UFC on Fox 13 features Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve’s return to mixed martial arts when he takes on Alistair Overeem. Struve has been out of action since March 2013 after he was diagnosed with a leaking aortic valve and enlarged heart.
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UFC on Fox 13 features Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve’s return to mixed martial arts when he takes on Alistair Overeem. Struve has been out of action since March 2013 after he was diagnosed with a leaking aortic valve and enlarged heart.
In his return fight against Overeem, he faces one of the most dangerous strikers in the heavyweight division. And, despite chronic setbacks, Overeem still possesses the power and technical ability on his feet to put away anyone that stands in front of him.
This will be Struve’s 14th UFC fight, and the 26-year-old is accustomed to sharing the cage with world-class heavyweights. He made his Octagon debut against Junior dos Santos when he was just 21 years old.
Overeem comes into this fight with the all-too-familiar sting of a TKO loss—this time at the hands of Ben Rothwell in September.
Both men justifiably believe they have a lot to prove on the big stage, and here are the keys to victory for both fighters.
Alistair Overeem: Keep the Fight Standing and Don’t Get Caught
At this point in his career, Overeem needs to come out with guns blazing. It’s do or die for The Demolition Man. Being tentative has cost him dearly in past fights against Antonio Silva, Travis Browne and Rothwell.
Against Struve, he needs to have the type of start he did against Browne without slowing down and allowing his opponent to recover. He shouldn’t be entirely reckless, but he needs to fight with some serious finishing instincts. Struve is the tallest fighter in the UFC, so it shouldn’t be hard to land some mean kicks to the body to set up the knockout.
The road map is there, and Overeem has been on this trail before. He just needs to avoid making the wrong turns he’s taken in the past.
Stefan Struve: Avoid Power Shots and Look for Openings
We don’t know how a nearly two-year layoff is going to impact Struve. Here’s to hoping his issues are behind him and he’s prepared for battle.
Against Overeem, he needs to weather the early storm—or avoid it altogether. If past is prologue, Overeem will leave himself vulnerable at some point, and that is where Struve needs to capitalize.
He needs to try to tire Overeem out—or let Overeem do that to himself. He needs to avoid a clinch fight, as that is where Overeem can deal the most punishment. He needs to stay on his bicycle and try to counterstrike against Overeem. The longer the fight goes, the more it favors Struve and his ability to latch onto submissions. He needs to be patient and find his moment.
Angela Magana was known mostly for being a longtime women’s MMA fighter and competitor on The Ultimate Fighter 20. Until about a month ago. That’s when the seven-year veteran kind of discovered Twitter, in her own way.
“I was never big fan of social media,” Magana told MMA Fighting. “I was too busy living life to talk about my life. Who gives a f—?”
The way Magana explains it, she was drawn into Twitter by haters who didn’t much like her persona on TUF and took to their keyboards to express that opinion publicly.
Since then, Magana’s Twitter account has been the most buzzed about in the UFC. From brutal honesty to lewd language to nearly nude pictures, Magana’s feed has not been everyone’s bag. But people are paying attention. She has gained more than 10,000 new followers in less than a month. And she’ll go into her fight with Tecia Torres at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale on Friday in Las Vegas as one of the most well-known competitors from the show, even though she didn’t win a single tournament bout.
Magana (11-6) said attention-seeking was not the aim. She was simply trying to defend herself against trolls and things have taken on a life of their own organically.
“My motivation wasn’t to gain followers,” Magana said. “It was just these f—ing scumbag losers on Twitter who want to abuse me. I’m not gonna sit back and let them abuse me.
“I might as well use it as my tool. I’m like addicted to this s— now.”
Magana, 31, has even spawned her own catchphrases, not unlike the pro-wrestling characters she grew up watching. She has taken to calling her Twitter followers “peasants” and herself “Your Majesty.” The latter has stuck so much that she’ll be using it as her official UFC nickname. Bruce Buffer will actually announce her as Angela “Your Majesty” Magana on Friday night at the Palms.
