Will Fleury will defend his OKMMA Heavyweight Championship against former champion Martin Buday at Oktagon 81 on December 28. Fleury looks to score a huge win here after a big win in Prague at the end of December last year. That win in 2024 saw Fleury capture the OKMMA light heavyweight title.
As he prepares to fight a former UFC vet and Oktagon MMA heavyweight champion who will be about fifty pounds bigger than him on fight night, Fleury touched on some of his thoughts from the past few years, focusing on the waning enthusiasm of the Irish MMA media. As the two-division Oktagon MMA titleholder explained his feelings on the subject, Fleury said [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“There should have been a lot of eyes after Conor, but it almost feels like a lot of people have turned away from the sport because they’re a bit sick of it in a way. That’s not the sport domestically, we’ve got some really great guys. We’ve got a lot of guys coming up who are great representatives of the sport and very skilled fighters.”
“I just hope that in the next few years something comes along that gives them the platform they deserve. Because right now you have a lot of regional shows. Say, like in the Balkans, you have FN. Obviously in Central Europe, Oktagon is a big crowd and they’re doing some incredible things. They’ve given me a great platform, but it’s a platform there.”
“Like I’m not really that big in Ireland now, but when I go abroad, like when I go to central Europe, I’m recognized everywhere, you know. I go to Dublin, like I can walk around my hometown, and like no one really knows or cares. Like I would hope that some promotion would come in and create that in Ireland or in the UK.”
“Where there can be a domestic audience and guys like that are able to fight in decent sized shows and make a few bucks from the sport domestically. Where it’s not the only option is PFL or UFC because it’s unsustainable.”
“They won’t come here that often. They won’t really give guys a chance and if you’re a fighter in Central Europe at the moment and have a bit of talent you can develop a fan base and make a living from the sport. In Ireland you can’t do that. So that’s sad and I hope that changes soon.”
Fleury delved further into his perception of the wider public’s distaste for MMA in Ireland [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Like, to be honest, there’s a funny attitude towards MMA in Ireland. Whereas ten years ago you’d say you’re an MMA fighter and people would be like, ‘Oh, cool.’ Fair play to you.” Nowadays I notice that when people at a party introduce me as an MMA fighter or whatever, they’re like, ‘Oh, oh, cool. Yeah.’ Like it’s a little bit like you’re a little bit crazy.’
“There must be something wrong with you. So and so they are not wrong.” [laughs]. But it’s as if it doesn’t have the goodwill of the average person in Ireland now. Look, you can blame Conor for that to a certain extent, but I don’t think it’s just that. I think historically there has been a kind of snobbery around martial arts, a little bit with boxing, that’s the way as well.
“It’s just a cultural thing and we just need something to change that because from what I understand it was the same in the Czech Republic ten to fifteen years ago and it’s definitely changed there now. People are incredibly respectful. The fans are great there. To be honest, I love going there. I love interacting with fans there. It’s great. They’re fantastic.”
“So I just feel like getting the right representation and I hope there’s only so much I can do, you know, I can only be myself in a way [laughs]. But there are a lot of guys coming up who are decent athletes, decent people doing the right things in life, and hopefully they can at least get a platform to show what they are. I think this can slowly but surely change perception.”
“But maybe I like it, with the way things are these days, maybe you just need someone to come in and invest a bunch of money into promoting guys the right way. To create stories around that and spend a little bit of money and get those guys out in some more mainstream media stuff. Because it doesn’t feel like it’s going to change, but it could. It could easily change, you know.”
When Will Fleury was there the night Conor McGregor suffered his first Cage Warriors defeat
There is a certain level of alignment with McGregor that goes beyond the synchronicity of the Irish doubles champion relationship between the two. But Fleury was also there when ‘The Notorious’ suffered his first Cage Warriors loss to Joe Duffy. When the former Bellator MMA and PFL vet brought up this anecdote, Fleury joked [via Bowks Talking Bouts],
“Like it’s funny, but like we’ve both been on the scene for a long time, I think. So we both had a good time together. It was incredible to see what that guy was doing, man. Honestly, like I was living in London when he was actually coming up. So my first fight I ever attended live was Conor [McGregor] fighting Joe Duffy.
“Then, about a year and a half later, while I was still in Ireland, it was like, oh, he’s fighting [Ivan] Buchinger for the title and I watched that fight. I did, I wasn’t there, but I watched it and I thought, wow, that was impressive. Like it was an incredible fight. Then he moved on and you know, a year and a while later he was knocking [Marcus] Brimage in the UFC and then he went on a tear.”
“Honestly, man, it was inspiring to see an Irishman do that. Like there was such an energy around it. It changed Irish culture in a way. It changed like we’d never had a guy say, ‘Hi, I’m the best. I’m going to go out and do this. Irish culture is a lot more about keeping your head down. Be humble.’
“It was really refreshing to see a guy who said no, I’m really hot. I’m going to beat the shit out of this guy and you know I’m going to be the champ. I’m going to do this. I’m going to do that. People really believed in it and it was like we’re not the plebs anymore. We’re not the guys that have to keep our heads down and you can keep your head up.”
“You know being Irish is something to be very proud of. Like, I’m not saying he brought that, you know, I think everyone was proud to be Irish. But he certainly brought a different identity to being Irish. I think over time there started to be a negative side to it.”
“Sort of [Floyd] Mayweather continued to fight, but many people were less enthusiastic about that. “I think it’s hard to separate the two because it was so important culturally and because he’s so connected to what’s been happening in MMA over the last few years, or because the perception of MMA is so connected to Conor’s career in Ireland.”
“If I have any legacy, I think it will be: No, there are a lot of Irish athletes who go about their day trying to be normal people. They do their best to just live a decent life and become great martial artists. I’m not here to take over the world. I’m not here to be some megalomaniac. I’m not here to become the goddamn alpha, alpha male. I’m damn good at it.
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