Stoked up in Stoke: Fighting Men

This programme contains strong language.

Good evening, and welcome to this Night Of The Gladiators 23.

Are you ready?

CHEERING

Come on!

I love cage fighting.

It's just a buzz for me.

It's releasing a lot of stress, frustrations.

Keeps me on the straight and narrow.

You forget about everything when you walk in that cage.

The adrenaline's unreal.

It's took over my life.

Back in the day, in Stoke-on-Trent, there was a lot of industry.

When them industries collapsed, there was nothing for a young man.

It must being demoralising knowing that when you finish school,

you haven't got an industry to go towards.

What are you going to do with yourself?

It affects a lot of young men.

Come on, this is the fight now. Let's work.

Mixed martial arts - cage fighting as most people know it -

fills that void.

I don't understand what the problem is today, mate. I just don't feel...

You've got to start manning up,

-do you know what I mean?

-I am manning up.

Like, I've always fought the system. I've always fought authority.

But I had to do that growing up.

I haven't got the anger any more.

I focus that into my mixed martial arts.

Mixed martial arts changed my life for the better, really.

I was 18 stone.

I've lost four stone within five months.

It's given me the drive to succeed, like.

I don't give up.

I'm going to come at him full-on.

Just know I'm going to smash him, mate.

He's just going to have a handful, mate.

He's going to have his hands full, mate,

and I don't know if he's going to be ready for me.

Can't say no more.

OK, so I'm making my morning pre-workout smoothie.

Just some dried oats.

Got my omega fish oils.

Got wheatgrass, barley grass, green tea extracts.

That's my testosterone booster.

Really good stuff, this is.

Helps to lift my testosterone levels up.

As you're getting a little bit older,

your testosterone levels drop, you know,

so being a man, I like to take a little bit,

just boost it up a little bit.

I'm Ross Pointon, I'm 37 years of age, from Stoke-on-Trent.

I run Night Of The Gladiators mixed martial arts fighting championships.

And I'm a UK mixed martial arts heavyweight world champion.

Mixed martial arts changed my life.

It gave me something to live for,

gave me something to work towards, gave me a goal.

I hit rock bottom.

I was at a crossroads at one point in my life...

Um...

..mixing with the wrong crowds, getting into the wrong things.

I was into drugs, crime, you know, easy ways of making money.

And I knew I had to change that.

Otherwise, if I didn't, I was going to end up in a box or in jail.

Back in the day, when I was younger in Stoke,

you know, there was a lot of industry.

The steel industry, pottery industry

and the coal industry as well.

Obviously, generations of father to son

have passed down through these industries,

and when them industries collapsed,

there was nothing for anybody, they had nowhere to go, you know.

For a young man, be demoralising knowing that when you finish school,

you haven't got an industry to go towards.

What are you going to do with yourself?

Mixed martial arts fills that void,

something that's missing in their life.

Hopefully, I can help a lot these young lads, as well,

to hopefully make something of their lives and turn their lives around.

Even if it's just giving them some positive mental attitude.

On the outside, swing your arms.

The next Night Of The Gladiators is in two months' time.

We're in fight camp zone, which is high intensity training.

These guys are beginners and they want to get their feet wet.

BEEPING

OK, guys, let's spar now.

This is where it counts now.

Come on, this is the fight now. Let's work.

A lot of these guys are coming straight off the street.

You know, a lot of them have been down to rock bottom.

Some of the guys may have problems in their personal lives,

you know, anything from drugs, alcohol, family issues.

Don't listen to that weak voice in your head that's saying, "I'm tired."

Listen to the strong voice that says,

"No, we're going to carry on, keep working."

Mixed martial arts pulls them away from them problems.

I love fighting, basically.

It's just a buzz for me, it's just a big adrenaline rush.

It's the danger, isn't it? It's the fear of it, as well.

Ah, that's fucking horrible, man.

Takes bollocks, don't it? Takes balls, mate.

Ahhh, Tim!

I didn't hear the best things about him.

He's a street kid, you know,

so he's a little bit feisty and a little bit loud.

Fight's a fight.

A bit forward.

-Yo, Chunk.

-HE WHISTLES

Chunk...!

