leg takedown, but Perreira bounced right back to his feet. In the 2nd Round, the fighters knew what to expect from each other standing, and would stall out in the clinch - so Ramm took Perriera down again to try out their ground skills. Both transitioned well, but it quickly turned into a defensive game for Perriera as Ramm moved smoothly through a choke submission chain of guillotine to side-choke to North/South choke, which Perreira fought his way through before regaining his feet to end out the round clinched against the cage wall.

Round 3 began with some serious leather slinging until Ramm slammed Perreira with a double-leg, ending in half guard. Perreira reversed and tried for a triangle but Ramm rolled out the back door and attacked the ankle. When Perreira took his back, Ramm twisted into him and ended up in guard looking for the ground and pound. Trying to break out of Perreira's break down, Ramm sat up high, giving enough room for Perreira to slip out through the legs, only to have his arm caught by Ramm. Perreira tried to roll out of the armbar, then stacked once Ramm was able to put him on his back. Ramm managed to stretch Perreira's arm out twice, but the end-of-round bell saved Perreira from having to tap. The highlight of the 4th Round was the toe-to-toe striking that knocked Perreira's mouthguard out onto the canvas, though both fighters continued to engage heavily.

The 5th Round was a game of reversal back-and-forth on the ground, until Ramm was able to secure mount and get Perreira to spin and turtle up. Using the back door, Perreira almost corkscrewed out of danger, but again had his arm caught - this time in a kimura. Perreira was again saved by the bell before Ramm could crank on the submission, sending this five-round bout to the judges who unanimously handed to Middleweight Belt to Andrew Ramm.

While this was a hard act to follow, Frank Pefferman (Bellingham MMA/ C3) and Chaz Fernandez (Reign City Athletics) stepped into the main event 135 lb title fight and impressed the crowd even more, with the contest proving to be Fight of the Night. There was no dull moment in this one with both competitors dangerous and skilled, throwing vicious strikes and kicks through all five rounds. Fernandez had beautiful combos, but Pefferman had superior head movement and slipped most every punch the 1st Round. The strikes that Fernandez landed were in the clinch as Pefferman landed solid knees. It was Pefferman that had the takedowns, but wasn't able to keep Fernandez down. In the 2nd, Fernandez began to unleash the dangerous kicks he is known for, prompting Pefferman to secure another takedown and work the body on the ground.

In Round 3, things got interesting. Both fighters managed to tag each other with some stunning strikes - Fernandez smiling and Pefferman moving in to remove the smile from his face. But more than once, the crowd saw both these men grinning at each other as they unloaded heavy hands. Pefferman got the double-leg takedown and dropped bombs on Fernandez who was able to slip many of the hammering blows Pefferman rained down.

In the 4th, Fernandez finally began to show fatigue, catching up to Pefferman who had been breathing heavily through the third. Seeing Fernandez conserve energy, Pefferman pushed the pace as Fernandez evaded. It was Fernandez's turn to secure a takedown, a very nice single-leg, and looked to return the ground and pound he had faced the prior round. Pefferman slipped and timed a brillant upkick that surprised Fernandez, then rocketed forward into a slick double, putting Fernandez on his back against the cage. Posting up to strike, Pefferman got his arm caught and stacked hard against Fernandez's armbar to finish out the round. Pefferman opened the 5th Round with a spinning back fist that didn't land clean, breaking his left forearm. Shaking it off, Pefferman continued the fight, landing well with his heavy right hand, but couldn't defend the takedown by Fernandez. Reversing out of side-control, Pefferman landed deep in Fernandez's guillotine. Pefferman managed to free himself and get back to his feet where he circled and tried to keep Fernandez at a distance. But once the 10 second warning blew, these two warriors engaged toe-to-toe and duked it out to the end of the fight. All three judges saw this incredible battle the same, and unanimously declared Frank Pefferman the new 135 lb champion.

Submission of the Night came in an exciting 170 lb match-up between Morgan Matuizek (Reign City Athletics) and Marcus Hanson (CageworX MMA). Matuizek was working effective striking on his feet, while Hanson utilized well-timed front kicks to keep his range. Matuizek changed tactics and battered Hanson's legs with kicks, forcing a clinch battle against the cage for the remainder of the first round.

Starting the second, Matuizek was even sharper with his hands, again prompting Hanson to close the distance to the cage wall. With a huge double-leg takedown, Hanson landed in Matuizek's guard and began to work for striking opportunites. Matuizek however worked for the triangle instead, but still had to struggle as Hanson fought hard to defend. Never letting go, Matuizek was able to finally positon Hanson where he needed to, earning the tap at 1:29 of Round 2.

The Knockout of the Night came in one of the three kickboxing matches on the night. This one between Garrett Aldritch (Hybrid MMA) and Josh Houk (White Crane Martial Arts) in a 150 lb catch-weight contest. Houk came out with fancy tae-kwon-do aerials that didn't connect while Aldritch came with heavy combos.

Aldritch quickly backed Houk against the cage with strikes and when Houk dropped his hands and tried to circle out, Aldritch knocked him out cold with a straight punch. The fight ended just 43 seconds into round 1.

An Honorable Mention for Submission of the Night goes to Curtis Iglesias (Evolution Martial Arts) in his 145 lb mma fight against Bryon Bowler (Reign City Athletics). Iglesias began the fight with good punch combos followed up with kicks, while Bowler loosened his heavy right hand in counterstrikes before getting the double leg takedown on Iglesias. Unfortunately, Bowler found himself in an armbar once they hit the ground. He stacked and tried to roll free, Iglesias rolled with him, flipping onto his belly and straightening the arm out forcing Bowler to tap at 0:57 of round 1.

The 145 pound bout between Bobby Grady (NW Elite) and Jake Blaski (CageworX MMA) ended abruptly near the end of the first round when an inadvertent strike to the back of Blaski's head by Grady forced a time-out by the referee. After assessing the situation, the ref called a stop to the fight at 2:32 for the safety of the fighter. Because it had been an illegal strike - though unintentional - Blaski was declared the winner, as Grady was disqualified. Hopefully there will be a re-match, as these two fighters were putting on an exciting round.

CageworX will hold their next event March 30th 2013 at the Vern Burton Gym in Port Angeles WA. Find out more about CageworX MMA at cageworx.com.