One FC welterweight champion Ben Askren makes no bones about the fact he considers himself the world’s top 170-pounder.
And while he’s not going to have the opportunity to test himself against the UFC’s best welterweights any time soon, one of the top fighters outside the UFC at 170 is pretty sure he’s contractually clear to make such a fight.
World Series of Fighting’s Jon Fitch says the door is open to go over to Asia and square off against the undefeated Askren.
“I have it in my contract that I may be able to go over there,” Fitch said during an in-studio appearance on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour.
Fitch, who has two fights left on his WSOF deal, says the contract’s language allows him to fight overseas outside of the company, so long as it doesn’t conflict with a WSOF promotion.
“If it’s not going to impede on a fight that they have planned for me, and it’s not a competitive, local US show, then I could possibly be able to fight,” Fitch said.
The 36-year-old Fitch wants to stay active, but he’s only fought twice in the past 14 months. He bridged the gap last year by competing in the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo’s superfight grappling card.
But if Fitch, who challenges Rousmiar Palhares for the WSOF welterweight title in Sacramento on Saturday night, has another long layoff after this weekend, he hopes to be able to fill the gap with an MMA fight.
“If they’re not planning on having me fight again in July, I might go out in March and try to fight somewhere,” Fitch said. “We haven’t done that yet, but we did a grappling match with [Paulo] Miayo There’s some leeway in there.”
As for an Askren fight, while Fitch was the one who mentioned the possibility of fighting Askren, he also isn’t going to go out of his way to trash talk the One FC champ.
“Fights in general get me excited,” Fitch said. “I like staying active. Any time I get to test my abilities, I think at this point in my career, i fought so many people that I feel like I’m the best. I’m not looking down on anybody but I feel like they’re all the same fight. “