Nasrat Haqparast thinks he's hit his prime 14 fights into UFC career
He's fought consistently and mostly has avoided major layoffs. Still, on paper, to see the Moroccan with more than a dozen fights in the UFC, and he's not yet 30, it almost seems like an anomaly.
But that experience early in his career is what Haqparast (17-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is counting on when he takes on Esteban Ribovics (14-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) in a lightweight bout on the UFC Fight Night 253 (ESPN+) main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Haqparast thinks he's hitting his prime, and Ribovics, around a -250 betting favorite, is about to be next on a current four-fight winning streak.
'This is my 14th UFC fight – it's a lot of experience,' Haqparast said Wednesday at a media day for the event. 'I've stopped hyping up too much – 'Oh, I'm going to do this,' or do that. I'm just going to come Saturday and perform to my best, and I think it's going to be a great fight.
'… I'm kind of a veteran – 14 UFC fights; this is. my eighth year in the UFC. – I signed when I was very young. But it excites me a lot because stylistically, this matchup is really – it's very violent. I look forward to Saturday, and I can say the same about Esteban. I like him. He seems like a respectful person, a hard worker, he's talented – but Saturday, we're going to throw some bombs.'
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie's event hub for UFC Fight Night 253.
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