UFC star Jack Marshman has heaped praise on his Tillery Combat teammate Josh Reed after the latter’s world title fight against Nathaniel Wood, writes Jason Batty.

Marshman and coach Richard Shore had nothing but praise for Blaenavon fighter Reed, despite his narrow defeat to champion Wood at Cage Warriors 86 in London.

Abertillery’s Marshman, who recently signed a new four-year deal with UFC, said Reed’s battle with Wood was a “brilliant fight” and one that will not be forgotten any time soon.

"He went very close to having him out of there twice, it's one of those fights that everybody will be watching forever,” said Marshman.

He went on to heap praise on team mate Reed who went painfully close snatching the Cage Warriors bantamweight title, only to be startled by a left hook half way through the first round leading to a referee jumping in and halting the contest.

There has been questions over the referee’s stoppage. Prior to this Reed had been the dominant fighter connecting and wobbling the champion with some ferocious combinations.

"Nathaniel Wood is one of the best fighters in the world (at bantamweight) and Josh has almost knocked him out twice in the first round," said Marshman.

In a sport where an unbeaten record is so difficult to preserve, this was Reed’s first loss in a professional MMA contest.

His teammate feels that there is certainly reason to feel pride in defeat and believes that Reed is well equipped to recover from this.

"He's going to be upset,” said Marshman. “It's his first ever loss. But he'll be back, he's very mentally strong."

Tillery Combat head coach Shore, who looked on from Reed's corner on Saturday night echoed Marshman's sentiments on what was a thrilling match.

"The fight was incredible and Josh was one punch away from being world champion,” he said.

"The margin between victory and defeat is so small."

Shore went on to speak of his pride of his student, saying that he “couldn't ask for anymore” and calling him a “consummate professional.”

After the fight Reed spoke of his desire for a rematch. But champion Wood, who has been on the UFC radar for some time, could be set to vacate the Cage Warriors belt to join the world’s biggest promotion.