Right, I'm going to make the smoothie now.

My name's Tim Walker. I'm 30 years old.

I love mixed martial arts, cage fighting.

It's a release for me.

It's a release of a lot of stress, frustrations.

Keeps me on the straight and narrow.

That's health. That's nutrition.

'..to my left, in the red corner,

'let's hear it for...

'Tim Walker!'

I've had two cage fights.

I got the feel for the cage then.

This is the guillotine.

It's the excitement and the adrenaline what I had.

And I never felt like that before.

Some ground and pound.

You don't think it's brutal. You just do what you do, don't you?

And then, obviously, you watch it back, you can think like that,

but you don't get in trouble for doing it in here.

Keeping me out of prison, as well, cos I'd been in prison for a while.

I've done a few sentences, like, different...

I did a four-year sentence,

and I've done ten months here, six months there.

I've been done for assaults on police officers, criminal damage,

affray charges, actual bodily harm charges.

'The winner is,

'in the red corner,

'Tim Walker.'

And there's not a better feeling than that.

Ooh! Fuck!

Ahhh!

HE GROANS

He just nutted that, you know, clean, that wall.

-You all right, dude?

-Yeah, yeah. Fucking hell, lad.

Fucking hell, mate.

I think every man likes fighting, don't they?

-You all right, son?

-Yeah, yeah.

You've got to have that inner strength built in, like the heart.

Let's go.

I've been fighting since October 2014.

I've lost a fight and I've won a fight so far.

Benny, when he first came here, was unfit.

Didn't have much technique.

He's picked himself up off his arse

and he's made the plunge to change his life

and work towards something.

Great session tonight, guys. Well done, man.

-One, two, three... ALL:

-Team Gladiator.

About quarter to nine.

Just making some oats and a coffee.

Pretty simple, really, but it's how I start my day.

My name is Benjamin Kirkland. I'm 27.

I'm a single man, like. I haven't got a job at the minute.

I used to live for the weekend, basically.

Work all week and get paid on the Friday.

Saturday, I'd go football.

End up spunking all my money.

Do at least 150 quid within one day on booze.

Easy.

Be out all night

and I'd get home about seven o'clock in the morning,

sleep all day,

wake up, then eat like a pig.

Sausage, bacon, pizza, cheeseburgers, chips.

Like, it makes me feel sick talking about it now, like.

And that was every weekend.

No wonder I was piling the weight on, like.

Yeah, this is me.

And I do look big on that picture. Jesus!

Look like I've got three chins there.

Look at the belly on that!

I'd come to the stage where all this drinking and eating shit,

it was just taking its toll.

I wasn't happy with my life and how I looked at all.

It's like, I don't know, like, body conscious.

Thinking to myself, "I'm going to have to change this," like.

October 2014, I was 18 stone, dot on.

And, obviously, now I'm 13 stone 9.

I've lost four stone within five months.

It all stems from this, MMA.

Everything's starting to get defined, definition.

Like, I used to have love handles here, belly.

I'm feeling bones that I haven't felt in a while.

The abs are starting to come through.

When I look in that mirror and see everything just solid...

I'll be happy.

Benny's dramatically changed over the course of being in the gym.

He's trimmed down, looking lean,

you know, a lot more confident in himself.

As a young man, Benny's a lot more content with himself now.

Look at the sweat on that.

That's how you lose weight, innit?

It's important for young men today to be looking in top shape.

You know, you see a lot of these magazines and, you know, TV,

you know, and everybody's looking ripped and lean.

It's a massive factor to these lads nowadays

to look good and to feel confident about the way you look.

Face like Crimewatch, body like Baywatch.

It's not just about coaching.

I put the show together as well,

so I've got to get the tickets out to the fighters,

prep the fight card, I've got to get the poster designed.

Night Of The Gladiators cage fighting, Saturday, July, 2015.

We're trying to get away from the word "cage fighting"

but, you know, I was doing posters before

and it said "mixed martial arts" on.

And I was thinking, you know,

I'm not really getting much feedback from these.

You know, so maybe it's because people don't fully understand

the word "mixed martial arts", you know, or "MMA".

