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Steve Garcia OK losing his finishing streak in the name of big-picture UFC ascension
Steve Garcia OK losing his finishing streak in the name of big-picture UFC ascension

USA Today

time2 days ago

  • Sport
  • USA Today

Steve Garcia OK losing his finishing streak in the name of big-picture UFC ascension

Garcia's KO streak snapped at five, but wins keep coming Steve Garcia kept a streak this past Saturday, but lost one, too. When his MMA timeline gets long enough, though, the 33-year-old featherweight suspects his unanimous decision win over Calvin Kattar at UFC on ESPN 70 in Nashville will have a pin in it as a key moment on his resume. Garcia (18-5 MMA, 7-2 UFC) put on a dominant and well-rounded standup display in his win over Calvin Kattar (23-10 MMA, 7-8 UFC). And though Kattar is in the midst of a hefty slump – five straight losses after Garcia was done with him, and six setbacks in his past seven – he's long been considered a stiff test in the division. Garcia had to go the distance to get his hand raised for the first time since 2018 – before he was in the UFC. Going into the Kattar fight, in which he was nearly a 2-1 favorite, he had five straight finishes. But with that streak snapped, he thinks he proved he's got more than just knockout power. "I've been wanting a fight like this for a while," Garcia told MMA Junkie Radio. "I thought I was going to get it with Edson (Barboza) in February (before Barboza pulled out), but that's OK. Timing's everything. We got Kattar, and Kattar's a phenomenal striker. I think I was the better boxer, though. "I think everyone wants to set the bar high. That's what I was trying to do: I was trying to knock out Kattar. … That's just how I fight. I always go for the KO. But I get a lot of backlash because everyone thinks I'm reckless or I don't know how to fight properly. … But I just knew with a veteran like Kattar, you go with someone like that who's been in the game for such a long time, who's knocked out people, such a vet – you can tell the difference in there. He's always dangerous." In his five knockouts leading into the fight with Kattar, Garcia had three post-fight bonuses in wins over Chase Hooper, Seung Woo Choi and Kyle Nelson. And those are great. But at his gym, Jackson-Wink MMA in Albuquerque, N.M., he's being told to not obsess and tie emotion to wanting to finish fights. It's a message he's trying to take to heart. With six straight wins, and increasing levels of opponent quality on paper, Garcia knows he's creeping up on title contention – but he's not trying to insert his name into the conversation ahead of schedule. That's why a win over Kattar was so important, and despite no knockout, it showed, he thinks, that he can compete with the elite at 145 pounds. "I came into this sport to be at the top," Garcia said. "I didn't really boast about any of my accomplishments leading up to any of this. … You guys understand how deep the 145 bracket is. To even have that conversation about a main event or pushing toward a title shot, it just seemed so far out of reality that I wasn't going to stumble over all that conversation and even make that a situation until there's actually some substance behind that. "I wanted to make sure we got to this position before we could even have this legitimate conversation. The five-rounders are a very high possibility now. I believe I can compete with anybody at the top."

Reinier de Ridder won't mind if Dricus Du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev wins at UFC 319
Reinier de Ridder won't mind if Dricus Du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev wins at UFC 319

USA Today

time3 days ago

  • Sport
  • USA Today

Reinier de Ridder won't mind if Dricus Du Plessis or Khamzat Chimaev wins at UFC 319

Reinier de Ridder has a vested interest in the UFC 319 main event. De Ridder (20-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) will look to emerge into title contention when he takes on former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (26-8 MMA, 17-6 UFC) in the UFC on ABC 9 main event July 26 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Less than a month later, Dricus Du Plessis (23-2 MMA, 9-0 UFC) defends his middleweight title against undefeated Khamzat Chimaev (14-0 MMA, 8-0 UFC) in the Aug. 16 main event from United Center in Chicago. De Ridder sees pros and cons to either fighter winning when it comes to his title run. "I think if it's going to be Khamzat, then it might slow everything a bit down because he doesn't really fight that often," De Ridder told MMA Junkie Radio. "So, that being said, it would be nice if it's Dricus, but I don't really mind too much. "Khamzat would be nice because he's more of a guy with hype behind him than Dricus does, even with Dricus being the champ. But we'll see. We'll see what happens, and I imagine I'll be fighting both of them before next year's over anyway." De Ridder has surprised in his UFC run so far, scoring finishes of Gerald Meerschaert, Kevin Holland, and most recently formerly unbeaten Bo Nickal at UFC on ESPN 67 in the span of six months. Nickal to Whittaker is a big step up in competition for the former ONE dual champion, but De Ridder doesn't see Whittaker underestimating him. "I don't know, he's not much of a trash talker anyway," De Ridder said of Whittaker. "I doubt we'll hear if he still doubts me, but we're going to find out. As you guys saw, the fights have been going very well, and I feel like I've really improved, as well, over the last year. Just because of the sheer amount I've been training with the guys of the highest level. So I don't think he's really doubting me, but we'll see."

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