“It comes from me being so much better than those f—ing losers on there,” Magana said. “I’m not like that in my every day life. I don’t think I have peasants and stuff. But on Twitter? Hell yeah.”
While Magana, 31, did not intend to have her follower count grow exponentially, it has been a nice side effect of her uncensored, no-filter style of tweeting. She firmly believes fighters should be themselves, though most of them are watered down and try too hard to be polite and politically correct. The ones like Conor McGregor who let it all hang out verbally are the ones who have the bigger chance to stardom, she said. Magana uses her TUF castmate Emily Kagan as an example of the opposite.
“Nobody is gonna f—ing remember Emily,” Magana said. “I love Emily, but she has no charisma. She has no personality on TV. Even if she puts on a great fight, nobody remembers those people. The only people they’re going to remember is people who talk.”
Magana hasn’t just been vocal. She’s also taken to posting risqué pictures of herself on Twitter. In one, taken from behind, she’s fully nude. Magana has taken criticism for the photos, but she said she isn’t doing anything differently than her women’s MMA peers.
“They all did it,” Magana said. “I don’t know why it’s so crazy that I did it. Look at Felice [Herrig]. Look at Ronda [Rousey]. Look at Miesha [Tate]. Cris Cyborg said all you have to do is take sexy pictures in women’s MMA. I took her advice. It worked.”
There might be a method to Magana’s social media madness. But mostly, she just doesn’t to come off as phony. Maybe her tweets are a little over-the-top, but Magana herself is that way, too.
“I believe just being myself, not censoring myself and just being who I am definitely helps me,” said Magana, who owns wins over current MMA champions Barb Honchak and Jessica Aguilar. “Ronda been talking her entire career. I’d rather not be the Jon Jones type who’s going to be fake and say it’s all about Jesus.”
And the critics and haters and trolls? They’re all liable to feel the Twitter wrath of “Your Majesty.” They created this monster in the first place.
“All these people started abusing me on Twitter, people who didn’t know anything about me, people who watched me on an edited TV show and became so emotionally invested that they had to message me and call me all kinds of nasty, hateful things,” Magana said. “It comes from me being so much better than those f—ing losers on there.”
Angela Magana was known mostly for being a longtime women’s MMA fighter and competitor on The Ultimate Fighter 20. Until about a month ago. That’s when the seven-year veteran kind of discovered Twitter, in her own way.
“I was never big fan of social media,” Magana told MMA Fighting. “I was too busy living life to talk about my life. Who gives a f—?”
The way Magana explains it, she was drawn into Twitter by haters who didn’t much like her persona on TUF and took to their keyboards to express that opinion publicly.
Since then, Magana’s Twitter account has been the most buzzed about in the UFC. From brutal honesty to lewd language to nearly nude pictures, Magana’s feed has not been everyone’s bag. But people are paying attention. She has gained more than 10,000 new followers in less than a month. And she’ll go into her fight with Tecia Torres at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale on Friday in Las Vegas as one of the most well-known competitors from the show, even though she didn’t win a single tournament bout.
Magana (11-6) said attention-seeking was not the aim. She was simply trying to defend herself against trolls and things have taken on a life of their own organically.
“My motivation wasn’t to gain followers,” Magana said. “It was just these f—ing scumbag losers on Twitter who want to abuse me. I’m not gonna sit back and let them abuse me.
“I might as well use it as my tool. I’m like addicted to this s— now.”
Magana, 31, has even spawned her own catchphrases, not unlike the pro-wrestling characters she grew up watching. She has taken to calling her Twitter followers “peasants” and herself “Your Majesty.” The latter has stuck so much that she’ll be using it as her official UFC nickname. Bruce Buffer will actually announce her as Angela “Your Majesty” Magana on Friday night at the Palms.
“It comes from me being so much better than those f—ing losers on there,” Magana said. “I’m not like that in my every day life. I don’t think I have peasants and stuff. But on Twitter? Hell yeah.”
