MMA Fighting - What the Heck: Episode 59 | Andrea Lee, Austin Vanderford, Phil Hawes & Danny Sabatello

Episode Date: May 18, 2021

This week on What the Heck, Mike Heck chats with Andrea Lee (5:18) to recap her impressive second-round submission win over Antonina Shecvhenko at UFC 262 this past Saturday. Danny Sabatello (25:12) talks his Bellator 259 bout this Friday against Brett Johns, signing an exclusive multi-fight deal wiht Bellator and his belief he can beat Sergio Pettis right now. Austin Vanderford (38:33) previews his Bellator 259 fight with Fabian Edwards and discusses what it was like watching Paige VanZant's BKFC debut. Finally, Phil Hawes (54:34) recaps his win over Kyle Daukaus at UFC Vegas 26, discusses how the fight with Deron Winn came together prior to signing on to face Daukaus, Israel Adesanya, and more. Follow Mike Heck: @MikeHeck_JR Subscribe: http://goo.gl/dYpsgH Check out our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/u8VvLi Visit our playlists: http://goo.gl/eFhsvM Like MMAF on Facebook: http://goo.gl/uhdg7Z Follow on Twitter: http://goo.gl/nOATUI Read More: http://www.mmafighting.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That's annoying. What? You're a muffler. You don't hear it? Oh, I don't even notice it. I usually drown it out with the radio. How's this? Oh, yeah.

Way better. Save on insurance by switching to Bell Air Direct and use the money to fix your car. Bell Air Direct, insurance, simplified. Conditions apply. You're listening to the Vox Media Podcast Network. What the Heck with Mike Heck on MMIfighting.com. Now, here is your host, Mike Heck.

What the heck? Well, hello there, everybody, and welcome. to a brand new edition of what the heck here on mhmapfiting.com. I am Mike Heck. Thank you as always for checking out the show. We get a fun one this week. Coming off a memorable UFC 262 card on Saturday night in Houston, Texas. We have a new UFC lightweight champion of the world.

His name is Charles Oliveira. What a fight that was. What a performance. What a way to battle back from being in some big trouble in that first round against Michael Chandler. It's just an awesome fight. I've watched the fight three times now, once live, and two hours. after the fact, it gets better every time you watch it. It's that good of a fight, especially when you have sort of hindsight in the back of your mind.

Like, you know how it ends, and then you just try to find, like, little pieces that you didn't catch live. It's such a good main event. Hats off to both Charles Oliver and Michael Chandler for such a great fight. Huge win for Benile Darius. Dominates Tony Ferguson, complete one-way traffic. And I know the story has become all about Tony Ferguson, and it doesn't look like he's, the same guy anymore, but put some respect on Benile Dariusha's name. That was some performance.

He even got Elon Musk's attention. When Elon Musk is tweeting about you and responding to you, you're doing something right. So a huge win for him. How about that crazy fight between Edson Barbosa and Shane Burgos? I mean, that was some battle. That was a really fun card. And we talked about it on the post-fight show. Talked about it on to the next one.

Sure we'll talk about it on the A side. I know we're going to talk about it on between the links. We'll even talk about it on this show coming up a little bit later on. But that was this past weekend. We get a lot of MMA action on the horizon this weekend. Bellator is back on Friday night, Belator 259 at Mohegan Sun. Chris Cyborg defends her featherweight title against Leslie Smith. That is the main event.

We have the return of Invicta FC on Friday as well. New network. Little rebranding. Pretty excited to see what it all looks like on Friday. And plus we get the UFC back on Saturday. back at the apex, UFC Vegas 27. Really excited for that main event. Rob Fott versus Cody Garbrand, huge one at 135 pounds.

One of those guys is going to have the chance to get a little bit of a head start on Corey Sanhagen and on T.J. Dillishaw since that fight, which was supposed to go down a few weeks ago, has not been officially rebooked. So a big opportunity for Rob Fon and for Cody Garbrandt. I got to see Rob Fon a couple weeks ago. Actually, it was last week. Yeah, it was last week. This was a week ago. Week and a half ago.

I'll throw out a week and a half ago. Not that really matters the date, but we'll do some fun stuff with that conversation. Got a chance to watch Rob Fond Spar and do some training ahead of that fight. So pay attention to our YouTube page. You'll see that dropping a little bit. But fun weekend coming up. Lots of MMA action. Lots of good stuff from the fighters this week on the show.

So let us run down the lineup. It will get to our first guess. We're going to wrap things up with Phil Haas. Now, 3 and O in the UFC after his win. over Kyle Dachas at UFC Vegas 26 a couple of weeks ago. And he's already got his next fight booked. In fact, he had it booked before the Kyle Dachas fight went down. July 17th, he fights Duran win.

And Phil Haas signed to fight Duran Winn before he accepted the fight with Kyle Dachas. Duran Wyn didn't like that too much. And we'll get Phil Haas's thoughts on that. Israel, Adasana, his road. up the middleweight ranks and much more as he makes his what the heck debut. Austin Vanderford will join us. He is back on the aforementioned Bellator 259 card this Friday. Big one for him against Fabian Edwards.

A win for the gentleman puts him very close to a middleweight title shot in the Bellator cage. So we'll hear what he has to say about that a little bit later on. Very Tom Brady-esque sort of view on everything from one Austin Vanderford. We're also going to be joined by Austin's teammate. And fellow Bellator 259 participants, Danny Sabatello, who makes his Bellator debut on Friday against Brett Johns. Remember Brett Johns? One of the top guys in 135 pounds in the UFC.

He signed with Bellator last year. It was a big deal. And Danny Sabatelo is looking to play spoiler. This guy, if you don't know who he is, if you haven't seen him already, he's got a ton of personality. He was on the contender series. He was putting up 30 to 24, 3024 scorecards on the contender. series and didn't get a contract. But now, apparently, the UFC's loss is Bellator's gain. Danny was on fire in this conversation. You'll hear from the former Titan F.C. Bannamweight champion

coming up a little bit later on. But first, let us kick things off with Andrea KGB Lee, who had herself quite the night in Houston, Texas on Saturday at UFC 262. Let us get to that chat right now to kick off what the heck. All right, we move ahead to one of the big winners on Saturday night at UFC 262 in Houston, huge victory for one, Andrea KGBB Lee. She submits Antonina Shepchenko in the second round, and now is back in the win column for the first time in almost two years. Andrea, congratulations on the victory.

How are you? I'm really good. I'm really happy, you know, I'm proud. I'm excited because, like you said, first time in two years, it's really hard to believe. It's weird when you say that. I know. It's kind of a damper way to start the interview,

but still exciting stuff. Like, I mean, just to kind of go back to that, there's so much riding on this fight. And a lot of things surely were probably on your mind coming off of three straight losses. You're back in Houston where this skid began with the Lauren Murphy fight. So to sit here talking about a win and a finish and that kind of a dominant performance, how does that all feel? Man, it's exciting. You know, I've been on cloud nine, I guess you could say. You know, I just felt good getting back in there.

but fighting with a clear mind. And, you know, I just felt like I could see everything. I can hear my corner so well and so vividly. Like, I just felt like I was in the fight, you know, for the first time in the last couple of fights. Like my head was there, not in space, but in the fight. So, you know, I'm just really happy, you know, it was a great performance. Yeah, I mean, that was like one thing that was so noticeable to me, even before the fight started, because you and I have been having these conversations for a while now, you have been through a lot.

