Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Paul Felder clarifies his current status amid previous talks about possible retirement.
After his split decision loss to Dan Hooker in February, Paul Felder brought up the idea of retirement. But after a couple of months since he made that post-fight statement, “The Irish Dragon” took back his words.
In a recent virtual sit-down with MMA Junkie, the 35-year-old Felder clarified his current status.
“I’m benching myself for a second,” he said. “I think that’s the way I would really consider it. I just needed a little break, man. That fight in New Zealand was a tough one. I pour my soul into these fight camps, man. I really don’t hold back.
“It’s not like I casually take a fight because I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, I think I can beat that guy. How many weeks do we have?’ I really try to make sure I check all the boxes. I did that for that one.
“It was so close, and your heart gets broken with a decision” he added. “It’s not like I’m crying about it. I just needed time. That was a lot. I was gone for a long time. … I just wanted to be home for a little bit.”
At this point in his career, Felder isn’t willing to accept just any offer that comes his way. He is in no rush to return until that perfect matchup lands on his lap.
“To be completely honest, man, I’ve been going through a lot. I’m busy. I’m buying a house,” he explained. “I’m just in no rush to come back for something that will not excite me. I need the next fight to be something that scares me and gets me training and gets me motivated and gives me a reason to leave at eight, nine, (or) ten weeks at a time and put my body through what it goes through.
“Look at those guys on Saturday night: Hooker and Poirier. Those guys are going to be hurting for a while. This is a savage sport. If your head is not quite in it, I’m not going to rush back to get into the cage unless it’s something super exciting.”
Felder named three possible opponents for the fight he’d want to return to.
That is what would bring me back – a rematch with Dan,” he said. “Now, it’d just be, ‘Let’s just run it back.’ Listen, I’ve never really sat and whined and complained about the decision. But it was close enough where you could warrant a rematch between us.
“So, yeah, (Hooker), Tony Ferguson, Dustin (Poirier). The chances of Conor are probably zero, so I won’t even mention that. That’s just not going to happen. So, yeah, those are the fights that I want.”
Felder is currently 2-1 in his last three fights, which involves a split decision win over Edson Barboza in their rematch at UFC 242 last September.