Welsh mixed martial arts fighter and Cage Warriors flyweight Aaron Aby has been nominated in the World MMA Awards 2022. The 32-year-old is up for the Fighting Spirit of the Year award after his long and difficult battle against cancer and cystic fibrosis.
Aaron Aby Battles Outside of the Cage
Over five years ago now, Aby was diagnosed with stage-three testicular cancer, and, after it spread, it required surgery in 2017 to remove a 15cm tumour from his stomach. He did not know whether he would wake up again.
The Welshman always told himself not to give up and to always fight, and that’s exactly what he did.
His cancer diagnosis aside, Aby’s rise in MMA is all the more incredible given the fact that he has cystic fibrosis. This is a disorder of the cell membrane which mainly affects the lungs and digestive system.
The condition leaves people with a low life expectancy and often with reduced lung capacity, which, as a sportsman, is quite remarkable.
A Cage Warriors Flyweight Contender
Now, Aby is a flyweight contender under the famous Cage Warriors banners and is riding a two-fight win streak. His pro record stands at 13-4-1, with his most recent win coming at Cage Warriors 136 in April. A rear naked choke victory over Gerardo Fanny made his second win in five months.
His fourth fight with the promotion is scheduled to go down in just two weeks. The Wrexham-born fighter will make a trip down south to Ebbw Vale to take on Michelangelo Lupoli at Cage Warriors 142.
The card, which is stacked with some of the organisation’s greatest Welsh fighters, goes down on August 13th at the Ebbw Vale Sports Centre.
Fighting Spirit of the Year
It was announced on Wednesday afternoon that Aby and Cage Warriors itself were nominated at the World MMA Awards 2022. CW for ‘Best Promotion’ and Aby for Fighting Spirit of the Year.
These awards have been received by some of the sport’s biggest names, such as Daniel Cormier, Rose Namajunas and also Brandon Moreno.
Aby is up against the UFC’s Kevin Holland, Bryce Mitchell, Alexander Volkanovski and lastly, Robbie Lawler. Holland for helping in the face of danger within his community. Mitchell for his charity work. Volkanovski for his determination in his fight with Brian Ortega. And Lawler for his respect given to Nick Diaz in their fight.
All of us at Combat Sports UK wish Aaron Aby the best of luck and if you would like to vote for him, click here.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
