Cork MMA fighter John Mitchell ready for first pro championship bout
Cork's John Mitchell.
CORK’S rising MMA star John Mitchell is set to compete for the Lightweight PFL European Championship title when he fights Jakub Kaszuba on Friday night, December 8 in the 3Arena, Dublin.
With an 8-1 professional fighting record, the 27-year-old has had to work hard to get to this point in his career. “I think I took the hard road up as an amateur,” John begins. “I fought everyone that they were going to give me as a pro until I changed my manager.
“I was getting everyone they were giving me as well, so I took the hard road up, but I think that's really standing to me. It's made me mentally tougher.
“I've never shied away from a challenge, and now I'm in this position because of that so definitely, I'm very strong mentally.
“I'm looking for the performance of my career, and I've done the work to do that, and the stars have aligned here, I'm fighting in Ireland in the Three Arena as well. So, I'm more than ready to steal the show here.”
It’s no secret that as a county – Cork is great when it comes to supporting their own, and the support Mitchell has received has been no different.
“[The Cork support is] second to none”, Mitchell says. “When I made my pro debut on cage wires, I felt like I sold out that event, and even on Friday night in the Three Arena, it's going to be a large majority Cork people in there.
“I'm paving the way for Cork MMA. It's going to show when I bring a title back to the city, and they'll know all about me then. They know all about me now, in fairness to them, Cork has a fantastic support system.
On his fighting style, and what fans can expect to see, Mitchell remarks; “I'm well-rounded. I've had fights where I’ve predominantly struck for the whole fight, I've had fights where I've wrestled for the whole fight, and I've had fights that I have mixed it between the two.
“So generally, what I do is I look at the at the man in front of me and make the best plan, I feel like I have a very smart team around me, and we just go from there.
On what it means to be in with an opportunity to make history and put Cork on the map in MMA, John remarks; “When I started off, Aaron Maguire, my coach in Cork inspired me a lot because he didn't come from any sort of lineage in the sport.
“He carved a great way for himself. And then like when I was in Dublin, Craig Coakley, same thing. A small gym, and did everything off his own back. So, these were guys that gave me the most inspiration. These are the guys that I was able to relate the most to.
“It's history. It's Irish history and it's Cork history.
“One thing that's been a massive motivating factor for me is I'm paving the way from a place where we haven't had too many champions on an elite level. So, it means the world to me.”
Big fights are nothing new to John, even as an amateur. However, this is his first shot at a professional title, and he’s raring to go.
“I’m feeling great. I'm more than ready for this lad, and I’ll show it on the night.
“This is only the first title I'm going to fight for, in one of the main organisations in the world, but by no means will it be my last. I've been involved in big fights since I've made my pro debut, and I've just carried on that trend since.”
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