While Magana, 31, did not intend to have her follower count grow exponentially, it has been a nice side effect of her uncensored, no-filter style of tweeting. She firmly believes fighters should be themselves, though most of them are watered down and try too hard to be polite and politically correct. The ones like Conor McGregor who let it all hang out verbally are the ones who have the bigger chance to stardom, she said. Magana uses her TUF castmate Emily Kagan as an example of the opposite.
“Nobody is gonna f—ing remember Emily,” Magana said. “I love Emily, but she has no charisma. She has no personality on TV. Even if she puts on a great fight, nobody remembers those people. The only people they’re going to remember is people who talk.”
Magana hasn’t just been vocal. She’s also taken to posting risqué pictures of herself on Twitter. In one, taken from behind, she’s fully nude. Magana has taken criticism for the photos, but she said she isn’t doing anything differently than her women’s MMA peers.
“They all did it,” Magana said. “I don’t know why it’s so crazy that I did it. Look at Felice [Herrig]. Look at Ronda [Rousey]. Look at Miesha [Tate]. Cris Cyborg said all you have to do is take sexy pictures in women’s MMA. I took her advice. It worked.”
There might be a method to Magana’s social media madness. But mostly, she just doesn’t to come off as phony. Maybe her tweets are a little over-the-top, but Magana herself is that way, too.
“I believe just being myself, not censoring myself and just being who I am definitely helps me,” said Magana, who owns wins over current MMA champions Barb Honchak and Jessica Aguilar. “Ronda been talking her entire career. I’d rather not be the Jon Jones type who’s going to be fake and say it’s all about Jesus.”
And the critics and haters and trolls? They’re all liable to feel the Twitter wrath of “Your Majesty.” They created this monster in the first place.
“All these people started abusing me on Twitter, people who didn’t know anything about me, people who watched me on an edited TV show and became so emotionally invested that they had to message me and call me all kinds of nasty, hateful things,” Magana said. “It comes from me being so much better than those f—ing losers on there.”
K.J. Noons has the potential to become a dark horse within the UFC’s lightweight division. A group that can be considered the toughest division in the sport has a long list of potential contenders. Noons will not be found on any of the “major” top-10 l…
K.J. Noons has the potential to become a dark horse within the UFC’s lightweight division. A group that can be considered the toughest division in the sport has a long list of potential contenders. Noons will not be found on any of the “major” top-10 lists within the sport, but that does not mean he should be overlooked in any fashion.
At 32 years of age, it is hard to say that Noons is “done” or past his prime. The only man to ever hold the Elite XC lightweight title has gone 2-1 since moving over to the UFC, but that does not negate the past few performances he has given the fight community.
Yet his upcoming fight against Daron Cruickshank at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale has the potential to quickly change that diatribe.
Cruickshank versus Noons is one of those bouts that places two unranked men against each other but has the potential to steal the show. As Mike Wellman of Bleacher Report stated, “The two are both known for their knockout power, and this fight should bring the violence.”
That knockout power is one of the reasons Noons should not be forgotten within this weight class. Nine of his 13 wins have come via KO finish. The way he stopped Sam Stout at UFC Fight Night: Bisping vs. Kennedy was a sudden reminder of what he brings into the Octagon. Noons has an 11-2 professional boxing record to lean upon when promoting his ability to finish his opponents via knockout.
The current UFC rankings have Noons and Cruickshank outside of the top 15 in the division. If one of them can pull off a big win on Friday, it could open the victor up to major fights within the division.
Noons would be able to leverage a victory into potential matchups where his skills can be showcased. Fights against opponents such as Bobby Green, Michael Johnson and even a rematch with Jorge Masvidal would be captivating fights for Noons. These are the types of opponents who do not shy away from exchanges, where Noons excels, while having the name value to push K.J. up the rankings.
