Akonne Wanliss is a man of many talents, but his true passion is Mixed Martial Arts and he’s determined to make history in the sport.
The Star Wars fanatic, who often shapes his ring walks around the popular franchise, made his debut for OKTAGON at Central Tennis Court Štvanic in Prague on Saturday night.
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Ahead of his first fight with one of Europe’s leading MMA promotions, the 31-year-old talked up his ability to stop anyone who is put in front of him.
“I’m a finisher,” Wanliss told talkSPORT.
“All of my former wins are by finish, whether it's by knockout or submission. Every minute of the fight I’m always looking to inflict damage and unleash the force.
"I’m a very exciting fighter to watch. I’m long, powerful, very big for the weight and I’ve got a ten-pack. Hopefully, that looks good on TV.”
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Wanliss lived up to his own billing at OKTAGON 45 by stopping Giorgi Gogotchuri with a flurry of punches in just over two minutes as he improved his record to 7-2 and moved one step closer to his ultimate goal.
“I want to become OKTAGON champion, first of all," he revealed.
"And I want to make history in MMA, so go further and beyond that.
"I want to really cement my legacy in MMA. I’ve devoted my life to this sport, and I definitely want to leave the sport by having my name up there with the likes of Leon Edwards and all the other champs who’ve been there.”
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Today, Wanliss has a popular OnlyFans account and shares content with his influencer boxer girlfriend Daniella Hemsley who recently caused a stir by flashing after her first win.
However, for many years, he made ends meet as an up-and-coming MMA fighter by stripping, a decade-long career he fell into during his early twenties.
“I’ve finished stripping now, but I did it for ten years since I was 21,” Wanliss said.
"I was topless waiting. I remember seeing the strippers on the stage.
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"I used to breakdance back in the day. I saw them move, some of them were stiff, and some of them weren’t so stiff, but the crowd was crazy.
"From that moment, I really noticed that I just love to perform, I love to make entertainment.
"So, I was like, ‘Damn. I need to be on that stage.’ And I found out they were making three times as much, so it was motivated by money, too.
“I started, made my show, and went on to be what I consider to be one of the number one strippers in the UK, even Europe.
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“It’s definitely helped me through my amateur career because as an amateur you don’t really have funding or money, especially back then.
"It was quite hard to run a normal job and train as much as I should.
“I did everything I could to get to work, get to the level I am, and stripping was a big part of that.”
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After giving up stripping and impressing on the big stage, it appears Wanliss is on course to make history like his UFC champion teammate, Leon Edwards.
First up, he’ll target the OKTAGON belt before potentially moving on to MMA’s premier promotion where ‘Rocky’ toiled for years to become the UK’s biggest star.
