All eyes will be on rising MMA promotion Oktagon on November 4 when they run the storied fight sports venue, The AO Arena (formerly known as the MEN) in Manchester for the first time.
The show is headlined by TV stars Jake Quickenden and Paul Smith making their MMA debuts against one another in a crossover spectacle covered at length on Channel 4's series Stage To The Cage, and the undercard is fast filling up with big names from British and Irish MMA's past, present and undoubtedly also its future.
One of the names fast on the rise is Shem Rock, who'll battle Jaroslav Pokorný on the AO Arena card. Fighting out of Dublin, the Liverpool-born 29-year-old could easily follow fellow Scouse superstars Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann into the sport's mainstream penthouse.
Rock made the trip to Oktagon's recent show in Bratislava, Slovakia to watch his promotion's latest offering, and didn't hold back on his upside in the sport as well as potential rivals in the quest for championships and glory.
"Look at the country. Look at the UK, Ireland… tell me a lightweight that could beat me, and I’ll tell you they’re lying," he told DAZN.
"It’s just a matter of time before I’m a household name. Maybe it’s a case that I’ve not had the platform yet that these others have. But my results will speak for themselves.
"I look around the scene, and nobody’s got nothing on me. I’m gonna really show that in my next two, three, four, five fights.
"I’m on my way to being a lightweight champion. I’m gonna beat these guys who’ve been in the UFC, this guy who’s got everyone licking his a*** because he beat five bums.
"Sometimes it’s not about your record, or how many wins you’ve had. It’s about your skillset. And I look at some of these who are getting smoke blown up them, and it feels like the fans are getting sold a lie by some of these.
"But I’m gonna show everyone that I’m the real deal.
"It’s been 10 years on the grind. You don’t know the doors I’ve had shut in my face. You don’t know the number of times I’ve been told ‘no’. I’ve been told I’m too old, I started too late, I’m a criminal, I’ll never make it… now those same people are messaging me and saying “good luck, bro”.
"I knew that as long as I kept my head down and kept training, that nobody could stop me."
Oktagon 48 airs live on DAZN on Saturday November 4. Click here for more information on how to sign up.