Taken me a while to write this up but as you can probably tell things didn’t go to plan. I controlled the majority of the first round and then rapidly started to fade towards the end. In the beginning of the second round my tank was completely empty, my body was exhausted and Commey started to take over.
My coach ended up throwing in the towel.
Fighting in Ghana at the hottest time of the year was never going to be easy. Doctor said my oxygen dropped to below average levels as I didn’t acclimatise well, as me and my team only landed in Ghana a few days before the fight. Not to mention the broken air conditioning systems in the sports hall we were fighting in.
Soo much went wrong before the fight but oh well these things happen and its all a learning curve. I dont want to take anything away from Commey as I believe he put up a great performance. I wish him all the best and I’m sure we’ll meet again for a part 2 sometime in the near future under better conditions.
Being here in Ghana fighting MMA means the world to me and it is a dream come true. Although we didn’t get the result we wanted, It’s been a truly amazing experience. I couldn’t thank the Ghanaian people enough for the way they have welcomed and received me.
I look forward to doing it again sometime in the future
His Trainer, Alan Philpott said:
We are not gonna make excuses for the result, but when the locals are saying it’s very warm, then you can only imagine how we felt. Having to stop Tjs fight was very hard but seeing how exhausted he was i had no option. His oxygen levels dropped fast and he had to be taking to hospital by an ambulance. A few things went against us and if we get to the chance to come back there will definitely be some major changes. Well done to Isaac he put up a great fight. Now he’s open for a rematch in the UK lets try and get it sorted. What you say Carl Prince.
There is a massive hole here in Africa for MMA. If we work together we can really push it forward and make it big here. The fans and supporters are amazing. The fighters are hungry and wanna learn. I look forward to coming back and sharing my knowledge.
Thank you to promoter Jeff Taylor and his team for this opportunity for TJ. This has been a special week.
Even know we didn’t get the win, I am very happy and so proud of my brother Theophilus Nelson. This was his first professional fight. To get the opportunity to debut in his motherland in front of family and can friends, was something else. From the moment we got here the media were all over us. We had to travel from pillar to post in the heat and he stayed calm and controlled it like a true professional.. This kid has a bright future and we can’t wait to see him progress and get to were he deserves.
Shout out to our boxing coach Brian Lightbody for coming along and helping out with the week. We are blessed to have such a strong bonding team.
Story by Sammy Heywood Okine