Buckhurst Hill grandfather ready for cage fight debut
A GRANDFATHER who is gearing up for his cage fighting debut says he is sure the “fight won’t be as tough as the training”.
Fifty-five-year-old Alan Mortlock (pictured), has spent months going through a gruelling regime to prepare him for the night where he will come face-to-face with fighters half his age.
The grandfather-of-five, of Epping New Road, Buckhurst Hill, admitted he’s got a few nerves. “I call them good nerves because I’ve got to be on the ball, I need that edge.
“The fight consists of mixed martial arts and I’ll be following full professional rules – believe it or not there are quite a lot of regulations. You can’t go for the throat or the eyes but we’ll be using elbow and knee strikes to the head.”
The born-again Christian, who believes he is “powered by the Son”, has studied karate since the age of 14 but never professionally competed.
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“That’s something I regret, I guess you could say I got sidetracked, but I’ve always wondered what could have been, maybe I could have made it, this will answer those questions.”
The eager fighter might be looking forward to the big night but he told the Recorder some of his family aren’t so keen: “My wife says this has to be a one-off but you never know, watch this space.”
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Mr Mortlock, whose day job is as a boxing promoter, has been training with Team Thompson at the Academy in Langston Road, Loughton, and has lost six inches from his waist to prepare for his evening of combat.
Son Sean Mortlock, 30, of Chingford, said: “It’s not necessarily something I want to see my dad doing but I’m very proud and it’s definitely better than him sitting in the pub.”
Fight night is Saturday at The Brentwood Centre, Doddinghurst Road. Doors open at 5.30pm and tickets start at �25.
