Issue 199

August 2023

Dana White's Contender Series is not just a source of new talent for the UFC, it's also the chance for fighters to tell their stories as they make their way from the regional scene to the world stage. For Welsh welterweight Oban Elliott, it was the perfect time to show the world what he's all about, writes Simon Head.

Elliott had already made a name for himself on the UK and European scene with his all-action displays and larger-than-life personality. But his goal was to take his talents to the big stage. 

Elliott started his career as an amateur under the Cage Warriors banner and fought with the organization through seven amateur fights, then 10 more as a pro as he compiled an 8-2 professional record. Fighting out of Shore Mixed Martial Arts in Wales under the tutelage of head coach Richard Shore, Elliott's performances had attracted the attention of the UFC's matchmakers and he got his chance to earn a spot on the UFC roster via Dana White's Contender Series.

The challenge ahead of him was a big one. Brazil's Kaik Brito had double the fights, double the wins, and a 100 percent finish rate. Most recently, he captured the welterweight title for Czech-Slovak promotion Oktagon MMA with a blistering display to defeat that organization's long-reigning champion David Kozma last December.

Despite the test posed by Brito, Elliott headed off to Las Vegas with a single-minded determination to take his opportunity and give his family something to be proud of after nearly two decades.

Elliott carries a tattoo on the inside of his left arm that simply states, "2005." It may be small and understated compared to a lot of the fighter ink you'll see in the sport, but for Elliott, it's not the artwork that counts, it's the meaning behind it. 

"This is a tattoo for the year I lost my dad, the year everything got turned upside down. But it's the year that this journey began," Elliott told the UFC ahead of his fight.

"My dad's name is Paul Elliott. He was known in our home town as the man on the streets, and he did his bit in the ring, as well. He is a very respected man – even 18 years after he's gone, he's still talked about as one of the town's legends.

"When he passed away, our family was in ruin. It was a horrible time, I really took it badly as a kid, I was a very troubled kid. But when I was in that kickboxing gym, or the boxing gym, or wherever it was, I was running on the roads, I was calm and happy then. So fighting has always been a way for me to deal with those struggles, and without it, I don't know where I'd be."

Elliott also paid tribute to his mother, who was left to pick up the pieces after Paul's passing, and became the driving force that encouraged to Oban to pursue his martial arts dream and push through the tough times.

"She got left a single mother with three kids in a town that we weren't even from – we'd moved just before he died, so it was really hard for us all," he explained.

"She was the one who made us get in the car and go to train, and my mother, she'd be screaming at us to get in the car to go training. Obviously, that's my father's influence, and that's what he would have wanted.

"So I'm in this position now where I can put my family name out there and make a lot of money, get my mother a house where she wants it, and make it all seem like it was worth it. You know what I mean?"

Then he uttered a line that almost reached through the screen and grabbed the viewer as he made clear how he would refuse to let this life-changing opportunity slip through his fingers.

"I'll be carried out in a box," he said, voice cracking with emotion.

"I'll be carried out in a box before this Brazilian beats me. You will feel every ounce of the 18 years of pain and suffering I've had. He'll feel every single bit of it.

"There's a reason. There's a reason for it all, right? This is 20 years in the making. So here it is."

Elliott was clearly heading into the bout full of spirit and determination, and he would need every ounce of it to prevail in what turned out to be one of the best Contender Series fights of the season so far.

Elliott stood and traded with the heavy-handed Brito early, then landed an impressive takedown – a sign of his more well-rounded MMA game. That wrestling would prove crucial to his success in a fight that quickly went deep into the trenches.

After a strong opening round from Elliott, Brito loaded up and swung for the fences in Round 2, and when he landed clean on the Welshman, the former Cage Warriors man's prospects looked pretty bleak. Brito, seeing his UFC chance right in front of him, went hell for leather for the finish as he battered Elliott with heavy punches and knees. But, despite being clearly rocked and in big trouble, Elliott kept moving, and then started to fire back.

By the final minute of the round, Elliott had recovered just enough to shoot for a takedown, but he ended up on the ground, with the Brazilian on his back. The armbar was there for the Brazilian, and he snatched it up with seconds to go in the round. But there was no way Elliott was going to tap, and the horn sounded to end the round.

Elliott had survived, but he, and his corner, knew there was work still to do. He had to win the final round to stand any chance of getting the UFC contract he'd flown halfway across the world for, and his coach Richard Shore gave him one final piece of encouragement before sending him out for the biggest round of his career.

"Fantastic, son, to come back in that round," he told him.

"You've survived this round. This is the round now where you change your life."

With both men clearly suffering the effects of the first 10 minutes and the fight – and a UFC contract – on the line, Elliott used his smarts to keep the fight at distance as he forced Brito to lunge in with big shots, then leaned out of range as he made the Brazilian swing big, and miss, over and over again. 

Elliott then let his own shots go and, after a few jabs, buried two huge body kicks deep into the Brazilian's midsection that clearly affected Brito's already depleted gas tank. A desperation spinning backfist from Brito missed badly and only served to send the unbalanced Brazilian to the mat. It was all the invitation Elliott needed.

