Paul Taylor backs Eugene Fadiora
Wolverhampton's Eugene Fadiora will have an ultimate fighting force in his corner when he returns to action at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena.
Wolverhampton's Eugene Fadiora will have an ultimate fighting force in his corner when he returns to action at Birmingham's National Indoor Arena.
Cannock's Paul 'Relentless' Taylor, a competitor for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, will be on hand when Fadiora battles Irishman Robert Devane in the octagon tonight.
Their cage clash forms part of the big bill hosted by BAMMA - the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts - which will be screened live on Sky TV channel Syfy.
Fadiora trains at Taylor's gym, Pure MMA in Cannock, and is back from a year's break after suffering his first defeat in September 2010, a submission loss to the highly-rated Gunnar Nelson.
Tonight's fight also sees Fadiora step back up to middleweight from welter, where Tom 'Kong' Watson is the organisation's reigning champion.
On the same show where Fadiora tasted defeat for the first time, after nine straight wins, Watson retained his title with a win over Alex Reid, ex-husband of celebrity Katie Price, at the NIA.
Fadiora summoned the energy to watch their title tussle from ringside and 'the Sniper' reckons he can take on the champion and get nearer to his goal of being signed by the UFC.
He said: "Tom Watson is one of the top three fighters unsigned to the UFC, it may not be upcoming but a fight between us has been talked about.
"It's everyone's dream in MMA to be signed to the UFC. To make a living out of it, you need that sort of pay.
"I want to have fighting as my main job and get paid to do it."
Fadiora has a full-time job in addition to his fighting career and is a support worker in a mental health hospital, St George's in Stafford.
The 26-year-old started out doing karate at the age of five and met Taylor in his teens, who will be a part of UFC 138 at Birmingham's LG Arena on November 5.
The two-time world kickboxing champion has fought six times for the UFC since making his debut in 2007 and has Muay Thai fighter Anthony Njokuani up next.
Like Fadiora, Taylor used to have a full-time job to supplement his income and worked as a carpenter before opening his own gym.
He said: "I can't wait to see Eugene in there, it's going to be good to see him competing again. He's young and the opportunities are still there for him.
"From my point of view, Eugene definitely deserves a shot because he has got a better skills base than some of the British guys who have been given UFC contracts."
Tickets for UFC 138 are now on general sale through theticketfactory.com and the LG Arena box office.