And while you've always had like a really good poker face and you did your job to the best of your ability, like immediately when Bruce Buffer started introducing you to the crowd in Houston, like you looked loose as a goose. You looked free. You looked happy. And the things that you've been through over the last couple of years, it's hard to remove all that fully. But it seems like you've been able to create enough space from it that as much as you could heading into the fight. Like you seem much happier, much more free. Like, am I reading that really?

Because even in the Montana de la Rosa win, that sort of freedom in your mind didn't seem to be there. You still got the win. And then even after you beat her, it was all about, you know, win and get a title shot. And Valentina Shofchenko and all of that. It was just so much for you to process. But this one, it just stuck out to me that you were just different, not just in the fight, but you as a person. Like, can you elaborate more on that?

Like, am I in the wheelhouse? You are. And I'm glad you noticed that. because yes, even though I did get that one against Montana, you know, I could, I was not, I was not as focused in that fight. There was still a lot going on, you know, behind closed doors, you know, that, you know, people don't know about it.

There's always something going on in someone's life, you know. But I feel like for the first time, like, I wasn't, I didn't have any of those distractions, you know. It was, I was able to breathe and just, like, focus on my fight. I was able to go and do a training camp, like, in California and Colorado and just kind of get away and just focus on preparing for what needed to be done. And so I really felt that going into that fight. You know, I felt my confidence back.

I felt like my skills were sharp again. And I just felt like there was no limitations on what I could do in there. You know, so I believe that showed. You know, I got to, you know, I got to show a well-rounded fighter, you know. And I feel great about that. that KGB Swagger was back in full effect. Yes, definitely. Did you feel a lot of pressure heading into the fight?

Like, I mean, you got the win now, and hindsight is everything. And I know there's nerves heading into any fight, but did this one feel different? Like, did you feel extra pressure at all heading into it? I did feel pressure. I mean, you know, I knew I could not get another loss, and I needed this win. Because four straight losses in a row. I mean, that's, that's worth. that's just worse.

I mean, having three already, you know, it doesn't look good. But, and there were all three close decisions, but, you know, I really needed to go out there and prove, you know, to everyone and prove to myself, you know, that I'd still belong in the UFC, you know. And, I mean, they are making cuts and I don't want to be on that chopping block. So, I mean, I needed to get that win. And that's what I was able to do. But yes, there was definitely some added pressure going into the fight. But I just had to, like, not try to focus on that. just go out there and have fun.

Antonita, obviously, is a dangerous striker, especially in close in the clinch. But out in space, you seem to have her all figured out. Like, you were timing her jabs very well. You were landing good combinations. You stung her good in the first round. But the clinch, there's one point in that first round where she was landing those knees to your body, like it seemed like over and over again. What was that like?

Because it looks pretty painful watching the broadcast, but what was going through your mind in those moments? it might have looked painful watching it but but no actually they they didn't hurt they didn't really faze me at all um i mean they i mean they could they could have potentially but they didn't i mean you know just being honest like those they didn't bother me at all um i just knew that it didn't look good and so i needed to break that clenching and get out of that but yeah i think it kind of stuck i mean she has a really good full plunge um she's she's nice and strong in that but we we've planned for that We trained for that, you know, and I was able to break free and keep the fight in, like, working for me, you know, and making her fight my fight.

Yeah, overall, I mean, besides that, it was a great first round for you. You had a lot of success, the strikes, the take down at the end. How confident were you feeling heading into the second that you were able to come out of those clinch situations, and you pretty much took all the momentum heading out of that first round? man like at the end of the first round like walking to my corner I just felt so good because I wasn't breathing heavy my arms weren't weren't heavy or bloated with lactic acid neither were my legs like I just I just knew that I was in good shape like you can tell like at the end of the first round you're going to feel it but I didn't even feel like we had even fought for five minutes in that first round because then you know my last couple of fights man I'm going to the second round you know and I'm like man I'm like why do I feel exhausted, you know?

I trained hard for this, but like I just felt like a different person in there, you know, and going into the second, I just, I felt great. I knew I had the first round and I, you know, still had getting a finish, you know, one way or another on my mind. And it just, man, I mean, I worked hard for it that second round, but I'm happy that it just worked out the way that it did because she almost had my back, but I was able to turn that into a hip toss and it just kind of, went from there. Yeah, and you mounted her. The triangle was, was cinched in for what seemed like

an entire round. And, you know, you're busy down there, too. You're laying on those brutal elbows. And then, you know, finally, you were able to cinch the arm and you got the tap. How tired were you getting in that spot before you were able to finally get the arm and get the submission? My legs were, my legs were giving out. They were getting really tired because I was squeezing. I mean, I know maybe it didn't look like I was doing everything right, but she did. just she just will not tap to choke. Like I guess she has like a small neck or something because I mean I was I was pulling down on the head. I was getting the angle. I had my arm like reached all the way through her belly, you know, and wrapped her on the waist. And I was squeezing my legs tight together. But I could still hear her breathing a little bit. She was just kind of like waiting and being patient. And I was like, man, I've got to do some damage because right now she's just chilling. I got to make her like sweat a little, you know? So I I knew that my best, the best way to finish her was not going to be a choke. It was going to have to be the arm.

So I just had to loosen her up a little bit so I could get that arm free to stretch it out. So we talked the two-year number before we started, but right before you record and got on here, I looked this up because this is a crazy number to see. That was your first UFC finish, but it was also your first finish in 1,331 days, Andrea. Yeah, 1,331 days, almost four years between finishes. Is that just a wild number to hear said out loud, especially since you finished so many fights early on in your career? It really is.

I expect more for myself. You know, I feel like I should be getting more finishes. And, you know, it's hard to believe that's my first finish in the UFC. But, you know, I've gotten to where I wasn't necessarily playing it so safe in this fight. You know, I wanted to go out there, have a smart fight, but I mean, I wanted to like take a chance, you know? And I did. I took a chance, you know, going from from Mount or from that crucifix position into the mounted triangle. I mean, that, and then fall into my back. I mean, that is taking a chance. But typically in my other fights, you know, I've been like, you know, winning rounds.

And I just, I don't like to fight like that. I haven't fought like that for Invicta and Legacy and LFA, you know, I'm always out to get a finish or at least try to keep. from going to the judge's hand. So to me, yes, that is crazy. Like, first finish in four years and my first win in two years. So it's just, it's crazy in me. When the tap happened, like it looked like there was this invisible weight that just flew off of you. It was like this sort of vindication feeling that, you know, this is the fighter. I've always said that I can be.

And it was right there for everybody to see it. Like, did you feel like just this huge weight lifted when the referee told you? you to stop and the fight was over? Yes, I did. Man, I was excited. I just, I knew, like, if she wasn't going to tap, I mean, I was going to make it, I was going to have to, I was going to have to make that arm not usable for the next round. So, because my legs weren't going to be usable.

So I would have to take something from her. But, man, I'm just, I felt so good after getting, after the ref stepped in, you know, I mean, I, geez, I just felt so much emotion, like, build up. and I just wanted to hug my corner, you know, and just celebrate with everybody. It felt really good, you know. I mean, there was a lot of a lot of doubters out there. I mean, I know even the commentators probably didn't think that my striking was as good as it was. But, I mean, my striking is really good.

