Issue 198

June 2023

In November 2022, Brendan Loughnane became the fourth fighter from the UK to win a major MMA world title when he captured the PFL 2022 featherweight championship in New York, but his path to the top of the sport was far from a smooth one. Emma Bramford recounts his long journey from the soccer pitches of Manchester to the bright lights of Madison Square Garden.

Growing up in Didsbury, Greater Manchester, Brendan Loughnane knew he had only two choices if he wanted to make a name for himself – soccer or fighting. Coming from a city that produced the likes of Ricky Hatton, Michael Bisping and Tyson Fury, it was perhaps inevitable that he pursued fighting, but he actually started out on the soccer pitch. 

Loughnane played to a high level alongside friends Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard, who both made it all the way to the very top of the sport with Manchester United and England. As a 16-year-old, Loughnane had a pivotal decision to make. Would he follow his friends into soccer, or pursue his other passion, mixed martial arts. Loughnane chose the latter. His reason was simple, “I enjoyed fighting more”, he said.

For three years, Loughnane learned his craft in all aspects of MMA at the Moss Side Ground and Pound gym in Manchester, although back then, in 2005, the sport was still struggling to shed its no-holds-barred “cage fighting” misconceptions. 

Under the tutelage of head trainer Tony Mousah (uncle of Bellator lightweight Kane Mousah), Loughnane started his MMA journey in 2008. Five amateur victories later, he turned pro in 2010 and hasn’t looked back since.

After racking up a five-fight winning streak, Loughnane flew out to Las Vegas to participate in the trials for The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes in 2012. Although he wasn’t initially selected for the cast, he was drafted into Ross Pearson’s team as an alternate for the injured Michael Pastou in Episode 2. 

In Episode 6, he was called into action as he stepped into the Octagon to face George Sotiropoulos’ pick, Patrick Iodice. Loughnane defeated his man via unanimous decision, but went on to lose on the cards to Northern Ireland’s Norman Parke, the season’s eventual lightweight winner, in Episode 10. He then lost another decision, this time to Mike Wilkinson, in the season finale at UFC on FX6 in December 2012.

After his TUF adventure, Loughnane returned to the regional scene and started to build an impressive record, taking fights across various promotions. He picked up wins for the likes of Full Contact Contender, BAMMA, Tanko FC, ACB, and Celtic Gladiator, and even avenged his loss to Wilkinson along the way. 

One door closes…

With an impressive 17-3 record, Loughnane was offered another shot at the big time on Dana White’s Contender Series, where he stood potentially one win away from a spot on the UFC roster. Loughnane faced American Bill Algeo, and went all three rounds in a dominant performance that earned him a unanimous decision win. However, despite his impressive win, that UFC opportunity didn’t materialise, with UFC boss White taking a disliking to Loughnane’s takedown attempt in the bout’s final 10 seconds. 

As the old saying goes, “When one door closes, another one opens.” The Professional Fighters League (PFL) recognized Loughnane’s talent and moved quickly to sign him to their featherweight roster. Loughnane took his signing bonus and immediately paid off his mother’s mortgage.

After two showcase fight victories in 2019 – and with the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down down the sporting world – Loughnane relocated to Dubai to continue his training as he prepared for his return to action. 

“I’ve only been back in the UK for one month over the last two years,” he said at the time. 

“I’m probably going to end up residing there, to be honest, because I like it there.”

With no fights scheduled and the PFL on hiatus, Loughnane dedicated himself to his training, and flew out to Thailand’s acclaimed Tiger Muay Thai gym, a home away from home for the Briton for the last decade.

When the PFL returned to action, Loughnane was ready. He ran through former UFC veteran Sheymon Moraes with a vicious first-round TKO, then defeated Tyler Diamond on the scorecards after a wild scrap to earn his spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately, his momentum came to a halt as he was outpointed in the semi-finals by Movlid Khaybulaev, who went on to win the 2021 featherweight title.

“It was the correct result. I lost that fight,” Loughnane told me after that fight. “Movlid is a great fighter – all respect to him.”

Bouncing back

After reaching the semi-finals in 2021, Loughnane was determined to go all the way to the championship in 2022 and, after picking up decision wins over Japanese contender Ryoji Kydo and Bosnian Ago Huskic, he found himself back in the playoffs once again. 

This time, his home nation was right there with him, thanks to a new broadcasting deal struck between the PFL and UK broadcaster Channel 4. 

“I had no idea about the channel four deal when I re-signed for this season with PFL,” he told me at the time. “It’s like a ‘Brucey Bonus.’ I was well happy when I heard. It's massive; it's massive for me in the UK. Everyone can now watch my fights live. I'm buzzing. It's going to be big.”

The playoffs were held in London, England, where Loughnane was matched with the 2021 runner-up, American Chris Wade. Wade seemed irked that his opponent had been given home advantage for the bout, and the pair engaged in plenty of verbal jousting before the fight.

“I don’t like this guy, and he sure as hell doesn't like me. He's coming into my back garden, and we're gonna fight," Loughnane stated.

In his first fight on UK soil since 2018, Loughnane dominated Wade through their three-round bout to book his spot in the final against Bubba Jenkins at Madison Square Garden, New York.

After not being home in nearly two years, Loughnane returned to Manchester for a much-needed break to recharge his batteries and visit his family and friends before preparing for the biggest fight of his career.

Reaching the summit

When the 2022 PFL Championships arrived, Loughnane knew that, after fighting for 16 years and suffering so many near misses, the time had come to achieve his destiny.

In a remarkable performance, Loughnane left everything in the PFL SmartCage in an all-action stand-up war with Jenkins. The judges weren’t needed this time, however, with Loughnane stopping Jenkins in the fourth round to earn a TKO finish, the PFL’s 2022 featherweight championship and the $1 million prize. His chance at the big stage may not have arrived early, and there may have been a few knockbacks along the way, but Loughnane proved that with hard work, dedication, and plenty of resilience, dreams can come true.

New challenges ahead?

Loughnane's 2023 PFL campaign started brilliantly with a first-round TKO of Marlon Moraes, but the Englishman was shocked by Jesus Pinedo in his second regular season bout as he was stopped for the first time in his career. Not only did it hand Loughnane a shock defeat, it also bumped him out of the PFL Playoffs.

Loughnane was philosophical in defeat, tweeting, "Stay in the shower long enough, you are going to get wet. These seasons are a grind. I’ve been non-stop fighting and winning for 3 years now. I’ve not had time to be with my loved ones for a while. This one is a lesson for me. No shame in losing to (a) 21-6 fighter. Let’s reset."

Will that mean another run at a million-dollar title in the PFL in 2024, will he look for big one-off matchups as part of the PFL's pay-per-view Super Fight division? Or could he head elsewhere to chase gold in another organization? Watch this space...