I was a manager at Aldi daydreaming of MMA stardom… now I’m on unbeaten streak and eyeing world title shot

WHEN Nathan Kelly was stacking shelves astatine Aldi - helium was lone daydreaming of the MMA vocation helium has now. 

The Irishman mislaid his archetypal 2 nonrecreational bouts successful the cage but has won each 1 since - precocious improving to 11-2. 

In February 2022, Kelly defeated Scott Pedersen connected a Friday nighttime - by the extremity of the play helium was backmost moving the supermarket store. 

It was past the featherweight took the gamble to discontinue his occupation to bid and combat afloat clip - soon aft signing for the Professional Fighters League. 

Kelly, 27, told SunSport: "I utilized to beryllium a manager successful Aldi and past I left. 

“I fought connected Bellator successful February of 2022, I fought connected the Friday and was backmost astatine enactment connected the Monday. 

"And I went successful and I conscionable got a smack of world successful the face, and I was conscionable like, 'Oh f*** this. 

“And I conscionable said to myself, 'Look, if I'm going to bash it, I cognize what I'm susceptible of doing, if I'm going to bash this, I request to bash it each in.'

"Rather than fractional a**e it oregon person that excuse of, 'Oh I person a job.' I'd alternatively springiness maine everything and neglect than fractional a**e it and say, 'Oh what could person been.'

"So I decided to permission the occupation and that August past I started with the PFL, truthful it each worked retired for maine perfectly. It was the close decision."

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Kelly would often conflict urges to battalion up his MMA dreams - before convincing himself to combat on.

He said: "Sometimes I'd beryllium like, 'Oh I can't, this is excessively hard to bash this.'

"And past sometimes I'd beryllium like, 'No, that's my small atrocious angel taking implicit connected the enarthrosis trying to get maine to enactment successful a comfortableness zone.  

"I'd person shifts wherever I'm moving there, stacking the shelves oregon arsenic a manager I'm dealing with wealth and I'm conscionable daydreaming astir fighting. 

"Then I'm similar coming backmost to world and past I'm like, 'Oh right, however overmuch wealth did I number there?' Then immoderate days I'm like, 'Oh, I'm excessively bushed to adjacent bash anything.'  

"But I deliberation the wide extremity imprinted successful the backmost of my mind, I really, truly wanted to conscionable springiness it a shot." 

Kelly past twelvemonth signed for the PFL, who acquired the Bellator roster helium formerly fought for. 

He present returns connected Saturday successful Dubai against Akhmed Magomedov - aft Khasan Magomedsharipov pulled out. 

And it marks different accidental for Kelly to amended his winning tally that has managed to sneak nether the radar. 

He said: "I deliberation if Khasan hadn't person pulled out, beating a feline similar him, radical would person went, 'Oh right, this triumph streak really is legit.

"Because it's until radical really deliberation you bushed idiosyncratic that they value, they mightiness not worth your occurrence but look, I'm connected an 11-fight triumph streak, 9 of them are first-round finishes. 

"I could beryllium grinding retired boring decisions and worldly similar that, but I'm going successful and taking lads retired successful the archetypal round. 

“So I'll amusement you however ascendant I americium if I americium expected to bushed idiosyncratic connected paper."

The paper is topped by Usman Nurmagomedov - relative of the legendary Khabib - warring Irish prima Paul Hughes. 

It comes 7 years aft Khabib famously defeated Dublin’s Conor McGregor successful MMA’s biggest pay-per-view bout of each time.