What makes the life of a fighter so fascinating? There’s triumph and glory, not to forget the riches. Then there are setbacks and ignominy. In this delicate balance, fans often overlook the most poignant facet of a fighter’s life: the uncertainty and the doubts. That’s precisely what makes the life of a fighter so intriguing. Not everyone needs to be a champion. Still, only a few manage to rise above those moments and reach the top.  One name that could feature in that list is Brian Battle.

Despite having a decent run, the Springfield, Missouri-born fighter suffered a major career setback this year. Consecutive weight misses resulted in his separation from the UFC. But soon another opportunity came knocking, and Bryan Battle joined the Dirty Boxing ranks, where he won his debut fight with a first-round knockout. That transition, however, was not without concern. It was a period when he even considered taking a regular job.

From fight camp to 9-to-5? Bryan Battle’s close call

Battle opened up during an interview with Mike Perry, who, alongside Jon Jones, runs Dirty Boxing. Founded last year, the promotion hosted Dirty Boxing Championship 3 (DB3) in Miami, Florida, on August 29. A fight between Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Rakim Cleveland for the inaugural heavyweight title headlined the event. Bryan Battle faced Brazilian fighter Derik de Freitas on the main card. So Mike Perry asked, “With that level of fame, does it add any pressure to you? Everyone’s talking about your matchups?” Battle explained that he currently finds himself in a position where he has the opportunity to do ‘something special.’

“Like if I like lock in and, you know f**king out there and handle everything that will be put in front of me over the next like year or two, like I have a chance to like a really special story,” he stated. Reflecting on the past few months, Battle admitted that at one point he felt like giving up and settling for a comfortable, ordinary job. “After everything that happened, there’s definitely moments where it was just like, man, do you want to just get, like, a f**king regular job and just f**king chill out and just get comfortable?” Battle shared.

But that moment of doubt made him realize how much he truly loved fighting and what he was doing.

Bryan Battle’s heavy burden

To have crossed that bridge of apprehension is truly commendable for Bryan Battle. The winner of The Ultimate Fighter 29 back in 2021, he had a solid run, earning a couple of Performance of the Night honors. In between, he suffered his first UFC and second career defeat when Rinat Fakhretdinov secured a unanimous decision over him at UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs. Strickland.

Barring the lone aberration of last year’s no-contest against Ange Loosa, Battle had maintained a strong winning streak.

But it was the trouble with the scales that continued to shadow him. Interestingly, it was on Jairzinho Rozenstruik’s headliner card against Jailton Almeida two years ago when Bryan Battle first missed weight. He still won the fight with a first-round finish and earned Performance of the Night honors.

However, weight troubles returned a year later when he faced Randy Brown. Battle won by split decision. But missing the welterweight limit by four pounds cost him 30 percent of his purse.

His next bout was scheduled for UFC 319: du Plessis vs. Chimaev against Nursulton Ruziboev. But weighing in at 190 pounds, once again, he missed weight. Four pounds over the middleweight limit. Unlike the previous instance, where he fought at catchweight, this time the fight met with cancellation.

Ultimately, the UFC decided to release him from his contract.

A month after his Dirty Boxing debut, Battle signed a multi-year deal with PFL. On October 30 he returned to DB 4, where he knocked out Nick Kohring in the first round. Fans can expect to see more from this fighter who, had he succumbed to doubt, might never have continued his exciting combat sports journey.