I just haven't been able to show it in the last couple of fights. Like, I want to. And so, you know, I felt good out there. You know, I felt calm. I felt honed in. and I was focused. I know, like, heading into your last few fights we were talking, like, there's just some fun matchups that you were a part of,

and you're like, we're going to go out there, we're going to get a, we're going to go out there and get fight of the night. We're going to have a barn burner. We're going to each get fight of the night. This is a performance bonus worthy performance, Andrea. You didn't get it. And I know it got bumped up to $75,000. I know it didn't go your way, but were you a little bums that you didn't get that bonus?

Well, of course I was. But, you know, when you're fighting on a stacked card, it's going to be, it's going to be hard because there's, there's so many incredible athletes, you know, fighting on the same card that you are. And I just knew it was going to be hard. And not to mention the $75,000, the extra bonus, the extra little incentive that it gave to everyone to get a finish. I mean, there was like knockouts and weird finishes all night. So, I mean, I knew it was going to be hard once, once Dana had announced that. Man, it's going to be easy.

You know, I got to go out there and really make this one exciting. But, you know, it happens. I'm just happy, you know, that I got a win. I got finished. I mean, it was a great performance. And regardless of getting the bonus, I'm sure maybe, you know, sometimes, you know, I'm just hoping, like, maybe I'll get like a little locker room bonus. Who knows.

There you go. I think it's well deserved. Dana only gave out, was it two bonuses? He did a fight of the night and two performance bonuses. Yeah. So, I mean, like, he normally, here he has been given out like four bonuses, right? He has, yeah. So that's kind of like the catch 20.

There you go. So hopefully, maybe he'll throw you a couple extra bucks. I think it's well deserved. So is it fair to say that your relationship with fighting in Houston is in a better place than it was 15 months ago? Yeah, let's say. You know, I was kind of, I was worried, you know, I think that like in my interview, I was asked if I was, if there was a slight hesitation to like fight for, fight in Houston. And I said, yeah, there was. I just, I felt like, that I might be on their on the, on their bad side because I did make a post, you know, about the judging and stuff.

So, and how I felt like, you know, judge wasn't paying attention. And that's kind of like what it looked like. anyways, you know, I apologize. I mean, if I offended anybody or whatever, but I, I wasn't, I don't have any, like, qualms with Houston, Texas. I have no issues with Houston, Texas. I have no issues with Texas in general. I'm from Texas, and I love Texas. So, you know, I, of course, if I ever get the opportunity, I want to be able to fight in Texas in front of everybody that, you know, all my loved ones and my fans. But, you know, I am happy that I was able to go out there, and get my hand raised for the first time in Texas.

A couple of times I fought there. I have not gotten my hand raised. It's just never gone my way. So it's exciting to finally have it go my way there. You had mentioned in your post-fight scrum that, you know, you wanted to kind of get back in there pretty quickly, but you also wanted to focus on your boyfriend Tony Kelly's next fight, which should be an absolute barn burner with Trevin Jones on July 24th.

I can't wait for that fight. But are you looking to get in there after that or if the right opportunity comes along, are you willing to jump on something a little sooner? I am willing to jump on something a little sooner. You know, I want to stay busy. I do want to, I want to be able to focus on his fight. But if the opportunity presents itself, you know, and I'm still in great shape, you know, and I'm ready to go, then I would jump on it.

But other than that, you know, I want to be able to focus on his next fight coming up. and then focus on myself. Are you at this point concerned with rankings and titles and all that stuff or did that first run you were on sort of the pressures that come with that? Did that kind of better prepare you for it this time around? Like what's your thought process now in terms of the future after that win? Maybe I'm better prepared for it now. I still, like, I don't want to necessarily like, I don't want to like go online and look up

where I'm at, where am I right now, you know? I'm not, I don't care about that. I didn't really in the beginning, but like I said, people, people want to let you know where you are, you know, and I feel like that kind of puts a little unnecessary pressure on top of everything else, you know, and so I don't necessarily want to think about that or focus about that. I just kind of want to, I want to fight and like, I want to make my way up the rankings. I do because, of course, I want an opportunity to fight for the title, but I don't want it to be in the, forefront of my mind. You know, it's, it's not that it's not what I want to focus on. Yeah, it's, it's interesting you say that. I was talking to Lauren Murphy a few weeks ago. And a lot of people feel like she should be fighting for the title right now after the run that

she's been on. And she's just like, you know what? I'm done like focusing on that. I'm not going to yell for title shots. Like when it happens, like it'll be because I earned the title shot. Like there'll be no questions, nothing. So she doesn't want to put that pressure on yourself like you were talking about. Are you kind of in that same boat right now? Like, you know, give me opponents. I'm not going to say no. I'm just going to go and I'm just going to just enjoy fighting right now. Yes. Yes, I'd say so because, I mean, we have a short window of opportunity to be able to do this.

And I want, I mean, like, I just want to fight. I just want to get out there and have another opportunity like I did Saturday. You know, I want to continue to get my hand raised and put on good performances. And I do want to fight for the title. Don't get me wrong. Of course I do. I mean, that's what I'm working for.

But I also don't want to get caught up focused on necessarily the wrong things, you know, and add more pressure to the pressure that's already there, you know. There's always pressure going into a fight. I mean, I always get butterflies and getting nervous. And, you know, there's always that little bit of anxiety that comes with it. So, you know, I just don't want to. I just don't want to get sidetracked.

I don't want to like, I don't know, get disappointed. I don't want to be disappointed and let myself down. There you go. Just keep the expectations in a healthy place and the chips will fall where they're supposed to. Did you get to watch the rest of the card? I did. There was something that I missed. I missed some.

But I did, when I got back to my hotel room, I was able to finish the rest of the card. And I got to see Matt, Comain and the Maine. what did you think of the main event charles olivera that crazy fight with chanler what did you think of that whole thing yeah that was that was insane because you know uh chanler almost had it won there in the first round and you know he certainly could have finished him but i he ended up on the ground with him and then uh charles was able to recover and then that was just crazy charles coming out there in the next round and he sniped him and wow i mean i was not expecting that i wasn't expecting that at all You know, I mean, I was expecting a great fight, but I thought that maybe Charles would still be trying to recover, you know, and Chandler still had the upper hand, but that's not what happened.

Yeah. I mean, that's, you know, good for him. You know, he's been working for it for so long. So, you know, I mean, it just goes to show. He just keep putting in, putting in blood, sweat, and tears, and put it in the hours and get the fights, you know. I mean, it can happen sometimes. It just takes a little while. Yeah, I mean, you've got to have.

You're probably going to draw some inspiration from that as well. I mean, that was his 28th UFC fight, and that was his first title shot and he's a champion now. So there's no rush, right? Yeah. I mean, he's had so many incredible fights along the way, you know, and he finally got his opportunity. And I'll look at him. We got his hand raised. He's got the strap.

