UPCOMING EVENTS

August 4th 2013, Club Rococo, Exeter

October, 2013, London (venue TBC)

December 8th 2013, Scala, London

PREVIOUS EVENTS

JUNE 8 2013 “Kings Of The Ring”

WCBA Heavyweight Title Elimininator

Leveque Vs Pilkington, winner: Leveque (checkmate)

Undercard

Crespo Vs Powell, winner: Powell (time penalty)

Botteley Vs Glenzer, winner: Glenzer (checkmate)

Read Vs Cornish, winner: Cornish (TKO)

March 23rd 2013 – Brain Vs Pain!

Exhibition of Chessboxing

The 2013 chessboxing season kicked off in style with a superb show in front of a capacity crowd of 800 people at the Scala nightclub in central London.  The opening bout featured an exhibition match between London Chessboxing founder Tim Woolgar and the UK’s number 1 heavyweight, Andy “The Rock” Costello.  The two men put on a  fine 7 round show ending in a close chess finish with both players under time pressure.  The result was officially recorded as a no-contest.

 ”No Draws Please, We’re British”

- Chris “The General” Levy (Eng) Vs Matt “Crazy Arms” Read (Eng)

Next we saw the return of Matt “Crazy Arms” Read from Welwyn Garden City, one of the UK’s most busiest chessboxers, making a much-anticipated return to the arena following an 18-month lay-off.  Crazy Arms faced the redoubtable Bristolian Chris Levy (aka “The General”) in an eventful 9-round contest which went the distance with many twists and turns.  In the fourth round Levy landed a powerful body blow that sent Read writhing to the canvas. The Welwyn man narrowly beat the count, then launched a ferocious attack of his own which continued after the bell, earning a severe talking to from the ref and deafening jeers from the partisan ringside crowd.

In the final round the chess game ground to a halt by three-fold repetition leading to a automatic draw.  In these circumstances the boxing points should decide the overall outcome but with the judges unable to separate the two chessboxers and with neither man willing to accept a draw, incredibly, the combatants demanded an extra round of boxing to decide the outcome. After a short conference the organisers, London Chessboxing, granted permission for an unscheduled 10th round of boxing, to the delight of the majority of the crowd who by now were solidly behind The General and baying for Read’s blood. The result, when it came was not to their liking, Crazy Arms’ long reach proved the decisive factor as he nicked the round and the match by a single point.

Result: Winner, Matt “Crazy Arms” Read, points.

Time Trouble

- Steve Philp (Eng) Vs Jorge Crespo (Ecu)

Third on the card was a cracking novice bout between Jorge Crespo from Ecuador and “Demon” Steve Philp from Devon.  The crowd was treated to a thundering contest which ended in victory for Philp by time penalty in round 7.  Crespo started slowly but gradually gained confidence landing several heavy shots on his opponent who appeared to be in increasing trouble as the bout wore on.  A stoppage looked on the cards with the 8th round looming but Philp held his nerve on the chessboard while the slow playing Crespo was dramatically counted out by the chess clock with just one second left in the round.

Result: Winner, Steve “Demon” Philp, time penalty, Round 7.

KO or Checkmate

- Tim “CSI” Bendfledt Vs Bryan “Slinger” Woon

The climax of the evening featured a middleweight clash between the banker from Singapore, Bryan “Slinger” Woon and Germany’s Tim “CSI” Bendfeldt, the criminal prosecutor from Kiel  in Germany.  This was something of a mismatch in chess terms with Woon giving away several hundred Elo rating points to his opponent. The contest was a thriller nevertheless, with Bendfeldt surviving a prolonged series of attacks from the Singapore man before scoring a 9th round checkmate victory.

Result: Winner, Bendfeldt, checkmate, Round 9

Dec 8th 2012- SEASON FINALE – SPAIN V THE WORLD!

A thrilling night of Chessboxing ended with a victory for Spain over the Rest of the World by margin of 2 victories to 1.  The first bout of the night featured a late replacement in the form of South Korea’s Benny Kang who stepped up to the mark after London favourite Mike “The Bedfordshire Bull” Botteley was forced to pull out with bronchitis.

