Ex-rugby player minutes away from UFC dream

Stepping into a cage oregon a ringing for immoderate combat is simply a daunting task, beyond astir mortals - and it's hard capable erstwhile winning is each that matters. But what if you didn't conscionable request benignant oregon substance, but both?

Dana White's Contender Series, wherever fighters from autarkic promotions look disconnected successful Las Vegas successful beforehand of the UFC supremo, has been a springboard to occurrence for respective Australians - astir precocious Shannon Ross, who mislaid his combat but impressed White truthful overmuch that helium offered him a declaration anyway. 

But that's the tricky happening astir this circumstantial opportunity. It's not adjacent astir winning oregon losing, it's astir however you transportation yourself, and however overmuch you tin entertain.

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Featherweight Jack Jenkins is the adjacent Australian combatant to get his chance, arsenic helium prepares to instrumentality connected Ecuador's Freddy Emiliano Linares - and helium has nary concerns astir being capable to impress.

"If I had been a feline that gets connected apical and wrestles and conscionable does the bare minimum, past I'd beryllium disquieted astir it and I'd deliberation astir changing - but if you look astatine my past fewer fights, they're heavy striking-dominated, wherever I bash a batch of damage, which is what the UFC wants," helium told Wide World of Sports.

"I'm not going retired determination to alteration thing I've been doing, I'm going retired determination to bash what I've been doing for the past 8 to 10 years anyway."

Jenkins grew up playing rugby union, plying his commercialized arsenic a scrum fractional and doing kickboxing successful the off-season.

"That was up until I was 18, I went to Canada and I was playing rugby implicit determination - but erstwhile I came back, I wanted to marque the NRC squad for the Melbourne Rebels, didn't marque it and went 'right, clip to spell backmost to fighting'."

The astir decade-long grind could beryllium astir to pay off, with a declaration successful the UFC tantalisingly close.

"It's a immense opportunity, and 1 that astatine definite points on the way, didn't deliberation was going to travel - close up until erstwhile I got the call, we'd booked different combat due to the fact that we weren't definite that they were going to marque the telephone for this play of the Contender," helium said.

"I deliberation I'm much than acceptable for it. And I deliberation my resume up until present has decidedly enactment maine successful a bully presumption to spell determination and bash truly good - truthful portion I'm not underplaying the enormity of the opportunity, I besides judge that I merit it and that I'm astatine the level to bash truly good there."

Jenkins is reddish blistery astatine the moment, having won his past six fights and earning belts crossed aggregate promotions.

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He's besides shared ringing clip with chap featherweight, and pound-for-pound champion combatant connected the planet, Alexander Volkanovski.

"Volk's ever blessed to benignant of assistance out, technique-wise, and physique the radical astir him up. And helium decidedly doesn't conscionable structure that to his nonstop teammates," helium said.

"We've sparred a fewer times, and obviously I'm helping him retired by giving him rounds arsenic well, but he's much than blessed to assistance retired and springiness you pointers."

Jenkins comes into the combat arsenic a steadfast favourite with the bookies, and says a substance of accomplishment and strategy volition service him well.

"If you ticker my past fewer fights, you'll spot weaknesses I recognise reasonably rapidly - 1 illustration is limb kicks, they were blading their beforehand foot. So of my past 4 opponents, 3 of them person ended up with a breached limb aft the fight," helium said.

It's a gruesome assertion to fame, and not 1 helium relishes - but erstwhile you're locked wrong a cage, it boils down to termination oregon beryllium killed. 

"I don't needfully person immoderate joyousness successful breaking someone's limb oregon their jaw oregon whatever, but astatine the aforesaid time, it's amended him than maine - and I'm making definite that it's not me," helium said.

"It's a brutal sport, truthful I conscionable clasp the brutality successful that moment, and just effort to bash arsenic overmuch harm arsenic I tin and instrumentality arsenic small harm arsenic I can."

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