George Staines might prefer the work of George Lucas over Octagon great Georges St-Pierre, but having already captured the Death Star, the prospect of UFC gold is no longer a galaxy far, far away.
The undefeated Hull lightweight worked quicker than a jump to lightspeed last month as he earned a UFC contract with a 61-second victory over Loai Abushaar on Dana White’s Contender Series show in Las Vegas.
While Staines is now part of MMA’s No.1 empire, he prefers to relax by watching the exploits of Boba Fett and Yoda, rather than tutorial videos on omoplatas and kimura locks.
JOIN US ON FB! Get all the best sports news and much more on our Facebook page
Asked how he celebrated his UFC deal, Staines, who fights out of the Next Gen gym in Liverpool, said: “I’m a very quiet person. I’m very open about it, but I just like building Lego, I like watching anime.
“People find it weird, but I don’t watch MMA. I enjoy studying tapes of my opponents, but I won’t watch MMA unless I’m with friends and they’re watching it.
“Even then I am like, ‘Do we have to watch it?’ I’d much prefer to watch One Piece or Star Wars or build some Lego or read a manga. I enjoy that complete separation from MMA. I am in the gym for four hours training and then two hours afterwards chatting absolute rubbish, because we are all good friends.
“After that I don’t want to come home and watch MMA or jiu-jitsu videos. I want to watch sci-fi or fantasy or do cool things such as gaming. I might start my own Twitch stream or Lego livestream.
“My manager gave me the Death Star [Lego set] as a gift for getting to the UFC, so I could do a review of that. There is a Millennium Falcon set that I would like, but I just need more room. Lego just takes up so much space.”
The sky(walker) is the limit now for 11-0 ‘Saint’, who was cornered on DWCS by gym-mates, and now fellow UFC stars, Paddy Pimblett and Luke Riley.
‘The Baddy’ is already among the elite of the 155lb division, with a rumoured No.1 contender’s fight with ex-champ Ilia Topuria pencilled in for January.
Staines, 26, hopes to make his debut sooner, but is determined to force his way to the lightweight crown, adding: “I know where I want to be, but I am not sure how I am going to get there… well, I do know – I am just going to win all my fights. I will be the UFC champion.
“After Paddy wins that belt, I will win that belt. Though not straight after! I used to be very focused on the end goal. Now I have learnt to enjoy the path you are on and live life, and I think that’s made me a better fighter.”
UP NEXT: UFC Edmonton, Sunday, 1am. Canadian Mike Malott takes centre stage on home soil against No.10-ranked welterweight Joaquin Buckley.
MONEY MATCH: Josh Hokit (21/10) winning the heavyweight title from Ciryl Gane at UFC 334 next month will be Dana White’s worst nightmare. Odds and full UFC betting available at boylesports.com
FINAL SAY: “The ranking is good, but the job isn’t done. I’m here to keep climbing and keep moving towards that belt.” Londoner Modestas Bukauskas, who is now No.14 in the light-heavyweight division.