Crash, bang, wallop - Fight Night hits the spot
It was a night of thrills, spills and sadly a couple of limps. CRN‘s white-collar boxing event was a resounding success once again, writes Sara Yirrell
Fight night: CRN's third annual whitecollar boxing event was yet again a resounding success
With more than 450 people packed into The Brewery at Chiswell Street in central London, the atmosphere at CRN Fight Night 2010 was anticipation-laden. And the action did not disappoint.
The evening kicked off with a welcome from headline sponsor Trend Micro, and then went straight into the first fight, between Joey ‘The Jackhammer’ Ghader from Comms-care and Menelik ‘Bad News’ Brown from CMS Peripherals. A good scrap saw ‘The Jackhammer’ snuff out ‘Bad News’.
Second in the ring were Carl ‘The Chopper’ Chapman from Eset and Phil ‘The Full’ English from CAE Technology Services. Chapman was pleased with his performance.
“Stepping into the ring and coming face to face with Phil, knowing it was going to be a tough fight, we danced,” he said. “We danced for three rounds, each one seeming longer than the last, more tiring then anything I had ever done before. I have been on cloud nine ever since the night!”
Chapman urged others to pull on their gloves for the event next year. “To anyone considering taking part, just do it,” he said.
English added: “The fight was good. Getting to that level of fitness was fantastic and I will definitely be keeping it up. Anyone that gets the chance to do this should give it a go.”
Kneesy does it
The third fight of the night – between Trend Micro’s Erik ‘The Hustler’ Hutslar and Westcoast’s Alex ‘The Unbeaten Eton’ Tatham – ended in the first round when Tatham’s old knee injury flared up. It was a disappointing result for Hutslar, who had flown in from the US especially for the event.
Tatham said: “I so enjoyed the whole thing. Training was great. The fight was sadly disappointing, but I loved the whole experience.”
After three bouts, the first of two auctions took place, with guests fighting over lots such as corporate tickets to a Chelsea FC match, Club Wembley tickets, cricket
memorabilia including a signed Kevin Pieterson boot, tickets to a Primal Scream concert and nights in a luxury Moscow hotel.
Before the next rounds, guests tucked into a three-course meal of a goat’s cheese tian, lamb, and apple desserts, with a few bottles of wine thrown in to wash it all down. By the time the fourth bout was announced, many guests were revved up and on their feet. The noise level in the room increased a good few decibels.
The fourth bout was a real battle of the titans, between Lee ‘The Machine’ Aberdein from Westcoast, and Dan ‘Dynamite’ Middleton from Kelway.
Middleton won the bout, and the black eye sustained during the fight didn’t dampen his euphoria.
“I had a solid black eye, which I quite liked having,” he said. “It was something to prove it happened. I am the fittest I have been for years. I haven’t smoked for three months and have lost 1.5 stone.”
Middleton said that the training has left him in good shape for his next challenge, fatherhood, with his baby due in a few weeks.
Lee Aberdein was gutted that he lost. “I was robbed!” he said. “Seriously, though, the experience was wicked. All in all, the fight was pretty much what I was expecting. Last year our marketing manager fought and I also watched all the fights from last year. It was a great experience to get in the ring and I have already told everyone at Westcoast to do it next year if they get a chance.”
Guvnor slain
The fifth bout was between Richard ‘The Guvnor’ Austen from Comstor and Gary ‘The Slayer’ Simpson. Again it was a closely fought battle with the audience getting fully behind both fighters. ‘The Slayer’ took the spoils.
Austen said he had battled a back injury to be there on the night. “It was 50/50 whether I would do it,” he said. “But I had trained hard
and it was a fantastic atmosphere, and nerves didn’t get the better of me. I would recommend it to anyone,” he added.
Sixth in the ring were Andrew ‘The Griffin’ Dickinson from Griffin Internet and Kevin ‘The French Resistance’ Moreau from Acronis. Despite a few patriotic ‘Enger-land’ cheers, both fighters had their fair share of support, with Moreau just grabbing the win.
“It was a good fight,” said Moreau. “I was booed by hundreds of people for being French, but it was all in good spirit. It is a bit scary and lonely leading up to the fight, but it was definitely all worth it. The entire experience was amazing.”
The seventh bout, between Eamonn ‘Red Bull’ Baulk and Paul ‘Here Comes the Pain’ Fontaine, was also stopped, due to Fontaine sustaining a severe ankle injury in the first few seconds. The disappointment on both their faces was sad to see.
The final bouts of the night saw Toby ‘The Real Deal’ Reynolds running out as the winner against Gerard ‘Hammer Head’ Marlow, and James ‘The Kingpin’ Foulkes seeing off Chris ‘The Clubber’ O’Leary.
O’Leary likened his experience to that of being best man (minus the punches to the face).
“You spend months preparing. You lie awake at night wondering about the outcome; nervousness and excitement both fight for emotional supremacy,” he said.
“Then you stand in front of everyone, the butterflies disappear, you deliver a performance that would make your father proud and once it’s all done, you have an ear-to-ear grin that won’t disappear for a week!”