OLive Reporting: Faniki Deche, Sports Editor, Adam Mountain, Co-Deputy Sports Editor, and Mihai Rosca, Second Year, Politics and Philosophy
Welcome to Epigram's live coverage of The Fighter Bristol 2024, here at The Prospect Building. We will be taking you right into what promises to be an action-packed night, with live reporting on all fifteen fights and the latest pre- and post-fight reactions from competitors, coaches and the crowd. Please refresh the page every few minutes to load the latest updates from tonight's clashes.
20:47 - That was a strong start from 'The Bear'. He has taken the fight to Bradshaw-Price, who hasn't look all that settled from the off. The crowd is very much behind Teddy on this one and it looks to be spurring him on.
20:44 - Next fight: In the red corner, out marches Ethan Bradshaw-Price, and in the blue corner, Teddy 'The Bear' Hunt.
20:41 - Ballistic Beth strikes like a missile! Clearly exuding an extra helping of confidence off the back of that second round, Beth continues with a strong round, landing another strong hook onto McKenzie, who did well to not go to ground again. What a victory for Ballistic Beth!
20:37 - A first knockdown of the night! Ballistic Beth struck ferociously there, knocking McKenzie off balance with a finely placed hook to the right cheek. She is fine to continue, and the referee allows play to carry on, but that might have just taken the dynamism out of the 'Mack-Attack'.
20:32 - Not teammates right now! We may not have been expecting friendliness between these two, but my word do they both want this win. The first round ends with both fighters landing heavy crosses onto the other.
20:29 - Next fight: The crowd are now up for this alright. In the red corner, Ballistic Beth sprints out, while Jess 'Mack-Attack' McKenzie walks out more cooly. Remember that these two compete as a team together for UBACCC...
20:26 - 'Knock 'em Dead' does just that! The third round saw Marshall just begin to take control. "Knock 'em Dead" Ned capitalises very well on a loss of footing from the Jagermeister, who perhaps had drank one too many before tonight. A dominant final round performance from Marshall, who takes the win by a unanimous decision.
20:22 - Who will be first to slip-up? The second round carries on much like the first. Both fighters unable to land anything more than a jab at the moment despite both showing high intensity in this fight. It does feel as though it will take one slip-up or one moment of brilliance to win this.
20:18 - A very well-matched contest this one is. Both fighters showing a real desire to get at their opponent. One slightly naughty moment as Marshall swings towards the back of Brooks' head, but the referee waves it on as no contact was made. The crowd are really getting up for this one.
20:15 - Next fight: In the red corner, a confident Jago Brooks, 'The Jagermeister' struts his stuff. This is then responded with an equally self-assured 'Knock 'em Dead' Ned Marshall in the blue corner.
20:11 - The crowd speaks: "Ned Marshall is going to absolutely smash him. I can't wait. It'll be done in round 2."
20:03 - There is a quick interval before the next fight. As expected, the crowd floods to the bar for a speedy top-up.
20:01 - The Rabbit takes the victory! The third round continued were we left off and we witnessed a dominating performance from Rabbit. As soon as the bell went she celebrated towards her corner, knowing that this one was a strong win. By a unanimous decision, it is the rabbit who in fact caught her opponent in a snag!
19:58 - Rabbit has suddenly burst into life! That will be an excellent win for her in the second round, landing a number of great strikes on the "Four ft. Fury", who looks a little out of depth right now. She needs to compose herself now.
19:55 - At a stand-off. Both fighters very clearly taking the first round as an opportunity to size each other up here. Other than a skim of a connected jab here or there, neither fighter has left much on the other.
19:53 - Next fight: Stepping out into the red corner, we have Kelsey "The Four ft. Fury" Abellana, and in the blue corner, steps Jessica Rabbit.
19:50 - Lights out, show's over, Francis has done it! I'm not sure what Francis' coach has said to her, heading into that final round but it has worked wonders for her. Much more aggressive from her in that final round, taking the round to Vuong and landing a very strong uppercut, which has clinched her the win.
19:46 - It has become increasingly scrappy between the two competitors, neither really able to land anything majorly substantial on the other. As we head into the final round now, this one is completely still there for the taking, especially as both begin to look a little slower on their feet.
19:43 - 'King Kong' has set the pace of the contest, keeping Francis generally on the move around the ring. The first round has seemingly gone the way of Vuong.
19:39 - Next fight: Walking out to Kendrick Lamar, in the red corner we have Emma 'King Kong' Vuong', and to Chase & Status in the blue corner, steps up Lauren 'Lights Out' Francis'.
19:34 - Henry 'The Hammer' takes the win! That final round was far better from 'The Hammer' who landed a crucial few one-twos right towards the end of the round. 'The Desert Storm' held in well for the first two rounds, but in the end 'The Hammer' comfortably dominated the final round, leading to a unanimous judges decision in his favour.
