Che Mills: The School of Hard Knocks

He may be known as “beautiful” but Gloucester, England welterweight fighter Che ‘Beautiful’ Mills returns to the cage at UFC 145 this weekend with MMA fans knowing there is more to this man than just looks. Roll the clock back to November 5^th 2011 and UFC 138 where Che Mills took on and destroyed San Diego brawler Chris Cope in just under 40 seconds of the first round of his UFC debut. Talking ahead of that fight, Mills admitted he was “living his dream” and with only four defeats out of nineteen bouts, you wouldn’t bet against the British battler this weekend.

Despite Che Mills being a relative newcomer to the UFC, his opponent, Rory Macdonald, would be mad to think the twenty-nine year old who fights for Trojan Freefighters is going to let the occasion go to his head. With a fight career that dates back to 2003, Mills’ reputation as a brutal knockout fighter put him on the radar of the UFC team and his first appearance and subsequent disposal of Chris Cope at UFC 138 repaid UFC for the chance to show the US and the world what the UK has known for over 7 years.

With an upbringing that saw his father wrongly imprisoned for murder when the fighter was aged five, Mills’ early days were spent learning a lot of hard lessons. At nineteen, and after years of street-fighting, Mills discovered MMA as a suitable channel for his frustration and anger. Battling his way through the UK MMA scene with multiple wins at Cage Rage, Cage Warriors and BAMMA under his belt, it’s hard to deny that Mills hasn’t earned his stripes and, with it, a shot at the big time.

Having earned a reputation as an elite fighter, a lot rides on this fight for Mills this weekend. Ahead of the fight on the 21^st April, Mills admitted to UFC that “Macdonald is a big step up for me”, but, with no hint of nerves, Mills adds “I’ve got no doubts about my ability. I’m ready.”

Tags: Che Mills, Chris Cope, Mixed Martial Arts, MMA, Rory MacDonald, UFC, UFC 145, UK MMA

Category: MMA, UFC