YOU don’t need to be Quincy to diagnose the various punishments that those competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship inflict on their own body.
Stepping into the octagon is a brutal and unforgiving domain. The blood pours regularly, finely placed jabs, kicks and blows find their targets as fighters come away with bruises and broken bones in the pursuit of reaching the pinnacle of a sport that, as hard as it may be to believe, is as much as an art form than anything savage.
The scars and sacrifices carried by those in one of the biggest spectacles on the planet goes way beyond just the physical, though. Being a UFC fighter can also put extraordinary strain on those further down the tree desperately trying to clamber to the top.
Away from the riches of Irish superstar Conor McGregor – the Notorious is thought to be worth around $22 million - Scottish strawweight Joanne Calderwood has pursued better training facilities in Canada, with long camps spent in modest-looking dorms keeping her away from friends and family for prolonged periods. For fellow Scot Stevie Ray, the journey through the UFC ranks also brings its struggles.
The man from Kirkcaldy spoke exclusively to Sunday Herald Sport about his recent fight, an impressive win over Englishman Ross Pearson in Belfast last month that saw the 26-year-old bounce back from his only defeat in the competition, and how vital it was after a bleak year marred by injury and financial worries.
“That last fight basically turned everything around for me,” said the Kirkcaldy native.
“It’s not as glamorous as everyone thinks. We are contracted to the UFC, we’re not employees. We only get paid when we fight.
“I’ve been not too bad apart from when I took a year off it really started eating into all the money I had. I was lucky last year I fought three times in six months and in one of those fights I made a bonus [in Glasgow].
“I was due the taxman a lot of money. I hadn’t paid yet, I’d just bought a house, I was running out of money, my fight got cancelled. So this year before my Brazil fight I was really in trouble and in debt. Then I lost so I didn’t get paid as much as I would have done if I won.
“Obviously I was really happy I finished the year with a win against an experienced, top level guy. It was a pretty rubbish year before that. I had a long lay off, minor surgery, visa issues, my fight got cancelled in July, I lost my first ever UFC fight in September. It was a pretty rubbish time.
“To get the win in Belfast was what I was needed.”
Ray was speaking after a short break in Gran Canaria, a well-deserved rest before the rigorous and unforgiving training sessions kick in and the next step in his UFC dream is surely taken.
The man known as 'Braveheart' to his fans is emerging as not just a talented fighter in the UFC but a popular one. In just his second fight he had the roaring Glasgow crowd behind him last July for UFC Fight Night at the SSE Hydro where he overcame Leonardo Mafra with ease – he claimed a technical knockout after just two and a half minutes - but it was a support that also stayed with him last month for the win over Pearson at Belfast’s SSE Arena.
“It was a little bit short notice but my close friends, my fiancée and my mum was there. They were all ringside because I was the co-main event,” said Ray.
“They love coming to the show, more for the pure party of it! Coming in for a drink and enjoying themselves more than actually watching the fight! They look forward to the event but they do get really nervous watching me fighting.
“I couldn’t hear them specifically because of the response I got from the Irish crowd. I thought it would be a neutral playing field, but when I got announced I got a cheer and he got booed.”
Away from the octagon, Ray helps subsidise his professional fighting career by conducting personal training sessions at the converted gym at his new house in his home town. However, it wasn’t long before the conversation of what is around the corner for a man aiming for the very top.
“After that fight I’ve just cemented myself as being the best UK fighter at my weight. I called Diego Sanchez out on Twitter, he didn’t get back to me to start with until I wrote something else,” said the Scot of the UFC veteran from New Mexico.
“He said he likes the fight but it’s a little bit injured just now. I hope he’ll be ready to go for March time, I want to fight in London [at the O2 on March 17] against Sanchez who is 19th in the rankings. I’d like that fight, get beyond him, try to break into the top 15 and work towards that fight with McGregor or whoever is the champion.
“I’m in this sport to be the best. I want to make as much money as I can and be the champion. I want to work my way to the top.”
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