It’s been a long, arduous road to travel, but Todd Duffee has finally arrived at his destination. On July 15 in San Diego, California the 29 year old Heavyweight enters his first UFC main-event, set to square off with the legendary former champion Frank Mir.

That it took six years for Duffee to reach this career landmark does not tell the whole story. As far as six-year runs in MMA go, they don’t generally come as chaotic and challenging as Duffee’s. Since his 2009 debut, in which he famously knocked out Tim Hague in a record-setting seven seconds, the Indiana-born fighter has amassed a promotional record of three wins and one loss. Those statistics don’t tell the whole story either, but they do give an indication of Duffee’s curious career trajectory since its highly publicised lift-off.

BECOMING HUMAN

Injuries, contractual problems, health issues and personal set-backs have served as the constant themes in Duffee’s career, but sparsely scattered in between the trials and tribulations is a highlight reel of Knockout wins. Crushing victories over Brazilian veteran Assuerio Silva, the aforementioned Hague, South-African giant Neil Grove, English ground-wizard Phil De Fries and most recently the ultra-durable Anthony Hamilton have earned Duffee the reputation of a man who’s fights simply cannot be missed — if not for their dramatic value then for the fact that they seem to only come along once in a blue moon. Despite his fierce reputation as a competitor, people’s opinions of Todd Duffee the human-being have dramatically changed over the years. The hulking, super-athlete once perceived as being born with a silver spoon in his mouth and the world as his fingertips is now considered as human as the rest of us. Despite retaining his intangible, freakish athletic qualities that seem to be his and his alone, Duffee, with all of his hard-ships, is now a man and a fighter that the fans can relate to on a deeper level. Duffee’s story is one that resonates with anyone who has endured hardship, creating a potential superstar in the UFC’s shallow Heavyweight division.

Injuries are an inevitability in a sport as brutal and unforgiving as Mixed Martial Arts, but I would challenge you to find a fighter with a list as long and varied as Duffee’s. In each of his last three UFC fights, for example, he has incurred lay-offs with varying degrees of severity due to knee injuries, resulting in the seven month break between his UFC 181 win and upcoming fight with Frank Mir representing his fastest turnaround in his UFC career. Minor surgery in December proved to be a major success, and for the first time in a long time Duffee is heading into a fight without the shackles of injury or looming fear of another long lay-off. Despite valiantly reaching this turning point, though, Duffee still lives every day in the shadow of his painful battle with Parsonage Turner Syndrome, a battle that put every past hardship into the most poignant perspective.

THE BIGGEST FIGHT OF HIS LIFE

Having successfully rehabbed a serious injury in summer 2013 Duffee was ready to give UFC matchmaker Joe Silva a call and inform the brass that he was ready to make his return. At the time Duffee was one fight deep into his second UFC run, with a triumphant victory over Phil De Fries not too far in the past. After a typically hard day of training at San Jose’s American Kickboxing Academy, Duffee would awake from sleep in agony, writhing in a pain unfamiliar to the man who had already lost so much time to injury. His entire right-side was numb and a source of sheer agony. His first thought was that it was a pinched nerve. Fate, however, had another curve ball to throw into Duffee’s path, and after consulting nearly a dozen doctors he would diagnosed weeks later with Parsonage Turner Syndrome, a severe nerve issue of which the medical world is still studying and looking to properly come to terms with. Doctors were not particularly sure of what they were dealing with, much less the then 27 year old fighter who ironically had previously harboured aspirations of becoming a doctor himself, having shelved his aspiring career in medicine to chase his MMA dreams.

The diagnosis threw the prodigy’s future into legitimate jeopardy, with one particular doctor advising Duffee that it would be wise to start planning for life-after-MMA. Duffee appreciated the honesty of the doctor but was in no way willing to accept his prognosis as reality. Despite being eventually assured that a full recovery in the context of living a regular life was attainable in around two years, such assurances that he would be able to continue in his career as a top-level Mixed Martial Arts fighter were few and far between. Bone, muscle and tendon injuries are one thing, unavoidable in any Sport, but partial paralysis is another. The man known for making such lethal use of his right hand was unable to hold a pen to sign his name, let alone think about defeating future opponents inside the Octagon. Doctors didn’t believe that it was possible, but Todd Duffee did. Not only did Duffee return to full training and receive clearance to fight again, but he did so in a fraction of the time expected of him. His December 2014 return defied the doctor’s advice and saw the Heavyweight come full circle in his career, fighting out of American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida and gaining yet another first-round victory.

THE THIRD COMING

One of the battles facing Duffee in the wake of his Parsonage Turner victory was rebuilding muscle mass and regaining the athletic prowess that had become dormant for so long. Having been without the use of his right arm for the better part of a year it was to be expected that Duffee would suffer a degree of muscular atrophy, and overcoming such deficits was going to be crucial as he looked to make is return. After regaining full use of his arm, in a matter of months Duffee, with the help of his coaches at American Top Team, had whipped himself into fighting shape and declared himself ready for action in the Autumn.

Weighing in at a lean 236.5 lbs and 12.5 lbs lighter than his previous bout, at UFC 181 Duffee was fighting in an unfamiliar role as the smaller man in the Octagon. As Anthony Hamilton swiftly found out, the third coming of Todd Duffee had not lost a step and if the fight was any indication, the most recent incarnation of Todd Duffee is as scary as any that preceded it. Lightning quick across the ground, graceful in motion, and still in possession of crushing power from both hands – Todd Duffee was very much back and in living colour. Renowned for his grit and durability, the Greg Jackson-trained Anthony Hamilton lasted all of 33 seconds at UFC 181 as Duffee’s comeback fight. After the event Duffee made his intentions known – he wanted a top ten opponent next, and he wanted one in a hurry.