As he entered the ring Kang looked to be giving away a significant weight margin to his opponent Isidro Gete the master level chessboxer from Burgos in northern Spain who weighed in at 68kg. As the fight progressed Gete’s superior strength began to tell and his rapid, accurate chess-play meant Kang gained no respite in any part of the contest which finished in Round 4 with a TKO.

Next up was an undercard bout featuring two Chessboxing debutantes in Jack Page from Exmouth in Devon and Ricky Brown from London.  Both fighters at 75kg  have a strong boxing background but were taking their first steps in competitive chess. Despite their inexperience they put on an amazing and entertaining display under incredible pressure.  The bout was evenly matched, with the advantage swinging back and forth before finally finishing in the seventh round with a checkmate for Brown.

Returning to the main event, Danial Lizarraga (Spain) faced Vladimir Makarov (Russia) at 75kg.  Both fighters are rated around 1800 Elo for rapidplay and the crowd and with plenty of ring experience between them the crowd expected a long drawn out war of attrition. Instead it was all over very quickly in an explosive fourth round as Lizarraga burst out of his corner like a man possessed.  Makarov defended bravely but eventually he could no longer carry on and the referee stopped the contest.

All that remained was to see if Spain could manage a clean sweep as Jose Sanchez, who holds dual Spanish and Costa Rican nationality met Siberia’s 68kg Chessboxing champion Ravil Galiakhmetov.

Sanchez, coming off the back of an unfortunate points defeat in London in October, was determined to force a victory this time.  His plan was coming together nicely as he constantly managed to exploit his superior reach and movement to build up a points advantage while keeping up solid pressure on the chessboard.  Things looked increasingly bleak for Glaiakhmetov the longer the bout went on until, in a stunning turnaround in round 10, he landed a massive left-hook which caught Sanchez flush on the jaw sending him crashing to the canvas.  Sanchez gamely demanded the right to continue but a combination of referee and corner stepped in to prevent further punishment to the Spaniard.

It was a fitting end to a wonderful night of sporting action with brilliant commentary from GM Stuart “The Fox” Conquest.  The capacity crowd also showed immense enthusiasm for a guest commentary cameo from GM Ray Keene OBE.

BATTLE ROYALE – 10 OCTOBER 2012

For the first time, the Royal Albert Hall welcomed chessboxing to its Loading Bay.  The Royal Albert Hall Loading Bay is a stunning, underground landscape encompassing a striking and cavernous interior space, hidden from the general public for 140 years. Massive  modern graffiti murals, created by some of London’s top street artists, lend a dramatic and theatrical atmosphere ideally suited to staging the sport which CBS News described as “The Bi-athlon of the 21st Century”.

WATCH THE FULL EVENT FREE HERE

Results
Bout One
Chris Levy (UK) (White Pieces) V Tim Bendfeldt (Germany)
Result: Bendfeldt, Winner, Round 5, checkmate.
Bout Two
Bryan Woon (Sing) (White Pieces) V Sean Mooney (Can)
Result: Mooney, Winner, Round 11, (time penalty)
Bout Three
Jose Sanchez Amen (Costa Rica)(White pieces) V Dymer Agasaryan (Armenia)
Result: Agasaryan, Winner, Round 4, by boxing points.
(note: in the event that the chess game reaches a drawn position by stalemate or threefold repetition, the match goes to another round of boxing and the winner is decided by judge’s decision.)
Overview
Five hundred chessboxing fans last night descended on the Royal Albert Hall, for an event that could have been sold three or four times over. The first ever sports event held at the Loading Bay of the Royal Albert Hall saw city workers crammed side by side with artists, students and celebrities such as X-Factor runner-up and I’m A Celebrity winner Stacey Solomon.
The crowd were kept enthralled by fast-paced competitive boxing, hard fought chess battles projected on to giant screens and an energetic commentary from Daily Telegraph chess columnist Malcolm Pein.
The first bout of the evening pitched statistician Chris Levy from London against Tim “CSI” Bendfeldt, the criminal investigation lawyer from Kiel in northern Germany, ending with a win for Bendfeldt by checkmate in round 5. This puts Tim back in winning form following his defeat by knock-out to fellow German, Niels Becker, earlier this year
The second bout, dubbed the “Battle of the Bankers”, saw Citibank’s Bryan Woon take on Sean Mooney, a former professional footballer now working at Goldman Sachs. Sean’s brother, Peter is a TV actor (Rookie Blue, Camelot), and it was clear performing must run in the family as Sean chose to dance his way into the ring, “Gangnam style”.
The bout, a hard-fought encounter which could have gone either way. Woon boxed with a classical style while Mooney relied more on power and aggression, and neither man seemed willing to give an inch as the bout progressed, to the delight of the crowd. The chess game swung back and forth with both men getting ahead, only to squander the advantage, making it one of the most thrilling chessboxing bouts ever seen in London.

