Twist of fate for Kirkcaldy MMA star Stevie Ray

The second round win over Anthony Pettis in Atlanta saw ‘Braveheart’ gain a precious five points which meant he qualified for the lightweight play-off stage of the Professional Fighters League 5 tournament.

The 32-year-old said he was delighted with a fight he described as “almost perfect”.

“I'm over the moon, it was the perfect scenario,” he said.

“I would have been over the moon just beating him, never mind getting the bonus of qualifying for the tournament as well.

“I've come out of it injury-free as well - it couldn't have gone any better really.”

The twister move which stunned the watching audience and forced Pettis to tap out is something Ray said he has been working on at his Kirkcaldy gym.

“A lot of the MMA and BJJ community hadn't seen that move before,” he said.

“A lot of people thought he'd just injured himself but it's something I've been working on in the gym.

“The twister move doesn't usually come from the position that I had, but I'm able to hit it from there.

“When I was in Las Vegas a few years ago a fighter used it on me so I asked him what he had done and he told me you can still hit the twister from that position.

“You're twisting the spine in two opposite directions. It's quite a brutal submission.”

The win sets Ray up with a rematch with Pettis in the knock-out stage of the tournament with a date set for New York in just five week's time.

“It's a quick turnaround,” Ray says, “I'm fighting the same opponent too as he's already qualified.

“The way the points system works is like the Champions League.

“He had already gained enough points to get through, whereas I needed that win to qualify, so now we meet again for a place in the play-offs.

“It's good because it means we both have exactly the same amount of time to prepare for it.

“It's actually better for me because I injured him a little bit, whereas I'm totally fine.

“I don't know how bad he is but he was holding his ribs. That move can cause a lot of damage to the spine and ribs and I'd heard he's popped one.

“But I'm totally up for it and ready to go.”