Kerry Donny-Clark leads new names in June rapier-and-dagger rankings

Kerry Donny-Clark arrived on the June mixed and men’s steel rapier-and-dagger board as the month’s top new name, debuting 271st with a 1406 rating in a field deep enough to make that placement matter. The board sits smaller than longsword or single rapier, but 1,388 fighters on the main island still creates real congestion near the top, where a good run can change the table fast and a bad weekend can push a contender back several rows.

That is the trap and the appeal of this division. HEMA Ratings uses the Glicko-2 system, and the number that matters most is the weighted rating, not the raw rank, because it factors in rating deviation and shows how much confidence the system has in a fighter’s level. That is why Chad Mathine’s jump from 1076.2 to 1541.5 stands out so sharply, and why Connor Turley’s move from 42nd to 13th carries more than cosmetic value. Turley reached 1801.2 in the month’s biggest positional climb, a 29-place rise that puts him in striking distance of the division’s upper tier rather than its crowded middle.

Turley’s profile gives that move some bite. The Metropolitan Historical Fencing Academy fencer, listed as a United States fencer, entered the month with a mixed steel rapier-and-dagger weighted rating of 1679 and a record of 15 wins, 13 losses and 2 other results in the division. That is not the profile of a one-off lucky run. It is the profile of someone who has already lived in the weapon’s timing game and is now cashing in on a strong month.

Donny-Clark’s path looks different, but it points to the same competitive truth. The Triangle Sword Guild fencer has already logged bouts in mixed steel longsword, mixed steel single sidesword, mixed spear and mixed any material rondell dagger, with a lifetime record of 42 fights, 21 wins, 16 losses and 5 draws. Rapier-and-dagger is not a closed shop for narrow specialists, but it does reward people who can transfer weapon awareness quickly and punish hesitation even quicker.

The event feed explains why the rankings shook so much. The June 5 South East Renaissance Fencing Open 2026 contributed 245 mixed steel rapier-and-dagger fights from 56 fighters, while the May 30 Unicorn Fight Club 2026 added 62 fights from 25 fighters and May 29 War in the West added 54 from 19. Emily Holloway authored the month’s biggest upset, winning a bout with only a 6.10 percent estimated chance, and two fighters returned after at least two years away. In a division with this much specialist turnover and this much tactical volatility, one strong circuit month can redraw the board without any of the rankings feeling artificial.