Talented and eccentric bantamweight Paul McVeigh (Pictures) has long been seen as one of the best fighters in the United Kingdom. Now he is on the verge of showcasing his unique "Freestyle Dinky Ninjitsu" techniques on the world stage.

"When I started out fighting, I set a number of goals for myself," McVeigh said. "I wanted to kick someone in the brain and not get arrested -- check. Win a shiny belt to impress everyone -- check. And have a fight in Japan."

Japan is next. After years of paying his dues on smaller shows, McVeigh has climbed to the top of the sparsely populated European bantamweight division and will travel east to test himself in the upcoming Cage Force bantamweight tournament.

A longtime fan of the Japanese culture, the Irishman has held onto this dream of fighting in the land of the rising sun throughout his 12-4 career.

"I probably know more about Japanese history than I do about Irish history," he said. "I also started trying to learn the language a while back but realized I had no talent for anything that wasn't violence. I do know how to say, ‘Where are the toilets?' and ‘I would like a Japanese girlfriend, please.' So I should be OK."

With his comedic outlook on life, McVeigh has left himself open to criticism. His detractors have suggested he is more suited to life on stage than in the cage, even though he has also earned a reputation for his high-spirited approach to the fight game and for his ruthlessly efficient performances during his tenure as Cage Warriors 135-pound champion. Now, with a trip to Japan approaching, McVeigh has turned over a new leaf, opting to train with the dedication of a true professional athlete.

"I want to win the whole tournament," he said. "A few years ago, I'd have been happy by just competing, but now I'm training full time. I owe it to my friends that have real lives and jobs to take things more seriously."

McVeigh showed signs of his new motivation when he defended his championship against Anderson Pereira (Pictures) in December. The Brazilian started well, slamming McVeigh to the mat. Early in the second round, though, Pereira found himself tapping out, caught in a tight triangle choke by the crafty Irishman.

"Anderson was a better wrestler and a world-class jiu-jitsu black belt," McVeigh recalled. "I was fitter and wanted to win more. I had a game plan put together that allowed me to avoid his guillotines and brabo [choke] and get back to my feet. It's the first time I've trained like a professional and worked out a strategy."

After laughing about the changes he has recently made to his training, McVeigh continued: "Now I see what all those other guys are [talking] about. It really does help when you know what you are doing! It was a fun fight. I think I showed improvement, and that's what I hope to achieve every fight."

Often, fighters from abroad have little idea what they are getting into in Japan. Supremely talented opposition can fly under the radar in the English-speaking MMA world. McVeigh, however, is sure he will encounter no such problems after studiously following the careers of each of the confirmed participants in the Cage Force tournament.

"I know all of them!" he said. "I've been watching GCM, Shooto and Pancrase for ages and always paid attention to the guys in the lighter weight classes. Everyone they have announced so far has a good shot at taking the tourney.

"I think the level of striking here in the U.K. is better, but the Japanese in general have better wrestling and jiu-jitsu. I think my biggest strengths will be my conditioning and the fact that I'm more used to being in cages and using elbows than a lot of the other guys."

Coming to the end of what has to be one of the stranger interviews on record, the obvious questions arose: What makes a fighter like McVeigh compete? What does he want out of this business?

As you might expect, the answer was about as unorthodox as McVeigh's style of fighting:

"Poontang would be awesome," he fired back. "I'd accept payment in ladies. It would cut out the middleman, and I could stop having to pay for hookers."