SWANSEA mixed martial arts fighter John Phillips has been crowned the best in Britain.

The former boxer from Townhill landed the British middleweight title after a spectacular knockout at the latest event staged by Knuckle Up promotions.

Phillips was quick out of the blocks to defeat Matt Thorpe for the vacant title within 50 seconds of the first round at the event staged at Cheltenham Racecourse.

And the 24-year-old, who has a record of 17 fights and 15 wins — all by knockout — with two defeats, faces tough competition to hold on to his belt.

Phillips, a member of the Fforestfach-based Gracie Barra Swansea Predators, will soon be back in the cage defending his British title.

"It's a huge honour for me to become British champion," said Phillips, who also runs his own building company.

"As an ex-boxer my fists are my biggest form of attack, as my record shows.

"But I've worked hard with my coaches and it has really paid off. Chris Rees has worked very hard on my grappling, and it has helped me become a more all-round fighter.

"There's no rest for me, though — I'm set to defend my British title in April, though I'm not sure who I'm going to be facing yet."

It is a remarkable achievement for Phillips considering he only took up the full combat sport four years ago by chance.

Dragged into sparring by a close friend, doors quickly started to open.

"It's quite funny how it came about," reflected Phillips. "My mate told me to get down there and help the guys out.

"I really enjoyed it, and a promoter told me that he wanted to get me involved with MMA.

"I told him 'give me a grand and I'll do it'. He phoned me back the next morning and said 'here's a grand, now get in there'.

"And since then I've really worked hard at the sport. I train six times a week, three times a day.

"I run every morning, then follow it up with MMA training along with boxing sessions, weights and a grappling session to finish.

"It's pretty intense, but you have to be up for battle as soon as you get in there with your opponent.

"I really enjoy the buzz of it, and now I've got a British title around my waist, so it's all gone very well so far."

Chris Barney