However, the question then lies as to whether or not Noons would have the ability to defeat men within the upper echelon of the division. The lightweight division is deep with men who are excellent at securing takedowns when that is the best method for victory. Noons has struggled against men who can take him down, and this is what awaits him if he was to break into the top half of the 155-pound rankings.
K.J. Noons has had his high points in mixed martial arts. The rivalry with Nick Diaz stands out as an example that he can carry his weight in the limelight. This Friday’s fight against Cruickshank has the potential to set off another run for Noons. At this point in his career, it will be interesting to see if he can put together another string of wins that will once again place his name on the marquee.
LAS VEGAS — Charles Oliveira is one of the best submission artists in the featherweight division, maybe in the UFC. Jeremy Stephens knows all about that and it doesn’t make him wary.
Stephens meets Oliveira in the co-main event of The Ultim…
LAS VEGAS — Charles Oliveira is one of the best submission artists in the featherweight division, maybe in the UFC. Jeremy Stephens knows all about that and it doesn’t make him wary.
Stephens meets Oliveira in the co-main event of The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale on Friday night here at Palms Casino Resort. And “Lil’ Heathen” is pretty sure he knows how things will go.
“This isn’t a submission grappling match,” Stephens told MMA Fighting on Wednesday at TUF 20 Finale media day. “This is an MMA match and I feel like I excel at MMA matches. I’m able to punch you in the face. I’m able to do a lot of things, keep you away from me. I feel like I’m a better athlete than him, I have better footwork, I’ve been in there with more versatile fighters. I’ve been in the game, man. I think that overall experience is just going to overwhelm him. I’ve got the power.”
Stephens (23-10) is coming off a tough, five-round unanimous decision loss to Cub Swanson in June, A win there would have put him in the 145-pound title discussion. Instead, he’ll have to work his way back up starting with Oliveira, who has won two straight, both of which earned him Performance of the Night bonuses.
“I know he’s looking to come back and make a statement,” Stephens said. “I’m looking to break it. I’m looking to break his mentality. I’m looking to eat him up in there.”
Stephens is undoubtedly one of the hardest hitters in the division and Oliveira (18-4, 1 NC) one of the very best Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialists. So if you’re into the classic striker versus grappler matchups of yore, this one will be a treat.
Stephens, though, just sees it as another rung in the ladder. If he beats “Do Bronx,” he plans on coming back to fight early in 2015 and starting on another run. Stephens won three straight before falling to Swanson. By the end of next year, “Lil’ Heathen” is hoping to be right back in that title mix — or better.
“It’s only going to be a matter of time,” the 28-year-old said. “I’m here to stay. I’m going to make a statement come Friday and guys are going to know that I’m for real and I mean business.”
Not that he’s looking past Oliveira. Stephens just figures he knows how it’ll end up.
“As soon as I start touching him up, landing that damage, I think it’s going to change his mindset,” Stephens said. “I think it’s only a matter of time until I get that finish.”
Penne wasn’t at her best during ‘extremely difficult’ TUF tournament
Jessica Penne made it all the way to the semifinals of The Ultimate Fighter 20 tournament. Yet she never once felt like she was completely at 100 percent in the house. The living situation just didn’t agree with her.
“I did the best that I could with my circumstances,” Penne said. “I definitely know that I can do a lot better than what I showed. I’m proud of myself for my accomplishment. It was really hard for me being in that house, not having any alone time and being away from the comforts of home, but it was difficult for everyone.”
Penne, who meets fellow semifinalist Randa Markos at the TUF 20 Finale on Friday night, said training since leaving the Las Vegas house has been almost a breeze.
“For me personally, it was extremely difficult,” she said of The Ultimate Fighter. “I tried to prepare myself to go into it and to know what was expected. But it was really different than anything I’ve ever done and I think it was definitely the hardest training camp I’ve ever had to go to. Afterwards, everything just seems a little bit easier, a little bit more relaxed.”