So I put "cage fighting"

because the average person on the street can relate to cage fighting,

because that's where it started from.

So, I thought, well, put cage fighting on there.

Even though we're trying to pull it away from that,

you know, it doesn't make sense, but it does, in a way.

Ah! Oh, for fuck's sake!

He's hit me right in the fucking groin.

Some people think it's barbaric, like dog fighting.

You know, two guys getting in there,

smashing ten barrels of crap out of each other.

Whereas it's far, far from that.

These guys are athletes.

Yeah? So jab, right, body, knee. Yeah? Same leg.

Yeah? MMA this time.

They fight with skills ranging from boxing...

..Muay Thai, judo...

..wrestling...

..jujitsu.

BEEPING

OK? Now grab his head, he grabs the wrist.

Now just let him get into a false sense of security.

I'm going to lift up, I penetrate...

and I pull and bring him down.

The objective for these guys now is to put the guy on his back,

get the other guy to submit.

Bridge, Dan!

Submission is where your opponent will try and inflict as much pain

to try and make you tap out.

It's important that you can endure pain in this sport,

because the sport's full of pain.

It's a hardman sport.

RETCHING

Don't be sick on these mats!

It definitely is a sport that separates the men from the boys.

RETCHING

Hit the elbow there. Not the wrist.

Shit, sorry.

-How's your hand, Tim?

-Sore.

-Well, you know what I said.

-Yeah.

If your coach recommends straight after the fight,

go and get it checked out, got to listen to your coach.

I will next time.

My last fight, I must have bent my wrist as I hit him

and done some ligaments.

It's giving me quite a lot of pain. I've got no strength in it.

Rach, I'm going, yeah?

-All right, babe.

-Right, love.

-Yeah.

It is a bit nerve-racking at the minute

because my fight's six weeks away.

If it's not fully healed, I can't fight, really, can I?

What's happening?

What's the verdict?

No breaks, no fractures.

Could be ligaments or tendons, but they can't tell from the X-rays.

He says the tendons could harden.

Just don't use it, he said. Could damage them long-term.

I says, "I fight in six weeks,"

so told me to take painkillers, ice it and use it as little as possible.

Well, it is tricky to not use the left wrist when you're fighting.

I've lived in Leek since I was about nine, ten.

It's not the best place for me at the minute

because I used to get in quite a bit of trouble round here.

I'll be off my ASBO in 12 months.

I've done 12 months and I've not breached it yet.

Just the things accumulated over the years,

different offences, police giving me trouble.

They think if they make it

as uncomfortable as possible for me around here

then I'll just fuck off, do you know what I mean?

But I'm always going to be around for them.

Do you know what I mean?

I'm always going to be... I'm never going to let them win.

I'm never going to let them win.

Community payback.

I had, like, 180 hours community service,

so I did quite a bit of it down here.

We used to have to litter-pick round here,

clean, like...drain the boats out.

Used to piss me off, mate.

Used to take up my day, waste my day.

I used to come here, just be bored.

-Well, lad, how are you?

-What are you on?

They're just filming me, they are.

-Who is it? What for?

-You're going to be on it now.

All right, mate?

-All right, Tim?

-All right, mate?

-All right, yeah.

We've had a few nights out together.

-Eventful night.

-Yeah. A few...

A few drinks and girls and a bit of fun, you know?

What can we say?

We got on the beak and got absolutely fucked up!

-Yeah, that's what we used to do, yeah.

-Yeah!

Bit of sniffing, drinking.

Yeah.

He's always had that little bit of an edge on him, definitely.

I'm going to get an ice cream from in here.

He's telling the truth, mate.

He used to be a little bit of a troublemaker, back in the day.

Fighting and drugs and things like that, you know.

All the bad things in life.

He used to be a lot more aggressive, cause mayhem.

And now he's clean, as far as I know,

and he's training every day, and he's a changed man.

That's my favourite of a night-time.

I've had many nights in there.

Like, some eventful ones in there.

I've had a couple of fights roundabout here, in this area.

It's not that I'm not welcome. I've made myself not welcome.

I don't know, mate.

It's, like, I'm banned from all the pubs.

It's, like, every single fucking pub in Leek, I'm banned from.

