Matt Inman is no stranger to upsetting the odds. He’s walked out of the cage a winner when he wasn’t supposed to, snatched victory from the jaws of defeat and slowly but surely built his case for a Cage Warriors title shot the good, old fashioned way; by being a consistently successful fighter.
October 2012: I was lucky enough to call Matt Inman’s fight against domestic wrestling phenom Ali Arish. It was something of a comeback bout; Inman had taken nearly two years off, aside from a first round submission over the (then) one-dimensional slugger Kyle Redfearn. He came up short by the letter of the law, but to this day I’ve yet to see a better bid for victory from the bottom than the relentless effort that Inman put in that night. It was the first time I’d seen him fight live, but something told me it wouldn’t be the last.
Naturally Inman’s Cage Warriors debut against fellow UK warhorse Jack Mason piqued interest. Unfortunately for the promotional debutant, a series of hatchet-like elbows from the Essex man halted proceedings in the second round. While many may have been discouraged, Inman was resolute; over the following five months he racked up three finishes in three different countries, including a stunning come-from-behind victory over Bagautdin Sharaputdinov in Chechnyna.
A consummately rounded performance against Gregor Weibel elevated Inman into the upper echelons of his division in early 2014, before a pair of shock first round losses left the storied scrapper at something of a career crossroads by the year’s end. Destiny – should you believe in such a concept – seemed to have pegged Inman as the division’s ‘nearly man’.
With Cage Warriors taking a hiatus in 2015, it would have been easy for Matt to become further disillusioned on the sidelines, or pass the time ploughing through a series of over-matched opponents. In stark defiance of the norm, the SBG stalwart finished Aymard Guih, Vincent del Guerra and Dez Parker in the space of seven months, before turning in arguably his slickest performance to date – a points victory over Tommy Quinn – to cement his status as one of the UK welterweight division’s most persistent threats.
Cage Warriors returned in 2016, but a limited schedule saw Inman remain on the road. Still not content to embarrass outclassed domestic ticket sellers, the SBG Manchester mainstay once again hit the continent, swapping a loss in Poland for a win in Denmark.
Cage Warriors’ 2016 return was by all accounts a success and as the year drew to a close, the promotion once again found itself under a particularly bright spotlight. By accident or design, their season finale fell on the same night that their most famous alumni – Conor McGregor – was set to replicate his two-division championship triumph in Las Vegas. The UFC’s UK broadcast partner, BT Sport had built a bespoke Cage Warriors studio for the occasion, entrusting the promotion to deliver a live lead-in to what was arguably the biggest MMA fight night of the year.
Inman’s tendency to finish or be finished made him a natural fit for the evening’s main card. Paddy Pimblett and Chris Fishgold may have been the focal points of the heavily promoted effort, but for those ‘in the know’ Inman vs Che Mills was rightly dubbed ‘The People’s Main Event’ .The bookmakers were equally as keen. Mills’ UFC experience saw him open as a slight favourite, but money poured in on both sides as the tilt drew closer, making it a ‘pick-em’ contest by bell time.
Unlike most that look that good on paper, the contest didn’t disappoint in practise. Following a series of tense exchanges, Mills sliced his man open with a series of accurate shots towards the end of the first frame, while Inman countered with his tricky defensive guard. An early takedown in the second saw the UFC veteran go straight back to work on the cut with a series of savage punches and elbows, but Inman battled through the onslaught at the furious behest of cornerman Karl Tanswell.
His blood and sweat smeared a grotesque piece of modern art the canvas with every adjustment, but Inman was about to paint the evening’s true masterpiece. Just as he’d done against the likes of Guih in Manchester and Sharaputdinov in Chechnya, the underdog defied conventional wisdom and snapped a triangle choke around his opponent’s unsuspecting torso. A pull here, a squeeze there and the job was done. Inman felt the familiar signal of capitulation and relaxed his aching muscles; he’d made a UFC veteran cry uncle.
Stoic as ever, the battle-tested warrior played down his triumph as a team effort. Amidst the stereotypically reserved humility though, SBG’s most understated standout made his case for a Cage Warriors title shot.
Following four years of toil and turbulence, this weekend Matt Inman will finally contest the Cage Warriors 170lb World Championship. It’s a trophy with considerable prestige; previous owners Cathal Pendred and Nicholas Dalby parleyed the accolade into UFC contracts. At 30 years of age and sporting a 19-8 record, Inman’s credentials might not scream ‘prospect’… look a little deeper though and you’ll see a world-warrior far more seasoned than the endless parade of ‘undefeated’ cookie-cutter UFC hopefuls.
Inman has been around the block, he knows what it takes to win and he knows what it means to lose. More importantly that either of those, he’s always happy to pick himself up and keep on trucking.
It’s that quality – above all others – that makes him a consistently successful fighter.