Since the GGC began signing fighters in late July of 2019, the company has had it's share of big signings. The first high profile signing was when the company picked up the former GP lightweight champion of the world, Takeshi Kato. However, the company seems to take most pride in digging beneath the surface in the world of the unknown to find new stars. Gaia Galanos, Krystal Knight and Juanita Sanchez all rising to prominence with the GCC banner as their backdrop are some of the first homegrown stars that come to mind. So where does a skinny, red head looking childlike orphan come into play? Well, let's start by saying... her name is Leah Wilkins. When it was first announced that Leah Wilkins was signed to the promotion, I had thought it was an elaborate joke but that was before President Khan had confirmed the signing and at that point I was left scratching my head. My initial bout of confusion turned into a battle of intrigue. At that point, I felt I needed to learn more about this prospect. In fact, you could almost say I had an obligation to the rest of the MMA community to do so.
So, I started by digging into Leah Wilkins background. She's currently 19 years old, she grew up in West London and was left to fend for herself on the streets of London at the age of nine... you know, all the stuff you can find on her bio right here,This wasn't nearly enough and I needed to dig deeper. While her child psychiatrist Dr. Edward Morecambe could not share any information on her per HIPPA protocol, I was able to track down one of many handlers she had overseeing her the institution for troubled teen girls who was involved in her amateur kick boxing career.
''Basically she is a little scrapper, lighter than everyone else probably, but packs a punch. Cocky, with a big mouth and an utter inability to take any shit from anybody (and to Leah, the definition of 'trash talk' is VERY broad indeed.) Once a fight starts. she NEVER gives up - a bloody and battered face with two black eyes and a couple of chipped teeth is pretty much her standard post-match look. She'd rather keel over than admit defeat, but will concede if she feels the other fighter won fairly, and shake hands - the tantrum will come AFTER that.''
The source said before drawing a deep breath. ''Her main weaknesses are lack of experience at senior level, and lack of focus, which happens once she starts to get angry and frustrated. At those times, things like guarding are thrown to the wayside, and a skilled fighter will have no issue punching her in the completely exposed nose. She makes up for this with intensity - once she starts punching she's like a Duracell bunny. After a loss, property damage is also likely to occur, especially if her calming influence (Dr. M) is not there to tell her to take a breath.''
After speaking with this handler, my opinions began to change on Leah Wilkins. As I dug into her social media, I realized that she has a sort of marketability to her. Different, unique, but the potential to be embraced by millions of fans in the MMA community exists. From getting into public spats with Gaia Galanos, striking up an unlikely friendship with a soft spoken newcomer in Tyler Stevens and her general child like posts about struggling with vending machines and Fizzy drinks is something we have never seen before.
See, as much as Fazan Khan loves to wear a nice suit and carry on about fighter safety every chance he gets, this is a CRAZY sport. Everyone who steps into the cage regardless of how well spoken they are is an absolute MAD LAD and the fact that Leah Wilkins seems to embody this spirit simply in her natural state of existing absolutely warms my heart.
Leah Wilkins is set to make her debut at GFN 9 against Kiiara in the opening fight of the preliminary card on May 22nd at 135 pounds. With these two ladies primarily being aggressive strikers, I expect to see violence and a LOT of violence. #GFN9
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