I mean, you know, it's been a long time coming, and, you know, he deserves it. With Instacart, you get groceries that over-deliver so you can over-share your preferences. Want russet potatoes with no brown spots? You got it. Want turnips that look light but feel heavy? Easy. Want honey crisp apples that are firm, green, and definitely not Macintosh like last year

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shop now at ca.pandora.net or visit your closest pandora store Great to see Andrew Lee in such great spirits. Congratulations to her on the big win. And like I said, it was quite noticeable seeing Andrea just sort of free in there. You know what I mean? Like she has just dealt with so much like with her ex-husband and everything that happened in that whole situation. Like she's always had the talent. Like you saw on the regional scene, saw it in Victa.

and now like it's starting to come together. A lot of that negativity is out of her life. And I feel like this version of Andrea Lee could be a big problem at 125 pounds. As we head to our next guest, another individual looking to be a problem in his respective division, the surging Danny Sabatello,

who will look to play spoiler this Friday night in Uncisfill, Connecticut at Bellator 259. All right, let us welcome to the program, the former Titan FC Banimay champion Danny Sabatello, who is set to make his Bellator debut this Friday night, and Mohegan's son is going to take on fellow promotional newcomer, former UFC Bannaway contender Brett Johns at Bellator 259. Danny, good to see you in quarantine, my man. How are you?

I'm doing great. Feeling ready to go, bro. How are you doing? I'm doing great. So right off the bat, congratulations on not only getting this fight, but it was also revealed that you signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator. And this is obviously well-deserved and great news for you. So I'm curious, how this all came to be. Like, when did you find out that, A, you were getting this opportunity, and B, you were also signing an exclusive deal with Bellator MMA? Well, I've been on my manager, Jason House from Meridian Sports,

telling him that I was a big fan of Bellator. You know, I'm at American Top Team. So one of the perks of that is having guys around me in my ear telling me, you know, what I should do, give me an advice. And everyone at ATT has been saying good things about Bellator. So I kind of figured that was the route I wanted to go. so I relayed that message to my manager. We thought something was going to come up or someone was going to get injured or someone

was going to get Corona and I would have a chance to get in. And I think it was last Thursday I got the call for my manager if I want to fight. Brett Johns said, you know, of course, fuck yeah. I'm going to take that any day of the week. And then we just went from there. And now here in Connecticut and ready to fight this guy. It's been a busy year for you, man. This is like, I think this is your fifth fight in the last 12 months.

I mean, and you became the Titan FC champion, defended it, and then you had the contender series win sandwich in between. You didn't end up getting a contract, but as you just said, it seems like things worked out the way it was supposed to. I guess, like, how would you describe this last year or so with all these fights, the opportunities you've been given, and how everything ultimately worked out for you? I would say just, I was continuously progressing, not just in my training, but with the opportunities and everything that was.

happening. I don't really take too much time off. If I don't have an injury, I don't have a sense in taking the time off, relaxing and all that stuff. I'm basically in camp 24-7. You know, I live inside the gym. Of course, obviously, if you get hurt, that's another thing. But the bottom line is, is I love fighting. So I'm always in the gym. And if I'm always in the gym, I'm always going to be prepared to fight. So whenever these fights pop up, no matter what promotion, no matter what the circumstances, I'm going to take it. So that's why I've had. all these fights in the short amount of time is I've been telling my manager and everything, you know, let's go. And might as well just line up fights. You know, if I'm scheduled with one

fight, I'm okay with scheduling a one a month after that and just continually racking up the Ws because I'm very confident in my abilities and when I'm healthy, I don't see the reason why not to fight. You go on the contender series and obviously the reason you go on the contender series is to try to get a freaking contract. So you win a dominant decision. The fight with Taylor Moore was not close, but Dana White ultimately decides to pass on you. So hearing what you're saying now, in the end, is it almost better that you didn't get the contract now? Because you seem like you're happy with the way things panned out.

Your teammates over at ATT were saying good things about Bellator. Is it almost like a blessing in disguise that you didn't get the contract? Yeah, I hope it's a blessing in disguise. You know, hindsight's 2020. But I do think this was a better route for me in the end, not getting that contract. But, you know, we'll never know. Either way, I do feel disrespected till to this day, not getting that contract. You know, a 3024 scorecard, probably the most dominant performance ever on that show.

I don't even know if anyone's ever had a 3024 scorecard. So I was shocked by that. But, I mean, I guess that puts a little bit more of a chip on my shoulder than I landed in Bellator's lap, you know. And I do think it would be for the better. And we'll see. the last time we saw you compete, it was the title defense in February at Titan FC 67. You beat him on Blackshare, which he's a tough guy. And the crowd's booing you because, you know, you're dominating him on the ground.

And then in an Aliaquinta-esque way, you decided to cut yourself a bit of a promo on those people who didn't find your style all that exciting. So why did you feel the need to do that after the win? Like you got, you kept the belts, you got your boat, you got your win. money, why did you feel the need to sort of add the cherry on top of the Sunday and start calling some folks out? Well, just for the haters that don't like me, I'm not going to be one of those guys that just listens to them and tucks my tail between my legs. I'm going to dish it right back at them. You know, if you don't like me, I don't give a fuck. I don't like you. But of course, the people that like me, I like them back. You know, I love fans, you know, everybody that's sharing for me. Of course, that's great.

But I do want people to understand that, you know, this is mixed martial arts. And you might have an idea of where a fight should go or how it should take place. But the bottom line is it takes place wherever I decide it's going to take place. You know, if I want to stand up on the feet, then I will. If I want to take it to the ground, I will. And, you know, one thing about dominating someone that people don't understand is when you dominate somebody, it's not going to be that exciting because it's very one-sided. When a fight is very exciting, you see all these exchanges and scrambles and all that.

So if you're booing me for how dominant I am, it's almost like you're clapping your hands to me because you're saying I'm so much better than this guy. This is boring because all he's doing is beating the shit out of this guy. So I take it as a compliment really, but I do recognize the disrespect in the crowd of booing me. So it's just fuck you. You know, I got the win. You understand that I'm dominating this guy and then time goes on. So is it kind of sucking away that there's going to be no fans on Friday? I mean, you get a couple of media members, the production crew and the commentators,

some Bellator officials, but you don't get to hear the booing or anything like that. Is it better to have the fans? Are you kind of upset that there's going to be nobody there watching you perform? Yeah, I for sure like the fans. You know, I'm a guy that feeds off emotion and energy, you know, whether it's positive, clapping from the fans or even booing. I kind of like that. I think that's what fighting is all about, you know, it's the passion and the energy in it.

You feel that crowd. you feel what they're thinking and everything. I love it. I love the fans there. But, you know, it is what it is. If there's not going to be fans, then that's all right. I would rather fight in front of no fans than not fight at all is the way I look at it. It's really no sweat off my back.

It doesn't affect my performance, I think, without having fans. But I for sure would love to have the fans and play to them. Looks like we're getting pretty close to Bellator getting fans. So this might be the only time you fight in the fight. in the fight sphere, so to speak. So you get Brett Johns, who is one of the big signings last year for Bellator, coming over from the UFC, 17 and 2 record. The only losses are to Al Jemaine Sterling, who's the current UFC Bannamway champion and Pedro

Munoz, and he's coming off the two wins against Montel Jackson and Tony Gravely. You get the chance to come in here, that chip on your shoulder and play a bit of spoiler here. You must be loving this right now. Yeah, I'm going to beat the shit out of the guy. I'm very confident that there's no way that this guy can beat me. The only way he does beat me is if he catches me, but I just think my defense is too intact for him to catch me.

I don't see on the feet him posing me any problems. And then obviously on the ground, I'm a better grappler. I know he's a judo guy from Wales. I've never heard of judo in Wales. Maybe I need to get out more often. But, yeah, I don't think anything he's going to do is going to pose an issue to me, and I'm going to steal his thunder. And I also do expect to dominate him.

