Cage Warriors Academy Wales bantamweight champion, Ellis Clement, will make his first defence of his title reign this Saturday at CWAW9. The young Welsh prospect won the vacant belt back in October of last year and isn’t ready to let go of it yet.
His Return to the Cage
Clement’s first amateur title opportunity came on October 8th 2021. “The Welsh Nightmare” secured a unanimous decision victory over Scotland’s Aaron Towns. Now, he boasts a 5-2 amateur MMA record, which also includes some IMMAF experience.
Just days away from his return to the cage, he’s stated: “I’m feeling great coming into this next fight and I’m enjoying the journey of my amateur fight career”.
Despite winning and bringing home the belt in his last outing, he was not overly impressed with his performance. He claimed: “I have improved so much since my last fight. I’m a completely different fighter. Even though my last fight, which was my title fight, was, in my opinion, my worst performance, I feel amazing now.”
The youngster fought five times in 2022 and even got a huge win against Slovakia at the IMMAF European Championships in Italy. “Last year was a great year for experience and competing. This one is about to be even better!”, he stated.
Taking on Logan McGonigal
Last time out, he beat a Scotsman to win the belt, this time he will look to defend it against yet another man from the North. Logan McGonigal is one of the most experienced amateur bantamweights around. He already has several victories as an amateur and he’ll be looking to shake things up in hostile territory.
Speaking on his opponent, Clement said: “I’m expecting Logan to be a tough opponent and he will show up on the night for sure. As will I. It’s going to be a great show.”
The two young fighters were set to go head-to-head back in October. However, McGonigal was forced to withdraw. Now, they finally have a chance to settle their scores. “The fans can expect a great fight between two of the best amateurs in the UK. I hope they enjoy”.
Preparing for a First Title Defence
Ellis Clement is a product of Team Draig and has done a lot of work with the guys at Chris Rees Academy. He is a highly skilled jiu-jitsu fighter and is extremely well-rounded for someone who has only been competing in MMA for a little over a year.
Speaking on his mindset he explained why things haven’t changed now that is a champion. “My mindset doesn’t change just because I’m champion. It doesn’t matter if it’s for a belt or just a normal bout. A fight is still a fight, so my mindset is the same going into this fight”.
Outside of his MMA career, he is also very active when it comes to competing in jiu-jitsu competitions. “I think it’s very important to compete in jiu-jitsu as well as MMA. Because, the jiu-jitsu competitions help you deal with your nerves. It gets you used to fighting in front of people and being in that fighting atmosphere”.
The champion has described his team as a “second family” and Team Draig will be ready for war come Saturday night.
Fighting life aside, Clement remains very down to Earth. In fact, he would describe himself as a “massive geek”, referencing his love of Star Wars’ ‘The Mandalorian’ and gaming.
This year, the champion has promised that this year is “going to be very similar to last year”, with plenty of growth both as a fighter and a human. Ellis Clement returns to action and hopes to defend his title at CWAW9 this Saturday in Ebbw Vale. We’ll be covering the whole event right here. Stay tuned.
Featured image credits to Cage Warriors Academy Wales
