George Williams returns from a nearly five-year layoff in a bout against Karl Wareham that has the fans anticipating violence. The Battle Arena Wolverhampton event takes place on March 5th, and Williams will be hoping for the fairytale moment of hoisting the European middleweight belt high following the adversity he has battled in the last few years.
We caught up with George Williams ahead of the fight.
George Williams Interview
Hi George, thanks for giving up a bit of time for an interview. March 5th is getting close. How are you feeling ten days away from the fight?
No worries, man. Yeah, I’m feeling good. Not much weight to cut, and I have had a great camp.
You have been out of the cage for quite a while. What’s prompted a comeback five years in the making?
Yeah, it’s been a while. Four, nearly five years ago, life was a bit all over the place. I had three fights, either pull out or cancelled, which messed with my mindset. Then shortly after getting back into training, I was attacked with a machete.
It broke two bones and left a nasty chop wound in one of my hands which took a long time to heal, then two years of lockdown and restrictions after that, so it wasn’t necessarily a planned break. I still had friends and some training partners to spar and train with to keep me ticking over. I never intended to stop fighting, but life chucked a lot at me.
Your previous fights show that, win or lose, the fans can expect excitement at a George Williams fight. Your opponent looks a game sort as well. Should the fans bank on a finish?
Yeah, I love a good scrap, and from what I can tell, Karl is happy to trade shots. He has good takedown recovery and some explosive power too. There’s always doubt around it going the distance with five rounds, but I doubt either of us want to be beating each other up for 25 minutes.
Fighting Fire with Fire
A lot of fans think that both you and opponent Karl Wareham have very similar fight styles. What do you think are your biggest advantages in the fight?
I think probably my unorthodox striking. I like to throw shots from strange angles, and trading is fun, so I don’t mind staying in the centre of the cage and swinging at each other if it comes to that.
With a win, you become Battle Arenas European middleweight champion. Do you plan on sticking around to defend the title if you win, or do you have other ideas for your MMA career?
I’d like to secure the belt and defend it a couple of times, but I plan to come down to welterweight in the future. Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of training with the likes of Jai Herbert, Aiden Lee and most recently, Will Haycox. They are all extremely dangerous lighter guys that I look up to and aspire to be like.
Thanks for taking the time out to talk to Combat Sports UK. Any final predictions on what fans should expect on March 5th?
No worries, man, no predictions. I’m staying loosey-goosey and not overthinking or overtraining any particular scenario.
The Big Three
Who is your favourite fighter? Probably Cro Cop, or Bas Ruten.
Favourite fight of all time?– That’s a tough one, but probably Don Frye Vs Yoshihiro Takayama.
Who is the greatest of all time? –The greatest of all time in MMA, it’s got to be GSP.
With such a compelling main event ahead, plus a stacked card of fights under it, you won’t want to miss the action at Battle Arena Wolverhampton.
If you want to attend Battle Arena Wolverhampton and purchase tickets for the event on March 5th, contact George Williams on Facebook or visit eventbright.
Alternatively, there is PPV available on the Battle Arena website, with the price set at only £7.99, and we recommend tuning in.
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Featured image credits to George Williams