I don't want to just win over this guy. I know he's good, you know, but I'm better. So I'm just going to go out there and dominate him. So is he a guy you've been watching for a little while now? Like, do you know a lot about him? Yeah, definitely. Because Pedro Munoz and Tony Gravely are both my teammates at American Top Team. So I've watched those fights, and I've been watching those fights, just like watching

film and everything. So I do know a little bit about him. I've seen his fighting. I've seen, you know, some of his tactics that he does. And I'm excited to get in there and smash his fight. fucking head. Have you had a chance to talk to those guys? Like maybe give you some tips. Like I don't know if you're the kind of guy that looks for tips. You seem to be your own individual at the end of the day. But have you talked to those guys? The fight with Tony was

ridiculous. That was like one of the crazier fights of the year. Yeah, the fight with Tony was crazy. There was just scrambles on scrambles and scrambles. This was a short notice fight. I only found out about this a few days ago. But Tony and Pedro were both in the gym when I was last week. And I did talk to both of them. So just, you know, little things that they said, little tactics that he does, not too much. And me specifically in general, I don't like knowing too much about my opponent. I don't like studying him. But I do want to know certain little details if they have something. You know, if a guy's got a crazy, you know, spinning heel kick, you know, I want to know about that just in case, you know, just in case the fight could end in a second's

notice. I want to know those type details. But they basically said, you know what? You're better than this fucking kid. Go out there and just prove it. I mean, that's what I'm going to do. A win over Brett Johns would be a big one for you. I mean, the Belator Bannemweight Division is pretty exciting right now. We got a new champion in Sergio Pettis. Juan Archilett is there. The former champion, you got guys like Patchy Mix and Rafian Stotz. And of course, James Galaher seems to be the name that all these bannam weights are calling out these days.

How do you feel you stack up against those guys and the rest of this division? Yeah, it's a very exciting time in that Bellator Bantamweight division. And you see those guys getting recognized more and more. I think people are starting to recognize the depth in that weight class, but I see no issues with any of them, especially the champion Sergio Pettus. I mean, I know after this win, I'm not going to get a title shot. You know, it's just not how it goes. But eventually, if I do fight for the belt and it's Sergio, I'll fuck that guy up.

And if he's the best, then you take all those guys below him and I'll do damage to them too. Patchy Mix. I was actually, I was supposed to fight Patchy Mix. That last fight, I got the call from my manager to fill in for James Gallagher to fight Patrick Mix. I said yes. I started cutting the weight. I got a call a couple hours later for my manager, and he said somehow the fight fell through.

So I don't know if Patchy said no or if he was scared or the promotion said no, but that fight was almost going to happen a couple weeks ago. But yeah, I'm hoping to fight that guy somewhere along the line too. I honestly think all these guys are scared in the division, especially when you got a guy hungry as me coming up. And it's just going to be exciting from here on now. Did you watch the Pettus Archiletta fight? I did. Yeah, I was actually surprised how bad Archiletta's wrestling was.

Pettis, when he would get taken down, he popped right back up and he did stuff a lot of those shots. When you face a guy like me, I don't think you're going to be able to defend those shots. and when I get you down, I keep you down. And then also his hands on the feet, he looked good against Archiletta, but I have a little bit of a different style than Archeletta. I don't think it matches up too well for him, but, you know, I guess we'll have to see. Well, first things first, you get a chance to spoil the party on Friday and turn it into the Danny Sabotello show, which I'm sure is exactly what you're hoping for.

How do we get this thing done and how do we insert yourself emphatically into the mix here in this Belator Bannonweight Division? Yeah, I think I impose my will on him, you know, from the get-go. I'm not going to do anything, you know, crazy from the start or any of that, just because when you're the better fighter, you don't want flukes to happen. You know, you don't want randomness. You don't want a slug fight. You just, if you're better, you just have to focus on winning that fight and doing the

fundamentals. So I'm just going to go out there and pose my will, dominate him, maybe take him down, maybe feel him out on the feet, maybe it's a striking match. I don't know. I'm not worried about his striking. But I do think second round, I'll just be battering his face up and I'll get that TKO in the second round. There you go. It's an interesting time. No doubt about that. It should be a hell of a fight. Should be a hell of a card. Belator 24. By the way, who's out there with you? It's going to be Mike Brown, Steve Bruno, and probably King Moe in my corner. Oh, man. That is a murderer's row of cornerman right there. Absolutely.

Danny Sabatel absolutely on fire, ready to make a statement and make a strong move up the Bellator MMA 135 pound divisional ranks as he takes on Brett John should be a pretty damn good fight

and you heard Danny talk about teammates that helped him sort of veer towards the Bellator MMA side after the Contender Series snub and here's someone right now one of those teammates, one who happened to have been a contender series snub.

nub in his own right and having a lot of success for Bellator MMA. Also fighting this Friday in a big fight, let us welcome Austin Vanderford. All right, let us say hello to the undefeated Austin Vanderford, who returns to the Bellator cage this Friday night against Fabian Edwards, big one to 185 pounds at Bellator 259. This is his fourth fight, I believe, in Connecticut. He might have to claim residents there moving forward. Austin, how are you, man? It's good, man.

Yeah, you're correct. This is the fourth line for sure. you know what i was just like thinking about austin like you're back in the bubble you're back in connecticut and i think you've now gotten new experience all four seasons that new england has to offer because you fought in connecticut in the winter the summer the fall and now the spring so how does it feel to be back in the northeast on a fight week uh we you know what when we were pulling up here i was telling page how much i liked uh Connecticut and i like the east coast and it's beautiful so it's cool it's nice especially when we can get out of quarantine and go walk around it's really

nice out and i like to do that just get out breathe the fresh air and just enjoy yeah you got there at the right time because a couple weeks ago when we're out there getting ready for for the bellator event it was it was not as nice as it is right now it was pretty cold and chilly and windy it was more of a wintry vibe than a spring vibe so i think the timing is is good for you but we got to see you compete in november and it was quite the road to get to that fight because you got COVID along the way. Then you were supposed to fight Chris Curtis on that November card. He gets COVID along the way. And then you get a tough fight on short notice against Venetius DeHasus, who the New England fans know exactly how good he is.

And you go out and you get the win. How much did you take away from that whole situation, all the move moving pieces, the adversity to getting your hand raised once again? Yeah. Going into that fight, it was a completely different gameplay. and then what we were preparing for with Chris. But just being professional and just being ready. And I think my skill set is adaptable everywhere. And, you know, I just, I had a task at hand. And I knew what I had to go do.

And we just made the move over to American Top Team in the past year. And, you know, that was huge. And just preparing with everybody there, the coaches, all the training, or all the training partners and whatnot, really, I still felt like, you. even though the opponent changed, I still didn't have any stones left unturned, and I felt confident going into it.

Between that fight and where we're at right now, we saw your wife, Paige Vanzant, make her BKFC debut against Britain Hard. And she fought tough, man. She wasn't able to get the win, but the bare-knuckle world is an island that not a lot of people have the gusto to travel to, and she has done it,

and looks like she's going to be doing it again in a couple months. But as her husband, like, what was that like for you watching her compete in that environment for the first time? it was man it honestly it felt a lot just like getting ready and competing an m-ma fight uh of course there's a there's a little more at stake i guess with uh with the the damage and just being a new venture and whatnot but of course i was extremely proud and especially man her last round i thought she really turned it on and and kind of showed what

she can go forward and do uh in the fights to come so um more than anything thing like, you know, her spirit wasn't broken and, and we learned from it and we knew, you know, there was, there's a learning curve. And I think one of the biggest advantages in bare knuckle is just experience and going in there and doing it because it's just so, uh, it's different than what we've become accustomed to, you know, with having pads on our hands and whatnot going to, to bear knuckle and not really knowing, you know, are our hands going to break? You know, how many shots can I take before I'm completely sliced up and all that? So really confident, excited for her next fight.

