A lot of fighters never get the opportunity to fight at home. It is a rare thing to see in the sport. In Canada, if it wasn’t for hockey, the UFC would be king. For Roland Delorme, he gets to come home.
The native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Delorme (8-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) will get that chance for the very first time as he will square off against Francisco Rivera (8-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) tomorrow night at UFC 149.
He was originally supposed to face top-ranked bantamweight Bibiano Fernandes, but circumstances unknown to the public have led Delorme to now face off with Rivera. He was expecting Fernandes to be his golden ticket but feels he will rise in the rankings either way.
“I was under the impression I was fighting Bibiano Fernandes,” Delorme told Bleacher Report. “I signed a contract saying I was fighting Bibiano Fernandes. Then for two weeks after that, that was the case. Then all of a sudden, it wasn’t. So that sucked.
“Bibiano Fernandes was going to punch my ticket to the big time. He’s a big-name fighter, big wins in some big organizations where he was champion.
“I felt that fight was a win-win for me. It was like, I can go out there and beat him and shoot up the rankings. Go from zero to hero, or I can go out and lose to him, still look pretty good and have the same thing happen.
“Where I still get good exposure, more fans still see me. I thought it was a win-win. It was unfortunate it didn’t happen. What can you do? It’s fighting.”
Delorme defeated Nick Denis via submission with one second left in the first round at UFC on Fox 3 in May. He wanted to fight on this card, but at first it was filled up. As luck would have it, Delorme got that call a short time later.
“Right after my fight when I was in the locker room, they (UFC) asked me when I would want to fight again, and I told them I want to fight in Calgary,” Delorme stated.
“Initially I was told the card was full. I was like, ‘well, if a spot opens, let me know.’ Then about two weeks later, they (UFC) called me back and said ‘yeah, OK, you want to fight in Calgary?’ I said ‘yes.'”
Delorme has never fought in his home country will now get the chance to do so in the biggest organization in the world.
“First off, it’s the first fight ever in Calgary,” Delorme stated. “I think it would a big event for Calgary. I think it would be a big event in Calgary just to begin with having their first UFC there.
“Even though they’ve had I don’t know how many changes to the card, it’s still a big event for Calgary. A lot of people are going to go because it’s the UFC. Doesn’t matter whose in it, it’s UFC.
“I never had the opportunity to fight in Canada before. I never had the opportunity to fight in my country in front of my home fans, and I’m really looking forward to it. It’s been a dream of mine to fight in Canada for the UFC.”
UFC 149 takes place tomorrow night from the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The Delorme vs Rivera fight will take place on the preliminary portion of the card, which airs on FX starting at 8 p.m. EST, 5 p.m. PST.
You can listen to the entire interview with Roland Delorme here.
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