19:29 - The Hammer smashes! The second round is underway and Amara looked to have a stronger round, keeping Arbiter at his tempo of fighting and often up against the ropes. But 'The Hammer' may just have saved his round with a brilliantly landed hook. All to play for as we head into the final round.
1926 - A flying start: Both fighters have come out the blocks flying here! It is difficult to call which way that one has gone at the end of the first round, but the 'The Desert Storm' probably just edged it with a clean jab to the cheek.
19:22 - Here we go! In the red corner, out walks Henry 'The Hammer' Arbiter and in the blue corner, steps out Mehdi Amara, 'The Desert Storm'.
19:20 - All eyes lie front and centre. We are edging minutes closer to our first fight getting underway tonight and all eyes in this venue remain fixed on the currently empty ring. The noise is starting to reach deafening levels inside and I fear that once the night progresses (and a few more drinks have been consumed), we may well struggle to hear any walk-out songs. This place is rocking!
19:17 - "I'm angry and I will show it." Mihai spoke to Maximus Decimus Meridius, who will be fighting Jacob 'Bombastic' Browning: "He's about five inches taller than me, so I'm going to keep really close to him. I don't want to give him the space and control the distance. I will be constantly moving and on him like that. His mates have just given me a bit of anger so I will be using that."
19:08 - My predictions don't seem to be half-wrong, as I am now being informed of our first glimpse of a song. Flowdan will be featuring at some point this evening; we don’t know when or for who yet, but it is sure to get a rumble in this jungle.
19:06 - Pump up the jam! Right next to me I can overhear some entertaining conversations discussing what kind of music is best to walk out to. Do the fighters go for something stoic and calm to help them get in the zone, or something high-energy to get the adrenaline pumping? Surely some typically-Bristol drum and bass is certain to feature, but we shall have to wait a little longer to find out!
19:01 - Friends and foes. It’s definitely worth keeping an eye on a couple of these fights which are battling for sports society glory. Later in the night we will see Maddie ‘The Machine’ Worthington, University of Bristol Netball Club (UBNC), taking on Lauren ‘Lights Out’ Shaw, University of Bristol Women’s Hockey Club (UBWHC). That will be taking place after ‘Ballistic Beth’ fights Jess ‘Mack-Attack’ McKenzie, both of whom are members of University of Bristol Athletics and Cross Country Club (UBACCC). Any friendships will have to be put on hold for the next few hours or so.
18:57 - "I'm going to win and I expect myself to win": A very calm sounding George 'Gkiller' said, "I'm just going to try and keep my composure, I can't change anything at this point. I won't go too crazy and I won't lash out at the beginning." The 'Gkiller' is not going to let the occassion take over him, "This is the first time I've done anything like this, so I just want to stay as calm as possible and save all my energy for the fight.
18:50 - "I'll hopefully be showing my best performance tonight": Mihai joined Jago Brooks, 'The Jagermeister': "I'm feeling good, a little bit nervous obviously, but confident." He will be competing against 'Knock 'em Down' Ned Marshall, "The first round I really just want to work out what he's doing and feel out his weaknesses. From there I'm confident I can land a heavy blow."
18:46 - For club and country. There will be a number of fighters tonight who will perhaps be feeling the additional nerves that come with representing their sports society. Among the competitors we have football, hockey, netball and volleyball players, swimmers, and long-distance athletes. But while that may bring the extra pressure, no doubt we can expect to hear their teammates roaring them on. This could well prove to make the difference between victory and defeat for some of these fighters tonight.
18:40 - Best seats in the house. The venue change to The Prospect Building for this year’s fight has certainly paid off. With the ring fully circled by the crowd in this maximum 5,000 person capacity arena, I think we are in for a treat tonight. I must say I’m feeling very fortunate to be in this position right now, because I don’t think I could get a better view of the action if I tried. Laptop and notes with me, DJ booth underneath me and the ring right in front of me. What a time to be alive!
18:32 - Anticipation is high. It will be interesting to see how these amateur boxers will fare tonight, and whether the weeks of intense training will all be in vain or in the name of glory. The arena is filling up quickly in here as more of the crowd make their final journey from the bar, and there is a very tangible growing sense of expectation in The Prospect Building.
18:27 - Coming up tonight: This evening’s fight schedule is below, with our first contest beginning at 19:30. Each fight will be 3x2 minute rounds, where the judges will decide the winner at the end provided we do not have a knockout.
18:24 - And it's live! Good evening everyone and welcome to Epigram's live coverage of The Fighter Bristol 2024. My name is Adam and I will be bringing you all of tonight's drama on this page, while we have Faniki in the dressing rooms getting the latest from the fighters, and Mihai will be keeping us updated with reactions from our very excited crowd.
