The English have always been a combative sort. From the days of war with the Romans to modern-day MMA, the Brits have been kicking heads in for a long time. So, it’s no surprise to see that the UK has two active champions in the UFC. Sure, Tom Aspinall may be the interim champ in name, but we all know who the man at heavyweight is and it’s not Jon Jones. British MMA has seen a resurgence lately but make no mistake, these boys are here to take over. From the days of Ian Freeman and Mark Weir back in 2002 to the explosion of MMA in England, the sport is finally growing at a steady pace.
Crumpets and beatings
But how did we get here? Well, let’s go back to about a century when wrestling took hold in England. From smokey gyms and dingy academies, the legendary Snake Pit gym developed and popularised the sport of catch-as-catch-can wrestling. Eventually, the sport made its way to America, where the submissions were replaced with points and we have the birth of American freestyle wrestling. So to say that the Brits can’t wrestle is a stretch. Again, it may not enjoy the deep grassroots level of development but the UK has its fair share of excellent grapplers to call their own.
Finally, when the UFC hit it big globally we started seeing a steady influx of fighters from the isles. Guys like Terry Etim, Ross Pearson, Dan Hardy, John Hathaway and one, Michael Bisping were all relatively successful on the world’s biggest stage. Bisping even went on to become the first British fighter to hold an undisputed title when he knocked out Luke Rockhold. Since then we’ve had Leon sending Kamaru Usman to the astral plane to win the welterweight title and Tom Aspinall drubbing Sergei Pavlovich for the ‘interim’ heavyweight belt. For more drama on the UFC’s heavyweight division, you can check out this article here. And, it doesn’t stop there. Fighters like Lerone Murphy, Arnold Allen and many more are waiting for their chance to prove how good they are.
Where is British MMA now?
With UFC 304 just around the corner, it’s imperative that the English MMA fans can get their money’s worth. The event is taking place in Manchester and features Leon Edwards defending his title against Belal Muhammed. Look, with how both these guys approach the fight, we could be looking at the biggest snoozefest on the card. But, we’re also treated to a rematch between Tom Aspinall against Curtis Blaydes. The last time these two met, Tom blew his knee out in the first two minutes of the fight.
The stakes could not be any higher for the UK at this point. They’ve got two champs defending their titles and a bunch of fan favourites round off the main card. Paddy Pimblett looks to be the new Brit heel for the UFC and the fans are lapping that drama up. It’s unclear where the UK goes from here as far as MMA goes but one thing is for sure, these boys are here to kick ass and drink tea and it looks like we’re all out of tea!
