Oluwale Bamgbose Talks African MMA, Wants To Recruit African Fighters
Oluwale Bamgbose Talks African MMA, Wants To Recruit African Fighters
UFC middleweight Oluwale Bamgbose discusses the rise of African MMA and the role he'd like to play in that process.
By Daniel Vreeland
There is perhaps no prospect in the UFC whose name alone gets fans salivating like Francis Ngannou.
With five straight finishes inside the UFC Octagon and a body that looks like it was chiseled out of marble, it's obvious why fans are excited by the Cameroonian-French heavyweight.
While Ngannou has quickly become the face for African MMA (and, to some degree, for French MMA), he is by no means the UFC's only African representative. In an interview with the Top Turtle Podcast on FloCombat, Oluwale Bamgbose discussed the rise of the sport on a continent not typically known for martial arts.
"We're making a huge impact," Bamgbose said. "African fighters, even though there aren't a lo--if I'm estimating high there's probably about 10 of us in the UFC--but we are badasses, man. We are dangerous."
A little digging on official UFC sites showed that currently there are only six (Kamaru Usman, Gareth McClellan, Marc Diakiese and Razak Al-Hassan, along with Bamgbose and Ngannou), but Bamgbose holds firmly that the number will be on the rise.
"I believe that more and more African fighters will be in the UFC," he said. "It all relates to how they're being trained, who's training them, how serious they are taking their careers and the resources that are available to them."
However, unlike those around him, Bamgbose is not just hoping that his continent produces more fighters, but he hopes and believes he'll be the one to help improve those numbers.
"Eventually, that is what I'd like to be; God-willing, I'd be the UFC's point person for recruiting African talent," Bamgbose said. "Also being one of the pioneers bringing MMA, MMA facilities and everything that MMA is into--specifically Nigeria and hopefully infiltrating to Africa as a whole. I know that's my legacy and my destiny."
And if it brings us more fighters like Bamgbose, Usman, and Ngannou, consider us on the list of people hoping he meets his destiny.
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There is perhaps no prospect in the UFC whose name alone gets fans salivating like Francis Ngannou.
With five straight finishes inside the UFC Octagon and a body that looks like it was chiseled out of marble, it's obvious why fans are excited by the Cameroonian-French heavyweight.
While Ngannou has quickly become the face for African MMA (and, to some degree, for French MMA), he is by no means the UFC's only African representative. In an interview with the Top Turtle Podcast on FloCombat, Oluwale Bamgbose discussed the rise of the sport on a continent not typically known for martial arts.
"We're making a huge impact," Bamgbose said. "African fighters, even though there aren't a lo--if I'm estimating high there's probably about 10 of us in the UFC--but we are badasses, man. We are dangerous."
A little digging on official UFC sites showed that currently there are only six (Kamaru Usman, Gareth McClellan, Marc Diakiese and Razak Al-Hassan, along with Bamgbose and Ngannou), but Bamgbose holds firmly that the number will be on the rise.
"I believe that more and more African fighters will be in the UFC," he said. "It all relates to how they're being trained, who's training them, how serious they are taking their careers and the resources that are available to them."
However, unlike those around him, Bamgbose is not just hoping that his continent produces more fighters, but he hopes and believes he'll be the one to help improve those numbers.
"Eventually, that is what I'd like to be; God-willing, I'd be the UFC's point person for recruiting African talent," Bamgbose said. "Also being one of the pioneers bringing MMA, MMA facilities and everything that MMA is into--specifically Nigeria and hopefully infiltrating to Africa as a whole. I know that's my legacy and my destiny."
And if it brings us more fighters like Bamgbose, Usman, and Ngannou, consider us on the list of people hoping he meets his destiny.
To hear the whole interview, including Bamgbose's take on meeting Kobe Bryant, his future plans for Uriah Hall and the state of African MMA, listen below (starts at 13:00)
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