Stuart Austin underlined his credentials as one of the best heavyweights in the country with a dominant stoppage win over Yuri Andrey in the main event of Contenders 28 in Norwich.
The fighter nicknamed 'He-Man' improved his pro record to 14-6 with a display of ruthless efficiency rather than excitement, taking BJJ black belt Andrey down early and often, and making the floor a very unpleasant place for him to be.
The end came in the third round, with Austin having trapped one of Andrey's arms behind him with his left hand, leaving him free to bludgeon his face with big rights until referee Rich Mitchell stepped in to save the Brazilian.
Team Titan talent Austin, a veteran of Bellator, BAMMA and the EFC, certainly looks capable of launching a title run in a major organisation on that showing.
In the co-main, much-decorated BJJ player Keli Manglona made his UK debut, the powerful American moving to 4-1 with alacrity, battering late subsitute Ivan Golod in a first round TKO finish.
'The Ruckus' brought exactly that, dumping Golod on the mat, moving to mount and raining down a fusillade of punches and elbows until the end came.
The Tsunami Gym Norfolk middleweight was roared on by a huge and vocal following, who had much to celebrate on the night - gym-mates Alan Wycherley, Tariq Pell and Nathan Cubley all racked up first round wins too, with Wycherley's the pick of the bunch, a spinning back kick dropping foe Jake Watkins and punches on the floor finishing the job.
It was another spinning back kick which saw Jack Purdy claim KO of the night honours, the Mamba Martial Arts prodigy making his return to the Contenders cage with a brutal strike to the liver of Havid Jama, shutting him down completely. Even if the count had been to 50, Jama still wouldn't have beaten it.
There was title glory for Elite Gym Norwich boxer Aaron Rolfe, who lifted the 70kg strap when opponent Riddick Palka was forced to retire in the third round with a shoulder injury.
That was a shame as the fight was boiling up nicely, Rolfe winning behind his stiff jab, but Palka landing some seismic hooks which the Norwich man confessed afterwards was the hardest he'd ever been hit.
In the other boxing clash on the main card, gigantic Norwich heavyweight Jakub Adamski suffered his first defeat, dropping a controversial and deeply unpopular points decision to Ricky Jackson.
Mountain of muscle Adamski was warned repeatedly about landing shots with the wrong part of the glove, and that clearly cost him against skilled pugilist Jackson who, while outgunned, put on a tasty backfoot display of the sweet science.
Submission of the night went to Avaddon MMA's Jack Bartlett, who moved to 4-1 with a beautiful armbar submission of highly-rated Irish foe Abanoub Fares in the first round.
He had opposition for the sub crown from gym-mate Alex Andrews, who forced Fares' younger brother Flobater to tap to a tight guillotine in the first round of their much-anticipated youth MMA dispute.
And Avaddon boxer Eric Robanov used good movement and accurate punches to beat Mikey Brown on points, making it a perfect night for the Wisbech-based gym.
Elsewhere, Suffolk's Brent Rose claimed a unanimous points win in his K1 clash with Elite's Raven Hunn, and young boxer Lee Shulver, another from the Mamba Martial Arts production line, looked very good indeed in his points win over the slick Harrison Hartley.
Another boxer who impressed was Carla McKenzie, the Assassins Gym fighter boasting a ram-rod jab and blistering combos in her points win over the game Carrie Whitworth.
Contenders 28 results
Main card
Stuart Austin beat Yuri Andrey by TKO (ground and pound) in the third round (heavyweight MMA)
Keli Manglona beat Ivan Golod by TKO (ground and pound) in the first round (86kg MMA)
Aaron Rolfe beat Riddick Palka by TKO (injury) in the third round. Wins Contenders 70 kg boxing title
Jack Bartlett beat Abanoub Fares by submission (armbar) in the first round (64kg MMA)
Ricky Jackson beat Jakub Adamski on MD (heavyweight boxing)
Prelims
Bad Boy Bes beat Andy Nunn by KO in the first round (80kg K1)
Kacper Ozog and Arron Young fought to a majority draw (80kg boxing)
Alan Wycherley beat Jake Watkins by TKO (ground and pound) in the first round (84kg MMA)
Brent Rose beat Raven Hunn by UD (84kg K1)
Tariq Pell beat Luke Adams by TKO (ground and pound) in the first round (74kg MMA)
Jack Purdy beat Havid Jama by KO (spinning back kick) in the second round (64kg K1)
Stefano Catacoli beat Ryan O'Connor by submission (RNC) in the first round (66kg MMA)
Eric Robonov beat Mikey Brown by MD (73kg boxing)
Nathan Cubley beat Mikey Jones by submission (choke) in the first round (84kg MMA)
Carla McKenzie beat Carrie Whitworth by UD (75kg boxing)
Alex Andrews beat Flobater Fares by submission (guillotine choke) in the first round (64kg youth MMA)
Taylor Mills beat Chris Ademaj on UD (70kg boxing)
Lee Shulver beat Harrison Hartley on UD (61kg boxing)
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