As someone who has cheated death not once but twice, it is no wonder Lerone Murphy is determined to make the most of his days.

"As long as you’re not dead, you’ve always got a chance to bounce back, right?" says the 33-year-old, reflecting on the trials and tribulations of a life few could have survived.

It is just a few days before Christmas and the UFC contender (15-0-1) has invited the Manchester Evening News to one of his sparring sessions in Cheetham Hill as he prepares for what he hopes will be a life-changing 2025, culminating with the featherweight title strapped around his waist.

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If that dream comes to fruition, it would require him to defeat some of the most prominent names on the UFC roster, such as Alexander Volkanovski and, of course, current featherweight champion Ilia Topuria.

But Murphy is no stranger to defying the odds and has fought much tougher battles than those in the MMA octagon.

In fact, in 2013, he was left for dead after being shot in the face outside of a barber's shop in Fallowfield.

Murphy, though, admits that this first dance with death needed to happen to discourage him from the life he was living after growing up in the Old Trafford and Levenshulme areas.

"Before I got shot, I lived a totally different life from what I do now, he tells the Manchester Evening News. "Like I said, getting up to mischief and no good. That’s where that life leads, isn’t it?

"When I tell the story, it’s not like I want sympathy from anybody, but that was the life I was living. It needed to happen at that time for me to change paths and go on to the path I’m on now.

"At the time, you think it’s the worst thing that could have happened. You’re thinking, ‘Why me?’ Only later do you realise why it happened and why it needed to happen. Otherwise, I would have probably ended up dead or in jail."

But to this day, more than 10 years later, many questions from that afternoon remain unanswered: "It could have been anything, from something I’ve done previously. I don’t know," he says. "But I came out of the barber's and a car was there. I was with a few friends and then the car started shooting and caught me in the face."

Less than a year later after the incident, he decided to leave the life he was living behind and instead started training in Mixed Martial Arts.

Murphy had no previous experience in combat sports and had spent most of his teenage years dreaming of playing for his beloved Manchester United.

But whether he realised it at the time or not, fighting had always been in his blood as his uncle - the late Oliver Harrison - had trained iconic British boxers, Amir Khan and Martin Murray.

"Life was totally different for me growing up. I never thought I would be a fighter or an athlete," he recalls. "I was just getting up to what kids get up to in Manchester.

"As a kid, I was a wild kid. I used to love playing football. But life is crazy because you never know where you will end up. Looking back 10 years ago, I never thought I would be here.

"My grandad was actually a Manchester City fan but all of my cousins were United fans, so I grew up as Red. I was a decent footballer, I always wanted to be a footballer as a kid, looked up to the footballers and thought I would be one until I got injured at 15 and never played again.

"My dad used to have a lot of the old UFC tapes so I used to watch those as a kid. But I just started training, I used to like watching and started training randomly at 22 years old."

After training for six months, Murphy took to the octagon for the first time as an amateur at the end of 2014. And by the end of 2015, he was on a four-fight win streak and was making waves in the British MMA scene.

Enjoying his early success in the sport and fuelled by an unexpected second chance at life, the Mancunian continued to climb up the British and European ranks and in September 2019, five years after he first started training, received a call-up to UFC.

"It was like a movie; the bright lights in the octagon and the crowd were going crazy," says Murphy of his draw with Zubaira Tukhugov at UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi. "I’d never fought in front of that many people before. And every time someone landed a shot, the crowd roared. It was like being in the Coliseum!

"It was wild because you watch it on TV for so many years, and all of a sudden you’re there! We took it [the fight] on short notice against a Russian - who I wasn't meant to stand a chance against - and put up a good fight.

"I came out and I was like the away fighter. He was one of Khabib’s [Nurmagomedov] boys, so he had all the Dagestan fans in the crowd. We were getting booed on the way out!

"But it gave me more, I loved it! I want to do it again. It’s like it lit a fire in me. Even getting in the cage was surreal. It was something I had dreamed of for so long and I was trying to take everything in."

But for Murphy, the road to UFC glory was never going to be straightforward. And after three consecutive wins in the promotion, he was reminded how precious life is in early 2022.

The 33-year-old recalls how he was just weeks out from returning to full fitness after pulling out of a fight with Nate Landwehr and on the last 500 meters of a cycle near his home when he was hit by a car and left fighting for his life as he bled out on the sidewalk.

"I was bleeding out and it took 45 minutes for the ambulance to come. The ambulance ended up coming, I passed out a few times because I lost a lot of blood," reflects Murphy. "I thought, ‘Here we go again, is this it?’ By the time I get to the hospital, you feel safe and then you start thinking about your career. I was thinking, ‘Head injury?! My life’s in the balance here.'

"The doctor said there is a strong chance you’re not going to fight again with that type of head injury. I had a concussion for about six months, it was called post-concussion syndrome. I felt depressed, couldn’t train, couldn’t do anything."

But even as he lay on the hospital bed with his life in the balance, he was able to channel the fighting spirit that had seen him overcome death once before.

"I’d been through it before, so I knew there is always light at the end of the tunnel," he says defiantly. "It’s not an accident that I’m here. I’ve been through two near-death incidents and I’m still here, doing what I’m doing. I’m here for a reason.

"It’s like living on extra time. Everything is a bonus. What else can be worse than what I’ve been through already? I’m not scared of anything. I’ve trying to push myself as far as I can go."

True to his word, he has done precisely that since returning to the octagon in March 2023. Since then, he has beaten Gabriel Santos, Josh Culibao, and Edson Barboza, and most recently added Dan Ige to his resume at UFC 308 as he secured a unanimous decision victory over the American.

"It was a massive card, probably the biggest card of the year," says Murphy of his last bout, which featured on the Main Card of Topuria's featherweight title defence against Max Holloway in October. "I believe I am much better than I showed and will show that. It’s just stepping stones, learning."

Now, ranked 11th in the featherweight division, Murphy has his eyes set on career-defining 2025, starting with a bout at UFC London in March.

"I’m looking to bring the title home in 2025, that’s my goal. That would be the perfect year to have three fights - March, mid-summer and at the end of the year - and a title fight.

"I believe I have the skill set to give anybody problems in that division, and I’m getting better daily."

As the interview draws to an end, Murphy understandably finds it difficult to describe his life to date.

"A wild lifestyle. I think when I finish fighting I’m going to write a book. Definitely. The story’s not finished yet, but I’ve lived a crazy life," he says with a smile. "Similar to Mike Tyson but without the hundreds of millions."

Sure, if the next chapters in Murphy's life are anything like his last few, it will continue to be quite the story.