With the WEC/UFC merger in place, former UFC Lightweight, George Roop is back in the promotion fighting at the 145 division. Roop who is coming off a KO of the Night win over Chan Sung Jung with a high kick at WEC 51 that some are saying is a Knock Out of the Year contender, has agreed to fight Team Tompkins teammate Mark Hominick at UFC Fight Night 23: Fight for the Troops 2 on January 22nd.
MMAFix asked George Roop why he decided to fight his teammate, Hominick, and though he says, “nobody likes fighting a friend or teammate; hey this is the business,” Roop also adds that the winner of this fight should be the next contender at the Featherweight title. He admits “The Coach” Shawn Tompkins was not happy about the match up. But Roop has been fighting since 2006 and understands this is a necessary step toward becoming the Featherweight Champion, as is his ultimate goal. Because both Roop and Hominick can obviously not train together for this bout, Roop plans to primarily train at Apex MMA in his hometown of Tucson, Arizona.
George Roop also notes that since news has broken about his match up with Hominick that forums are already flooded with comments that he is sure to lose this fight. Roop’s response to the forum critics: “Well, of course he’s gonna beat me, just like Leonard Garcia and just like Jung. I’m good at playing the underdog.”