Mark Ewen sees the buzz and excitement surrounding Scottish football and hopes that it’s contagious.
It is often difficult for other sports to get a look-in in a country obsessed with the round ball game to the detriment of just about anything else but that is never likely to deter Ewen as he looks to put mixed martial arts (MMA) firmly on the Scotland map.
The charismatic combatant made his debut for former promoters Bellator in Dublin last autumn and then attended PFL (Professional Fighters League) Europe’s event in Paris as a spectator – after his own fight was called off – earlier this year. On both occasions he found himself in awe of the atmosphere, especially in the French capital where fighters are placed on a pedestal next to Kylian Mbappe or Antoine Dupont.
Ewen makes his PFL debut in Newcastle this evening but is already eyeing up a September date at the Hydro in Glasgow where MMA pioneers Stevie Ray and Robert Whiteford will return home to headline. The Edinburgh-based fighter hopes that can be the night when things finally catch fire for MMA in Scotland.
“PFL are bringing a show to Glasgow and I’m going to make it my mission – my obligation – to make sure the Hydro is sold out,” he says with typical enthusiasm. “I want to see it bouncing. When you go to football games the Scottish fans are just so passionate and don’t stop singing from the get-go. I want to see that an MMA event like you do in Paris or other places in Europe. I believe Scotland has the potential to get to that point. We just need the right fighters to help get us there.
“The MMA scene here is getting better but it’s still a bit behind England and Ireland and nowhere near what we see in mainland Europe. In France and Belgium they really get behind the fighters and they enjoy a lot of exposure. The sponsors really back them too. Scotland will get there eventually and having a show at the Hydro is exactly what Scottish MMA needs to propel itself up a little bit. We want people to come to the show, to enjoy it, and then it will hopefully just grow from there.”
Ewen has enjoyed a bit of a bumpy ride over the last nine months through no fault of his own. PFL’s acquisition of Bellator last November put things on hold for a while before he was able to move over to sign with PFL, while that proposed March outing ended up being cancelled after his opponent failed to make the weight.
The undefeated (5-0) lightweight, though, is not a man to whine about life’s travails, believing instead that such challenges serve as a test of resolve. He will look to take out any frustration on Claudio Pacella inside Newcastle’s Utilita Arena tonight.
“I believe God gives his biggest challenges to his strongest warriors,” he says. “The stuff I go through, the adversity I go through, I know it’s because I can handle it. I never say, ‘why me?’ I know why exactly I get these challenges. It’s so that I get stronger. I know that I can get through it.
“I’m buzzing to finally get going with PFL. I was at the March card in Paris. It’s obviously not the same arena this time with the screaming fans but it’s another big event and I want to grasp it with both hands.
“I just want to get out and perform as it’s been a while since I fought, last September. I want to go out there and prove to myself that I can do it and just have fun. I want to showcase my skills and get the fans back on track and remind them who I am.”
Memories of that Bellator debut in Dublin have fuelled him over a long winter and spring.
“That was amazing. That was something I had dreamed about since I was a kid, fighting in sold-out arenas and fans screaming your name like a gladiator in a colosseum. That’s something I’ve always envisioned for myself.
“That night, then, in Dublin was so special, just to be part of such a great card with some brilliant fighters. I won my fight, went and got some pizza and then came back to watch the rest of the show. I’m a fan of the sport as well as a fighter so I want to do the same again. Take care of business, get something to eat and then enjoy the other fights on the card.”
Fans can stream PFL Europe Newcastle at the Utilita Arena on DAZN tonight from 5pm. Tickets for PFL Europe Glasgow on September 28 are on sale at www.ticketmaster.co.uk
