Todd Duffee
Heavyweight Todd Duffee (7-2) will make his long awaited return to the Octagon this coming weekend after a two-and-a-half year absence.
Duffee was called on as a late replacement for Matt Mitrione who had been scheduled to face Phil De Fries at the upcoming UFC 155: Dos Santos vs. Velasquez II show.
The call back to the Octagon was a big surprise for the heavyweight who admits that he has yet to live up to his “own potential.”
“I thought I had another year and a half to go (to get a call from the UFC,” said Duffee. “I had a lot of problems getting fights, and it’s not from lack of trying and not from lack of trying to get things done. It was a real big surprise.”
“… I have not lived up to my own potential, there’s no question. And everybody that’s trained with me, everybody that’s seen me, they know that. I have a lot of potential and I owe it to my coaches and I owe it to my family and friends to see it through. I’ve had to make some crazy sacrifices from friends, family, all that stuff, but if I go out there and I perform, it’s gonna be worth it. I’ve gotten life experience that most small town kids from Raleigh, Illinois don’t get. That alone is pretty special to me. To get where I’m at now from where I was, a town of 351 people, it’s a pretty big deal, and I’m proud of that.”
Duffee offers more thoughts on his return in an interview with UFC.com.
The heavyweight is 1-2 in his last three bouts, with a 34-second TKO finish of former Bellator fighter Neil Grove this pas April with the Super Fight League. The losses came via knockout, a 19-second defeat at the hands of Alistair Overeem on Dec. 31, 2010 and a loss to Mike Russow at UFC 144 in May 2010.
UFC 155: Dos Santos vs. Velasquez II is scheduled for December 29, 2012 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Duffee vs. De Fries bout is scheduled to appear on the live Facebook prelim stream.