Every single licensed premises in Leek, I'm banned from.

I'm not allowed to have an open container of alcohol

in a public place.

And then they just think now that if I go in there,

if they let me in the pub,

there's just going to be trouble, that's what they think.

And the more I drunk, the more stupid things I did.

And then I'd wake up in a police station, ring the buzzer,

and I'd ask what I've done.

They says, "Oh, well you've thrown a pint glass at somebody,"

or, "You've hit someone over the head with a table."

"You've thrown paint stripper on someone."

Obviously, I'm off my ASBO and my conditions in 12 months,

so I'll definitely be coming back in the pubs.

They're going to have to give me a chance eventually, aren't they?

They can't hold it against me forever.

I've not got the anger any more.

I've focused that into my mixed martial arts.

Don't get me wrong.

I can fall off sometimes now and I have the odd drink.

Sometimes I take it too far.

But I know I can always get myself back on track,

cos I just go to the gym...

..I focus on a fight.

It takes a lot of frustration, a lot of anger out, for me.

Obviously, Tim, when he came in the gym, he had a lot of issues.

In and out of prison,

a lot of violence and stuff, and crime.

Since he's been in the gym,

I feel that he's kind of, like, finding himself a little bit more.

And it does seem to have channelled his anger and stuff,

which is maturing him as a young man, I think.

-Yeah, I could see that coming.

-That's what can happen.

BEEPING Change partners.

My life at the moment is just training constantly.

It's definitely become an obsession. It's took over my life.

For me, it's a bit easier to train, cos it's all I've got.

Obviously, I'm unemployed,

which isn't the best thing in the world, like,

but it's not going to be forever.

I was working for a company, driving cars.

When I lost my job, I went to the dole.

I asked them if there was any way

they could put me on to something with trucking

to complete and get a licence.

They put me on a course the week after,

but they explained to complete the trucking

I'd have to stay on the dole for six months.

And I'm nearly there now, like.

I've just got one last hurdle and it'll be complete.

Once I get my truck licence, I'll never be out of a job.

It's a career, like, it's my future.

Show me where the dipstick is.

Yeah, go on, pull it out.

That's great.

Point to the calibration stick, yeah?

Yeah.

BEEPING

The MMA has helped within these last six months.

Punch, punch, kick.

Sprawl.

Next thing, turn your ignition on.

ENGINE STARTS

I'm working towards a career.

Bang on.

I'm working towards goals with the MMA.

It's pushing me forward.

-Happy with that?

-Yes, I am.

-Yeah?

It's given me the drive to succeed, like.

OK, brilliant, guys. Well done today.

-ALL:

-Team Gladiator!

-Well done, guys.

Yeah, so I passed.

Final hurdle complete.

95%, so passed with flying colours.

Hopefully, the future's bright from here on.

Sorted.

We're getting close to, like, the last few weeks of the fight now.

You step up the training a little bit.

The mind-set will change inside the gym.

Attitudes are going to change, body language is going to change.

Oh, fuck.

Cos people know they're getting

a little bit closer to that point, you know?

Great spar, yeah, MMA.

Tim, shadow-box. You've got to fight, man.

Come on. Enthusiastic. Enthusiasm.

Coach is saying you've got to shadow-box, let's do this, come on.

Yeah, man. Just chill, man.

I've had a bad week this week.

I just felt... I just felt low in myself and down.

Just energy, like, I just feel run-down.

Some people expect you to be at your best every day.

-Tim...

-Yeah?

-You've got to start manning up, know what I mean?

-I am manning up.

If it was on a normal day, I wouldn't give a shit, mate.

Let's fight, let's go, let's shadow-box, man.

I don't understand what the problem is.

I don't understand what the problem is. I just don't feel fucking...

Tim, he thinks I'm trying to get at him and order him about.

Doesn't understand that

just getting him shadow-boxing then for that couple of minutes,

instead of standing round, is better than just standing round.

You know, I'm not trying to force anything on him,

but he seems to think that, like, the world's against him today,

you know, or this week.

This is in-between Leek and Buxton. The Peak District.

The Winking Man, Roach End.

The Roaches. This is the Roaches.

