Issue 137
January 2016
Exciting welterweight prospect Tom Breese plans to plunder UFC gold and take it home to England
Tom Breese
UFC Welterweight
Tom Breese is the 170lb finisher who’s been thrust to the front of a new Brit Pack of exciting MMA prospects. And following his one-sided, first-round mauling of Cathal Pendred in Dublin, Ireland, he believes he’s the man to end his nation’s UFC championship drought.
To date, Dan Hardy is the only Englishman to come within touching distance of a UFC belt when he was dominated for five rounds by Georges St Pierre in 2010. Championship glory appears to have passed by former TUF winners Michael Bisping and Ross Pearson too, which means it’s down to the next generation of UK contenders to close the gap on Octagon gold, and Breese admits he’s in MMA for nothing less. In fact, he’s chasing glory in two divisions.
“That’s why I got into the sport. I have big aspirations to become UFC champion and right now I want to do that 170lb first,” he tells FO. But aged just 24 years and standing six-foot-three, he says he’ll grow into more success. “It’s not easy to make 170lb, that’s for sure,” he adds. “I’m disciplined and strong minded so I will always make the weight. But I definitely believe I’ll be a 185lb’er in the future. I just want to be the champion at 170lb before I do move up.”
Fans on the other side of the Atlantic have long tipped Breese for MMA glory. Indeed Fighters Only marked him as one for the future in our Class of 2013 list of the world’s top 25 unsigned prospects. But Breese hasn’t let that pressure get to him.
“All that does is motivate me,” he says. “If fans are talking about me and putting expectation on me, then I want to live up to that. I want to train harder to ensure I don’t fall short of any expectations. I want to be a world champion – England’s first UFC champion.”
To ensure he lives up to any lofty expectations, Breese made the switch to the Tristar in Montreal, Canada, in 2012. There he teamed up with coach Firas Zahabi and joined Georges St Pierre’s fight camp ahead of his title defense against Carlos Condit. And he admits, training with elite fighters like the former UFC welterweight champion and Rory MacDonald – thousands of miles from home – came with a steep learning curve.
He says: “It definitely gave me more confidence. But it was also quite humbling at times. I’ve always felt like I’m capable of holding my own, but there have been occasions when it’s sunk in that I’m not quite there just yet. Overall I’ve taken a lot of confidence from joining this camp. But I’m definitely still a work in progress – and I’m moving in the right direction.”
Breese boasts the kind of record UFC president Dana White enjoys most. He’s undefeated and has never needed the opinions of the judges. It’s a run he’s rightly proud of. A self-confessed gym rat and MMA geek, Breese claimed the biggest win of his career last time out, smashing Cathal Pendred into a bloody first round defeat in his own backyard.
“I always go in there looking for the finish. I always look for the kill,” he says. “I want to prove I’m improving, that the hours in the gym are working, and I want to make a statement every time I fight. I want to hurt people. I want to submit them and finish them – that’s how I get my buzz and how I know I’m moving forwards.
Breese adds: “I always felt I was levels above (Pendred) and that’s what it turned out to be. A performance like that gives you a lot more confidence. As my confidence grows I also feel like I’m getting more dangerous. And that makes me want to get back in the gym the next day, train even harder and really get after it. That’s what it takes to be a world champion.”
True to his word, there was no time for rest after the win on the Emerald Isle, as Breese hopped back on a plane to Canada with his team, and a week later travelled to LA to compete in the IBJJF No-Gi World Jiu-Jitsu Championships, where he collected a silver medal.
A trip to New York to train with acclaimed BJJ guru John Danaher is next up – paid for with his Dublin bonus check – and Breese also has his next date in his 2016 diary too: a homecoming fight in London in February, when the main card also beckons for the first time.
“The main card in London would be great, and I’ll fight anybody,” he says. “As long as it’s a step up and it’s a good test then I won’t ask questions. I’ll be there looking to put on a big performance. Then once I move up the rankings, that’s when I’ll start looking at opponents to further my career. But right now it’s early days and I’m just looking to face who I can, when I can.”
Perfect record
100% finisher
Breese has won all nine of his pro fights by stoppage: six by submission and three by KO/TKO.
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