Between the stadium and Ally Pally: London celebrates an MMA festival for the UFC

Between the stadium and Ally Pally
London throws an MMA fest for the UFC

By Michael Bauer, London
03/20/2022 01:21 am

Best MMA commercial on the island. The British cage fighters put on a crazy show in a sold-out O2 arena in London. Only the audience can top that – with a mixture of Ally Pally and Anfield Road.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has returned to the island with a brilliant show in London. In addition to many British cage fighters, the audience also shone in the sold-out arena, creating a unique atmosphere.

The Brits are positively crazy when it comes to supporting their compatriots in sport. In London, the 20,000 spectators created a very special stage for the sport – somewhere between the darts world championship and a wrestling show. While in the USA many fans were still at the beer stand during the preliminary fights, the O2 Arena in London was packed right from the start. It was a bit American after all: to every clapping after body hits in the octagon, the crowd answered with a howling “Whooo” – a reference to wrestling legend Ric Flair, who in the WWE after his loud clapping punches, the audience with this howler fueled.

Pimblett challenges Zuckerberg

As at the Darts World Cup in Ally Pally or in the stadiums of the Premier League, the British spectators put their qualities to the test. Again and again “Olé” chants sounded through the arena. At the latest with the opening music of the Welshman Jack Shore – “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes – all reservations were gone. The crowd cheered along. Shore was able to win his fight, as was crowd favorite Paddy Pimblett.

From the entry into the hall to the finish with the submission handle, the Liverpool man put on a crazy show. He fell to the ground after a few seconds, but was able to pull himself together and show off his wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills. After the fight he started a tirade. First he challenged Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg because the Englishman’s Instagram account was deleted. Then he called on people not to buy the British newspaper “The Sun”. Finally, he joined the audience in singing “Justice for the 97,” in reference to the Hillsborough disaster. Pimblett captivated the audience.

The event in London will surely be followed by others on the island. Scotsman Paul Craig had already revealed in the media round that the UFC had booked venues in Great Britain for the summer. Liverpool, Manchester, Glasgow and London are said to be the venues. What the locations get depends on UFC London.

White: “Couldn’t have gone better”

He played his part in making the event a success with his impressive triangle choke victory. “There is a great desire for MMA in the UK and Europe,” he said after the fight. He will always be an advocate for the UFC returning to the island.

In addition to the weekly Fight Night, like this time in the English capital, the UFC holds a pay-per-view event once a month, where there is usually a title fight and other top-class fights are scheduled. With his victory in the main fight, England’s Tom Aspinall in particular can hope to fight for the heavyweight crown in the near future. His compatriot Arnold Allen also had an impressive knockout victory over Dan Hooker. In its weight class, however, the competition is greater than Aspinall.

However, UFC boss Dana White denied statements by Paul Craig that other venues in Great Britain had already been booked. The UFC wants to return later this year. An event in France will also take place this year.

White generously distributed a bonus of $50,000 each to all fighters who were able to end their fights early. “It couldn’t have gone better,” he summed up at the final press conference. That evening reminded him how energetic fights in Britain can be. “Anyone who was in the audience today and wasn’t having the best time of their life was probably dead,” he joked.