YAKIMA — Perhaps bolstered by publicity in the last few days, a street cage-fighting competition attracted several hundred spectators to a closed section of Yakima Avenue on Friday night.

Organizers said about 600 to 700 people attended "Cage Warriors: Taking It to the Streets," a slate of 11 mixed martial arts bouts inside a raised cage in downtown Yakima. Police did not make a crowd estimate.

"It's a decent, healthy attendance," promoter Rich Guerin said as he taped the wrist of a contestant.

Spectators mostly drank in a sectioned-off beer garden or stood around and talked until a distorted, electric guitar rendition of  "The Star Spangled Banner" kicked off the festivities.

Baristas from Dream Girls, one of the espresso stands known for skimpy clothing, wandered the grounds in lacey see-through skirts, short shorts, fishnet stockings and bikini tops, either serving drinks or working as ring girls holding up round numbers.

Wes Graybael, 21, of White Swan knocked out his opponent with a flurry of punches less than two minutes into the first match. The next two fights went just about as fast.

Lewis Bond, a fan from Yakima, called it all "good entertainment."

He and his son Josh, 19, also are fans of Ultimate Fighting Championships, a professional, televised circuit that has seen a surge in popularity in recent years. The Bonds plan to watch some of those on pay-per-view Saturday night.

Josh Bond is a Brazilian jujitsu student but has no aspirations for cage fighting.

"Some of those guys are just out for blood," he said.

Friday's cage-fighting spectator crowd may have been attracted by recent controversy surrounding the event.

City officials, most of whom learned about the cage-fighting competition in the Yakima Herald-Republic on Thursday, considered moving the fights to a quieter side street to avoid disrupting traffic on Yakima Avenue, one of the city's busiest routes. Some nearby business owners also objected to the fights, they said.

Promoters had permits from the Yakima Police Department in hand since June 3, but compromised by agreeing to close Yakima Avenue later in the afternoon than originally permitted, at noon. It delayed the setup and caused the fights to start about an hour late.

Guerin, who owns Yakima Mixed Martial Arts with his wife Julie, wants to make the event annual.

"The likelihood of that happening, I don't know," he said.

The mood was intense — in contrast to Front Street a few blocks away where Yakima Folklife Festival crowds gathered to sip drinks and listen to guitar music — but it wasn't rowdy.

One fight broke out between two people as the crowd waited for the fights to start. Police escorted two men outside. Nobody was hurt, an officer said.

Police also had to stop some kids from jumping over the fence, but they event otherwise ran smoothly.

"Everyone's doing what they're supposed to," Sgt. Kelly Willard said.

The Guerins hired two police officers as required by the city — and 12 security guards.

At first, Guerin anticipated a crowd of 500 but told television news reporters this week that up to 1,500 might attend.

As many as 80 additional spectators watched from outside a six-foot chain-link fence, rather than pay the $20 admission. Even a few firefighters pulled up to watch from atop one of the engines for a few minutes.

Organizers and uniformed police officers asked bystanders to leave several times to no avail.

Buck Tynan, a contestant from Zillah, said adrenaline attracts fighters and spectators alike.

"You're not going to find anyone around here that doesn't like adrenaline," said the 31-year-old father of four.

Tynan trains at Yakima Mixed Martial Arts on Yakima Avenue. Unlike many of the other fighters, he trains as a hobby and does not aspire to the professional ranks.

"I'm just kind of playing around with it," he said.

Jorge Cordoba of Lewiston, Idaho, said mixed martial arts fighting has kept him from fighting outside the ring. It also has helped him focus on his math and secondary education studies at Lewis-Clark State College.

"It keeps me focused, concentrated and goal-oriented," said the 25-year-old.

But he likes the adrenaline, too.

"I'm an adrenaline junkie, so it's definitely awesome," he said.