BAD BLOOD, OR JUST BUSINESS?

Mooted bouts with Alistair Overeem and Matt Mitrione failed to materialise at the start of 2015, with almost every top-tier Heavyweight rapidly finding match-ups that didn’t include Duffee. Though famously averse to causing a scene and calling out fighters, Duffee was left with no choice but to aggressively pursue the fight that he wanted – using social media to create a buzz for a potential fight with Frank Mir. Mir, a former training partner of Duffee’s, holds the number ten ranking in the UFC’s Heavyweight division and the key to breaking into the championship picture. Reluctantly, Duffee sent out Twitter barbs left, right and centre, aided by friend and manager Blake Bowman, with the intention of baiting the hesitant Mir into signing up for a summer showdown. In early April Team Duffee got its wish, with a contract signed and a main-event fight announced for UFC Fight Night 71 in San Diego.

After the fight was announced Duffee was quick to try and diffuse any ill-will, assuring Mir that it was nothing personal and purely a business move. Mir had a different perspective, claiming that Duffee was proving himself to be insincere and a coward for backtracking on his comments, in the process adding fuel to the fire and creating a legitimate buzz for July’s main-event collision. Since the initial furore both camps have maintained a level of quiet dignity, with both appreciating the challenges that their foes represent and the need for focus on the task at hand. For Duffee, Mir represents the most well-rounded and high-level challenge to be put in front of him. A house-hold name and a former champion, Mir is riding a crest of momentum and enters this fight coming off of an emphatic win over top-ten Heavyweight Bigfoot Silva. He also represents an opportunity for Duffee to, in one night, make good on years of talk of “potential” and to finally cement himself as a force at MMA’s top table. A win over Mir would secure a top 15 ranking for the ATT product and pave the way for bigger fights to come, though Duffee is focused purely on the task at hand.

A COMPLETE FIGHTER

Referring to Duffee vs Mir as a “striker vs grappler” battle would be doing disservice to both competitors. Though known for his lethal brand of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Mir’s most recent fight was a display of crisp, effective striking which resulted in a devastating Knockout win. He poses a dual-threat of which Duffee is fully aware and training diligently for. By the same token, Duffee is a capable grappler who has been training this facet of the game for a number of years, under the tutelage of Amal Easton, Chip Coffey and Roberto Traven to name a just a few. In fact, Duffee has competed in BJJ on a regional level, further underlining the dangerous fact that he is far from a one-trick pony and dedicated to all aspects of the fight game. Duffee’s uncanny ability to avoid being taken down hides what many have referred to as a very accomplished ground-game, both offensively and defensively, although there is a chance that MMA’s best kept secret may be let out of the bag should the fight hit the ground.

Make no mistake about it, though – Todd Duffee boasts a 100% KO/TKO rate and his most pronounced advantage against Mir will be on the feet. Coached in the art of striking by Florida’s best coaches in Brice Ritani-Coe, Katel Kubis and his “Hands Therapist” Mikey Rod, it’s an advantage that Duffee takes into every fight, and one he’ll be looking to make abundantly clear on fight night. A brief flirtation with boxing and near-miss with Kickboxing doesn’t tell the whole story behind Duffee’s love for striking. To hear him tell it, it just comes naturally to him. Technique is great, but to succeed in MMA you have to have the love of a fight, and Duffee is not shy of declaring his love of a scrap.

Duffee’s footwork and coordination belies his weight-class with many noting that he moves around the cage like a much smaller fighter. A lot of credit for that can be given to Tony Villani at XPE Sports, a long-time partner of Duffee’s who has honed his and many top-tier athletes’ athletic capabilities for years now. The comparatively cumbersome Mir will be counting on a false-step or a misjudgement in order to land a big punch or secure a takedown, making Duffee’s ability to move in and out of the pocket quickly and effectively a crucial component to his success on fight night. Duffee’s ability to get out of danger lessens Mir’s chances of utilising his improved-boxing and this will likely cause the former-champion to become flustered and frustrated as he fails to find success. Aggression and forward pressure are the emblem of Todd Duffee’s fighting style thus far, and it will be most interesting to see how he approaches a more established and succinct striker such as Mir.

FAMILY ENDOWED HEART

Game-plans, strategic analysis and technical breakdowns have their place in MMA, but Todd Duffee’s story is one of heart and perseverance, nurtured by the many obstacles put before him on the road to UFC Fight Night 71. They are the intangibles that brought Duffee back from the brink of enforced retirement and to the dizzying heights of UFC headliner status. Heart and perseverance are the hallmarks of Duffee’s career thus far and will be key components on fight night as he faces off with his toughest challenge to date.

On what will likely be a warm Wednesday evening in the Valley View Casino Center, Frank Mir will stand across the cage from a man whom doctors and medical logic could not defy – a man who would not accept no for answer when fate tried to snatch his promising career away. Giving up was never and will never be an option for Todd Duffee, much less as he approaches the biggest fight of his career. Frank Mir has earned the title of legend but is ultimately a mere mortal, and it will take something truly remarkable to deny Todd Duffee in their main-event clash on July 15.