British belt on the line at sold-out Lock-In night
Josh Ozanne's battle for a British Championship belt is set to headline an electric fight night at the long-awaited Lock-In Round Seven.
Guernsey’s biggest mixed martial arts show is finally returning on Saturday after a gap of nearly five years since the last edition, attracting a grand reception – all 825 tickets have been sold.
Spectators will be treated to a 14-bout programme in the octagon at Beau Sejour, but the culmination will arrive when the Black Rock MMA head coach contests the British lightweight Muay Thai belt against Pisces Jersey’s Pedro Fernandez, the current holder.
‘Everyone’s trained their heart out for this comp, so I’m excited to see all of them – not that I’m going to see any of them, because I’m heading off the card,’ Ozanne said.
‘I feel good. I’ve trained hard for it.’
Ozanne has not fought since 2019 and, in addition to the standard disruption from Covid, had to deal with multiple surgeries to overcome a retinal detachment.
He has switched temporarily from MMA to Thai after struggling to find an opponent initially, resulting in him matching up against a Caesarean rival he has sparred with, but never fought officially.
‘I like Pedro, nice person to be honest, but it is what it is,’ he added.
‘Go in there and the job done.’
The first five bouts will be head-to-heads between Black Rock clubmates, while the next nine will pit Guernsey prospects against those from visiting camps in Jersey or the UK.
Over half of the Guernsey fighters are making their debuts.
‘For some of the newer fighters, it’s really good for them to get the experience,’ he said.
‘It’s a phenomenal show. We get a lot of the officials over who have ended up working some of the much larger events in the UK, and they always say how well the Lock-In’s run in comparison to even some of the much, much larger shows.’
The entire sports hall will be in use for the show, which will also come with improved light, sound and visual effects to create a spectacular event.
Shane Rosamond of organisers Cage and Stage Promotions is expecting a memorable show.
‘We believe this will be the glitziest fight night that the island has ever seen, with two large screens to ensure all of the action can be seen even if the action goes to grappling on the cage floor,’ he said.
Lock-In Round Seven schedule
1, Lightweight boxing: Joe Wilson v Jake Fletcher.
2, Cruiserweight boxing: Dom Boyce v Dom Simon.
3, Light middleweight K1: Jack Migasiuk v Hugo Birch.
4, Lightweight K1: Clayton Taylor v Alex Atkinson.
5, Light heavyweight K1: Joe Joyce v Reece Gilman.
6, Middlweight Muay Thai: Fin Aitkin v Pharrell Taylor (Blood Fitness Jersey).
7, Featherweight K1: Braden Bougourd v Mo Kafila (Pisces Jersey).
8, Welterweight Muay Thai: Lewis Bentley v Luke O’Connor (Blood Fitness Jersey).
9, Women’s Super Lightweight Muay Thai: Georgia Blumsom v Laura Douglas (Pisces Jersey).
10, Light Heavyweight Muay Thai: Johan Pols v Ralph Pickering (Blood Fitness Jersey).
11, Lightweight MMA: Joe Graham v Sam Pearce (Gracie Barra Jersey).
12, Featherweight MMA: Matt Iwon v James Jeune (Gracie Barra Jersey).
13, Super Lightweight MMA: Lewis Bourgaize (Black Rock) v Lucas Smith (Manchester Top Team UK).
14, Lock-In British Light Weight Muay Thai Championship belt: Josh Ozanne v Pedro Fernandez (Pisces Jersey).
