IT’S been a long road to the UFC for Oban Elliott, but the Welshman never gave up hope of reaching the promised land of mixed martial arts.
Even when he was juggling one of the most gruelling and demanding jobs with training to fulfil his dream of competing in MMA‘s top promotion.
The three-time Cage Warriors Academy Champion funded his dream of making it to the UFC – and paid the bills – by working nightshift on the railway tracks of Merthyr.
And it was on those cold and dark nights on the tracks where the 26-year-old welterweight fortified a mindset which has seen him tick off one of his career goals.
Ahead of his debut at UFC 298 early tomorrow morning, he told SunSport: “There was never a time where I thought wouldn’t happen.
“But there were definitely times where I thought, ‘If this happens or it doesn’t I’ve given this everything.’
“When you’re out on the night shift and you’re on the track – those days were rough, mate.
“But it just built my character differently.”
The trials and tribulations Elliot has experienced in his life have been pivotal in shaping not only his mindset but also putting him on the path to the UFC.
He said: “Behind the scenes, working full-time and training full-time has made me the man, the fighter that you see today.”
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Elliot punched his ticket to the UFC last September on season seven of Dana White‘s Contenders Series with a majority decision win over Kaik Brito, who came close to finishing him in the second round.
Recalling the fight, he said: “You’d literally have to kill me and roll over and tuck up for the TKO.
“You would’ve had to put me flat out on my back.
“You’re just dealing with a different kind of human being when you get in there with a guy like me.
“It’s not just a little competition, you’ve got your hands full every f***ing time.”
Elliott will follow in the footsteps of fellow Welshman and Welshwomen Brett Johns, Jack Marshman, John Phillips Cory McKenna, Mason Jones and training partner Jack Shore when he faces Val Woodburn.
And as he has done for many a year, he’s leaned on Shore and Shore’s dad – UK MMA pioneer Richard – for advice ahead of the biggest fight of his career.
“They’ve just been telling me to enjoy,” he said. “They have just been helping me mentally.
“They’ve known I’ve been mentally ready for it.
“They’ve just been basically saying, ‘The pressure is off now. Go and enjoy it’.
“And the pressure is off, I can finally enjoy it now.”
With the “pressure” of making it to the UFC no longer on his shoulders, Elliott believes he’ll finally be able to truly express himself as a mixed martial artist.
And in his mind, that starts this weekend with a butchering of former Combat Night Pro star Woodburn.
“He’s gonna try and kill me,” Elliot said. “And I’m gonna try and kill him.
“Stylistically, I can flip the script on him and I can adapt to whatever he gives me.
“If he puts me into the deep water, we know I can swim. We know I’m good in the first minute, we know I’m good in the last minute.
“Stylistically, I’m ready to fight on instinct. I’ve not got much of a breakdown for you. I’m ready to die. I hope he is too.”
