From ‘Pooh Bear’ to ‘The Butcher’: How Charlotte MMA fighter’s UFC journey has evolved
From “Pooh Bear” to “The Butcher,” Bryan Battle’s emerging career in the octagon spans the globe. On Saturday the Charlotte native looks to add another crown to his collection at UFC 310 in Las Vegas.
Following his defeat of French-born fighter Kevin Jousset in Paris less than three months ago, Battle (12-2-0 UFC) is set for one of the toughest fights of his career, clashing with Randy Brown (19-5-0) in a welterweight bout on the prelim card.
And coming off a second-round TKO of Jousset, and eye-popping theatrics after the fight — “I know y’all didn’t think The Butcher was going to lose in a fist-fight to a French dude” —Battle doubled down.
“It’s me versus the world. I’m trying to go fight in Brazil, the London card — I want to go fight all the hometown guys. Man, just the feeling of crushing someone’s hopes and dreams in front of their friends and family — there’s nothing quite like that,” Battle said on The AH Show. “I’m trying to go all around the world, Uncle Dana (White).”
‘I’M LOOKING AT EVERYONE’
In a recent appearance on the Highway 49 Podcast, Battle talked through his mindset for upcoming opponents, as his fights are demanding more eyes across the UFC.
“I think this was a massive breakout performance for me,” Battle said of beating Jousset. “Not just the performance, but everything around it — and everything that happened afterward. That’s kind of my thing, I’ve gotten so much attention for this. For me, the opponent doesn’t really matter as much. If you just give me somebody to fight, I’ll go out there and put on the performance. The fan hype will do its job.
“Getting these guys in the rankings, when you’re not ranked, is really hard. I think what’s more important than the ranking is public opinion. Fighting a guy in the rankings will definitely impact public opinion, but just whooping people over and over again will also affect it. If you just keep going out there and beating people’s a**, the people will demand for you to fight bigger and bigger names,” Battle said. “Sean O’Malley went from fighting people not in the rankings to fighting the number one contender. I think it’s more about activity and performances than fighting anyone in particular. Anyone can get it. I feel good fighting anybody. I’m not looking at anyone; I’m looking at everyone.”
Despite Battle’s recent rise — kickstarted by a 14-second knockout of Gabe Green at the Spectrum Center in 2023 — it hasn’t always been smooth for the 30-year-old fighter.
FROM 300 TO 170 POUNDS
A career in the UFC wasn’t always a goal for Battle, but attempting Mixed Martial Arts was on his bucket list in his youth. And on his first day of training, Battle weighed more than 300 pounds — and nearly threw up after the session.
Battle’s fighting style and character are both unique, but his journey to the octagon is relatable, he thinks.
“That’s one of the coolest parts about it,” Battle said. “It’s such a relatable thing that people can identify with. My story is a lot like a lot of people’s stories. Even though I was bigger in high school, I played sports so I could stay in relatively decent shape. It’s very easy to stop taking care of yourself. That’s where I fell into. I got really, really, really big.
“There was a moment for me, I was at community college, and I had to go up two flights of stairs. By the time I got to the second flight, I was so winded that I couldn’t believe it. That’s when I knew I needed to do something.”
After Battle signed up for training, it slowly started to consume his life. He dropped out of school and cut nearly 60 pounds, fighting at 241 pounds in his amateur debut. And even after the weight loss, Battle still wasn’t where he wanted to be. He was knocked out in his first fight following a brutal head kick, but despite the defeat, he knew he couldn’t let his story end.
“The first fight didn’t go great. It went about as bad as it could go. I got knocked out. My dad drove two hours and had a front-row seat. I knew I couldn’t stop after that. I knew I couldn’t let the journey end with that being the concluding chapter,” Battle said. “I had the motivation to get to light heavyweight. I won the next several fights, and I dropped down to middleweight. I had a very successful amateur career.”
After an 8-2 amateur career, Battle turned pro in 2019 and joined The Ultimate Fighter in 2021, beating Kemran Lachinov and Andrew Petroski, advancing to the final against Gilbert Urbina. Battle submitted Urbina in the second round, winning The Ultimate Fighter 29 and scoring a UFC contract.
Once fighting became his lifestyle, the weight started falling off and Battle completed his transformation from “Pooh Bear” to “The Butcher.”
“Eventually, as a pro, I was able to train full-time. That’s when 170 pounds became a reality. That was something I didn’t think was possible,” said Battle. “That’s how we got to 300 pounds and 21, to just hitting 30 years old and fighting at 170 pounds.”
BATTLE’S CHARLOTTE TIES
Despite Battle’s ability to sell himself as a fighter, draw eyes to each bout, and follow it with victories and chaotic post-fight interviews, he noted that the team behind him has made him who he is today.
“I have a lot of love and support in the Charlotte area. My home gym, the MMA gym — Carolina Combat Sports, is run by my head coach Tom Ziggler. He was my first MMA coach. I’ve been blessed with a lot of really good resources in the area,” Battle said. “I think Charlotte is really slept on in the combat sports side of things, and the quality we have here, if you’re willing to look for it.
“It’s very sweet still being here and still representing the city. And the love the city gives back is awesome,” Battle said. “It’s not just me doing this, it’s all of us collectively doing it together. I’m just a vehicle that we’re doing it through.”
After closing the “Pooh Bear” era, Battle still has a list of crowns he plans to bring back to the Queen City.
“I’m still the king of Charlotte. I’m the king of Apex, and I’m the king of France. The Butcher is my ring name, those are just crowns I’m collecting on my warpath through the UFC welterweight division.”
This story was originally published December 5, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "From ‘Pooh Bear’ to ‘The Butcher’: How Charlotte MMA fighter’s UFC journey has evolved."