LI’s Gregor Gillespie to make UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 95 in September
Gregor Gillespie stands in front of a speed bag at a gym in Bellmore. (Jan. 16, 2014) Credit: Mike Stobe
Just over 2 ½ years after starting his professional MMA career, Gregor Gillespie is ready for the big time.
Gillespie, who trains at Bellmore Kickboxing Academy, will make his UFC debut against Joaquim Silva at UFC Fight Night 95 on Sept. 24 in Brasilia, Brazil.
A former NCAA Division I national champion and four-time All-American at Edinboro University, Gillespie turned his wrestling prowess into a professional MMA career in January 2014, rattling off seven wins. All but one of his wins has come via first-round stoppage (three submissions and three TKOs).
Gillespie, 29, won the vacant Ring of Combat lightweight title in his fifth career bout in June 2015, and successfully defended it twice more before making the jump to the UFC.
Gillespie will be thrown into the fire in his first bout against Silva, who is 9-1 in his professional career with a 2-0 mark in the UFC.
Gillespie is a two-time New York State high school wrestling champion. He is the sixth state champion from New York to compete in the UFC, joining Chris Weidman, Gian Villante, Chris Wade, Jon Jones and Matthew Riddle.
