Steve
Erceg is done putting his opponents on a pedestal.
Erceg had a wildcard entry into the
UFC flyweight title picture. “Astro Boy” challenged Alexandre
Pantoja for the title in his fourth UFC fight and came up
short. Erceg then went on to drop two more against top contender
Kai
Kara-France and former champ Brandon
Moreno. The Australian has since rebounded with a narrow
unanimous decision win over Ode
Osbourne, who fought him on 11 days’ notice.
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Erceg (13-4) is now scheduled to fight veteran Tim Elliott
(21-13) at UFC Perth
on May 2. Erceg plans to have less respect for his opponents going
forward. Having fought a streak of elite opponents, Erceg admits
that he put them on a pedestal going into his fights. However, the
30-year-old has now realized that he can hold his own against the
best fighters in the world.
Just Normal People
“Less respect for my opponents [going forward], basically,” Erceg
told Australian MMA. “There has to be a respect, but
I think I was looking at them a little bit too much like, ‘Oh, he
must know something that I don’t. He’s been fighting for this…
blah, blah.’ I just looked at them like they were on a pedestal.
And the more I experienced things, the more I realized they’re just
normal people, tough guys, and I’m one of those guys
too.”
Elliott has seen it all at flyweight in a UFC career spanning
nearly a decade. The 39-year-old is coming off consecutive
submission wins over upcoming prospects Su Mudaerji
and Kai
Asakura.