Croydon’s Jimi “Poster Boy” Manuwa is gearing up for the biggest fight of his Ultimate Fighting Championship life, but he has declared that it is business as usual.
The 34-year-old heads the bill at the O2 Arena for Saturday’s UFC Fight Night London 2014, when he takes on Sweden’s Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson in the light heavyweight division.
Manuwa is a relative new-comer to UFC having fought just three times, while 27-year-old Gustafsson is the world number two, with 10 bouts under his belt.
The fight is expected to sell out the Greenwich venue – so all in all, it is geared up to be the biggest night of Manuwa’s career, but the former martial arts expert is far from nervous.
“I don’t know what he (Gustafsson) has planned, I can’t tell. It is not my concern, it is business as usual for me,” he said.
“My last fight was my biggest fight and the one before that was my biggest fight, so it is nothing new to me.”
Manuwa’s UFC record is three wins out of three, while his professional fighting career is 14 bouts, 14 wins.
Should he beat Gustafsson, Manuwa may have a shot at the light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones.
However, Manuwa said: “There have been rumours about a possible title shot, but I am not thinking too much about it. I need to think about this fight first of all.”
Away from the octagon, Manuwa, who trains out of Lion’s Pride Gym in Croydon, has been giving back to the community by arranging classes for children to come and use the gym facilities, all with an aim to keeping them off the streets.
Manuwa served a jail sentence in 2002 for conspiracy to burgle, and upon his release in 2003 he took up mixed martial arts (MMA) after seeing a friend fight.
He channelled his energy in to training and subsequently forged a successful career, something he is now desperate to pass on to the next generation.
The opportunity to train at the gym is open to all children but has also welcomed under privileged, as well as disabled, children.
Manuwa said: “Ultimately it is aimed at giving children a different perspective and a possible career in mixed martial arts.
“The youngest we have coming down are seven to eight-year-olds, and it goes up to about 15, it is great to see.”
Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night London 2014 starts from 4.30pm at the O2 Arena, and tickets are available through Ticketmaster.
Head to head: Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson v Jimi "Poster Boy" Manuwa
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