USA’s Neil Magny will take on Canadian Mike Malott in front of the latter’s home crowd at the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) 297 in Toronto on Sunday.
The welterweight bout will see two polarising grapplers go head-to-head. While Magny has been in the UFC circuit for more than a decade, Malott has entered the octagon just four times, making him a rather inexperienced fighter.
However, ‘The Haitian Sensation’ feels superior experience can only help a fighter to a certain extent and says the end result will always boil down to the amount of preparation one has had ahead of a fight.
“There are situations where MMA and math don’t work together. Have I beaten big names in the past? Yes definitely. But what I have done lately is the question to be asked. Sure, I have 40 fights under my belt compared to Mike, who has just fought four, but the preparation is what matters,” said Magny in an exclusive interaction with Sportstar.
“If I sit there and think, ‘Oh, I’m the more experienced fighter, I can win it’, I’ll be wrong. It’s just not how it works. I have to be physically and mentally prepared to the fullest before each fight, and I’ve done just that this time,” he added.
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It’s not just longevity that’s impressive about Magny, but the way he’s kept himself constantly occupied throughout his career. The 36-year-old once held the record for being the quickest to take part in 20 fights, back when he was new to the UFC.
“Those were my initial years, where I took up every opportunity to fight. One of the cool things about that time period was that my coaches had full faith in me. Even when I took up back-to-back fights, they were like, ‘You got this!’. They controlled my training so well and managed my schedule to the fullest. We had a very packed schedule at that time, and we gave no thought to the duration between each fight,” Magny said.
Eleven out of Magny’s 28 wins have been outright finishes — seven by knockout and four by submission — and the veteran says he will look to emulate this finishing instinct against Malott.
“For sure, I’m going to add Mike to my tally of finishes come Saturday night. I want to put pressure on him right from the start and come out victorious. I’d like to start this year with a win, and it will certainly be a step in the right direction. It’s not just important to go out there and get these wins; you have to go out there and get those in an impressive fashion,” quipped Magny.
His recent form has been inconsistent though. The American has two wins and three losses in the last five fights; he is coming into the weekend’s fight on the back of a unanimous decision loss against Ian Garry.
“The last match was a huge opportunity for me to go out there and show what I could’ve done. But in hindsight, I definitely needed more preparation. But I can’t be upset about my previous fights. But for this weekend, I’ve tried to rectify my mistakes, prepared well, and will try to give my best on Saturday,” he said.
While Magny reveals he’s nowhere near the dawn of his fighting career, he has become a bit cautious in picking his fights, keeping his age and fitness in mind.
“Now everything has changed. Back then, it was easy, as I just had to take care of myself, but now I’m a father of two and have to run my business as well. So, life is a bit different now; it isn’t as easy as it was that time,” he concluded.
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