After recently celebrating his 40th birthday, heavyweight Junior Dos Santos truly believes age is just a number. Dos Santos admits that things didn’t end the way he would have liked them towards the end of his stint in the UFC.
However, after changing some things up the 40-year-old knockout specialists says he feels like he did at the beginning of his career. And now he has the opportunity to add another world title to his mantle on March 2nd against the undefeated Alan Belcher for Jorge Masvidal’s, Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA.
Dos Santos is coming off a decision win over Fabricio Werdum, while Belcher outlasted Roy Nelson to win a decision in his last outing. Dos Santos talks to Zenger News about his upcoming fight, new approach to fighting, and much more.
Junior Dos Santos comments on recently turning 40 years old.
I feel great. I feel very good actually. As I tell my friends, it’s a privilege to do what we love to do and to feel as good as we feel. I feel great about myself, my life, the decisions I’m making in my life. Everything is good and I’m looking to show this on March 2nd in Orlando.
The importance of ending his five-fight losing streak against Fabricio Werdum.
That was a very important fight and very important moment in general for my career and for my life. I’m a guy that wants to show work and show that I am here for whatever. The last years of my life, even in the UFC, I wasn’t feeling as good as I should have been. Instead of stopping and taking care of myself and my mind, I was just pushing. Pushing forward and making things happen, and things started to happen and not in a good way. I had some bad moments in my career.
After not having some fights and having good people around me, supporting me, and having the right approach to things to make me see things like I wasn’t seeing them before, it was great. My Argentinian friend, he’s always at my fights, and he will be at this one as well, we talk all the time. He was one of the guys that really made me see some things. We got to a point that made me understand the scenario very well.
At the beginning of my career, I was fighting to win. I was very anxious, very nervous, but I was pushing to win. Later in my career, I was fighting not to lose. And it was the same thing, I had a lot of anxiety and nervousness. I was not enjoying the moment. My last fight was the first time I fought only against my opponent. That made a big difference.
So, I’m going there not to win, not to lose, I’m going there to fight. I’m going to show who I am and all of the skills I have. Whatever happens-happens. I know that we don’t have control of anything. Right now, at 40 years old, I was finally able to understand that reality. We cannot control anything. The best thing you can do is just show up and give 100% of what you got. That’s my approach now and I feel a big difference because of that.
Approach to slowing down the red-hot Alan Belcher.
Alan Belcher has great experience with the bareknuckle thing. No doubt he is coming strong for this fight, but I’m ready for him. I’m ready to get that belt around my waist. I’m a boxing guy, I know he likes to box, and that makes the perfect fight for me. I want to go in there and trade some good punches with him and see who is there to win. I want to see who can knock the other one out or connect on some good punches to the face.
If you’re going to be in Orlando, you gotta go to this fight. If you can’t be there, you gotta watch this fight, because this fight will 100% be a pure war. I’m ready for it. I’m ready to put on a great show for all of you guys. You cannot miss it.
March 2nd Title Fight
You’re going to see the best of me out there. I’m not focusing solely on winning, or not losing, or anything. I’m there to fight. I’m there to put on the best performance of my career. The entire year, my goal is to have people enjoy my fights and watching me fight.
People come up to me and tell me that they enjoy watching me fight and that’s the focus now. It would mean a lot to win the inaugural heavyweight title for Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA. I feel like I did in the beginning of my career. There is so much to show you guys. I want to keep my career going. Whatever it takes, I’ll be there to put on a good show.
(Additional reporting provided by Miriam Onyango)
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