'My mother's stroke inspired me to learn martial arts'

When Tommy Shaw was 14, he and his siblings were taken into care after their mother had a stroke.

"Going into care was tough and it sent me into a bad phase in life and I lost a bit of direction," he said.

Years later, Shaw, from Norton in Staffordshire, decided to raise money for the Stroke Association to help other families going through what his own went through.

He trained in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and stepped into the cage as part of a charity event in Stoke-on-Trent.

"My mate Josh suggested signing up for Ultra MMA, as he'd seen people at his local gym doing MMA training and thought I would love it," Shaw said.

"I desperately wanted to turn things around, and having boxed in the past, I knew the positive impact this type of sport can have on both your physical and mental health, so I went for it."

For the 20-year-old, MMA has been a way to release anger and stress in a positive way.

"I'm a bit cheeky, I say I can fight now without getting into trouble," he said.

"I love every minute of it."

MMA differs from boxing insofar as it takes place in a cage or octagon, and participants are also allowed to use their legs and do holds on opponents.

It mixes elements from different martial arts such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, wrestling, and boxing.

"The training was pretty tough, but I loved every minute of it," the 20-year-old said.

"Every week you're learning something new, and you pick up skills you'll need for the rest of your life."

A large driving force for stepping into the cage was raising money for the Stroke Association, after the impact of his mother's stroke.

"She didn't get anywhere near enough help. With her being a single parent, we all had to get separated," Shaw said.

"My younger brother and sister went into foster care and I ended up in residential care because I was being naughty, so I was classed as high risk."

Seven years later, Shaw said his mother had still not fully recovered.

"There's still an issue with her one leg and her arm," he said.

"She really lost her confidence and it was difficult to build herself back up.

"There just isn't enough readily available care, and I do not want other families to have to go through this, so I wanted to do something small to help and raise some funds for them."

Ultra Events has so far raised £43m for charity, with the next Ultra MMA event taking place in Stoke-on-Trent on Saturday 18 July.

Participants are given eight weeks of free professional training before a showcase event in front of spectators.

Training began this week at Stoke Combat Academy in Hanley.

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