Local fighters took to the ring at Rexall Place for King of the Cage: Lockdown, representing the Iron Rhino MMA Fitness Gym well.

“It was an absolute blast,” said Iron Rhino trainer Clint Parker.

Parker accompanied the fighters on the trip, playing corner man for them and helping them prepare for each match. The event ran on July 30.

Brad Stewart defeated veteran Elmer Waterhen by decision, after both fighters severely beat each other up. Waterhen left with a broken nose and Stewart had a wounded leg.

“It’s jacked up,” said Parker about Stewart’s leg, which took a number of blows from Waterhen over the match.

“Brad did a lot of damage with his jabs and straight punches. The first two rounds were all stand up. You couldn’t tell he hurt his leg through the whole fight. It was only after when he was walking off and his leg buckled. That’s when we finally realized he was hurt.”

Stewart got what Parker described as “dead leg,” when a nerve or muscle in the leg takes a severe enough strike that it renders the leg useless for a few days. He said people get it in practice a lot by accident, just because of the power behind leg kicks and where they land.

Parker said the adrenaline in the fight kept Stewart from noticing his damage until afterwards. He also added that dead leg doesn’t usually set in until the person stops moving.

Stewart’s opponent, Waterhen, was more formidable than Parker expected.

“I knew he was tough. I didn’t know he was that tough. He could really take it.”

Kris Miskanek, another Iron Rhino fighter, defeated Jason Rorick by TKO.

“He got him real quick in 48 second stoppage. It was nice,” said Parker.

Iron Rhino fighter Collin Lloyd lost to John Grant via submission, but Parker said he did a great job for being new to the gym.

“Collin got choked out in the second round, but he actually showed a lot of heart. We’d only been training with him a few weeks.”

He added that Lloyd was in good physical condition, but needed more practice with fighting technique.

The King of the Cage event won’t make it to TV until sometime in October, said Parker. Until then, Shannon Ritch, one of the most experienced fighters in the mixed martial arts world, will be paying a visit to Fort St. John Sept. 1 to 4.