“Honestly, I like five-round fights because you don’t have to rush and do something crazy,” the Russian said in a pre-fight interview. “You can start slow and you have a lot of time to finish your opponent. I believe that my physical form is better and that I will finish him.”
“I have to win early because if I win on points everyone will say, ‘this guy is not a top level fighter, he doesn’t deserve to fight Islam Makhachev’. An early win will give me the right to talk about a title fight, but if they tell me I have to win three more fights to fight for the belt, I’ll do it. My goal is to fight for the title next year.”
“For me, the fight with Dariusz is a great opportunity to be among the elite fighters in the division, to be in the top five. Top 5 is a different level of play, big names, and I know I’ll be there because I deserve it. Hopefully this weekend I’ll be in the top five and be able to contend for big fights and a title fight”
As a reminder, the Russian-American clash of top lightweights will headline UFC on ESPN 52 in Austin on Dec. 2.