Chris Duncan hopes to honour his late mother in octagon after UFC Mexico City win over Torres as Scot eyes LW elite

CHRIS DUNCAN hopes to finally get the opportunity to honour the person responsible for his martial arts journey and putting him on the path to the UFC this weekend.

The flying Scotsman – who bagged a contract in MMA‘s top promotion on Dana White‘s Contenders Series in August 2022 – returns to the octagon early on Sunday morning on a stacked UFC Fight Night card in Mexico City.

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Scotland’s Chris Duncan returns to action early on Sunday morning in Mexico City[/caption]

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‘The Problem’ has gone a perfect 2-0 in MMA’s top promotion since his debut last March[/caption]

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Duncan has loved every minute of his time in the UFC[/caption]

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Duncan hopes to be able to pay tribute to his late mother in his first in-cage post-fight interview[/caption]

Life in the big show has, so far, been a dream for Duncan – who has racked up two impressive wins over Omar Morales and Yanal Ashmouz after making his debut last March.

The only downside for the Tullibody tank, however, has been the fact he’s not been able to pay tribute to his late mother in a post-fight octagon interview.

Duncan told SunSport: “I’m going to find out who is going to be in the commentary booth and make sure I get that mic.

“Because that’s been three fights now and it would just be amazing.

“It’s all good, man. [Sometimes] people don’t get a chance [to speak on the mic].

“I’m sure I’ll be on the main card and it’s almost certain [I’ll get the mic], especially after the performance I’m going to put on.

“I’m gonna get that mic and just say hi.”

Duncan’s mother – who passed away when he was 21 – played a pivotal role in his martial arts journey, sneaking him to boxing lessons against the wishes of his grandparents.

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Chris Duncan’s late mother played a pivotal role in his martial arts journey[/caption]

The 30-year-old said: “Absolutely [she’d be proud of me right now. She’s always looking over me.”

Standing between Duncan and an in-cage post-fight interview is fellow UFC rookie Manuel Torres, who also has two wins from two octagon outings.

And he’s studied ‘El Loco’ extensively ahead of their Mexican standoff.

“I’m really, really obsessive with everything that comes with MMA,” Duncan admitted. “Finding out what he does, what mistakes he makes and what his traits and tells are.

“So I’m looking forward to exploiting that when it comes to Saturday night He seems to be a striker more than anything else.

“But we’re in MMA, so let’s see where this goes.”

An impressive win over fellow Contenders Series graduate Torres will put Duncan on the cusp of mixing it with the lightweight division’s elite.

That fact isn’t lost on ‘The Problem’, although he’s refusing to get k too far ahead of himself.

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Chris Duncan faces Manuel Torres in his first international octagon outing[/caption]

He said: “[I want] three fights for sure [this year] and start chopping into that top 15 top ten for sure.

“I’ll take it as it comes, though. You can always plan these things.

“You can end up saying, ‘Right, I’m gonna do this, this and this.’ And then something happens like you get injured or you have a kid.

“So I’m just going to take it as it comes. A good old Scottish saying is, ‘P**s with the c**k you’ve got.’

“So I’m just gonna do that and see what we got.”

Going a perfect 3-0 in the UFC would be the perfect way to kick off 2024 for Duncan, although he won’t be satisfied if he hears the final horn.

He said: “Absolutely [this is going to be a good fight], but he’s going to be blown out of the water though.

“It has to be a stoppage. Especially [as] I’m coming to the end of my contract. Stoppage or bust. That’s what I’m going for.”

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Chris Duncan is eyeing a spectacular finish in his first outing of 2024[/caption]