Ryan Scope "I dont want to take easy fights, thats why I am fighting Arish"

Ryan Scope talks to Kingdom MMA ahead of BAMMA 15 fight against Ali Arish

by Ben Heather @benheather

Ben: How has your camp gone for this fight and who have you been working with?
Scope: Yeah its gone really well, obviously I fought not so long ago (Feb 22nd) so I only had one week off training before I got back in to it. For this fight I've been sparring with all the guys at the gym like Ross Pearson, Colin Fletcher and Phil De Fries.

Ben: You're fighting Ali Arish on Saturday, would you say he is the best/ toughest fighter you have faced in your career?
Scope: Yeah definitely 100%. I mean hes 20-2 for a reason but I want to fight the best as I want to make a point. I want to get somewhere this year.

Ben: Have you spent much time studying Arish?
Scope: I have only watched a couple of his fights, to be honest everyone knows what he is going to do and he's very good at it but I think I've got the right game plan to stop what he does.

Ben: Do you think you have figured out where 20 of his opponents have gone wrong?
Scope: Yes regarding the defensive wrestling I know what they have all done wrong. None of them have got very much movement, everyone tries to walk forward but then get taken down so its all about the movement.

Ben: Hows the weight looking and whats left for the camp?
Scope: Well I'm a small welterweight so I won't have to cut much and I'm probably going to go to lightweight at some point. For this last week, all the hard work is done I will have my last hard session on Monday and I'll be doing some sprints then I will have a light sparring session Tuesday and then its about getting the weight down.

Ben: When you made your BAMMA debut at BAMMA 12 you were a big underdog and you are again this weekend? Does this spur you on to succeed?
Scope: Yeah definitely I've always been the underdog. I think after this fight when I win I wont be the underdog anymore but I like being the underdog though, there is no pressure and you prove everyone wrong when you win. You would think for an 8-0 pro that people would take notice but they haven't.

That being said though I don't want to take any easy fights, that's why I am fighting Arish. I want to fight the best, fighters that will get me noticed and make a name for myself. You don't see many fighters queueing up to fight Arish. I pride myself on the on taking the tough fights, there are too many fighters who take fights just to pad out their record. If you want to get anywhere you have to put the work in and test yourself, Ali is the best wrestler in MMA hands down so I want to test myself and put my record up against his as in the bigger picture I will be coming up against more wrestlers.

Ben: Since going the distance in your debut you have finished your opponent in all the other fights, is this something you pride yourself on and how prepared are you to push yourself for 3 rounds against Arish?
Scope: I am ready to go, obviously I finished those fights but I am always ready to go the distance. I expect the fight to be a grinding, tough fight.

Ben: Everyone knows his game plan, do you think he will stick to that or try and surprise you on Sat?
Scope: Yeah I would think he will stick to his normal game plan, he might try and stand with us at the start but when he realises that I have too much for him on the feet and I am too fast he might go back to the takedown.

Ben: Other than his wrestling what do you think he does well and do you think he has any areas you have the advantage?
Scope: I'd say his Jui Jitsu, I think I'm better technically but he is just strong when he is on top, again movement is the key for this fight. If I stop moving that's how I am going to get taken down.

Ben: Do you think a win over Arish puts you next in line for the winner of Murray vs Edwards?
Scope: Yes BAMMA have said that's the case but it could also be the step to something different, maybe something bigger you know what I mean. Arish holds wins over both the champion and the challenger so as far as rankings go there is only Paul Daley, Cathal Pendred and Jimmy Wallhead who are above so we will see what happens.

Ben: At the weekend both yourself and Colin Freakshow Fletcher are coming to London to fight are we expecting a big travelling support?
Scope: Yeah we always bring a good crowd so there will be a lot of people coming down.

Ben: You have been scheduled to fight Walter Gahadza in the past, is this a fight you are still interested in?
Scope: I know Walters been saying some shit about me pulling out of the fight because I had a broken hand. He bottled it online when called out by Jake Bostwick so he can't say Ive been dodging a fight when he has been publicly humiliated online so he cant say anything to be honest. I will fight Walter but if I beat Ali, whats the point.

