In the aftermath of Lerone Murphy’s greatest UFC victory over Edson Barbosa, he thought he was ready to retire his ring name, “The Miracle.”
The name’s origin came from Murphy being shot twice in the face outside a barbershop in 2013. As the story goes, Murphy spat the bullets out, and as the wounds in his face and chin healed, he vowed to turn his life around.
Eleven years later, “The Miracle” has become manifest as he clutches to a rankings spot ahead of the biggest fight of his life against Dan Ige at UFC 308.
While he toyed with rebranding himself as “The Iceman” — a moniker infamously attached to the great Chuck Liddell — eventually Murphy succumbed to the fact that his original handle just fit too well.
“It’s got its own meaning. People have told me to keep it, so I’m ‘The Miracle’ still,” Murphy said on Uncrowned’s “The Craic with Petesy Carroll.”
And look, Murphy gets it.
A guy surviving such a brutal ordeal then going on to become one of the baddest men on the planet at 145 pounds sounds like bonafide Hollywood fodder. Then the ring name gained even more substance when Murphy was a victim of a hit and run while cycling in 2022. Murphy still recalls lying helplessly on the ground, thinking his time was up.
Again, he bounced back.
Despite how apt the nickname clearly is, Murphy doesn’t have the same enthusiasm fans and media have when it comes to recounting his near-death tales.
“It’s not something fun; it’s not a cool story,” he explained.
“Maybe it is to other people, but it’s not something I want to be known for. Obviously, my son will one day ask me about it, but imagine him typing that into YouTube and him seeing all of this come up, do you know what I mean? It’s negative, who cares [to glorify it]? I don’t.”
True to the vow he made with himself in 2013, Murphy wants to be a beacon of positivity in his community and beyond. It irritates him when he sees other fighters idealizing criminality. He fears that the portrayal of his shooting could unintentionally lead some astray.
“You see a lot of guys on social media who want to glamorize it and claim fame, look like this person and that person. They’re going on like they want to see the kids of today go on and do better, but they’re glamorizing that kind of life and talking about it like it’s cool. I don’t think it’s cool,” said Murphy.
“I’m not going to talk about it like, ‘I’ve come through this and and now I’ve come to this,’ because [young people] will believe they can start doing whatever and then turn it around. You just want them to get straight to this — straight to the positive early instead of going through all that.
“I want people to know me as a good fighter and not the guy that got shot,” he added. “I feel I’ve done enough in this game already to recognized as a solid fighter.”
Good fighter is putting it very lightly.
The Manchester native is currently enjoying rarified air as he straddles a seven-fight unbeaten run with the promotion. The more he wins, the more he inspires, and he knows that a fire-fight with a spark plug like Ige could launch him into a new stratosphere.
“He’s going to bring out the best version of me — I have to be the best version of me,” replied Murphy when asked about the test that awaits him inside Etihad Arena.
“I’m going to have to use my full skill set against him. I know it’s going to be a good fight. I know he’s going to push me to the point that I’ll have to show my real ability.”
It also doesn’t hurt that he will have a prominent place on a card that concludes with a fight for his division’s title.
And while Diego Lopes is on hand to play backup should Ilia Topuria or Max Holloway fail to make it to the dance, the entire setup has title contention at the top of mind for “The Miracle.”
“I’ll be a top contender straightaway [with a win],” Murphy said. “I’ll be 15-0 with eight fights in the UFC and I’ll be looking at top five from there. Diego Lopes is the backup fighter this weekend and he’s just come off a win over Dan Ige, so if he jumped the ranks, why can’t I? I have more fights than him. I don’t pick and choose — give me anyone in that top five. I know there are better stylistic matchups, but I honestly believe I can beat anyone in that top five.”