In the end Sean Mooney won as Bryan Woon’s time expired in a hopeless position at the end of the 11th and final round.
There was no doubt that that this was the crowd’s favourite bout of the night and both fighters keen to sign up for a rematch next year.
The main event of the evening saw Armenia’s Dymer Agasaryan take on Jose Sanchez Amen for the International Chess Boxing Middleweight title. What was expected to be a close match turned out to be exactly that when, in the third round, both players repeated chess moves until the same position had been reached three times. The chess game was agreed drawn and according to London Chessboxing rules a further round of boxing was required for a winner to be decided. After three further minutes of boxing it was left to the referee to decide the winner; Dymer Agasaryan by a single point.

London Chessboxing star Andy Costello makes his move in a title fight against Russia’s number 1, Nikolay Sazhin.

“World’s ultimate sport!” Vice Magazine

“The audience is unanimous in its enthusiasm” BBC One
“Fascinating!” The Independent

PRIZE-FIGHT-KNIGHT 29 September 2012

Over 7,000 people tuned into the live internet feed while 700 more turned up at the Scala nightclub in Kings Cross London to watch the latest round of London Chessboxing, the sport that combines the number one thinking contest with the number one fighting challenge.
The headline bout for the International Chessboxing European Heavyweight Championship between Italy’s Gianluca Sirci and Andy Costello from England provided fitting climax to an action-packed evening. Costello, playing white, prevailed by checkmate in the fifth round of a bruising see-saw encounter in which he was nearly floored by the first punch of the fight, a crashing straight right from Sirci. But the former policeman from Devon proved to have granite chin. He recovered well and by the end of the round was giving his opponent payback by way of a thumping left-hook which found its mark time and again. The match con

London Chessboxing in association with Run-Riot.com presents:

International Chessboxing

VIP: £50 – includes generous supply of FREE cocktails from our friends at:

General Admission £20

Students £15

(CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS)

The International Chessboxing season opens at the Scala King’s Cross with five scheduled bouts featuring Europe’s top chessboxers.

The headline bout features Andy ‘The Rock’ Costello, Britain’s number one heavyweight contender, versus  Nikolay ‘The Siberian Express’ Sazhin.  This is a rematch following Sazhin’s close victory in his hometown of Krasnoyarsk in October last year.  Costello is a former top-10  UK cage-fighter while Sazhin is a veteran of over 100 bouts in the tough Russian amateur federation.  Both men are highly-rated chess players in their own right.

On a packed undercard we have the UK women’s lightweight championship with Carrie Morrow facing Ruthie “The Pink Machine” Wright.  Chris “The General” Levy is out for revenge against “The Bedfordshire Bull”, Mike Botteley after a narrow defeat last September.  We will also see debut performances from Biggles Bristol and Max Brown both from London and making his first appearance in the chessboxing arena, Budapest’s Attila “The Hungarian” Por versus Berliner Tim Bendfeldt.  With five fighters rated above 2000 Elo this is the highest quality chesboxing line-up ever assembled.

Giant digital screens plus live commentary by International Master, “The Incomparable” Malcolm Pein, means you won’t miss a move.

Sensational live cabaret performances, DJs and special guests.

Venue: Scala,  275 Pentonville Road, Kings Cross, London N1 9NL

Doors Open: 7pm

First Bout 7.45pm

Last bout starts: 10.30pm

After partyand DJs til 2AM

Tickets: £20 standard (£15 concessions). VIP £50 including Cocktails!

Previous Events:

September 1oth 2011, the Scala.

Andrew “The Fightin’ Philanthropist” McGregor
Vs
Hubert “The Wardrobe” Van Melick

Quarter of a ton of hybrid fighting action!

