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Ex-UFC fighter Chris Spang pursues his passion as a boxer

Ex-UFC fighter Chris Spang pursues his passion as a boxer

LAS VEGAS -- There aren’t a lot of professional boxers from Sweden, and a large reason why is likely that the sport was illegal in the country from 1970 through 2007.

Chris Spang, a Swede, managed to find a way to fight despite the ban, though he could never fully indulge his passion for the sport until now. He even did a long stint as a gymnast because there were so few boxers around.

Spang, who was 19 and in the midst of his amateur mixed martial arts career when the law prohibiting boxing in Sweden was repealed in 2007, always felt he’d been miscast in MMA.

He did it because it was a way toward making a living, but he was never fully able to take advantage of his skills.

Spang didn't need to fight. He's a model of some note, has a degree in economics and spent some time managing a nightclub. He's got plenty of substance to go with those athletic genes.

He went 5-3 in MMA and made it to the UFC, where he lost his only fight in 2013. He worked hard on his wrestling and had a solid takedown defense, but he was really a boxer attempting to make a go of it in MMA.

Spang jumped, though, when he first heard of Big Knockout Boxing, or BKB, which was created in 2013 by DirecTV.

Chris Spang faces Samuel Horowitz at BKB 3 Saturday in Las Vegas. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)
Chris Spang faces Samuel Horowitz at BKB 3 Saturday in Las Vegas. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Getty Images)

Rounds are two minutes instead of three, as is normal in boxing. There are no ropes and the fighters compete in a circular pit that is about half the size of a standard boxing ring. Fights are just seven rounds, with the rules all geared toward making the action in the pit faster and more vicious than in standard boxing.

The fighting surface is smaller. There are no ropes to lean back on when one needs a break. It’s designed to create continuous, bell-to-bell action, where the fighters don’t have to go find each other.

“I was born to do this,” Spang said of BKB.

And so on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, he’ll face Samuel Horowitz in a light heavyweight bout at BKB 3.

Spang is a unique character, full of self confidence. He's a model of some note, having done campaigns for major brands such as Dolce Gabana and Adidas.

He said he loves to fight for the same reason he enjoys modeling.

"I love to be the center of attention," he said. "When you're a model, everyone is looking at you. And when you fight, it's just you and your opponent in there and you're the center of attention. I love that. This is what I've always wanted to do."

He trained for his BKB debut at the Mayweather Boxing Club and said he received terrific sparring. BKB, he said, fits his skills better than any combat sport he's been in and is eager to put on a show.

"I believe if I'd started from boxing in the beginning, I'd absolutely be a contender for a title now," he said. "My story was written this way, and I'm grateful for the experiences I have gotten. It's prepared me for this and I feel like my story is in some ways just beginning now."