A hard day's knight, but I love medieval fighting

DESPITE NEARLY BEING BLINDED, ARMOURED CAGE FIGHTER ONE OF WORLD'S BEST

- By ED CHATTERTON

A DERBYSHIRE man has spent 12 years working his way up to become one of the best medieval cage fighters in the world - despite nearly going blind after being stabbed in the eye with a sword.

Daniel Winter, 35, is the driving force behind armoured MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) in the UK a UFC meets Game of Thrones-style sport, which has seen its popularity surge globally since being invented in 2013.

The bizarre events see men and women dressing up as knights from the Middle Ages to do battle in a cage punching, wrestling and hitting each other with swords, battleaxes and sticks.

Participation in armoured MMA has rocketed thanks in part to celebrity interest from the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tom Hardy and in the USA exhibitions can draw crowds of 25,000 people.

Daniel is now the captain of Team GB, having fought in more than 100 tournaments and winning 40 gold medals competing in the USA, France, Italy, Poland, Ukraine and Russia.

He not only competes but also runs his own company training and coaching people from across the UK including girlfriend Jenny Häbry, who is the best female fighter on the planet.

Daniel first got into the “craziest sport ever” after being introduced by a friend and as a self-confessed “nerd” and history buff with a background in combat sports he never looked back.

Daniel, from Ilkeston, said: “It’s real combat, with real weapons and all the risks are very real.