See that farm right there?

That's where I used to live when I was about 14.

Roach End Farm.

Brings back some memories, that does.

It's a children's home for troubled teenagers and young people.

I'd been moved from another children's home

which is not far from here, Old Sams Farm.

I'd been in a bit of trouble up there.

Just getting in trouble with the staff,

falling out with the other people at the children's home

and fighting with them.

Used to get restrained by staff.

They just put you in armlocks and hold you down while you calm down.

I was a bit naughty then.

Bit of a rebel.

I used to have a vendetta with everyone.

I just used to hate things, like, hate people,

and didn't care about nothing, really.

Just from my upbringing. I used to...

I used to think, "Why me?" do you know what I mean?

"Why have I been in care?

"Why have I lived in 32 children's homes in five years?"

My upbringing's made me the way I am today.

I have blamed everyone...

..for the way...for, like...

for me being in trouble, for me getting in trouble and stuff.

Obviously, now if I get in trouble, at the age of 30, I'm, like...

..that's on my head, that is, that's my...

I know better now, do you know what I mean?

Whereas when I was, like, five, six, seven, eight and nine,

how can you...?

You're not in control, do you know what I mean?

How can I be responsible for the way I was...

I was brought up when I was a kid, when I was a baby and stuff?

I never got settled. I was never settled.

-How much blame do you apportion to your parents?

-I don't...

Your mum? Your mum and dad?

I'm not going into none of that.

-No?

-No, no, no, no.

I'm not talking about my parents.

Do you...? You don't blame them?

No.

I did do, but I don't now.

Some days, it does drive me mad,

not getting anywhere with the job search stuff.

I've applied for every job I can apply for.

Driving jobs, multi-drop,

even valeting jobs and stuff like that, cleaning.

It's over 50 jobs a week, easily. Easily.

There's not much more I can do.

It's all a waiting game.

Some of these companies best start getting back to me.

They're doing my head in now.

Last night, we had drama on the mats.

All of a sudden, Benny and Steven have stood up at the end of the round

and kicked off.

Steven's pushed Benny.

Benny didn't like it, spat his dummy out, said, "Come on, then."

They both squared up to each other.

I've jumped up, stepped in,

like, whoa, what's going on, what's happening, you know?

And then Benny's slagging him off, calling him a dick.

RINGING TONE

'Hey up.'

-How's it going?

-'All right, mate. How are you?'

All right.

So, what's happening, then, now?

'What do you mean?'

Last night totally fucking ruined the team morale,

when we're all supposed to be like brothers.

Benny wouldn't give me eye contact when I'm trying to talk to him.

I'm telling him, "Give me eye contact, man,

"I'm trying to talk to you, I'm trying to get this sorted out."

In the end, I said to him, "Listen, you know,

"if you want to fight, don't walk out that door now.

"You walk out this door now

"then you're off the show, you're not fighting."

And he walked out the door.

On the night of the fight,

growling at people and wanting to fight like that, that's great.

But there's a time and place for it.

Are you still fighting?

'Of course I am.

'I'm not going to fuck it up just cos I fucking lost my rag.'

Yeah, but you almost did fuck it up last night, didn't you?

Sort it out, Benny.

Just recently I've been getting a bit snappy, like.

It's nothing to do with the fight.

It's my personal life that's affecting me at the minute.

The fact that I need a job.

It's like, now I've got a driving licence, I've got a truck licence.

It's just one of them things. I've got to get a job soon.

And that's on my mind constantly, so when I go to the gym...

..and then I've got someone throwing punches at me...

things can go wrong.

On the night of the fight, Benny's fighting a guy called Ryan Scally.

He's a game kid, he wants to fight.

You know, he's in the gym all the time.

I'm coaching both of these guys on different nights, you know,

and I'd like them both to win.

But, you know, there can only be one winner on the night, you know.

But that's my job as a coach

to make sure that either one of them could win.

Just tuck it up and take your hits.

Tuck up, take it and change your level

and go underneath him, take him down.

Let's go.

Tim's fighting an opponent from UTC in Birmingham,

which is a very reputable mixed martial arts gym.

You have, you know, some top fighters in there.

