Meet Anshul Jubli, BSF officer's son from Uttarakhand village who is now global MMA star; bagged UFC contract

Anshul Jubli, an Indian MMA fighter, won a lightweight division UFC contract on Sunday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas by defeating Jeka Saragih of Indonesia in the Road to UFC finals.

After his victory in Vegas, the fighter from Delhi became just the second Indian-born competitor in UFC history, joining Bharat Khandare. Despite being favoured to lose, Jubli knocked out his opponent in the second round with a barrage of blows.

Who is Anshul Jubli?
Anshul Jubli, also known as ‘King of Lions’, is a native of Bhatwari village near Uttarkashi and is the son of a retired Border Security Force (BSF) officer. He spent his childhood in many different states due to his father's transfers. His family eventually settled in Dehradun after a lengthy period of relocation. It was in 2015 when his friend's older brother first exposed him to mixed martial arts and the UFC.

According to an interview between Anshul Jubli and The Better India in 2017, during his preparation for his CDS and SSB exams, he began watching YouTube videos of Firas Zahabi, a renowned MMA coach, and John Danaher, a highly respected BJJ and MMA instructor.

Following the video's instructions, Anshul and his friend would try to replicate the moves. With no MMA training centres in the area, it was difficult to really consider making MMA a career in Dehradun.

In Delhi, he had another friend who informed him about Crosstrain Fight Club (CFC), a mixed-martial-arts (MMA) club where some of India's top professional fighters attend to hone their skills.

Despite his initial failures, Anshul could take comfort in the fact that he had already spent months in a rigorous training programme. His self-assurance and readiness to fight had returned, and he was on the lookout for further conflicts.

Anshul Jubli got the chance to earn recognition in the second edition of Matrix Fight Night (MFN), which is considered India's largest professional MMA promotion founded by Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff, his sister Krishna Shroff, and mother Ayesha Shroff.

Anshul made his professional debut and immediately began dominating the amateur scene, all in the span of a year. He turned things around and won his following four matches at MFN.

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Anshul's ground game has improved greatly because of his time at CFC. He has been receiving instruction from Coach Siddharth and his staff in the areas of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Grappling, Wrestling, and even Kickboxing. The Tokas Boxing Club was another facility where Anshul put much time training. There, he is trained by Rohit Tokas, the finest male amateur boxer in India, and his squad.

With his recent victory against Jeka Saragih of Indonesia in the lightweight category of the Road To UFC tournament, Anshul Jubli has secured his long-awaited UFC deal, becoming just the second Indian, after Bharat Khandare, to secure a contract with MMA's largest promotion.