"Priceless" - UFC bantamweight shares heartwarming message from young fan's mother highlighting MMA's positive influence on kids

The UFC and its fighters don’t always get the best press at times, with stars like Conor McGregor and Jorge Masvidal often courting controversy. However, today has seen a heartwarming story released to social media involving one of the promotion’s more unheralded fighters.

Nathaniel Wood has fought in the UFC since the summer of 2018, putting together an octagon record of 7-2 in the process.

‘The Prospect’ trains in London under former bantamweight contender Brad Pickett. Today he made a post on Twitter detailing an interaction he’d recently had with a young fan and his mother, labeling it “priceless.”

Unsurprisingly, Wood’s post has proven to be popular with fans on the social media platform, with one user, in particular, labeling the fighter a “role model for the kids.”

‘The Prospect’ last fought in the octagon in July when he outpointed Andre Fili in a featherweight bout in his hometown of London. Prior to this, Wood was forced out of a planned fight with Lerone Murphy in March after suffering a gnarly injury to his right leg in training.

As of the time of writing, ‘The Prospect’ does not have his next fight in the octagon booked. However, it was recently announced that he will face former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling in a grappling match at Polaris 25 later this month.

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Nathaniel Wood UFC: did Dana White pay ‘The Prospect’ when his fight was canceled?

UFC CEO Dana White is a polarising figure in the world of MMA, but rising featherweight star Nathaniel Wood seems to count himself as a fan of the promotion’s head honcho.

In a recent interview, ‘The Prospect’ claimed that his relationship with White was “as good as gold.” He then detailed an incident that saw the promoter offer to pay him his fight purse – including his win bonus – after his opponent withdrew on a day’s notice.

The fight mentioned by Wood would appear to be his bout with Liudvik Sholinian, which was scheduled to take place in London in March 2022.

Unfortunately, both Sholinian and his late replacement, Vince Morales, were forced out of the event, leaving Wood without a bout when it came to showtime.

‘The Prospect’ ended up waiting a further four months to step back into the octagon.