There is a new hotbed for Irish and British fighters and it sits in Montreal, Canada. The world renowned Tristar Gym, run by head coach Firas Zahabi, will play a huge role in the growth of the UK and Eire’s biggest prospects.
Ireland’s Joseph Duffy, Scotland’s Stevie Ray as well as England’s Tom Breese and Arnold Allen are undefeated in the UFC this year and the signs show their success will only continue.
UFC Dublin was a mixed bag of emotions for the Tristar family, with “Irish Joe” forced out of the main event slot against Dustin Poirier with a mild concussion, however both Breese and Ray left the 3Arena with big wins.
Despite the hurt for Donegal’s Duffy not being able to perform in front of his Irish fans, he has looked outstanding in 2015, with two finishes, a TKO over Jake Lindsey and a triangle choke over Ivan George at UFC Glasgow.
At UFC Dublin, Breese put on a crowd silencing performance against Irishman Cathal Pendred on Saturday night, after he viciously finished Pendred inside of a round to claim the UFC’s $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Elsewhere, Ray put on a dominant; yet similarly frustrating, showing against Mickael Lebout.
Ray spoke after his win about Tristar: “It’s always good when you’ve got some other guys on the card, you’re getting great rounds, it’s not just specific to you, there was Joe and some other guys at Tristar that are obviously really high level as well, it was great, I had a great camp.”
Also, BKK Fighters’ Allen; who won his UFC debut in June against Alan Omer through a ninja choke, spent some time in Montreal in September and the 21 year old is set to return to the Tristar dorms next month.
Tristar has been one of the world’s best gyms for an extended period of time, thanks to the representation from the likes of Georges St-Pierre and more recently Rory MacDoanld. The experienced coaching styles of the Tristar staff, most notably Zahabi and Eric O’Keefe, have made the gym a real attraction for young fighters looking to break into the sport.
When asked about why British and Irish fighters are making the move to Tristar, he said ‘because it’s the best’, a statement; albeit benevolent, true in essence.
From WEC champion Miguel Torres, UFC legend Kenny Florian, to long time Welterweight king GSP and future champion MacDonald, Tristar has proven its worth when it comes to nurturing some of the best in the world.
The future looks bright for Tristar’s British and Irish representatives, under the tutelage of some of the best coaches in the world, this new hotbed aims for the history books, as the quest to produce the UK’s first UFC world champion is more possible than ever before.
