Rick “The Horror” Story believes that this is his time and that he is ready for a breakthrough in his career.
He is riding a five-fight win streak that includes Dustin Hazelett and Matt Hendricks as victims and not only is he lucky enough to be facing Thiago Alves next, he specifically asked for him in his quest to make the next step up in the minds of MMA fans everywhere.
Story comes from very humble beginnings, and a win for him could catapult him to places in his life that he never dreamed he could get. Alves is top of the food chain at welterweight, he has had a slight blip in his career recently but he has bounced back nicely and should be considered a step up for Story.
In my opinion, Story could have taken one or two more fights against gap guys, but it may be an indication that the UFC feels Alves has fallen into that gap. Either way, this is a big step up for Story and a victory means a very bright future for “The Horror”, albeit a future with very tough fights.
Story doesn’t mix words when he thinks of what’s going to happen in the fight.
“I’m gonna beat Alves’ ass. I’m here to destroy him” he told ufc.com in a recent interview.
“I push forward. I always push forward. He’s gonna have to handle that, he’s gonna have to deal with that. If he’s not mentally strong enough, he’s gonna crumble again.”
Heavy words from a 25-year-old fighter with Johnny Hendricks as his biggest win. Alves may have wilted in a fight before but it was against the champion Georges St-Pierre, and Story has a bit to go until he can claim to be a will breaker.
He almost got knocked out by Brian Foster and we will see how he pushes forward after taking a couple of Alves’ punches and brutal leg kicks.
I believe it is a bit of a case of a youngster being a bit naive, but if he proves me wrong it will mean a happy ending for Rick Story.
Dwight Wakabayashi is a Correspondent for Bleacher Report. (Also a Correspondent for MMACanada.net)
Catch me on Twitter @wakafighter
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