MMA fighter Mark Jones goes for a title

And Mark Jones, who lives in Shrewsbury, is hoping that victory in his Power Expo light-heavyweight title bout against Victor Peixoto on Saturday will provide an important stepping stone towards his ultimate goal.

Jones, originally from Telford, has been plying his trade on the British circuit for four years but would love to fight in America one day alongside the sport's biggest stars.

And he said: "My goal is to compete with the best in the world, which is in the Ultimate Fighting Championship or Bellator.

"This fight is an important step towards that goal. It will take a lot of work but I have just got to keep going, and keep putting in performances."

Jones has compiled a record of seven wins and seven defeats in the unforgiving cages of Britain so far.

Peixoto will represent another major test of his skill set and the Shropshire fighter is prepared for a gruelling battle.

The contest will take place over three five-minute rounds and Jones will be meeting a familiar foe having lost on points to Peixoto before.

He said: "He is a really good fighter. I have got nothing but good things to say about him.

"I don't go in for trash talking but I am very confident about my chances of winning. He started with boxing, and is very accomplished in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

"He's a very well-rounded fighter with a lot of experience. He has won 14 and lost seven and he beat me on points when we fought before.

"But I gave him too much respect then and this time it will be different. I am not going to fly 1,500 miles to lay down. I am going there to win."

Jones, a ground-fighting expert, has been fine tuning all aspects of his game during a meticulous 18-week training camp.

Among those helping him prepare are the coaches at Aston's Kickboxing Academy in Shrewsbury and boxing coach Phil Durkin.

The 26-year-old said: "Normally I would do a 12-week training camp but this is going to be the biggest bout of my career so far so I have done 18 this time to make sure I am in the best shape possible."

Jones fits his demanding training schedule around his day job as a chef in the cafe at Tesco in Telford.

He trained at Telford College of Arts & Technology and although the two disciplines are very different in many ways, he insists there are some transferable skills between the two.

"You have to be precise in everything you do in MMA and it is the same with my job as a chef," he said.

"You have to be sharp and the more effort you put in, the better your results are going to be."

Should Jones have the recipe for success this weekend, it could provide an important push towards MMA's top table.