Welsh star Jack Shore is wearing a grin a wide as his homeland’s famed Severn Bridge after his dream UFC debut in Copenhagen, and for good reason.

The popular former Cage Warriors bantamweight champion made his octagon debut at UFC on ESPN+ 18 in Denmark and kicked off the show with a nerveless display that culminated in a third-round submission finish of Nohelin Hernandez in the opening fight of the night.

The showing gave him not only a win on his first appearance in the UFC, it also earned him a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonus. Chatting to MMA Junkie after returning home from Denmark, “Tank” was understandably satisfied with his night’s work.

“It was obviously a dream to get to the UFC. I wanted to make an impression in my first fight and I think I did just that,” he said. “So, to cap it off with a finish, then find out two hours later that I’d got the bonus, was the perfect ending to what was a great week.”

Prior to signing for the UFC, Shore (11-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) was one of the biggest stars in British-based promotion Cage Warriors, where he had graduated through the system from an amateur to become the organization’s bantamweight champion. Often fighting in at the top of the bill in front of raucous crowds in London and Cardiff, Shore admitted that making his UFC debut in the very first fight on the card was a refreshing change from what he’s become used to over the last couple of years.

“I said it in the build-up, it felt a little bit like when I was back fighting as an amateur,” he explained. “There were bigger guys on the card and it was a matter of turning up early, getting warm, getting in there, getting it done, and then enjoying the rest of the card. It felt similar last Saturday. All I had to focus on was the job at hand. There was no pressure of the main event, no pressure of Cage Warriors, fighting for the belt and having everyone there to watch me. It was a nice change.”

As one of the hottest prospects to emerge from the U.K., Shore has been fighting at the sharp end of fight cards for years as he has taken the journey from amateur standout to bona fide champion on the European scene. That journey helped prepare him for the big-arena experience in Denmark last weekend. But he did notice a difference in the mentality of the crowd in Copenhagen compared to some of the smaller shows he’s competed on in the past.

“It’s definitely a step up, but I’ve been training and competing actively for nearly 20 years, so the pressure and the nerves of the fight itself don’t really get to me. Or the people watching,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s 10 people or 10,000 people, I’ll still perform the same way.

“One thing I did note was the fans there are there because they’re MMA fans whereas sometimes on the more regional local shows, they’re just there to watch their friends. So I noticed in the transitions and in the striking battles how switched on they were to the action. You’d land a shot and the crowd would go wild, or you’d land a takedown and the crowd would go nuts. It was a nice atmosphere to be involved in, and the fact that there was probably double the amount of people there compared to what I’m used to didn’t faze me. It just felt natural and it felt normal.”

That experience with Cage Warriors has proved invaluable for Shore, who said the experience of fighting in well-matched fights on well-produced shows in Europe helped prepare him to make the jump from the European scene to the world stage with the UFC.

“Yeah, I think it’s been massive for my development,” he agreed. “I’ve been fighting the top European guys available for three-plus years before I ever stepped into the UFC. So it’s prepared me physically and mentally.

“Although the UFC is a step up promotion-wise, I’m used to being under the bright lights, I’m used to the cameras being in my face, I’m used to the exposure. So it definitely prepared me in more ways than one. Cage Warriors is tried and tested, and very rarely do you see a guy go in there from Cage Warriors and come straight back out. Everyone who goes tends to be ready and can hang with the best guys on the roster.”

The win was doubly satisfying for Shore, as he got to enjoy the spoils of victory alongside fellow countryman John Phillips, who claimed a 17-second knockout of Alen Amedovski later that night. The pair celebrated their first UFC wins – and $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonuses – and Shore said being able to share the elation of victory with his fellow countryman was a special moment for him.

“Yeah, it was great,” he said “I grew up watching John and I remember being 14 and watching John warming up in Brecon and being petrified of him! He’s a big, scary guy! So, to grow up watching him and then fight on the same card as him – we both got wins and bonuses – it was a great night to be Welsh. I can genuinely say I was just as happy to see him get his win and his bonus as I was to receive mine, and I think he would say the same thing.”

Shore says he wants to take some time to let his body heal and help his father with the recent launch of their gym in Wales. But he said he’d be ready to jump back into the octagon early next year, possibly when the UFC returns to London.

Ultimately, though, Shore would love the opportunity to step into the octagon on home soil in Wales. As the latest member of the UFC’s Welsh contingent, joining fellow former Cage Warriors champions Jack Marshman and Brett Johns, plus former BAMMA champ Phillips, Shore says the time may soon be right for the UFC to pull the trigger on a show in Cardiff.

“That’s the ultimate dream. That’s what we’ve all dreamed of for years,” he said. “To bring it home to Cardiff, to play a part in that, and to feature on the card, would mean the world.

“I know they’re building a new arena in Wales in the next couple of years. I think it’s going to be a 20,000-seater or something like that. So I think with the timing as well, and with the momentum we’ve got going, it won’t be long before that dream becomes a reality.”