Andrew ‘Fighting Philanthropist’ McGregor

Hubert ‘The Wardrobe’ Van Melick

Emma Richardson VS Kath Dobson

Ben “The Rumble” Robinson vs Mark Lech, two all ACTION middleweight prospects!

Chris “The General” Levy Vs Mike “The Bedfordshire Bull” Botteley – STRONGEST ever combined Elo in a chessboxing match!

Run-Riot.com London Chessboxing Championship:  The world famous Scala nightclub hosts the world’s best night of chessboxing featuring four scheduled bouts

The Scala

Fight Arena

MAIN EVENT, heavyweight title decider, PLUS full UNDERCARD including the historic first ever female chessboxing bout.

Live commentary provided by International Master Malcolm Pein and giant digital screen means you won’t miss a move.

Superb LIVE CABARET and DJ Doors Open 7pm Chessboxing til 11pm DJs after-party and Special Guest perfomers til 2am.

Tickets:£15 standard
£25 VIP (includes exclusive access to Glass Bar and balcony viewing area)

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Previous Events:

26th March 2011, The Boston Dome

Svein Clouston vs Alan Riley

Svein Clouston (left) vs Alan Riley to decide the inaugural Scottish middleweight title was the bout many people had come to see.  They were not to be disappointed.  Quite simply a sensational chessboxing battle with the advantage swinging both ways time and again.    At first it seemed the result would be a formality after Clouston, with the White pieces, blundered his Queen on move 13.   Riley then sought to close out the fight with a series of hard hooks to the Clouston ribcage.  Absorbing the onslaught bravely “The Viking”, as his army of fans would have it, battled back and his superb left-jab began finding its mark. Incredibly, Riley then blundered his own Queen and suddenly it was game on once again.   After eleven rounds each more incident-filled than the last, we were down to a classic finish, White’s King facing Black’s King and Pawn advance.   Clouston, with just seconds remaining to play stared defeat in the eye but held is nerve and forced the stalemate draw.  Under London Chessboxing rules the result is then decided by the referee Reinaldo Dominguez, based on points scored and overall aggression and his decision favoured ‘The Viking’  by 9 points to 6.  Winner Svein Clouston by points decision after 11 rounds.

Hubert ‘The Wardrobe’ Van Melick vs Patrick Teehan

‘The Wardrobe’ vs Patrick Teehan was a comeback fight for the man from Holland after his recent surprise defeat to Tim Woolgar in October last year.  Meanwhile Teehan was making his first appearance in the chessboxing cauldron of London’s Boston Dome.  This was always going to be a battle of youth and energy over age and guile and on the night it was the punching power and sheer dynamism of the Dutchman that won through.  The match opened up with unorthodox play from both men and Van Melick eventually closing out the round with a strong position.  Moments later Teehan faced the almost fanatical barrage of blows that has become Van Melick’s trademark opening.   Teehan survived the round without inflicting much damage on his opponent although soaking up quite a bit on his own account despite covering up gamely.  Moments later it was all over.  ’The Wardrobe’s’ Queen and Knight combined to devastating effect leaving Teehan shaking his head and other than the sporting handshake, no more strenuous action was required from either man.  Winner: Hubert Van Melick by checkmate round 3.

Carl Williams vs Ben Robinson

Carl Williams (left) vs Ben Robinson was an all action encounter with both men seeming to seek a knockout blow at every opportunity on the  chessboard and with the gloves.  In the opening round Robinson, with the Black pieces, avoided a checkmate threat on move 4 but soon found his King forced into a vulnerable position. Robinson dismissed all thoughts of vulnerability in the next round though showing great energy to put Williams under pressure with a series of body and head combinations.  In round three, back on the chessboard, Williams allowed Robinson back in the match after blundering his Queen.  The battle continued to swing both ways until a hard right from Robinson closed Williams’ left eye and the referee stepped in to stop the bout. Winner: Robinson by TKO round 6.

Rob ‘The Gentleman’ Gillies vs Marc Hickey

‘Gentleman’ Rob Gillies (left) vs Marc Hickey looked like being a close fought contest with both men appearing evenly matched. Then Marc suffered an unfortunate shoulder injury towards the end of the second round bringing the bout to a premature halt.  After receiving medical treatment Marc was able to return to the arena and enjoy the remainder of the show as a spectator.  Winner: Gillies by TKO round 2.