Crowd gathers for 'gypsy fight'

A crowd watched the bare-knuckle fight

Around 1,000 people have gathered to watch a bare-knuckle prize fight between two men thought to be from the gypsy community.

Dozens of extra police officers were drafted in as the spectators crowded together on a piece of land in Newark, Nottinghamshire, for the organised punch-up on Saturday morning.

Football supporters heading from Sunderland for the match against Nottingham Forest had to be diverted to prevent any further trouble, police said.

The group gathered next to Tolney Lane for the pre-planned fight.

But despite the huge crowds, police said they were not contacted by any members of the public and no complaints were made.

Both men had consented to fight each other but a police presence was maintained throughout to monitor the activities of the crowd, a spokesman for Nottinghamshire Police said.

Some of the people who had been watching the fight then went into Newark drinking in the local bars and police patrols were stepped up in the town centre.