In case you missed it, here’s your London student Fight Night debrief

Last Sunday, the ever-popular Wilder Student Fight Night returned to London for a sold-out fifth round, and it’s safe to say that King’s was there in full force. 

Donned uncomfortably in black tie attire, and often balancing precariously on too-tall heels, students from a range of London universities gathered anxiously at the Clapham Grand to watch their friends fight it out in the ring.

Those in attendance got to witness representatives from King’s, UCL, Imperial, UAL, SOAS, and Regent’s University battle to bring home the medal for their chosen team or society.

Run by “Wilder Fight Night”, the student fight night series is held at many universities across the country. The organisation hosts the UK and Ireland’s biggest student boxing events in aid of the Oddballs Foundation, who are the leading charity raising awareness for testicular cancer in the UK. 

King’s students in attendance at the Clapham Grand

The evening had it all, from stunning ring girls and joyous victories, to questionable walk-outs and tense rivalries.

The blow of ordering a double vodka Red Bull at the bar and seeing £11 pop up on the card machine was admittedly brutal, but luckily presenter Zo Fasham was on hand to keep spirits high in the crowd. Having fought for KCL Women’s Football last year, Zo returned to the event in a different format this time round, making her a fight night veteran.

Consisting of 16 nail-biting fights, the event was split up by a brilliant intermission performance from the King’s cheerleading society, KCL Lions, who rallied the crowd ready for the second half. 

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The 10th round of the evening certainly provided the drama via a clean knockout from Payam “The Dunny Destroyer” Shaeri (KCL Football), who left Rufus “Fisticuffs” Sherville (KCL Rugby) out cold in the ring. 

The King’s Tab spoke with one of the evening’s champions, third year psychology BSc student Ruby Freeland (representing London Student Network) about her experience. 

Brought into the mix as a stand-in for a dropped-out fighter just three weeks before the big night, Ruby’s is a true underdog success story. 

“In my first training session, I think the punching bag hit me more than I hit it”, she admitted, “but I quickly found my feet”. 

Despite a rocky start, and with only three weeks of boxing under her belt compared to everyone else’s seven, Ruby shared that she “loved every second. It was an amazing night, and it felt great to have all my friends watching”.

Ruby mid-fight in the blue corner

Though the official fundraising total is yet to be released, the fifth London round will be adding yet more money to Wilder’s student fight night fundraising pot. Since starting these events, the organisation has accrued over £320k for Oddballs and other incredible causes.

The Fight Night London Instagram posted a “Top Fundraisers” league table in the lead up to the fight, which revealed the joint fundraising efforts of Alex Howey and Gabriel Breil, both from GKT Rugby, to be topping the charts with a whopping £646 raised.

The number one solo fundraiser, however, was Wilf Lloyd (KCL Football), contributing £430 to the total.

All in all, you would be crazy to miss this one the next time it comes to our fair city. Well worth the treacherous trek to Clapham in the cold, this was yet another memorable and entertaining night from the student fight night team.

An evening punctuated by the shouts and cheers of an enthusiastic (and drunk) crowd, and made successful by the brave volunteer boxers, fight night yet again brought the London student community together for a great cause.