Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Craig is a student of the UFC game
MARK PIRIE
Airdrie UFC star Paul Craig is gearing up for the biggest fight of his career – as well as balancing life as a student.
The Scottish Hit Squad fighter will take on Brazil’s UFC icon Mauricio ‘ Shogun’ Rua in Sao Paulo this weekend.
The light-heavyweight bout will be Paul’s fifth UFC fight in 12 months, after stepping in at short notice to replace injured American fighter Sam Alvey.
The 32- year- old combines a punishing schedule with studying HND Fitness, Health and Exercise at the College’s specialist sports campus in Cumbernauld.
He is using his studies as a springboard to achieving his long-term career goal of a job in Nevada working for the globally-renowned mixed martial arts organisation.
Craig said: “If you only think about what is happening now then you’ll miss what is coming up. I’m one of these guys who is always looking ahead.
“When I leave this sport, I’ll hopefully have dedicated about 10 years of my life to it, but ultimately I’ll leave with nothing but memories – and I thought that I deserve more than that.
“To work in this industry, you need the right credentials, so I applied for college and I was successful.
“The UFC has a performance institute in Las Vegas where they have the best athletes, the best coaches, the best equipment – and I’d like to work there.
“My thought is to complete this course, then spend a couple of months in Vegas.”
Paul received the ‘Performance of the Night’ accolade after his first-round victory over Brazil’s Vinicius Moreira – and it has led to Paul signing a new contract.
He added: “A lot of UFC fighters only fight once or twice a year, but I’ve had four fights already this year. With juggling my studies and those four fights, it was a bit stressful.
“When I was in Australia, I would communicate with them via email and I could call them if I ever needed anything. I realised that it’s important to get ahead of yourself – I finished my graded unit early so it meant that I had less to worry about.”