Issue 180

July 2019

The Swedish middleweight on getting some belated recognition

You scored an impressive unanimous decision victory over Jacaré Souza in the main event at UFC Fight Night 150. What are your lasting memories from that great win?

How long the fight was! It was a long and grueling fight. It was the longest fight of my career so far. It was a full 25 minutes. I remember my highlights and I remember his highlights as well. I remember that first combination and the guillotine attempt in the first round. I also remember how tough he was and how hard the later rounds were. It was your first five-round main event. Is this the fight of your life to this point? It has to be, you know? He’s definitely the biggest name I have ever fought and beaten. This is the biggest fight so far, for sure.

Do you still feel the need to prove yourself on some level?

I feel that a little bit less now. I feel that the attention is now coming, the attention I am looking for. I have been here for some time. I don’t think many people know I have fought nine times in the UFC. I have so many people comment that they haven’t seen me fight before this one. So, it’s about time. In those nine fights there were four first-round finishes. I think that people didn’t recognize me because I didn’t fight the big names yet. Now that I’ve had the opportunity against David Branch and Jacaré and I think that is probably opening people’s eyes now.

You are now a top five-ranked UFC middleweight. Is that satisfying?

I am happy with that. When you are coming from down under and fighting your way up through the rankings there is always something to prove. I think that people are believing in me a little bit more now. Now I am talking about a title fight and people are probably wondering if I am ready for that and so on. It doesn’t get much stiffer competition than Jacare. It’s more about styles now. I think I can do it and I am looking forward to making it happen.

Can you speak about the mindset required to take advantage of these opportunities as they present themselves?

That’s what I have always done in my career. So far, I have never, ever thought twice about taking a fight. I have always said yes the moment the question is asked. That has always been my mentality. I will take every opportunity I get. You never know when you will get injured or when an opponent will pull out of a fight. It’s a crazy sport. You never know what will happen. I think it’s very important to take the opportunities you get and make the most of them. I think that is paying off for me now.

You seem a very different man inside and outside the Octagon? You're a funny guy outside it, but inside it . . .

It’s just my drive to success. I want to succeed and I love to compete. I love the competition. It’s just very much a sport for me. That’s what it is. I think it’s very, very important to be respectful outside of the cage. It’s important to respect your opponent. When we are in the cage we want the same thing. We are both willing to compete under the set rules and there is no room to be humble. You have to switch up and think about what you are going to have to do to win the fight. That is what you see with me. It means so much to me, so that is why you see the massive celebrations after the fight. There are so many feelings that I have to let them out. Like I said, it’s very important for me to be respectful outside of the cage but in the cage, I am fighting with my life on the line and I am willing to do whatever it takes to win the fight.

Your ground game is as good as anyone. Do you feel this gives you a big advantage?

Yeah. I think there are very few people out there who can compete with me in the grappling game, especially with me on top. I don’t think there is a person in the world who benefits from being on the ground, on the bottom with me. That is something I am very confident in. That is something that people know by now. If Jacaré can’t do anything from the bottom then there probably aren’t very many people who can. I think I have an advantage over everybody in the division if I take them down.

Who would be your one dream opponent?

For me, the belt means everything. If I can take that title, that is everything. Whoever has the title is the dream fight. There is nothing that means more than getting the recognition of being the best fighter in the world. That is my dream. I wouldn’t feel good to beat a legend like Anderson Silva. If he had the title I would love to fight him but the belt is the ultimate goal.