Will Fleury set for title shot after stunning 81 second KO in front of 60,000 fans
The Tipperary native has solidified his status as the top contender for the Oktagon Light-heavyweight title.
Irish MMA star Will Fleury is in line for a shot at the Oktagon light-heavyweight title after scoring a stunning KO victory in Frankfurt on Saturday evening.
The Tipperary native needed just 81 seconds to dispatch of Pavol Langer in a number one contender's bout held at the Walstadion in front of a gigantic crowd of 60,000 people.
That attendance figure set a record for the highest attended MMA event in history not including Japan, and the biggest MMA attendance for an event in 21 years.
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Since signing for the European giants earlier this year, Fleury has recorded two impressive stoppage wins, and with light-heavyweight champion Karlos Vemola without an opponent for a scheduled defence in November after Pirat Kristofic pulled out of the bout with injury, Fleury is primed to bag himself a shot at gold.
“November is genuinely realistic, the weight cut won’t be a problem in four weeks and I didn’t take a lick of damage in the cage. I could also do Prague in December, without a problem," Fleury said after the contest.
“Look, you let me know when you want me, and I will be ready. I am without doubt the number one contender in the division now. So Karlos either has to fight me, or he has to vacate and they need to give me someone else to fight for the belt.
“That’s what being a champion is all about, you don’t get to pick and choose who you defend your belt against. Would I understand if he said no? Yeah, of course I would. He’s got an incredible legacy, he’s had an amazing career, and he is not getting any younger either.
“But I am young, hungry guy and I’ve just showed there tonight that I am an absolute f*****g animal, who will do anything to win. I’m not interested in anyone but Karlos, or the belt.
“Bringing OKTAGON to Ireland with the belt is the ultimate goal, but we have to build that. It’s about getting Pavol and Ondrej together for a chat, and showing them that I am real and that I can back up what I say I will deliver. A lot of guys talk bluster, but I have been here for 12 years, grinding away in the background. No one in the entirety of Ireland beats me in a fight in four ounce gloves.
“But I want to make sure that I can do the same to everyone in the whole of Europe, that I can beat anyone in a fist fight. I’ve got balls and I’m ready to go. I look at the OKTAGON roster and I know I can go and smash all of these guys.
“I can’t thank the fans enough for showing up all week. The atmosphere has been amazing, and thanks to OKTAGON for an amazing experience.
“Karlos, I’m next. Let’s give the fans what they want.”
Before his bout with Langer, Fleury told the Irish Mirror how he was hunting a fairytale ending to an impressive career that has been derailed at times.
“I might not sound very emotional, but I get very emotional about that sort of thing the odd time while I'm training when it hits me a little bit where you're like, ‘Yeah, you probably only have another three or four years left in this thing and you better make f*****g something out of it.
“It’s those sorts of chances and the prospects of things like that, that really get me going.
“Do I feel a little bit underappreciated and unrecognized? Yeah, sort of, but I like to look at it as if that's my own fault and it is, I can't skirt around that. I've done f*****g things that have hurt my career.
“I got knocked out in Rome when I was being built up by Bellator as the big guy.
“I allowed myself to be a little bit, I wouldn't say underprepared going into that fight, I did a lot of work going into it, but I definitely felt the confidence that I was going to win that I probably shouldn't have.
“That was a huge mistake on my behalf and I suffered badly.
“Look, you shot yourself in the foot, but you also paid dearly for it a few times. There's a lot of things where I'm like, yeah, that could work out a tiny bit different.
“It would have been f*****g hell of a lot better for you, but I am where I am and I'm still healthy and I'm still alive and I can f*****g do very well out of this eventually if I put my mind into it.”
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