Ben: I read in an interview you did last year that you aim to be in the UFC by the end of this year, how many wins do you think you are you from that now?
Scope: I think its only a couple. Again, if you look at the rankings there isn't many above Arish who is fourth so if I beat him I'm right up there. Obviously Paul Daley isn't getting back in the UFC, Wallhead has just signed for Cage Warriors and Pendred is now signed for the UFC so there would only be those above me and I am only 21. So that will look good for the UFC, up and coming fighter just beat number 4 in the country.

Ben: Its recently been announced that your training partner Ross Pearson has been signed up to fight Diego Sanchez, what do you think of that fight?
Scope: Yeah its gonna be a good fight that one. I think Ross will be too clever on the feet for Diego. Diego is game, he is tough you know but Ross is technically better than him. I like watching Diego fight but he fights with too much emotion. You have to go in there and be chilled.

Its a good fight for Ross and will be a statement if he can finish the fight. Its a good first fight back from Ross' injury. Its in Diego's home town so they are probably expecting Ross to get beat but Ross has a great shot.

Ben: Finally one last question, How do you see yourself winning?
Scope: I'm going to say a second or third round stoppage. Its not going to be like my last couple of fights. TKO stoppage in the second or third.

Kingdom MMA would like to thank Ryan for his time and we wish him all the best for his fight at BAMMA 15.

Jack Mason "After 35 pro fights this will be my first arena show and I can't wait!" ahead of Cage Warriors 57

Jack "Stone" Mason talks to Kingdom MMA before Cage Warriors 57 fight

by Ben Heather @benheather

On Monday I caught up with Jack "Stone" Mason ahead of his fight at Cage Warriors 57, which takes place in Liverpool's Echo Arena on Saturday night. Just before I spoke to Jack news had been released to say that Jack would not be fighting Bruno Carvalho but instead fighting Ali Arish on less than a weeks notice.

Ben: Today (Monday) it was announced that your opponent has changed, how will that change things on the final week before the fight?
Mason: Not a lot to be honest! This was literally a last minute change so all my training camp was done and I just have to focus on making the weight now so to be honest I won’t get any time to work on any specifics for Arish.

Ben: Did you have a specific game plan for Carvalho and will that now change due to the change of opponent to Arish?
Mason: I had a very specific game plan for Carvalho which I’ve been working on with my team for 6 weeks and I was fully prepared for what he was going to bring to the table. Arish is stylistically hugely different to Carvalho and with no time to really plan or train specifically for Arish it’s not exactly an ideal scenario. That being said I’m very confident in my skills right now and think I match up well with Arish, I expect it to be an interesting fight.

Ben: Are you pleased that Cage Warriors were able to find you a new opponent at such short notice?
Mason: Yes, I’m truly thankful to Cage Warriors for keeping me with a fight and to find me such a high calibre replacement. Ali Arish has a 19-2 Pro MMA record and is currently ranked #8 in the rankings. I don’t know many people in UK MMA who would take such a tough fight with 6 days notice but there was no way I was going to turn down this opportunity. I really appreciate Ali taking the fight at short notice too as if he didn’t I’d have been without a fight!

Ben: What do you know about your Arish and do you like the new match up?
Mason: Arish has a 19-2 Pro MMA record and is currently ranked #8 in the rankings, and has faced and beat some legit competition. I know his style is very wrestling based but also has powerful hands. Of course this is a tough match up for anyone in the Welterweight division but as I’ve said before I’m very confident in my skills and I think a lot of people will be shocked about how this fight goes down.
 
Ben: Are you disappointed that you can't fight Carvalho the opponent you had been training to fight? And do you hope you can fight him in the future?
Mason: Of course I’m hugely disappointed that I’m not facing Carvalho, I’ve spent all camp preparing to face him and to have the hard work wasted is very annoying. I’m not entirely sure about the details of why he can’t fight but by all accounts I’ve heard he is a bit of a princess. I honestly don’t think I’d want to commit all that time preparing for him just to see it wasted again so I’d have to give it careful consideration. It’s definitely not something I’m going to be pursuing after I beat Arish that’s for certain.

