What’s the Beef Between Paul Craig and Chris Duncan? Scottish UFC Civil War
Why do Chris Duncan and Paul Craig have beef? There’s always talk of a Scottish civil war in the UFC. Paul Craig, the self-styled Bearjew, has stomped through the promotion since 2016 with enough submission wins to give most light heavyweights nightmares.
Paul Craig
A triangle choke artist, Craig’s highlight reel has featured everything from dramatic comeback armbars to the odd left hook that turned the lights out. His journey’s had swings – Performance of the Night bonuses alongside tough losses, all wrapped in St. Andrew’s blue face paint and his trademark stoic scowl. Recently, his run’s been choppy: a fast TKO over Andre Muniz last year, but stumbles against Brendan Allen, Caio Borralho, and the rising Bo Nickal. Let’s call it: Craig still has the aura, but the division’s catching up to him.
Chris Duncan
Enter Chris Duncan, Scotland’s “The Problem”. Lightweight, hits like a lorry, is a year younger but a division down and, honestly, just a wee bit less theatrical. Since his Dana White’s Contender Series debut, Duncan’s UFC story has been about grit and, occasionally, chaos.
In the UFC, Duncan’s record shows steady progress: decisioning Ashmouz, losing a tough one to Manuel Torres, and squeaking past opponents like Jordan Vucenic and Bolaji Oki. Through it all, he’s landed a respectable average of 4.2 significant strikes per minute, soaking up less in return. His style leans closer to honest grind than wild flash.
But the “beef”? Look, in a recent pre-fight sit-down, when Chris Duncan was lobbed the obligatory question, he volleyed back with Scottish deadpan: “We speak now and again, you know, I don’t think we’ve got beef. Maybe he’s got beef with me, but I don’t know… If anything, you would think, you know, he’s led the way so far. Maybe me copying him, it’s maybe a good thing. Maybe I look up to him. He’s got the aura, you know, and he’s leading the way right now, so why not have people copy?” Not exactly Conor-Khabib levels
Sounds more like the awkward energy of two lads pretending not to notice each other at Tesco.
This weekend, Duncan has his next shot: he’s booked in against Mateusz Rebecki at UFC Vegas 108. The bookies don’t favor him, but Duncan’s stubbornness and willingness to brawl keep things interesting – the kind of matchup where “beef” seems less likely than another round of post-fight handshakes and self-effacing soundbites. Unless, of course, someone ends up nicking someone’s Irn-Bru backstage.