And yeah, I was just, I was extremely proud. Of course, we were both bummed out and felt like it was a fight she could win. But, you know, going into it, Britain had quite the experience over her. I think it was like her fourth or fifth fight. And, you know, it just was a big, big eye opener. And even going just to the round lengths, you know, being so short and knowing like how much we can really put on the gas pedal. you know, from the opening minutes to the rest of the fight. So, yeah, kind of cool.

But, yeah, it kind of hard to watch, you sure. Yeah, I bet. I mean, listen, it's never fun to lose a fight, but, you know, win or lose experience is always won and gained in every contest. And you sort of alluded to that yourself. But what did she take away from that first fight that's been, like, really noticeable from your perspective?

Like, I'm sure she, like, licked her wounds a little bit and was like, eh, you know, it sucks to lose. but was she just like raring to get right back in there when when you know she was kind of over it? Yeah, she she was ready to get back in and she, you know, she's a fighter, man. She's tough. Despite what, you know, some people think she's tough, man. And that's the biggest thing. And, you know, she's ready to get back after it.

And we're excited for the next fight for sure. So some good momentum coming into this fight for. ATT as well, because a couple weeks ago, we said Johnny Eblen have himself a night a couple of weeks ago. It gets the big knockout win. Daniel Madrid is a, as a stud man. He's a guy that's very high on the list of like kind of making that next step in his career. And Johnny treated him accordingly. I know you've worked to them a little bit in preparation for this fight. How exciting was that for you to watch Johnny put on a performance like that? It was awesome, especially because before Chris Curtis, that was my original opponent was Daniel Madrid. So I had been prepared.

preparing for him. I think he got hurt or whatever and fell out and all that. So yeah, you know, it's pretty, it was pretty awesome. I'm, uh, I love Johnny. He's a great teammate, great guy and really happy to see him go out and have the success. And I'm just happy for the, the ATT team and all of us just, you know, I want us all to just go out and steamroll everyone, you know, and I think it's a really cool dynamic and a family and everyone supports one of us. another and in our dreams and all that. So I was super happy for Johnny. He's like I said, really good guy and, you know, deserved it for sure. He gets in there and works hard. Has he tie you about Bitcoin and cryptocurrency at all? Because, I mean, you saw that little

thing on his shirt, man. Yeah, we've talked to we talked a little bit. He's really into it for sure. So it's pretty cool. But no, I haven't gotten into that yet. I haven't either. But it was a funny you can scan my shirt right now and get some Bitcoin in your life. Yeah, genius. Spireman. You've had some good tests along the way in your Bellator run, Austin, but this one feels like the big one, at least thus far in your career. Like Fabian Edwards, like yourself, one of the top prospects at 185.

He's coming off a tough loss against Costello von Steenus, but he's a gamer. He comes from a fighting family, and the winner of this one takes a big step forward in this division towards the top. Like, how did you react to seeing Fabian's name and the other side of that contract? I was excited. I've kind of alluded to it before, but he was a guy that I had on my radar and I knew at some point our paths would cross and whatnot. So to get that fight opportunity, I was really happy, really excited.

And, you know, I agree. It's a big fight for me, but I see all my fights is my toughest fight, my toughest fight, my toughest test. So, you know, I don't take anybody lightly. And I'm excited to go out there on Friday night for sure. And I think there'll be fireworks. Yeah, because this seems like the quintessential breakdown the wall kind of fight for you and get to the other side. Like you've talked a bunch of times over the years. Like you've always had this take it a fight at a time approach to your career.

And it served you in your mentality very well. But do you look at this fight as not just a step forward in this division, but a big leap forward to get you in that conversation with the gay guards and the John Salters. Like, are you, at this point, like, are you thinking about that? Is it a little more clear to you? Yeah, for sure. I mean, I, you know, my goal is set on being a world champion and, you know, and I know who has that title. And I also know the guys who are buying for it as well that are ahead of me and whatnot.

But yeah, you know, I just, I think each time I fight, each time I compete is just to go out there and improve how good I am and in the skill sets that I have. And, you know, this one really isn't any different than that. You know, I've got, we've got our game plan. We got our strategy. And we're just going to go on execute. And I feel confident. And I feel like, you know, the sound, the pressure that I'm going to be able to put on him is going to serve me well for the fight.

And, you know, I think, of course, I think it'll open up more eyes because he's got a bigger name than anyone I fought. Yeah. But, you know, I think along the way, I've surprised people each fight. And, you know, I think this one will be nice. no different. So you're not looking at this like in your mind. Like if I win, I'm next in line to to fight the winner of Gayguard and Salter, because you assume that's the fight. It seems that's the direction later on the summer. But do you feel like if you go out there and put on a show and do what you expect to do that you could get the winner of that fight? Like, are you even thinking

about that right now? Man, it's tough for me to. I'm so locked in to Fabian and going out there and beating him. But of course, in the back of my mind, I know it's coming. I know it's soon and uh you know of course we talk about it and whatnot but man when i when i have when i have an opponent you know i like to joke around like man i'm ready to just go fight because i'm tired to think about this person i'm tired to think about the same and uh i'm to that point you know i i just want to go out and fight fabian and i'm sick of thinking about him and uh you know it's tough i i just have tunnel vision right now but uh you know i'm excited for after it because i you know I know in the back of my mind what what is to come and all that.

Like I said, I want to go out and deserve it. I want to earn all that. And, you know, I think a good performance will bring me to that. This is a very Tom Brady-esque approach to this, to this fight game. You have Austin Vanderpher. This is impressive. Is Fabian a guy that you've watched a lot of? Is he a guy that, you know, you're really familiar with the style?

I'm sure you've been more familiar since the fight's been signed. But is he a guy that you've been paying attention to? Yeah. You know, I've thought about, man, maybe right after I got signed with Bellator, you know, seeing him or especially once I moved up to 185, seeing his name and seeing him, I definitely have had my eyes on him. And, you know, like I said, I knew we'd cross past. I knew we were both talented guys and both guys who were on the rise and whatnot. So I have watched a lot. My coaches, of course, have watched a lot.

You know, yeah, I'm excited, man. It's a This is the part that sucks Just sitting around You know Waiting in And just to go and get it done You know

But to answer your question Yes I have seen a lot A lot of him and a lot of his fights How much better is life at 185 A thousand times I Sometimes I'll say the page like Ah maybe

Should I go back to 170 And she's like I'll kill you a few I'm walking around at like 210 Like yeah you know I think I could And we're like, no, it's so much better.

And it's just, it's more fun. It's more enjoyable. And, you know, fight week here. It's not like I got to kill myself to make 185. And, you know, I'll probably come in a little smaller Friday night. But, you know, that's the way it goes. And I'm happy to sacrifice giving up a little size against someone. Just enjoy life and enjoy my training.

And, you know, not feel like I have to go in. and train just to lose weight, but I can go into train to get better in MMA and become better martial artists and all that. And I think it's just more healthy. It's a healthier thing. And hopefully more people do it in the future. And yeah, I'm definitely saying at 185, not ever going back to 170. So what do you, where are you at right now?

