Ballymena’s Rhys McKee continues climbing the ladder with submission win in brutal fight

Rhys McKee has taken another step closer to the UFC.

McKee has made no secret in the past of his plan to use Cage Warriors as a springboard to the UFC and he moved closer to his dream of fighting in the Octagon when he improved to 9-2-1 as a professional on Saturday night. After a heated exchange during Friday's weigh-ins, Ballymena's McKee came out on top against Perry Goodwin in their grudge match at Cage Warriors 102. It wasn't all one way traffic for McKee, who fights out of Next Generation MMA in Northern Ireland, and he had to take plenty of shots in the opening two rounds of the lightweight war. But 'Skeletor' ultimately proved his staying power in the third round, when he took full advantage of the narrowest of openings to lock in a modified guillotine choke that was too much for a bloodied and beaten Goodwin to deal with. https://twitter.com/CageWarriors/status/1101967012144836609 Goodwin rolled to his back in an attempt to escape the submission but it was futile and McKee continued his record of finishing each of his nine career victories when Goodwin was forced to tap with two and a half minutes remaining. A shot at the Cage Warriors lightweight title is surely within McKee's reach after Saturday night's win and while 'Skeletor' will certainly have plans to fight for gold before 2019 is out, this weekend's opponent will definitely never forget the night he engaged in a brutal battle with the Northern Irishman judging by his post-fight damage.