Training steps up a gear

and they're taking it a little bit more seriously

as it's getting a little bit closer to the show.

This is where the going gets tough and the tough get going.

Yeah, brilliant.

Fuck.

Let's go, Tim, get up.

BEEPING Get up, Tim.

HE PANTS

Was a bit stiff this morning.

Hurting quite a bit.

Last night, I twisted my ankle, like, I bent my leg,

sort of like in an outward position,

and as I've landed, I've landed, bent my ankle and fell on it.

See the bruise?

HE WINCES

It hurts when I walk on it.

But this happens all the time. You get knocks and injuries.

KNOCK ON DOOR

My mate.

My gym partner, Dean.

Munching his banana.

Breakfast.

TIM CHUCKLES

Yeah, see what I done to my foot last night?

It's going to be a challenge, isn't it?

My ankle's killing, man.

-Take it easy, won't you, on that?

-I've done things like this before.

It's just lasted a few days, you know what I mean?

-What, before a fight?

-No.

-That's what I mean.

It's a big injury for before a fight.

You've got your wrist and now you've done your ankle.

It's just the wrist, innit?

That's what's worrying me.

OK, guys, get your shinnies on, get your boxing gloves on.

-I've got that... Feel that grip, yeah?

-Yeah?

-I've only got that.

-You don't need grip to do this escape.

When someone's there and I try and grip a hand...

-You don't need grip to do the escape.

-I've got no power.

-Just feels sore.

-Do you know what it is?

You're approaching, now, your fight.

You're getting close to your fight now.

You've got to think of all the weeks you've been training,

your body's getting beat up, you're coming to the end of it now.

This is where it starts picking up now.

-It's not even my fitness I'm bothered about.

-Yeah, but...

It's whether I'm going to be all right on the night.

You need to fucking figure that out, don't you?

I know I moan about it and that,

but that's just my way of dealing with a fucking...

that's my way of dealing with it,

rather than sit at home, fucking sending him an excuse,

"Oh, I can't come in tonight," like some other people do,

just say no names.

Benny, Benny, Benny.

Benny's not been in the training camp

as much as we'd all have liked him to be.

And I've been expecting him to be there

and I've not had no message saying,

"I'm not coming training, I won't be in tonight," nothing.

Keep turning him. Well done, Ryan, good man. Getting better.

A little birdy's been telling me

he's been doing other things here and there,

you know, like Caveman Training and stuff like that.

Sometimes I go to another gym,

go to Caveman, do stuff there.

OK, this is how it's done.

It's, like, strength and conditioning training.

A 30-minute intense circuit.

It's nonstop.

Say in a week, I've missed a training session at the gym,

I don't see that as me losing out, I really don't.

I'm getting fitter, I'm getting stronger, I believe in myself.

Last one!

I reckon this is the best I've been prepared, like.

We're not in a marathon, we're not in a sprint,

we're not in a strongman competition.

We're in an MMA fight, where this guy's trying to knock you out.

And he's trying to kick you in the face and choke you out.

Chin down, chin down, chin down.

Behind your head, behind your head. Hands behind your head.

The hand behind your head.

He's got your head here like this,

and he's got his hand on top of the back of your head,

so you've got to reach up and pull it off.

Keep hold of that one

and then you've got to start attacking this one.

Just doing Caveman Training ain't going to win you a fight.

BEEPING

Nice one, man.

His opponent, Ryan Scally,

you know, he wants it and he wants to win.

Got better, Ryan. Well done, man.

Benny needs to watch out, that's what I think.

This is when it all happens now. Showtime, innit?

That's the bollocks, mate.

That's the dog's bollocks right there.

All right, lad.

I'm just ready now.

To be honest, I just want to get it over with now.

I've played the fight that many times in my head,

it's unreal, like, just constantly on my brain.

The fight now is, like, consuming me now.

I keep getting little adrenaline bursts

and feelings of apprehensiveness.

Yeah, I've got hopes for Tim.

You know, he's won his first fight under me.

Let's see if he can win his second fight under me.

UTC, I think.

That's right! Birmingham Leer lads.

Get me! Like, what!

