Jake Hadley is set to take on experienced American Cody Durden this weekend at UFC Nashville, acting as the event’s sole British fighter.
‘White Kong‘ will be looking to earn his third promotion victory on Saturday night’s preliminary card with intentions of climbing into the flyweight division’s rankings.
The 27-year-old’s name first gained traction on the European circuit following his performances in renowned promotions EFC, Bellator and Cage Warriors. Hadley would go on to capture 125 lbs silverware in the latter, overcoming talented Scottish fighter Luke Shanks via unanimous decision at Cage Warriors 117 in December, 2020.
Jake Hadley Career To-Date
Under the tutelage of an accomplished set of coaches, he continues to learn his trade at Birmingham’s Fearless MMA. Hadley is a native of ‘The Magic City’, representing the West Midlands within the UFC alongside Team Renegade’s Leon Edwards and Jai Herbert.
Birmingham is in-fact seen as a ‘hub’ of MMA for the UK. World-class fighters such as Tom Aspinall and Arnold Allen have recently travelled to train in the UK’s ‘Second City’. Hadley is certainly emerging as another top Brummie prospect, now earning global recognition under the UFC banner.
Following his Flyweight title-clinching performance at Cage Warriors 117, Hadley was invited to fight on Dana White’s Contender Series 2021. ‘White Kong‘ would go on to earn himself a UFC contract with a second-round rear-naked-choke victory over Mitch Raposo (following a cancelled bout with Kleydson Rodrigues).
This contract served as a dream come true. Hadley had made a birthday wish at just nine-years-old that one day he would perform professionally within the promotion.
In a pre-UFC 286 interview with The Mirror, he said: “For all my life I wanted to be a UFC fighter, I was only about nine years old in that video but before then I was dreaming of it. I didn’t start training until I was 12 years old because my parents thought it was dangerous.”
Injury unfortunately scuppered the now-27-year-old’s original debut plans, as he was forced to pull out of a bout at Volkov vs. Aspinall against Brazilian submission-specialist Allan Nascimento. Hadley would eventually get to take on ‘Puro Osso‘ two months later, however would come up short with a career-first loss via decision.
The former Cage Warriors champion has since bounced-back with a duo of impressive victories against Carlos Candelario and Malcolm Gordon. These would come via second-round submission (triangle choke) and a first-round TKO respectively.
Upcoming Bout Against Cody Durden
Hadley is scheduled to take on his toughest opponent yet in Durden at UFC Nashville this Saturday (August 5).
The American comes into this contest in a commendable run of form, similar to that of his upcoming opponent. Durden is on a three-fight winning streak, beating fellow countryman Charles Johnson last time out via decision back in April.
He has, however, shown a vulnerability to submissions throughout his career with three of his four losses coming in this manner. Hadley has consistently showcased an excellent grappling skillset, earning five professional victories via submission. The deadliest weapon in this particular arsenal is definitely the rear-naked choke, from which four victories have been earned.
The lead-up to this fight has certainly been intriguing, with the pair often sharing digs and insults at one another. Durden called out Hadley on Twitter, and, despite it being the latter’s birthday, he was more than happy to issue a repsonse himself.
Their bout will, at present, feature as the card’s third fight of the night. A decent run of form will have to conclude for one of the duo, whilst the other will look towards the division’s ranked spots.
Do you think Jake Hadley will emerge victorious against Cody Durden? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
