We have now ticked off Scotland and England in our hunt for fighters for the UFC to sign in 2016 and we are now moving West to beautiful Wales.
As always let us know your thoughts/comments/feedback on our facebook and twitter account.
Brett “The Pikey” Johns (12-0 MMA)
Undefeated Johns has held belts in two major promotions, and is arguably the best Bantamweight outside of the UFC right now and certainly the best in Europe. Johns not only performed on the European scene but has picked up back to back wins against solid competition Stateside for Titan FC and the Swansea native has to be on the cusp of getting the call up to the UFC. He is due to announce his next fight in the coming days and I think that a win in that one will definitely get the UFC recognising him and if he is able to deal with his biggest challenge, the weight cut, then there is no reason the Pikey can’t make the UFC in 2016.
Jack “Hammer” Marshman (17-5 MMA)
Marshman has always been one of the most exciting fighters to watch and one thing he has really impressed me with in recent bouts is his jiu-jitsu which is often overlooked due to his willingness to stand and trade in most of his bouts. Marshman seems as though he has grown as an athlete in the last year and is more willing to explore his overall game which has resulted in some big wins against Che Mills and Kyle Redfearn. The UFC can be pedantic on a fighters record and so a few more European wins would certainly do Marshman no harm, but he is definitely a man who on his day could compete with the best.
John “The White Mike Tyson” Phillips (18-6 MMA)
Ok so I think he would probably need to change his nickname if the UFC came knocking but there is certainly something special about John Phillips. He has a very big hurdle in the way in his next bout, the current BAMMA Middleweight Champion Cheick Kone, but if he is able to overcome Kone then there is no reason why one or two defences of his BAMMA Belt could land him on the want list for the UFC. Phillips had a couple of years out of the cage but bounced back last year winning a tournament, defeating two opponents in one night and has moved to Dublin to train at SBG under the tutelage of John Kavanagh. A very intriguing move and one which could definitely land Phillips in the spot light and a step closer to the UFC.
Lew “The Foot” Long (12-3 MMA)
Five fight win streak, all wins by stoppage is definitely a great accolade for Lew Long who is one of the best Welterweights in Europe right now. Long has looked a completely different fighter since his last loss to Tommy Maguire back in 2013 and he has stopped some big European names including Tommy Quinn and Matt Inman and made short work of Yoshiyuki Katahira at Abu Dhabi Warriors in October. Long is likely to remain a Cage Warriors fighter when the promotion return in April and I would be very surprised if he wasn’t given a shot at the 170lbs Title on the first show. If he is able to capture a big European Title it will only help to cement his cause as one of the best in Europe and certainly put him to the top of the list for the UFC.