He's got a tough test against Nathan Ali

that's coming from UTC in Birmingham.

They're a reputable gym.

Our boy....

Our boy.

It's going to be a good test for Tim.

-Yo!

-Look out for this guy. Nathan Ali, Birmingham, yeah.

-Tell them who's the best.

-Mini Velasquez, UTC.

Yes, always.

Going to do this, mate. I'm just going to show them, innit.

I've got one of the difficulter fights on the card, from our gym,

because Birmingham UTC, which is one of the best gyms.

They're going to be equipped, do you know what I mean?

They're going to know what they're doing, mate.

-Excuse me.

-What's up, mate?

-I've got a load of guys...

-Yeah?

Problems again now, tickets or passes.

I gave them you all over there.

So, how many fighters...? What are you snarling at me for?

Am I snarling at you?

Do you know what I'm saying? But you need to talk to me properly.

I'm talking to you properly. Respect me.

I've said, "Can you speak to my friend?" You're talking to him like a mug.

-I'm here with you now.

-You're talking to him like a mug.

I said to you, "Can you not speak to him?" That's all I said to you.

-Was there anything wrong with that?

-Where are we going with this?

-You said, "Why you smiling at me?"

-I'm trying to sort the problem out.

Relax, man. Relax.

-You know what you're going to do now.

-Mm.

-You've got your fight plan and you're ready to go. Yeah?

-Yeah.

Stick to the script and make it happen, bruv, that's all.

I know I've got the skills to win and that I can do it.

The only thing what worries me is what gym he's coming from.

Birmingham UTC.

But him, personally, he's still a human being, isn't he?

At the end of the day, he's got one chin

and he can get dropped like anyone.

Got to have faith in your coach, at the end of the day,

do you know what I mean?

Ross knows best for me.

What time's the first fight?

We're ready to start now, aren't we?

Ohhhh,

ladies and gentlemen, good evening.

And welcome to this Night Of The Gladiators 23.

CHEERING

There's numerous ways of winning.

You've got a KO, where the opponent has been knocked out.

Another way of winning is by submission.

If nobody gets KO'd, nobody gets tapped out,

then it goes to a judges' decision.

Before the fight, when I'm waiting to come out, like, I'm just...

I don't really speak to no-one, I'm just in my zone.

I'm going to fight, like, I've got to be in a fight frame of mind.

Ready, yeah?

So, ladies and gentlemen, introducing first...

fighting out of the blue corner,

please welcome Benny Kirkland.

CHEERING

You know how you want it to go.

But it's a whole different ball game when you get in the cage, like.

And his opponent, fighting out of the red corner,

please welcome Ryan Scally.

CHEERING

He's an opponent and he's standing in the way of my win.

Let's fight.

I like both of these guys. They're both of my fighters.

But there can only be one winner on the night

and that's the guy who wants it the most,

who's trained the most, who's listened the most.

I know where I'm going in life.

Not what I want, I know where I'm going, like.

I know the path that I want, and I will get there.

HOOTER

Close. I wouldn't like to be the judges.

Oh, when it came to the judges, I'll be honest, like, I didn't know.

Ryan might just swing it.

And so, ladies and gentlemen, after three hard-fought rounds,

we go to our judges this evening.

With a split decision,

your winner,

in the blue corner,

Benny Kirkland.

Get in!

As soon as he said "blue corner" and my name, I was buzzing.

It's just, like, everything.

Do all that training, all the running...

stand there, winning.

Benny surprised me, you know.

Take my hat off to him, it was a good fight,

but I do think Ryan just about scored it.

That's my honest opinion. Ryan should have won it by a point.

-Ross...

-Oh, here we go.

-..in his own opinion, gave the fight to Ryan.

-Did he?

He thinks Ryan won? My own coach?

How can he say that he's beat me?

I'm angry now that you said that. I'm fucking fuming.

Fucking pissing me off now.

On top of that...

Fucking muck.

I'm not going back to his fucking gym. Fucking little prick.

Team fucking Gladiator... Whatever. Fucking load of bollocks.

Yeah, I just don't feel my normal self.

-No?

-No.

Fucking no-one's been here. Fucking...

I've just been on my own in here, mate, that's why. Pissed off.

