UFC 267: Lerone Murphy's journey from spitting out bullets to becoming rising MMA star
- Published
Saturday's bout means that Lerone Murphy's first four UFC fights will all have taken place in Abu Dhabi
"It's a miracle that I'm here," says Lerone Murphy as he prepares for the biggest fight of his mixed martial arts career.
But he isn't talking about being on the card for UFC 267 this Saturday, or the fact he's speaking from the comfort of a five-star hotel in Abu Dhabi.
He's talking about being alive.
On a Saturday afternoon in May 2013, Murphy, then 21, took a trip to a barbers in Fallowfield, Manchester.
What happened next is something the 30-year-old Mancunian still thinks about "probably every day".
Murphy was confronted as he stepped out of the barbers. A bystander heard shouts of "please don't" before three shots were fired., external
Murphy was shot in the side of his face, but he was conscious. He spat out some of the bullets.
"My mouth felt heavy and I thought it was blood or something, but then I could see the bullets on the floor," he said.
Murphy lost a few teeth and the injuries caused his tongue to swell, so he needed a tracheotomy in order to breathe.
He spent a week in intensive care and a further week in hospital, but he survived, much to the surprise of his doctors.
That's why the featherweight's been known as 'the Miracle' since turning his life around and becoming an MMA fighter.
'The gym was the only place where I didn't think about past traumas'
Murphy was raised in Old Trafford and after leaving college, he fell into the local gang culture.
"I was just not really doing anything with my life," he says. "I had no direction, no goals. I was just living day by day."
Then came that traumatic trip to the barbers, which Murphy says "was the turning point in my life. It made me appreciate life".
After recovering from the physical injuries, the birth of his son made him realise "I've got to switch on here and do better for myself and my family".
And watching Kane Mousah, his friend and fellow former gang member,, external win an MMA fight in Bolton finally gave him a focus.
Murphy's dad was a UFC fan and Lerone had trained occasionally with his uncle, the late boxing trainer Oliver Harrison, but he did not start MMA training till he was 22.
"I just loved it," he says. "The gym was my getaway. I felt like that was the only place in the world where I didn't think about past traumas or anything else.
"I'm not scared or fearful to go out or anything, but it does come into my mind and probably does change my mood."
Bellator fighter Kane Mousah (left) was in Murphy's corner for his unanimous decision win over Douglas Silva de Andrade
Although Murphy "never thought I'd be a fighter", he made his professional debut in March 2016 and after racking up an 8-0 record, made his UFC bow in September 2019, agreeing to face Zubaira Tukhugov at less than four weeks' notice.
That fight was a draw on a split decision and after claiming wins over Ricardo Ramos in 2020 and Douglas Silva de Andrade in January, Murphy takes on another opponent with far greater experience on the preliminary card for UFC 267.
Murphy faces Finland's Makwan Amirkhani, 32, who has been fighting in the UFC since 2015 and has a 16-6 record.
"I started late," says Murphy, who cites striking as his biggest strength. "These guys have been wrestling, grappling and boxing since they were kids so I'm playing catch-up.
"That's why I've been putting the work and time in. But I'm grateful to be where I'm at in such a short space of time."
Another victory will nudge Murphy closer to the top-15 featherweight rankings, and ultimately he wants to bring the UFC back to Manchester and become a UFC champion.
"I don't want to be known just as the man that got shot," he adds.
Two title fights top the card
Jan Blachowicz (left) has an MMA record of 28-8 while Glover Teixeira's is 32-7
UFC 267 is a rarity in that not only is it a non pay-per-view event, the card is topped by two title bouts, with two veterans going head-to-head in the main event.
Jan Blachowicz faces Brazil's Glover Teixeira, 42, with the Pole, 38, looking to make the second defence of his light heavyweight belt after inflicting Israel Adesanya's first MMA defeat at UFC 259 in March.
Petr Yan suffered his first UFC loss after being disqualified for an illegal knee at UFC 259, handing Aljamain Sterling the bantamweight title, and the Russian now sets out to make amends by taking on the USA's Cory Sandhagen for the interim bantamweight belt.
Islam Makhachev has risen to fifth in the lightweight rankings on the back of an eight-fight win streak and the Russian, 30, aims to keep that momentum going against New Zealand's Dan Hooker, just a month after the number-six lightweight beat Nasrat Haqparast at UFC 266.
Khamzat Chimaev burst onto the UFC scene with three wins in the space of 65 days in 2020, before saying that he was retiring in March because of lung complications caused by Covid-19.
But that announcement proved premature and the Swedish welterweight, 27, makes his return against China's Li Jingliang in Abu Dhabi, which is swiftly followed by UFC 268 at New York's Madison Square Garden next weekend.
"I love guys that like to fight all the time and he [Chimaev] is one of the first guys to come in and do what he did," said UFC president Dana White. "He's fun, and this card is a fun card.
"These next two weeks are unbelievable, with back-to-back badass fights. It's a fun time to be a UFC fan."