UFC Glasgow preview: Stevie Ray eager to make his home crowd proud in fight with Paul Felder

We are little over two weeks away from UFC Fight Night 113 in Glasgow, Scotland and the excitement is building already ahead of the UFC’s second-ever event at the SSE Hydro Arena.

The main event will be contested by two of the best welterweights in the world as Gunnar Nelson takes on Santiago Ponzinibbio at 170-pounds. Before that gets underway though, several local Scottish fighters will feature on the fight card including Stevie Ray who is riding high on the back of two wins over Ross Pearson and Joe Lauzon.

On July 16, Ray will take on the American Paul Felder in a highly anticipated lightweight bout scheduled on the main card. Speaking exclusively to The Independent earlier this week, Ray explained that he’d always expected to fight Felder one day.

“Even when we were in Brazil when he was fighting Trinaldo and I was fighting Patrick, we probably knew back then that our paths would cross at some point,” Ray said.

“I’ve never turned down a fight so Sean Shelby [UFC matchmaker] knows what he’s doing when he sends a contract my way. Felder was the man they offered me so I didn’t think twice about it—game on, lets do it.”

Ray was last in action back at UFC Fight Night 108 when he came through a tough test with Joe Lauzon to pick up his fifth UFC win. Having gone 5-1 in the UFC since debuting in 2015, some people were expecting the Scot to get a bigger fight, but he explained why he thought Felder was a logical next opponent for the Glasgow card.

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“After beating people like Lauzon and Pearson, I think some may have thought I’d maybe get a bigger name,” Ray said.

“The hardcore fans will know about Paul Felder, what he’s done and what he’s capable of. He’s right up there and everyone knows it’s going to be an exciting fight. I think when the fight was first being discussed that people wanted it to happen. It’s a fight that makes sense both for us and the fans.”

The announcement of the fight was met with great excitement from the UFC fanbase. Both Ray and Felder are known for putting on exciting fights and Ray thinks the fans will be in for a treat on July 16.

“I’m expecting it to be pretty much what everyone is expecting and I know it’s cliché to say it, but there’s going to fireworks,” Ray said.

“He comes to bang and he’s predominantly a striker. He’s got more of a Thai boxing style and he’s quite similar to Pearson, but he kicks, elbows and has a little more diversity. He moves a little bit like Pearson and everything he knows is like full power, 100-percent and he’s always looking to take your head off.

“It’s going to be exciting. I’m going to coming swinging, he’s going to come swinging. Let’s see who’s the last man standing.”

The stakes are always high in the UFC, but Ray’s contract situation means this fight has even more than usual on the line. Ray said he’s used to fighting under pressure, but for this fight in particular, there’s a lot riding in.

“This is the last fight on my contract so this couldn’t really be any more important to me,” Ray said.

“I’m not looking past Paul Felder, but I’ve already got my eyes on the top-15. When I beat him [Felder] then I’ll be right in there and I’ll have a lot more negotiating power when it comes to my new contract. My future depends on this fight, not just for me, but for my family.”

UFC Fight Night 113 will go down on July 16 at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow. There are still tickets available to purchase on Ticketmaster.