"The Welsh Gangster" immediately dived on Brito, settled into guard, then went to work as he hammered Brito with punches and elbows for the final 60 seconds of the fight as he made a final statement to Dana White with some heavy ground and pound.

Then, after his majority decision win was confirmed with scores of 29-28, 29-28, 28-28, Elliott stopped at White's table on his way backstage as he told the UFC boss to "do the right thing," and give him a UFC contract.

"I just got done with a world champion from a f*****g big organization, with double my fights. And if you want me to add every other person in here to that list, don't offer me a contract!" he told White.

"I know you'll do the right thing!"

He then visited with Laura Sanko backstage, where he cut a promo while flexing for the camera, Hulk Hogan-style, as he reacted to his performance.

"Born to fight, fight to kill, ready to die, but I never will," he began.

"It would have taken 10 of him to get me out of there tonight. I came here for one reason – I told you on VT – I've not come here to make up the numbers. I've come here to tell you that I'm the man. 

"I just got done with a world champion in a back-and-forth war. I'll take anybody on, in any weight, and that's why I've been invited to compete on this show. So, Dana, do the right thing, brother!"

Elliott then talked about his mindset during the second round when he found himself mired in adversity as Brito threatened to stop him with strikes and end his UFC dream.

"I'll tell you, without even being corny, what went through my mind was going back to a building site, thinking about the s**t that me and my family have been through the last 18 years," he explained. 

"And when that big nasty Brazilian put me on my arse, I knew that I had to get back up. And I got back up, and I beat the s**t out of him in the last round to secure my UFC contract. If that's not enough, I don't know what is!

"I sat down and watched the likes of Chael Sonnen climbing the ranks in 2011, 2012, and I said, 'The only way that I'm going to be able to pay this part of my life back is by being a UFC fighter,' making that kind of money where I can put my mother in a house in Cornwall, and that UFC title can not replace my dad, but help fill that void. It's been my lifelong dream. So I was ready to die in there, man."

Elliott continued his post-fight reaction during the press conference backstage at the UFC Apex, where he told reporters how his dogged determination and stubborn refusal to quit helped get him to the UFC.

“Hard work pays off, dreams come true. Bad times don’t last, but bad guys do. That’s what I’ve got written on the wall in my house,” he said.

“I’ve had my setbacks, you know? I’ve had to fight the killers. You see all these prospects squeaking by, fighting toilet cleaners that have a one-fight release on the UFC. They get a nice little blue corner job every time. And I just fought that psychopath, you know what I mean? I’m just one of them guys. I haven’t taken no for an answer, and that’s why I’m up here now, you know? I said yes to this fight before I even knew who it was.”

And, while Elliott had explained pre-fight how he was fighting for his family, he also revealed that he had additional inspiration and motivation from his head coach. Richard Shore had been battling cancer over the past year, and was fighting through aggressive chemotherapy treatment during Elliott’s camp.

“He was turning up with chemo, on chemotherapy treatment, and he was at the gym. So what excuse did I have? So it kind of made it easier, in a way,” he said.

“Of course, it was tough, but it's more motivation, you know? (I’ll) fight for my family and all that. But that cockroach who won't lay down for anyone, Richard Shore – he’d been through the worst year of his life. And he told me that me getting this (UFC contract) would make it one of the best. He's had a grandson, so yeah, that one was for him as much as it was anyone else.”

Now Elliott is officially a UFC fighter, his life is about to change. He said that he plans to quit his full-time job working the railways in the UK, where his work colleagues did their part to help him prepare, covering for him as he grabbed some much-needed rest after heavy training sessions. Now all that hard work, in the gym, in the cage, and on the railway lines of the UK, has paid off and he’s ready to plough every ounce of effort he has into his UFC career.

“I had to do it this way, and I wouldn't change it,” he said.

“Because, as I go full time now fighting in the best fighting organization in the world, where I can put everything into it, you know, my dream’s come true. 

“I have a feeling I'm gonna have a f*****g special run. And, if any of my past is to go by, I'm not gonna take no for an answer in the UFC. Just like I've not taken no for an answer in life.”

And, before he signed off his first press conference as a UFC fighter, Elliott was asked to offer some words of encouragement to the youngsters looking to follow in his footsteps and make it all the way to the big show.

“To all the kids in the area, I had a troubled time growing up. I had a dream and I've had to work full-time this whole time, you know? And I’ve had to fight tough guys the whole time. And I've stumbled a couple of times – I've had to retire once through medical issues. 

“If I’ve got a message for any young kid coming up, if you've got if you've got an idea and you want to be somewhere don't stop. Don't take no for an answer. If it's not going to be given to you, go and f*****g take it. Like I just did.”

And “The Welsh Gangster” had a message for his next opponent, whoever that may be, as he left the stage with a warning to his first UFC rival.

“You’d better be good, whoever I’m fighting next, because I’m a f*****g nightmare!”