MELKSHAM’S Brad Scott says that the hard work starts now after he clinched a coveted deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) earlier this month.

The 23-year-old got to the live welterweight final of The Ultimate Fighter – The Smashes in Australia earlier this month but is refusing to rest on his laurels and .

To make that step, Scott is jetting off to the United States early next year to spend ten weeks training at the world class Alliance gym in San Diego, alongside his Smashes Team GB coach Ross Pearson.

“From now on, everything that happens is down to me and no one else and I’ve got to get twice as good as I am now,” said Scott.

“Pretty much everything is sorted for San Diego now and it should be great because I’m going to be training at a world-class gym. There are some great fighters there like Pearson, Dominick Cruz and Phil De Fries.

“I need to get better and I should be flying out there at the end of January after Christmas is over.

“I’m really excited about what’s coming next and I just want to make sure I do everything I can to improve.”

Scott began training at the Dragonslair Gym in Melksham and his preparation for The Smashes also took place at Trojan Free Fighters in Cheltenham, the Contender Gym in Trowbridge, Body Development in Bath, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym Gracie Barra Bath, as well as with wrestling coach Saeed Esmaeli.

The Melksham brawler was being lined up to appear on next February’s UFC show at Wembley but injuries picked up in his gruelling showdown with Whittaker on December 15 put paid to Scott’s chances of appearing on the British card.

He added: “I was on morphine because my ear had got really injured and they stuck a scalpel into it to clear the blood out but it then got infected.

“I also had a big gash on my forehead from the final so I’ve got to wait until those are all healed up before I can fight again.”

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