Like how much you have to cut to get there right now? Oh, I was. Gosh, I was like 202, a little little. bit ago, I think, this morning. So did it work out, though, it got down to like 194 and a half. I can sweat like crazy. So, you know, it's not really nothing crazy. Just clean eating for for the week or whatever and just really work on getting any of that extra fat off and then doing a big water cut. And I'm pretty good at doing that. There you go. So how do we, how do we get this thing done? How do you go about picking up the biggest win of your career and putting you in this prime spot in the

middleweight division. How do you see this all playing out? I think just going out and not forgetting what got me here, putting on the pressure, putting on, you know, just being intense and going out there and doing things with conviction. And when I see the openings, making sure I capitalize on it. Mike Brown's going to be a busy guy on Friday, isn't he? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We got the whole stable of coaches out here. Mike Brown, my head coach, Bahumpa, Anderson, King Moe will be. here. There's a lot of really good coaches. So you got to feel confident going into it with the guys that we got with us. So we got a we got a good stable of fighters coming out here representing Friday night as well. Yeah, Danny Sabatelow. I talked to him earlier. That guy is a, is a fire,

cracker to say the least. He's ready to go and and proves people wrong. And I feel like you and him are kind of similar in a way because both of you fought in the contender series. Both of you had dominant wins and got passed over. And now both of you are locked, signed sealed in delivered with Bellator. So has he talked to you at all because of this like sort of similar path that you guys have been on? Because you're both at ATT now. Yeah, definitely. Yeah, I love Danny. He's such a good guy. I was pumped. When I saw his name come up, I was going through Twitter and I saw someone say like, Danny Somatel him. I was like, fuck yeah, man. Yeah, you know, I told him, I was really happy to see that. Danny, Danny's a really hard worker on the team, a really talented

kid as well and I thought, you know, another guy who kind of got screwed over on the contender series. And so we have, we've talked, he's like, he's asked me in the past, it was like a month ago he was talking to me. I was like, dude, you have the opportunity, man, go to Bellator. Like, if they call you up on a short notice fight or whatever, man, take that going, you know, because I know how talented and tough he is. He's always in the gym. He's ready to go. Like you said, really intense guy. And yeah, I was pumped, man. I'm really happy. And so yes, I'm tried to sway him to sign with Bellatory too. I was like, man, they like us wrestlers, buddy.

Come over here. I mean, such a nice guy, right? Austin Vanderford, that fight with Fabian Edwards on Friday should be a fun one because it's really hard to look good fighting either of these guys. So it's going to be a grinder on that main card of Bellator 2.59 this Friday night on showtime. As we get ready to head to our final guest of the show this week, Of course, a big shout out to all of you once again for checking out the show.

However, you may do so, whether it's in video form or wherever you find your favorite podcasts. It is much appreciated. It means a lot. Big thank you to Casey Leiden on the production, Jose Youngs and Alex Savis on the graphics and social media side. I appreciate all of you. Again, thank you for watching. Have a heck of a week, everybody. We will leave you with my chat with UFC middleweight, Phil Haas.

All right. Happy to be joined right now by one of the big winners from this past Saturday in Las Vegas, Nevada. Phil Haas gets a unanimous decision win over Kyle Daucus, fun fight, pretty dominant performance. Happy to have Phil on the show here for the first time. Phil, how are you, man? Hey, bro, I'm always good. How are you feeling? I'm feeling great. You're probably feeling a little bit better than I.

I had my second COVID shot yesterday, and it's kind of knocked me on my, I'm by Tush a little bit, but we got a barrel through. I mean, you just fought for 15 hard minutes, so I have no excuse. is here, Phil Haas. For sure, for sure. We all got our own battles, so yeah. Try to make me feel better about myself. I appreciate that. So, I mean, it was a great performance, three rounds of dominance. Two of the judges gave you 30-26s. One of the judge gave him one of the rounds. Be that as a May, you got two paychecks in your hand-raise.

How does it all feel a few days later? Just like you said, it feels great to get two checks. You know, that's always the goal. Just blessed, blessed and fortunate that God gave an opportunity to. They showcase my skills like that on Saturday. Can I ask you from your perspective how that fight came together because there seems to be a little bit of confusion in the air with the whole Duran win situation,

which I'm sure we're going to talk about in a moment since you're going to be fighting him in July. But you had signed to fight Duran first, right? And then this opportunity came to be. Is that what happened? Yeah, exactly, man. I like to stay active and I truly believe him the best in the world. And I feel like no one can touch me.

So I got books for Duran and then the opportunity came up. My manager, Danny Rube, he hit me up and was like, hey, do you want to fight? I think it was like three or two weeks. So you want to fight this guy? I'm like, all right, yeah, let's do it. It doesn't matter who it is, you know? It doesn't matter if it's two or three, four, 10, 12. I believe I'm the best.

So it doesn't matter how you shuffled the deck. I'm going to come out on top. So the plan was like when you said yes to this fight, you were like, fine, I'll just do both. Like I'll fight this dude and then in July I'll fight Duran too. Exactly. Yeah, I just, I think it goes to show how the U.S.C. has faith in me and believes in me, you know, I don't think a lot of fighters are getting double booked. You know, a lot of people, a lot of fighters say, like, oh, I'll fight this guy, I fight this guy. I want to fight, then I fight this guy, but a lot of people aren't doing that. I think I'm one of the only that are getting double booked and actually going through with it. Yeah, it was like you and Shama, like Shami, like Shamiy have got double booked last year. It didn't happen. This is like the rare double booking that actually looks like it's going to happen.

And I had no idea that Duran win fight was happening. Like we had reported you and you and Dachas, but then Duran Wynn goes on social media and says that you were being disrespectful and that you taking the fight against Kyle Daucus means that in essence, you did not want to fight him. So I know you're not like a massive Twitter guy, but were you aware of these comments from Duranwin? I hear that I so I keep my circle small and my my my circle knows not to involve me in negativity so uh that sounds like negativity uh so not I hear a little bit about it through the great mind but man I don't pay attention to stuff like that Doron can talk I mean I think he's just he should be honored to even fight you know what I mean still fighting for the big promotion he's missed wait a ton of times got pop by Usada like dude just just show a fight like we're going to fight but like back, sit down, like, calm down. Well, we'll talk about that July 17th date in a moment, but let's talk about your performance this past Saturday against Kyle Docas, because Kyle is a tough dude. He's a very legit prospect at 185.

And to me, I felt like this is a perfect matchup for where you're trying to get to. Like, you're not in a massive rush. I feel like you paid your dues very early in your career with some of the names you faced right off the bat. Did you feel the same way? Like, did you know a lot about Kyle? And did you feel like, you know what? I want to get to the top 15.

I want to get to those guys. not in a giant rush to get there, but Kyle's like a really good next step to get to where I want to be. I didn't look at Kyle as the next step. I looked at it got Kyle as just a point in front of me, you know, just like I said, I believe I'm the champion of the world as we speak right now. So I knew Caldawkins was tough. I knew I knew what he brought, his durability.

And I like to face that adversity. You know, I still thought I was going to knock him out, you know, but not because he's a bad fighter just because I believe in myself. And I didn't get the finish, but I got to win and I got to showcase some more of my skills and gain more experience and just all coming intuition to get me ready for prepare for my five-round fight with Izzy. He got you pretty good in the early stages of the second round with the spinning back fist. But you were able to, you know, you said you like to face that adversity.