TUF drama not quite buried yet
Randa Markos and Carla Esparza had one of the biggest rivalries on The Ultimate Fighter this season even though they didn’t fight each other. The feud spilled over onto FOX Sports 1’s post show after one episode with each woman firing barbs at the other.
Markos made it seem like the hatchet has not been put away.
“The biggest negative was people’s attitudes,” Markos said. “You go in there thinking you’re going to train with the best in the world, they’re professional athletes and they act so unprofessional. That was really sad to see. It just shows what kind of person you are and the people they are, the attitudes they have. It just bothered me to see how far people have gotten with their attitudes. Like being a champ in Invicta and having such a horrible attitude.”
LAS VEGAS — Movies. Late-night talk shows. Clothing deals.
There’s much more to Ronda Rousey than just being the UFC women’s bantamweight title. Rousey is a mainstream, crossover star.
When Rose Namajunas looks into her own personal crystal ball, she sees all the same things for herself.
“I feel like I’ve been doing such a good job at such a young age and so early on in my career, I have a lot of time to really develop myself as a person and getting more experience with it,” Namajunas said Wednesday at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale media day. “If it doesn’t happen right now, it’s definitely going to happen eventually.”
Namajunas, 22, takes on Carla Esparza in the UFC’s inaugural women’s strawweight title fight at the TUF 20 Finale on Friday night here at Palms Casino Resort. A victory would put Namajunas alongside Rousey as the only female champions in the UFC. But the comparisons won’t end there. Both are blonde, attractive, charismatic and have an aggressive fighting style that makes people gravitate toward the television whenever they’re in the cage.
UFC president Dana White was actually the first person to make the link when he said over the summer that the next Rousey was on The Ultimate Fighter. White was talking about Namajunas and she knew it.
“It’s cool,” Namajunas said. “I know I have a lot to look forward to as long as I stay on this path and stay focused and stay humble, train hard, be OK with everything coming my way. Find peace in this chaos.”
Namajunas was seeded No. 7 to start the season, which seems silly now. She tore through the competition in the house, finishing Alex Chambers, Joanne Calderwood and Randa Markos, all by submission. Mind you, Namajunas came into the show known for her striking.
Esparza opened as a slight favorite in some sports books and she is an incredibly talented fighter. But from a marking perspective, the UFC would likely benefit from Namajunas being the face of this new division.
“She’s not going to be the next Ronda Rousey,” former UFC heavyweight Pat Barry, Namajunas’ boyfriend, told MMA Fighting. “She’s going to be the first Rose. That’s what she’s going to be. In my eyes, she has the potential to be bigger than Ronda if she wants to take it that way. If she wants to go that route, she can. She’s absolutely completely capable to the point where it’s almost unreal sometimes. Like is this really happening? She’s absolutely capable of being bigger than everyone. She has the look, she has the fighting ability, she has the personality, she has the interview skills. She has the professionalism about her. Everything about her is just the next generation of fighter.”
Namajunas is embracing all of this. While some fighters will tell you over and over that all they want to do is train and compete, Namajunas is already thinking a few steps ahead. Recently, she signed with high-profile Kevin Harvick Inc., the management company founded by the well-known NASCAR driver. Harvick only had two previous UFC fighters — Donald Cerrone and Miesha Tate — and said last week at UFC 181 that bringing Namajunas on board was an “obvious decision.”
“I don’t think I’m ready — I gotta be ready,” Namajunas said. “It’s coming. So I’m ready for it. Whatever happens happens, I’m just having fun with it. Any mistakes that I make is an investment in my future. I’m really young and I’ve got a long time, so I’m ready for it.”
Like Rousey, Namajunas is rounding into a bonafide star even before her first UFC fight. Now, Rousey is a feature film actress. She was in “The Expendables 3” this year and will add “Fast & Furious 7” and “Entourage” to her resume in 2015. Her list of endorsements is a mile long. Rousey has become a household name among casual fans and beyond.
