Ed Herman will fight for the second time in as many months, as he is set to fight Kyle Noke this Sunday at UFC on Versus 5. Slightly less than two years ago, Herman wasn’t sure he’d ever fight again after tearing his ACL in a bout with Aaron Simpson.
“You question yourself,” Herman told Bleacher Report. “It’s tough being injured like that. You never know how things are going to hold up after surgery. Yeah, those thoughts go through your mind. At the same time, I was trying to stay mentally strong and telling myself I was going to come back a stronger fighter, which I’m hoping to do.”
In June 2011, Herman took his first step in making a strong comeback to fighting. In less than one minute, Herman scored a knockout victory over Tim Credeur to taste victory for the first time since April 2009.
Uninjured and looking to make a quick return to the Octagon, Herman immediately jumped back into training in hopes of being booked for a fight at UFC 135. Instead, Herman was offered the opportunity to take the fight with Noke as a replacement for an injured Tom Lawlor.
“I was hoping to get on that Denver card, but this popped up, so I jumped on it,” Herman said. “I was pretty much right back in the gym. I wasn’t training extremely hard the first couple weeks, but I was back in the gym working on my technique, doing my strength & conditioning, coaching classes and stuff like that.”
Since he likely wouldn’t have enough time to prepare for a fight at UFC 135 after his bout with Noke, competing on that card will probably not be an option for Herman anymore. However, Herman would still like to make a third UFC appearance before the end of 2011.
“I would definitely like to fight again before the end of the year, preferably right before Thanksgiving—so I could eat—would be great,” Herman said.
One fight Herman had been interested in was a rematch with Season 3 winner of The Ultimate Fighter Kendall Grove, who “Short Fuse” lost to in the show’s middleweight tournament finals. However, Grove was recently released from the UFC after losing four of his past six fights.
With Grove out of the picture for now, Herman is still interested in attempting to avenge any of his past UFC losses. Beyond that, Herman would like a shot at a Top 10 middleweight fighter in the near future.
“I’d love another shot at [Jason] MacDonald, Demian Maia, [Alan] Belcher, all those guys,” Herman said. “Whoever the UFC wants for me and my career, I just want to fight guys who are a hot ticket right now, guys in the Top 10, so I can go out there an prove I can compete with the Top 10 guys.”
After being out of action for nearly two years, Herman left only one uncertainty on the minds of his doubters after earning a win in his first fight back. Because he was able to end the fight so quickly, some might still wonder about Herman’s conditioning after such a long time away from competition.
Nonetheless, Herman would be perfectly fine with another quick victory at UFC on Versus 5. Although he isn’t hesitant about going into deep waters, Herman doesn’t feel he needs to prove anything about his cardio in this fight.
“I’d be happy to finish the fight in the first minute again,” Herman said. “My conditioning is there and I know it. I’m confident and I’ve been training really hard. It doesn’t matter to me if it’s going to be a three-round battle or I can finish it again in a minute.”
Once he steps into the cage with his well-rounded opponent, Herman believes his intensity and pace will make the difference in determining the outcome of this fight.
“I just think my overall aggression and in-your-face style,” Herman said. “I don’t think he’ll be able to deal with that as well as my wrestling strength in the clinch and on the ground.”
Herman would like to thank Dethrone Royalty Clothing, Get Some Fight Gear, Muscle Pharm, ESP-XC and Trials MMA.
Sean Smith is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report MMA. Sean has also had his work featured on UFC.com. For the latest insight and updates on everything MMA, you can follow Sean on Twitter @SeanSmithMMA.
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