You were able to clinch up with him. You got your wits to you and then you were able to finish the round strong. How badly were you hurt in that moment? I don't think it's a necessary hurt thing. It's like a shock. Like you just get stunned, you know. I didn't expect that. I ducked under the kick and I didn't expect him to come back with a spinning back fist.

You know, like we're doing spinning spinny shit. Like, you know, I'm just trying to figure. But, yeah, he called me good. That was clever on his part. I'm going to definitely keep my hands up from now on. Thank you for the lesson learned. So here's one thing I felt was. so essential about your win, this one in particular, I think you've officially removed that stigma

that casual fans have attached to you that you're a first rounder bust fighter. Like, for some reason, like, especially after the debut, people are like, oh, if you get him out of the first round, like, he's, he's, you can get him. But yeah, the fight with Imovov went the distance too. You showed a lot of heart in that fight. But this one was like a different thing. Like, you were getting better as the fight progressed. Like, I know you're, you don't involve.

of yourself in negativity and you have the small circle that likes you to stay positive. But have you heard that sort of stigma about yourself that like he's going to gas after the first round if he doesn't get me out of here? Yeah, yeah, of course. But to that stigma, I always say like, because I know that's how people game playing, like, okay, I'm going to drag them into the third round. But the thing is like, you guys aren't going to, what makes you think you guys are going to make it pass the first round?

You know what I mean? That's my mindset. And Dawkes made it past the first round and he, you know, I was still there for the third round, you know what I mean? So, like, I know people are still going to game plan, getting past the first, getting past the first, but guys don't plan on getting past the first. Like, if your game plan is to take a beating, let me beat you up until I gas myself out. I mean, that's not, doesn't sound like good game planning. You might not make it past it. But, yes, it always feels good to sound haters and doubters who say I can't go three rounds.

There you go. There's proofs in the pudding. And we're just going to keep getting better. Is it nice that you have Duran lined up already? Like I know we kind of like touch on this earlier, but it's like, like we said, it's the rare double booking that actually seems to have worked out. But are you happy it's like this fight locked in or do you wish that in a way you were a little bit more open-ended that you could have some more options? And this is no disrespect to Duran. You already feel like you're the world champion, but maybe get you something a little closer to having that shiny number next to your name.

You know what I mean? What's, man, yeah, so it always feels good knowing that I have a set date to showcase. my skills and display what I worked on. So whether it be Duran win or ready to be Izzy, you know, I'm just appreciative that the UFC gave the opportunity to showcase my skills on a set date, you know what I mean? So I'm just honored to be here, you know. What are your thoughts on Duran as an opponent? I mean, he was on the two, a little bit of a schneide.

He came back and got a win over Antonio Ojo and kind of knocked him out of the promotion. But what are your thoughts from a stylistic perspective on Duran win as an opponent? I haven't really watched too much on him. I don't really watch too much of my punts, but I know he's a wrestler, tough wrestler. Um, the DC,

you know, um, yeah, it's going to be tough. It's going to be tough. Of course, like every fight's tough, and I'm going to prepare for it,

you know, uh, a lot of people talk smack and talk, you know, all that, but like, when you hear me say things like, like,

I'm a knock you out, I'm a knock him out. Or like I said, it's not because I feel like they're inadequate. It's just I believe in myself and my skill's so bad. And I just believe myself in the skills so bad. And I feel like I'm going to finish him.

Have you fought anybody as short in stature as Duran? Like, he's a pretty small guy for the weight class. And because of that, it makes his wrestling transitions a little bit easier for him on the feet because he does have that low center of gravity. He's short, but he's like, but he's very, very strong. Have you fought anybody kind of like it, like that before? No, I haven't seen him on an actual person to the gauge how high, how tall and whatever is. But I know he's going to come ready. We have a guy on my team, Logan Storley, and he fights in Bellatory.

He's a 170-pounder, and he's a little shorter than me, but I know his wrestling is, like, top-notch wrestling, you know what I mean? So he's going to help me prepare for that. Pat Down's going to help me prepare for that. I know DeRown's going to come ready. I know he's got D.C. in his corner. So what's going to do what we're going to do? I haven't fought anyone his stature, but I'm excited to figure it out. You know, my last few opponents were the other guy was 6-6.

This, Kyle Dawkins is 6-3. Nasda Dean was 6-3 You know what I mean So it's good to fight It's one little shorter How is, have you seen Logan This week at all? Because I know he was supposed to fight

On that Bellator card And he weighed in Got up to the ceremonial face-offs And we were told Because I was out there covering the event Like 30 minutes before He was about to start That the fight was off

So have you talked to him? Yeah, I see him today at practice Yeah, he said that he's gonna get rebooked In four weeks or so like that They got a date, just not an opponent So I'm happy that he gets to perform as well. There you go. How close do you think you are to that Israel-Ad-Sanya fight?

He's about to fight Martin Vittori. You mentioned his name multiple times in this conversation. You know, you say it. Maybe it comes true. We put it out there in the world. But how close do you think you are to that fight? Man, like I always say, it's not Izzy. I'm hunting for him, hunting for the belt.

And Izzy happens to have the belt. You know, there's no ill will towards Izzy. We were friends back in the day. We should follow each other on Instagram. but then when I started winning fights in the UFC, he unfollow me. So I know he's, yeah, yeah, I know it's weird. I know he's watching. How close am I?

Man, like I said, crazy things happen to the sport. Remember, we had Al-Agupta. He wasn't in the top 15. He fought could be for the title. We have Joe Soto. He would think it was his first fight in the UFC. He got a title shot. You know what I mean?

Ray Borg, he got a title shot. And I don't think he was he earned that? I don't know how the- Yeah, they rebooked that one a few different times. Yeah, so, man, crazy opportunities happen all the time of the sport. And if the opportunity pops up, I'm definitely going to be there to take it to seize it. So are you and Izzy, like, did you guys talk a lot? Or was it just like a follow each other on social media?

No, he came down to Black Zillions when Rumble Johnson was supposed to fight John back in the day. And I was at Black Zillions at the time. And we kind of weren't like best friends, but we clicked. He would show me some techniques, you know what I mean? He's got high, high, high level striking, you know? He showed me one of the techniques I still used to this day. And I was like maybe six or five years ago. We followed each other on Instagram.

I had a hard time finding fights. And I hit him up and he hit me up with promoters. He gave me the names, like trying to help me find fights and things like that. So we were always cool. You know what I mean? Then one day I was like, what? Is he didn't follow me with that? You know, so it's a little weird.

So I know he's watching. So it's cool. It's cool. This is while you were in the UFC that this happened? When he unfollow me? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, wow. So we were cool until I got in the UFC and then, you know, follow me.

So it was weird. But I guess it's competition now. So let's get it. There you go. You don't take that personally, right? It's just part of the game. Part of the game. Yeah, yeah. Well, there you go. And your game continues on July 17th. The double booking pans out. Duron win. Very exciting stuff, man. This is a very busy year for you. So that's good. You might fight like seven times this year at this point. Let's get it. I think I've been to the USC maybe seven or eight months. This is my It's going to be my fourth fight, so I'm staying busy. There you go. Phil, congratulations on the win, and I look forward to seeing you back in there on July 17th.

Hey, thank you, brother. Thank you for having me. You're listening to the Vox Media Podcast Network.