Namajunas has a long way to go for that. But she has the support of someone who has been there — Rousey herself.
“As soon as I saw her, I saw this girl is special,” Rousey told MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz in September. … “She’s got an amazing skill set, she’s an exciting fighter. She takes risks, she’s gorgeous, and she’s charismatic. I really think she has all the tools that are needed in order to be the next really influential champion.”
First, of course, Namajunas has to become the champion. That means beating Esparza on Friday night. But Namajunas isn’t in a rush. She’s confident she’ll win, but she also knows time is on her side.
“I feel like I have some shoes to fill,” Namajunas said of Rousey. “She’s definitely up there and it’s going to take me some time just to develop it. It’s coming a lot faster than I was expecting.”
LAS VEGAS — Movies. Late-night talk shows. Clothing deals.
There’s much more to Ronda Rousey than just being the UFC women’s bantamweight title. Rousey is a mainstream, crossover star.
When Rose Namajunas looks into her own personal crystal ball, she sees all the same things for herself.
“I feel like I’ve been doing such a good job at such a young age and so early on in my career, I have a lot of time to really develop myself as a person and getting more experience with it,” Namajunas said Wednesday at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale media day. “If it doesn’t happen right now, it’s definitely going to happen eventually.”
Namajunas, 22, takes on Carla Esparza in the UFC’s inaugural women’s strawweight title fight at the TUF 20 Finale on Friday night here at Palms Casino Resort. A victory would put Namajunas alongside Rousey as the only female champions in the UFC. But the comparisons won’t end there. Both are blonde, attractive, charismatic and have an aggressive fighting style that makes people gravitate toward the television whenever they’re in the cage.
UFC president Dana White was actually the first person to make the link when he said over the summer that the next Rousey was on The Ultimate Fighter. White was talking about Namajunas and she knew it.
“It’s cool,” Namajunas said. “I know I have a lot to look forward to as long as I stay on this path and stay focused and stay humble, train hard, be OK with everything coming my way. Find peace in this chaos.”
Namajunas was seeded No. 7 to start the season, which seems silly now. She tore through the competition in the house, finishing Alex Chambers, Joanne Calderwood and Randa Markos, all by submission. Mind you, Namajunas came into the show known for her striking.
Esparza opened as a slight favorite in some sports books and she is an incredibly talented fighter. But from a marking perspective, the UFC would likely benefit from Namajunas being the face of this new division.
“She’s not going to be the next Ronda Rousey,” former UFC heavyweight Pat Barry, Namajunas’ boyfriend, told MMA Fighting. “She’s going to be the first Rose. That’s what she’s going to be. In my eyes, she has the potential to be bigger than Ronda if she wants to take it that way. If she wants to go that route, she can. She’s absolutely completely capable to the point where it’s almost unreal sometimes. Like is this really happening? She’s absolutely capable of being bigger than everyone. She has the look, she has the fighting ability, she has the personality, she has the interview skills. She has the professionalism about her. Everything about her is just the next generation of fighter.”
Namajunas is embracing all of this. While some fighters will tell you over and over that all they want to do is train and compete, Namajunas is already thinking a few steps ahead. Recently, she signed with high-profile Kevin Harvick Inc., the management company founded by the well-known NASCAR driver. Harvick only had two previous UFC fighters — Donald Cerrone and Miesha Tate — and said last week at UFC 181 that bringing Namajunas on board was an “obvious decision.”
“I don’t think I’m ready — I gotta be ready,” Namajunas said. “It’s coming. So I’m ready for it. Whatever happens happens, I’m just having fun with it. Any mistakes that I make is an investment in my future. I’m really young and I’ve got a long time, so I’m ready for it.”
Like Rousey, Namajunas is rounding into a bonafide star even before her first UFC fight. Now, Rousey is a feature film actress. She was in “The Expendables 3” this year and will add “Fast & Furious 7” and “Entourage” to her resume in 2015. Her list of endorsements is a mile long. Rousey has become a household name among casual fans and beyond.