Ben: How has the camp been?
Mason: Training has been fantastic and I feel like I’ve improved significantly since my last bout.

Ben: You are going to be at the UK MMA Expo this weekend. What day/ time can your fans head over and see you there? If they can't make it to your fight.
Mason: I’ll be on the QNT Sports Nutrition stand (D23) on the Sunday after the fight so please come down and say hello!

Ben: Last time out you fought in the UAE, will it be good to be back and fight in a big arena in Liverpool?
Mason: Fighting on any Cage Warriors event is a privilege and to fight at the Echo Arena in Liverpool is something I am hugely excited for. After 35 professional bouts this will be my first arena show and I can’t wait!

Ben: This card is a massive card for UKMMA have you heard/ felt a buzz for this card that has differed to some of your previous fights?
Mason: Even with some of the last minute pull outs this is one of the best MMA cards to grace UK soil, maybe the best! Yes the buzz for this card is incredible and I expect everyone to be watching and talking about this. I was up in Liverpool last week training with Danny Roberts and the buzz about the show already is huge, the whole city seems to be going to it. Looks like it’s going to be a special event!

Ben: Do you think a win here puts you next in line for a title shot? Or at least in title contention. After all you are already 7-1 in your last 8 fights.
Mason: A win over #8 ranked Arish is a big win and I will be have more wins on Cage Warriors than any other Welterweight including the current champ. I’ll leave that up to Cage Warriors to decide when I’ve earned my shot, I just need to go out and get my job done on Saturday.

Ben: What's going to happen on Saturday night? How do you expect to get the win?
Mason: It will be a surprise!

Ben: Do you want to say thank you to anyone?
Mason: I’d like to thank all my training partners and coaches at BKK Fighters, Tsunami Gym, Ministry of Martial Arts and Laurence Irving Strength & Conditioning for giving up their time to train with me and of course my girlfriend and family. Without these people in my life I wouldn’t be able to achieve anything.

I’d also like to say a huge thank you to my sponsors, please check out their websites and follow them on Twitter:

·         www.britishfighter.co.uk                        @BritishF1ghter
·         www.qntuk.com                                    @QNTUK
·         www.funkygums.com                             @FUNKYGUMS
·         www.ignitept.co.uk                                @LI_Strength
·         www.blankmmauk.com                         @BlankMMAUK

Thanks very much to Kingdom MMA for the interview, it was a pleasure.
If you’d like to keep updated on my training and future fights then please check out my website www.jackstonemason.com and follow me on Twitter @JackStoneMason

Kingdom MMA would like to thank Jack for his time in answering all of our questions the week before his fight. As he mentioned he will be fighting on the Cage Warriors 57 event in Liverpool on Saturday night but if you can't make it to see him fight he will also be at the QNT Sports Nutrition stand at the UK MMA Expo on Sunday.

Injury forces changes to Saturdays Cage Warriors 57 card

Cage Warriors 57 makes enforced changes to fight card on less than a weeks notice

by Ben Heather @benheather

Unfortunately the Cage Warriors 57 fight card has had a couple of late enforced changes due to late changes. Cage Warriors 57 will be taking place in Liverpool's Echo Arena on Saturday night.

The changes can be viewed below.

Main Card
Danny Roberts will now take on Aldric Cassata (6-5), who replaces the injured Mauro Chimento.
Jack Mason now faces Ali Arish (19-2) instead of Bruno Carvalho.
A new opponent is currently being sought for Mats Nilsson following the withdrawal of Lee Chadwick due to injury.

Prelims
Jason Cooledge (8-4) steps in for the injured Lew Long to take on Saul Rogers.

As soon as details come out regarding Mats Nilsson's new opponent we will keep you all up to date.