Yeah, I've not been built up enough properly in here, like.

There's no-one warming me up properly and that.

-Who's supposed to be warming you up?

-I don't know.

I'm just not in the know of what's going on, mate.

I've had to use people from the other gym to warm me up slightly.

-Fucking... No-one's been fucking here, mate.

-What do you mean?

In here, fucking no-one's been here, warming me up, or fuck all, mate.

And I've just come in... I'm on... I'm on next, mate.

No-one built me up fuck all, mate.

Go in there and do your thing. Relax, man.

Not got the head, though. My head, man.

-Do some blocks.

-I need to win this.

Do some blocks, catching blocks, with them. Ryan...

Do some, like, touch sparring.

-Do you know how good you are?

-Yeah, I feel weak.

-No, man, you're not. You're not weak.

-No, I feel...

Tim, these aren't weak. It's that. Get it right.

-Come on, you've got this.

-Do it again. Do it again, do that again.

-Guys, come on...

-Going to make a statement, mate.

Making a statement, you know what I mean?

Showing them.

Let's have you, then, big man.

-Go on, Tim.

-Come on, Tim.

Good luck, mate.

He's nervous.

-Body language.

-Going to get smashed, mate.

-Come on, let's do this now, yeah?

-He's going to get taken clean out.

Fighting out of the red corner,

please welcome...

Tim Walker.

-Have him, Tim.

-Smash him, Tim.

CHEERING

Out the blue corner,

please welcome...

Nathan Ali.

Let's go, Tim. Do your thing, yeah?

Let's fight, go.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, keep going.

Push on the hips, bridge.

Get up!

Tim! What are you doing, man? Sort your fucking head out.

Oi, this is not you. Sort your head out.

You can beat this kid, man. What are you doing?

Take him down and ground pound him.

Start thinking, dude, yeah?

Oi, you want to lose? You want to lose?

-I'm weak, mate.

-You're not.

-Come on, Tim.

-Come on, Tim!

-Come on!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, keep going. Tiptoes.

Tiptoes.

Drive, drive.

Come on, tiptoes, pin him in. Pin him in.

Tim, no.

Come on, Tim!

Defend the hand. Defend the hand...

Defend the hand...

VOICES SLOW DOWN

I was fuming when I lost the fight.

I'm better than that, anyway. Fuck's sake.

I'm a lot better than that.

Well done, man. Well done, man. Good fight, yeah?

You all right, Tim? Tim...

It wasn't my lack of training or anything that let me down.

It was just because of the mental state of mind before the fight.

Like, I feel a bit let down, I'll be honest with you, I feel let down.

Fuck.

Bastard.

Fuck.

Support network there on the night of the fight wasn't there properly.

When I looked at how the other teams were, the other coaches and that,

and I've seen how tight-knit they was and how many of them there were,

all, like, sticking together with their fighters, basically,

going through everything,

like, putting stuff in their heads, like, talking them through things.

Ross is out promoting the event.

It's just, personally, I felt I was left alone.

Should have been someone in the changing room warming me up.

Tim needs to man up.

He doesn't need somebody on his shoulder,

patting him on the back, telling him he's ready for this, he can do this,

because that's happened for 12 weeks prior to that show.

He should fucking... He should know in that dressing room

that he's going in there and he's going to win.

I didn't have the morale, mate, round me.

I didn't have the fucking team spirit round me to build me up.

And that's what happened, mate. Cos they're all busy fucking...

Everyone's trying to help everyone

cos it's just got the event on, you know what I mean?

-Fucking, it was a pushover...

-Don't worry, man.

I don't accept any responsibility for Tim's loss

because Tim could have beat that kid.

All his skill and everything that he's been learning

went out the window and he just froze.

If he can't get over that, then, you know, he might as well give up,

because, like, you know, 90% of fighting is mental.

Was my fault, though, I should have won.

I should have fucking beat him. Got no-one else to blame but myself.

You know what? I'll go back training.

I'm going to be fitter next time, going to train harder.

Just fucking... I'll just be fitter, mate.

You know what? Fuck that, can't be arsed to talk no more. That's it.

So, peace, peace.