Namajunas has a long way to go for that. But she has the support of someone who has been there — Rousey herself.
“As soon as I saw her, I saw this girl is special,” Rousey told MMA Fighting’s Guilherme Cruz in September. … “She’s got an amazing skill set, she’s an exciting fighter. She takes risks, she’s gorgeous, and she’s charismatic. I really think she has all the tools that are needed in order to be the next really influential champion.”
First, of course, Namajunas has to become the champion. That means beating Esparza on Friday night. But Namajunas isn’t in a rush. She’s confident she’ll win, but she also knows time is on her side.
“I feel like I have some shoes to fill,” Namajunas said of Rousey. “She’s definitely up there and it’s going to take me some time just to develop it. It’s coming a lot faster than I was expecting.”
LAS VEGAS — Ian McCall traveled to Brazil in November knowing he was under the weather. He still cut the pounds he needed and successfully hit the flyweight 126-pound limit.
A few hours later, McCall was in the hospital with an infection in…
LAS VEGAS — Ian McCall traveled to Brazil in November knowing he was under the weather. He still cut the pounds he needed and successfully hit the flyweight 126-pound limit.
A few hours later, McCall was in the hospital with an infection in his blood. He had to pull out of his UFC Fight Night 56 co-main event bout with John Lineker in Uberlandia, Brazil. But it wasn’t by choice. If it were up to him, McCall said, he still would have fought.
“I still made weight having a sickness, a bacterial infection,” McCall told MMA Fighting on Wednesday at The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale media day at the Palms. “I think that kind of opened John’s eyes, too. Like, I’ll die doing this. I don’t care. I didn’t pull out, UFC pulled me out. They took me to the hospital. Their doctor pulled me out.”
McCall (13-4-1), of course, didn’t have much of a choice. There’s no way the Brazilian commission would have let him compete. McCall calls the entire experience a “nightmare.” It took him 27 hours and four flights to get to Uberlandia. He missed one flight and the airline lost his luggage. Meanwhile, he was sick the entire time.
“For me, everything outside of the cage is super emotional,” McCall said. “It just wears on you. You don’t have control over it. I can’t beat the s*** out of this situation. You can’t physically do anything about it, so it’s hard.”
McCall will get a reprieve when he gets the fight with Lineker he wanted at UFC 183 on Jan. 31 here in Las Vegas. The Southern California native won’t have to travel all that far this time around. More than that, though, it’s just a huge fight for both men. The winner is likely to earn a title shot against UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson.
“This fight gives me a lot of validity into what I’m trying to accomplish,” McCall said. “It puts value into me having a title shot or at least one step closer to a title shot. If they don’t give me a title shot after this, of course I’ll make a stink about it.”
Lineker (24-7) poked some fun at McCall after he was forced to withdraw, telling reporters that McCall was going to need a trip to the hospital anyway. McCall didn’t mind the words. In fact, he said Lineker could have been harsher.
“I would have talked way more trash,” McCall said. “In reality, John is a nice guy. John held back from talking trash. He did.
“It’s just not in him. He’s a nice, nice guy. You have to talk a little bit of trash. That’s fine. But we are going to fight and you’ve avoided it long enough. You almost got away with not fighting me. Do or say whatever you want, but you’re going to end up on your back and you’re going to end up sleeping.”
McCall is already taking precautions to be healthier heading into this camp. His diet, he said, is already pretty clean, but instead of going out to eat and partying this weekend in Vegas, he’s going to keep it low key. “Uncle Creepy” even has his teammate Carla Esparza’s nutritionist making food for him.
There’s no way he wants a repeat of Uberlandia.
“It felt like the one machine I built just crapped out on me,” McCall said.
UFC on Fox 13 features Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve’s return to mixed martial arts when he takes on Alistair Overeem. Struve has been out of action since March 2013 after he was diagnosed with a leaking aortic valve and enlarged heart.
