Sports reporter v professional fighter: Inside an MMA class at Team Renegade

As I arrived at Team Renegade's base in Rednal, south Birmingham, the nerves kicked in.

This is a world-renowned gym, home of Birmingham's own UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards and a host of professional fighters from the biggest organisations in MMA.

The sport has surged in popularity through household names such as the UFC's Irish star Conor McGregor, while the UK has seen a dramatic increase in elite MMA talent in recent years – with Paddy Pimblett, Molly McCann, Paul Craig, Darren Till and Bellator's Michael 'Venom' Page flying the flag of late.

Watching from afar as a fan of the sport, it was now time to step into the lion's den myself and Team Renegade became my home for two hours as I had my first taste of MMA training.

I already train Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and have done for the last 17 months, meaning I was at least comfortable that I would not embarrass myself in that department – leaving wrestling, Muay Thai and boxing (among others) as areas I have absolutely no experience in.

Wolverhampton-born Bellator lightweight Tim Wilde took the warm-up and would be my mentor for the day, as I was thrown into the deep end.

The warm-up was fairly basic and straightforward with stretches and compound movements, before the MMA specific, jiu-jitsu based, drills began.

Former UFC fighter Tom Breese taught the class, once more proving the level on offer at Team Renegade, and the afternoon started with a wrestling drill in pairs, where each person was fighting to get two underhooks – which is a position where you clinch underneath the opposition's arm with your own arm.

Working at around 50 per cent, with the purpose of warming up even further, I took on Wilde. Of course, at no point did I ever achieve a clinch in the 'winning' position, while Wilde easily moved me around and taught me a few lessons.

This was only the beginning. Next, it was time to learn a jiu-jitsu 'sweep' – which is a movement you can make to help get yourself out of a difficult position and into a more dominant position on your opponent.

Many of the concepts and movements here were familiar to me and I certainly felt a lot more comfortable in this space, as I absorbed the small details from an experienced professional fighter.

So far, so good. A few more variations of the same move were taught next and everything seemed to be sinking in, despite experiencing a few notable differences.

In jiu-jitsu, sometimes you want to make space between yourself and an opponent to either recover from a bad position or sweep, but in MMA you often want to be tight to your opponent as you work yourself into a position to rain down punches.

As my jiu-jitsu instincts kicked in, Wilde swiftly reminded me of the other dangers in MMA, as he pretended to punch and elbow me in the face. The differences in the training and the discipline's dawned on me, just in time for the most intense part of the class.

Sparring, or as they call in jiu-jitsu 'rolling', was next. I asked Wilde and his peers not to go easy on me – and they obliged.

My limited experience meant nothing in this world. Wilde happily put me in my place and showed me the dedication and athletic ability needed to be an MMA fighter.

Each time I got into a dominant position, or started there at the beginning of the round, Wilde quickly powered through my advances and submitted me – or reverted back to his simulated punches with a smile on his face.

Next, I rolled with Will Jones, a Bilston fighter who has recently turned professional. A white belt with 16-months of experience against a brown belt with more than a decade on his side – it did not end well. Time and again, without fail, Jones was too powerful and too skilled to be in any danger and easily choked me out. He may have been complimentary about my fundamentals, but in reality he was never in trouble.

A total of six five-minute rounds came and went. Exhausted, but better for the experience, and learning first hand just how hard this sport is.

Once the class had finished, Wilde took me into the cage to try my hand at the most explosive side of the sport – striking.

Boxing came first. Jab, straight, uppercut, left hook – it was going fairly well. Wilde was even complimentary about my punching power, even if the coordination was lacking.

Next, Muay Thai moves, with body and leg kick attacks on the agenda. Flexibility issues meant head kicks were not an option – obviously.

In all honesty, I was a fish out of water. You can watch as many fights as you like, but putting the combinations together in a cage yourself is a different beast.

My brief experience in MMA was over and if my weary frame and sweat-soaked clothes were not enough of an indicator – my respect for MMA fighters has only increased. As a fan of the sport, of course I knew how difficult it is, but experiencing it yourself is another thing entirely.

Heading out of the doors at Team Renegade, where some of the world's best hone their skills, you realise where the UK MMA scene is heading.

Not only that, but the Black Country, too. Wilde and Jones put me through my paces, but also in the class were UFC lightweight Jai Herbert and Cage Warriors welterweight Omiel Brown, both also from Wolverhampton.

These four fighters, and many more, are helping put the Black Country and the UK on the map in the MMA scene, as the sport goes from strength to strength.