A Tullibody martial artist has fulfilled his life ambition by penning a deal with the UFC – after sealing a memorable comeback victory in Las Vegas this week.
Chris Duncan, originally from Strathyre, seized his opportunity in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The MMA prospect flew to the UFC Apex Centre for his fight with muchAmerican fighter Charlie Campbell on the Dana White Contender Series – a series in which hopeful fighters compete to try and secure a contract with the world’s top MMA promotion.
The 29-year-old, who fights out of the Evo Gym, in Colquhoun Street, Stirling, survived an early setback in the bout to knock Campbell out in impressive fashion.
Duncan, nicknamed 'The Problem', weathered an early storm, sustaining a number of hard punches and appearing to be badly hurt in the opening minutes of the first round.
However, the scrapper refused to accept defeat and fired back with a straight right-hand to the American’s chin, knocking him unconscious.
The spectacular victory was enough for the UFC president, Dana White, to hand Duncan the coveted UFC contract for the heroic performance.
It was the lightweight’s second appearance on the Dana White Contender Series. He was previously defeated in October last year when he was knocked out in the second round.
However, Duncan’s originally scheduled opponent failed to make the weight and he later accepted a short notice fight against Viacheslav Borshchev where he suffered the loss.
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The circumstances of his first fight prompted UFC bosses to give Duncan a second opportunity.
Following this week’s bout, a jubilant Duncan spoke at a press gathering where he said: “I made a bit of a mess of it, but it’s not about how you start, it’s how you finish.
“He was rushing in. I watched some footage of him a while ago, and when he starts to get his groove, he starts (weaving and bobbing) with his hands. I saw him doing that, and I just got my head off the centre-line and just threw my cannon and threw it right to his chops.
“I bounced his head off the canvas. Putting someone down like that is never nice, but I knew that’s what was going to secure me my contract.”
Addressing his previous disappointment, Duncan added: “That was the best thing that ever happened to me. When I used to go into fights, I used to go into kill, kill, kill mode. I used to put the blinkers on and go forward and try to knock him out. And that’s not the way you go, especially in MMA, because there are so many ways to win or lose – and I paid for it. I got left-hooked and knocked out.
“I had to go back and I had to think about my mindset and how I gear up for a fight. I was gearing up the same way as when I fought last time in London on a local show, and I was feeling good.
“Now the UFC’s got a problem to worry about.
“They gave me the nickname The Problem for a reason. I’m just here to work my way up the ladder and get better, go and learn, and enjoy being a full-time MMA athlete for the UFC.”
The former McLaren High School pupil previously gave up his job as a shepherd in Glen Lochay, near Killin, to take up the combat sport full-time. Duncan’s signing with the UFC is the Stirling area’s most recent connection to the organisation.
Now the world’s top fighting promotion, in March 2017 we told how the sport was born in Cowie.
The brains behind the multi-billion dollar organisation was born and bred in the village four miles from Stirling.
TV producer Campbell McLaren (66) co-founded the UFC in 1993. Campbell was born and raised in Cowie before he emigrated to America with his family aged just seven. The businessman first brainstormed the idea of a mixed martial arts championship while working at a pay-per-view company owned by the music giant BMG.
However, his journey began in Cowie, where he was born in 1956.
