Issue 191

July 2020

The highly durable pro looks back at a handful of his key fights, including his battle with “the toughest guy I ever fought.” 

1. Sam Stout, UFC 161

That was my UFC debut. I took the fight on 16 days’ notice against Sam Stout in Canada. At the time he had only been finished once in the UFC and I was a 4-1 or 5-1 underdog. I ended up finishing him with 13 seconds left in the fight. I got a double bonus on top of my fight purse. That fight changed my life in so many different aspects. It changed my life financially, career-wise and it catapulted my confidence. That fight, for sure, is number one and it’s not even close. 

2. Warlley Alves, UFC Fight Night: Gaethje vs. Vick

That was my first fight at 170. I opened as a big underdog. Alves was Colby Covington’s only loss at the time. Nobody thought that I would win that fight. I came in and I feel like it was my coming out party. I had a chance to show everybody. It was the first time in my career that I stepped out of the cage and I thought ‘This is what I can do. This is me.’ I can finally show and tell everyone that this is what I am capable of. That is a good one for me.

3. Donald Cerrone, WEC 41

I didn’t win this fight but it taught me a lot about myself. It was just too soon for me. I was 10-0 going into it. I had fought a bunch of local guys. I went from fighting local guys to fighting Donald Cerrone on two weeks’ notice. It was in Arco Arena where the Sacramento Kings play. I had never fought in front of more than 1,500 people before. It leveled me up in a few ways. I didn’t win but I showed myself that I could compete at that level. It was a phenomenal learning experience for me. I learned how to pace in that fight. I had a hellacious pace. I came out sprinting. You can’t keep that up. Since that fight I have always come out calmer. I think one of my best assets is poise and I feel like I learned that from this fight. Just relax. Don’t try to force anything. 

4. Joe Jordan, RFA 5

He was a durable guy. No matter what, I couldn’t put him away. I head-kicked him, punched him, hit him with some great shots. It was the first fight where I started to find my swag. I fight with a chip on my shoulder. I fight with a little rhythm and that was the fight that I felt like I really settled into a fight and started to feel that. 

5. Jorge Masvidal, UFC 178

If I could do this list over I would put this fight higher. This should be number three. I fought some really good guys before people knew they were really good. I fought Michael Johnson, Bobby Green, Ricardo Lamas and a lot of other guys before people knew they were good. If you look back at the Masvidal fight, it was really competitive. We were going back and forth. I still feel like he was the best guy I ever fought. What I learned was what being a veteran means in a fight. He is the definition of a veteran, man. If you are pacing at a level 6, he is pacing at a 6.5. If you turn it down to a 4 he turns it down to a 4.5. If you wrestle, he wrestles a little bit harder. He is really good at staying one step ahead of you. He is the toughest guy I ever fought. I feel like he is just now starting to get his notoriety. He leveled me up in terms of fight IQ. I really appreciated the fight with him.