THE IRISH MARKET was an unexpected cash cow for the UFC, so they’re keen — quite understandably — to extract as much as they can from it.

Creating a platform for Irish fighters to be successful is the most effective way of ensuring that the market here continues to grow, and we’re likely to witness the next phase of that expansion this weekend when Joseph Duffy has his first taste of the Octagon.

For a debutant, the Donegal native is as marketable as they come: a well-spoken, accomplished martial artist with an excellent record and — most importantly from a PR perspective — a win over Conor McGregor.

Duffy has the potential to join McGregor as a legitimate contender, so much will be expected of the 27-year-old when he goes up against Jake Lindsey in Dallas this Saturday night at UFC 185.

It’s by no means an easy fight for Duffy. Lindsey was an undefeated 9-0 prospect when he joined the UFC last year and he’s got the ability to cause Duffy problems — particularly with his range-striking and in the clinch.

But the reality is that this is as reasonable a debut as Duffy could have asked for. Lindsey has lost his first two UFC bouts and another defeat on Saturday will almost certainly spell the end of his time with the promotion.

A win for Duffy, on the other hand, is important for the UFC’s intentions in Ireland. Jake Lindsey knows that if he upsets the odds — he’s 7/2 to win — it might scupper the UFC’s plans.

“Oh yeah, but I don’t take it personally,” he told The42 this afternoon from his hotel room in Dallas. “I’m going in there to steal that hype and try to hurt him. And it doesn’t matter anyway.

“If there was none of this hype it wouldn’t change how I’m going to approach it. I can understand why people in the media are favouring him, but it doesn’t hurt me or anything.”

Despite stepping in on just five weeks’ notice following an injury to Duffy’s original opponent Vagner Rocha, Lindsey says he had no hesitation in accepting a bout against such a highly-rated prospect.

“Hell no! Those are the fights you want. That’s the whole point of competing. The thing with Joe is that he’s never mentioned without Conor McGregor being mentioned too, and I feel like that would get on my nerves if I was Joe.

“Conor has obviously done great things and blown up big, but Joe Duffy has been a good fighter since long before then.”

Lindsey, a 28-year-old native of Kansas, was a librarian for seven years but is now focusing full-time on his MMA career. That might change should the UFC show him the exit door following a potential loss this weekend, but he insists that it doesn’t add any extra pressure.

“Yeah, I’m sure I could be cut. It’s safe to say that, but guys leave and come back all the time. It’s an ongoing process. I haven’t actually thought about my job being on the line as motivation anyway.

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“As long as I go out there and perform to my ability I really don’t give a shit. Obviously I’m fighting to win, but if he comes out of there with a win, I can tell you right now that he’s going to earn that shit.”

Going into his third UFC fight this weekend, Lindsey will have the edge when it comes to experience in the Octagon. If Duffy endures any stage fright, Lindsey will aim to exploit it by exerting pressure on his opponent from the beginning.

“I’ll be putting the pace on him. Honestly, he kind of fights like me. He likes to pressure his opponents a lot but he doesn’t like going backwards. When he fought Conor McGregor, he looked uncomfortable when Conor pushed him back to the cage.

“I’ve seen a couple of fights where dudes tried to get up in his shit and he didn’t like it. If you hit him with some big shots it will put doubts in his head. But I’m not banking on that either. Even if he had five UFC fights, it wouldn’t change the way I’m going to fight.”

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