UFC Fight Night 90: Joe Duffy out to fix his Irish connection and make fans proud next week in Las Vegas

UFC lightweight Joe Duffy is looking to bring pride to Ireland again at UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs Alvarez

Irish UFC fighter Joe Duffy faces Mitch Clark at UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs Alvarez

Joe Duffy will be looking to get his UFC career back on the right track next week in Las Vegas, Nevada when he faces Canadian Mitch Clark at UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs Alvarez.

Duffy was last in action at UFC 195 where he was defeated by Dustin Poirier in a fight that was originally scheduled to take place at UFC Fight Night Dublin 2015. The Irishman lost a close decision that night but has since recovered and has been working hard at the Tristar Gym in Montreal, Canada having learnt some big lessons.

"I took a few things away from that fight and noticeably my takedown defence wasn't up to par and I feel it was better than what I showed," Duffy said. "I've been working a lot on my ground game and my striking but I'm always trying to improve everything. I would definitely say my wrestling and my ground has definitely been my main improvements."

Training at the prestigious Tristar Gym underFiras Zahabi is an option that many of the UK's top MMA talent have taken with the likes of Tom Breese, Arnold Allen and Joanna Calderwood also learning their craft in Montreal. Duffy admitted having their faces around has helped him settle in, but he's still getting to grips a little with the French language.

"When I first arrived, Tom [Breese] was here and Tom and I got on straight away," Duffy said. "We know a lot of the same people and it made the transition a whole lot easier. We take our training seriously and we are on the same wavelength so it definitely made it easier. It's a great place to be with new guys from Europe coming in all the time too.

"The French [language] is tough but I've been doing a little bit on the Duolingo app and one of the guys from the gym sent me a website where you can learn on there so I've been trying. After the fight I'll try a little harder, it's one of the things I want to pick up."

Spending so much time in Canada and then fighting a lot of the time has meant that Duffy hasn't had much time to come back home to Ireland to visit his family, friends and fans. This was something obviously on the Irishman's mind as he was happy to speak in depth about his relationship with his fans back in Ireland and how he believed he needed to strengthen the bond back to as strong as it previously was when he first started his MMA career.

"My connection back to Ireland is something that is huge to me and I've noticed that maybe in the last few years I've not got home as much as I should've done," Duffy said. "In the past after every fight, I'd go home and see everyone and switch off and enjoy time with them but it's something I haven't done for a while.

"I went home earlier this year for my best friend’s wedding and it dawned on me just how important it is to get back and reconnect and see everyone. It really made me realise how much it means to people and I was speaking to people who were telling they were getting up a 3am in the morning to watch my fights. I have to say that I think it's one thing I've really been missing."

Duffy then gave a special mention to his wider fans in the UK and spoke about how some had been with him since the start of his career.

"There were a lot of people that followed me from Wales, from England from the start who never missed one of my fights, they were always in my corner. There are two guys in particular who went all the way to Dallas for my UFC debut from Wales and these people were always my drive.

"I think I maybe lost that connection myself and I think it's something I didn't realise. I thought I was doing it for myself but now I realise I'm doing it for everyone, my family, my friends and for everyone that supports me both in Ireland and everywhere else. It's inspiring stuff and it's given me this different drive; it's a huge motivator for me and it's lit a new fire."

With that new fire burning inside of him, Duffy will now make his way to Las Vegas, Nevada to take on Mitch Clarke next Thursday evening. The Irishman had a clear message for the fans intending to tune in and watch him on next week and that was to expect a typical Joe Duffy performance.

"I'm always going out, I'm always attacking and I'm always looking to finish," Duffy said. "I'm hoping it's going to be more of a well-polished product. I know the Poirier fight won me some new fans so I'm hoping they will support me in to the next fight also."

Watch Joe in action at UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs. Alvarez live on BT Sport from 3am BST on Friday 8th July, or catch the Prelims on UFC Fight Pass from 11:30pm BST on Thursday 7th July