It is no secret that Ryan Bader has been eager to square off against Tito Ortiz this weekend at UFC 132. The UFC light heavyweight prospect, who is coming off a loss to Jon Jones at UFC 126, will be looking to reenter contention and it wouldn’t be more fitting to earn the victory over a legend like Ortiz.
Bader spoke to Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting,com following the UFC 132 pre-fight press conference, and spoke highly of his opponent. Although “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” has yet to win inside the Octagon since 2006, Bader expects Ortiz to put on a competitive fight against him and put on a good performance.
“I expect to face the best Tito Ortiz that’s ever came out and fought,” Bader said.
“A lot of people aren’t giving him the credit he deserves and I sure do, and I trained my butt off for this fight and I’m ready for the best Tito Ortiz that has ever come out.”
Bader is not only ready for Ortiz, but he is prepared for what Ortiz’s gameplan is. A gameplan that Bader seems to have figured out after reviewing some of his opponent’s past fights.
“In the first two minutes, he’s trying to bully you, trying to land punches, trying to maybe land a takedown, push you on the fence. I believe that’s gonna’ happen and I’m going to throw my hands at that point and he’s going to start tiring out a little bit,” he said of Ortiz.
UFC 132 is live this weekend, live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
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