BAMMA 22: Controversial Decision Sees Duquesnoy Retain Title

Brendan Loughnane and the majority of the packed crowd in Dublin's 3 Arena didn't agree that heralded French product Tom 'Fire Kid' Duquesnoy did enough to retain his featherweight title in BAMMA 22's main event last night.

Plastic bottles were thrown into the cage from Loughnane's travelling support as the decision was read out, and although many felt the Englishman's fans had every right to be upset, it was a bad finish to what was a very significant night for Irish MMA.

Thousands of fans packed out the arena that will host UFC Dublin on October 24, which is sure to be confirmed as one of BAMMA's biggest gates in the history of the promotion. The officiating for the event was overseen by IMMAF, and despite the oversized card boasting 18 contests, only four bouts went the distance on the night.

A new wave of exciting pros from the Irish emerged as Mark Andrew, Dylan Tuke, Rhys McKee, Frans Mlambo and Sinead Kavanagh recorded impressive finishes in their professional debuts.

The duration of the night's action might have had some impact on some of the crowd's overreaction to the decision for the main event. Although Loughnane seemed to clearly win the first round, a big takedown for Duquesnoy halfway through the second followed by a very close third round might have been enough to see him get the nod. The boos that rang around the arena after the official announcement suggested that it was not the general consensus amongst the spectators on the night.

Many feel that Duquesnoy is right on the brink of being signed by UFC, and although his performance didn't set the world on fire last night, the win can only bolster his stock on the international scene.

The co-main event supplied the biggest hometown attraction for the Dublin crowd on the night as Chris Fields took on French fighter Christopher Jacquelin. 'The Housewives' Choice' put in a strong performance in the first round and looked like he was close to finishing the bout as he transitioned from a kimura to an armbar.

The former Cage Warriors middleweight champion found himself in a bit of trouble towards the end of the second round after controlling the pace again, as Jacquelin began to work a high, closed guard. Locking up a triangle, the tap was forced from Fields with seconds left in the round, which silenced the Dublin crowd.

To add to the drama, footage of the first round revealed a potential tap from Jacquelin as Fields looked to finish with his kimura/armbar attack. Reviewing the footage backstage referee Marc Goddard claimed that the alleged tap was not substantial enough for him to stop the contest.

Although Alan 'The Apprentice' Philpott took a split-decision win over highly touted kickboxer Regis Sugden, the Next Generation Northern Ireland man did not walk away with the Lonsdale bantamweight title as he hit the scales four pounds over the 135 lbs limit on Friday.

After a tentative first round, the fight gained momentum in the second as 'The Apprentice' banked two takedowns, with Sudgen knocking the 22-year-old down twice to level out the playing field. Another big takedown in the third looked like it secured to fight for the Rodney Moore product as he won the majority decision from the judges.

The main card got underway with a big upset as Celine Haga submitted Catherine Costigan with an armbar in the first round. A large amount of the crowd in attendance came to see 'The Alpha Female' bounce back from her defeat to Amber Brown in her Invicta debut back in July, but the Pankration Kickboxing Academy's night ended early as Haga transitioned from a triangle into a tight armbar.

BAMMA's first event in Dublin, the thousands that attended the card proved that MMA is big business on the Emerald Isle even without UFC and Conor McGregor. Given that the European promotion has already booked the Irish arena for a return card in February, the Irish scene can only benefit from more professional cards taking place in the country.

Full Results:

Tom Duquesnoy def Brendan Loughnane via split decision (Featherweight title)
Christopher Jacquelin def Chris Fields via Submission (triangle) in Round 2
Alan Philpott def Regis Sudgen via majority decision (Lonsdale Bantamweight)
Celine Haga def Catherine Costigan via Submission in Round 1
Jack McGann def Jack Grant via TKO in Round 1
Paul Byrne def Conor Cooke via KO in Round 1
Marc Diakiese def Rick Selvarajah via TKO in Round 1 (Lonsdale Lightweight)
Kane Mousah def Myles Price via unanimous decision
Sinead Kavanagh def Hatice Ozyurt via TKO in Round 1
Frans Mlambo def Darren O'Gorman via TKO in Round 1
Lukasz Parobiec def Johnny Dargan via TKO in Round 1
Rhys McKee def John Redmond via Submission (rear naked choke) in Round 1
Dylan Tuke def Adam Caffrey via Submission (rear naked choke) in Round 1
Tim Wilde def Stephen Coll via unanimous decision
Mark Andrew def Sean Tobin via Submission (power guillotine) in Round 3
Patrick Wixted def Connor Dillon via TKO in Round 2
Alexandre Leite def Gerard Gilmore via Submission (triangle) in Round 2
Keith Coady def Arno Dos Santos via TKO in Round 1