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London’s own Michael Shipman captured the BAMMA middleweight championship with a flash, spinning back-fist knockout of Yannick Bahati.

The London Shootfighter’s athlete went tooth and nail with Bahati for two full rounds on Friday night, before finishing his UTC opponent with a devastating spinning KO in the third at the SSE Arena Wembley.

There had been some heated words exchanged between the pair in the build-up, with Bahati taking the trash talk to personal levels to try and gain a mental edge over Shipman.

However, Shipman really impressed at BAMMA 31 showing his patience to not fall into Bahati’s range and taking his time to set up the big finish.

Watch Michael Shipman’s crazy spinning knockout of Yannick Bahati

Speaking to MMA Plus after his title win, Shipman gave his due to Bahati, stating he no longer thought he was stupid after that hearty performance. 

“To be fair to him, it took more preparation, more setup than I thought,” said Shipman. “I thought he was a stupid guy, he’s not, he’s got an intelligent gameplan. I thought he was just a bully, and yeah he is, but also he’s tough.”

Getting an opportunity to fight for a world title in front of your home crowd is a rare occasion at the pinnacle of MMA, but one which Shipman cherished, as he spoke fondly of his fan’s surreal support at Wembley.

And for those who had their doubts over “Sea Bass” leading into the fight, he had one message.

“I know how I fight, I know what I go out there to do, I knew I felt I was coming as the underdog, I came out with a job to do and that’s what I did.”