Cagerage 16 – Critical Condition DVD review
By Gary Graham

In the final show at Wembley Conference Centre before Cage Rage moves to the Arena, Cage Rage 16: Critical Condition provides MMA fans with certain nostalgia, as the impressive fight card includes ex-UFC veterans versus the rising stars of Cage Rage.

The main event "The sees Anderson "The Spider" Silva and Tony Freak" Fryklund meet in a battle of opportunity, as Fryklund searches for openings in his opponent’s unyielding defence. Silva refrains from throwing anything, opting instead for the chance to watch Frykland’s movements and assess his style, making for an intensely thrilling match.

Also featured are UFC Welterweight Champion Dave Menne and UK favourite Alex “The Reidernater” Reid, as they line up for a battle of skill and stamina.

Cage Rage 16: Critical Condition includes the following bouts:

Anderson Silva vs. Tony Fryklund
Dave Menne vs. Alex Reid
Paul Daley vs. Dave Strasser
Amar Suloev vs. James Nicholl
Jorge 'Macaco' Patino vs. Curtis Stout
Brad Pickett vs. Hiroyuki Abe
Robert Berry vs. Gary Rawlings
Mark Epstein vs. Ryan Robinson
Jeremy Bailey vs. Jason Barrett
Edson 'Drago' vs. Tengiz Tedoradze

Critical Condition the latest Cagerage DVD release, see’s new and old faces battle it out in the octagon.  The DVD is hosted by Sunderland born UFC legend Ian ‘The Machine’ Freeman.

The DVD production and booking of fighters seems to be getting better all the time and this makes the shows more appealing to the UFC style watchers and is a must in any MMA fans collection.

The opening bout saw a Cagerage record knockout of 5 seconds. Edson Drago, delivered a knockout first punch that sent Tengiz Tedoradze crashing to the octagon floor.

My favourite bout of the card, just so happened to feature my favourite and in my opinion the most entertaining Cagerage fighter ‘Brad ‘One Punch’ Pickett who went up against the Japanese wrestling machine ‘Hiroyuki Abe’. A bout that went the full 3 rounds, Pickett stepping up in class in the match, showed he is more than a stand up fighter, with some great takedowns and counters which really shook up the Japanese Hiroyuki Abe.  Brad Pickett took the win with a unanimous decision.

The main event bout is a  Cagerage Middleweight Championship Match between Anderson Silva (Champion) and Tony Fryklund (Challenger & Cagerage debut) was a match I was looking forward to and on paper looked like it was going to be a one way fight and to be totally honest it was. The fight was finished in the first round, when a dazed looking Fryklund was hit with a massive reverse elbow that knocked him out.  Silva now with a 4 – 0 Cagerage record retains him Cagerage Middleweight Title.

The DVD as I said earlier is a good watch for all Mixed Martial Fans and even a good starter for those who are curious what the British version of the UFC looks like.  The downsides to this DVD were that the commentary did get over powering at times and one thing these bouts need is an onscreen clock/counter.  Not being able to keep an eye on the clock took away the anticipation when the rounds were coming to an end.

DVD special features include pre-fight interviews hosted by Stephen Quadros.