All the issues mentioned above need to be thoughtfully considered. I'm not saying that there are any easy answers, but steps do need to be taken to address the issues outlined.
Cagewarriors Strike Force was the first MMA event held in Coventry. It was an excellent night which exceeded all expectations and saw not only 10 great MMA bouts but also drew 2850 people to the venue. As for the incident at the end of the night a copy of the DVD has been made available to the police who are investigating.
The violence at the end of the night was actually timed and recorded as being 4 minutes long.
Cagewarriors would also like to point out that the instigators of this incident were football hooligans from neighbouring Birmingham and not MMA fans. These people were sat in the stands and invaded the VIP area. It was originally stated in some news sources that the VIPs started this incident off, which is incorrect.
As previously mentioned the police are reviewing the DVD and are hoping to bring charges to those they can identify.
Since this incident Cagewarriors, along with their partners Warrior Promotions, the Skydome and the police have been in talks and the security issues have been reviewed and Cagewarriors will be able to use their own event security team and are now confident this issue will not happen again.
Finally the Cagewarriors Fighting Championships and Warrior Promotions would like to confirm that Cagewarriors Strike Force 2 has now been confirmed for the 16th July at the Skydome. Papers confirming this were signed earlier on today and we are looking forward to bringing another outstanding night of MMA action back to this spectacular arena.
It is of course good news that the promotion, and UK MMA as a whole, will not be significantly damaged as a result of this incident. But I sincerely hope that all promotions active in the UK and beyond, not just CageWarriors, have learnt their lessons.
It happened to CageWarriors but I've been at events that were much worse organized and this incident should serve as a kick up the bum for us all.
Alcohol needs to be banned from the main arenas. If some elements are going to act like children, then let's treat them like children. Ban glass bottles and cans from the arena. Institute a strict door policy and search people as they come in. And, for goodness' sake, let's allow promoters to employ experienced professionals as security guards, rather than being forced to rely on venue security with no experience of dealing with events of this nature.
May 21 was a bad day for MMA in the UK, and so much more because it was so unnecessary and came at the end of such an otherwise exemplary show. This is a black eye for all the fighters who behaved impeccably, the good people who follow this sport through thick and thin, the effort, the time and the blood that we've all expended in getting us this far. We've all been hurt and saddened, and, right now, there's nothing left to do but reflect, take heed, deal with the consequences and move on.