There was a method behind the madness of Mauricio
Ruffy’s post-fight callout of
UFC lightweight champion Islam
Makhachev last weekend.
Advertisement
“Since I beat his best sparring partner (Raimond
Magomedaliev) in a higher weight class (170 pounds) on the
Contender Series, I thought it was a good moment to make a
statement,” Ruffy told Sherdog.com. “After all, the UFC lightweight
champion guaranteed [Magomedaliev] was going to be the new king of
the 170-pound division. And Magomedaliev is really tough. Before
facing me, he beat the 2023 PFL light heavyweight champ, Impa
Kasangany, who fights three divisions above.”
Ruffy has made a habit of knocking out sparring partners of
high-profile fighters. Last year, he scored a first-round stoppage
of Corneliu
Lascar Rotaru, who has trained with Irish superstar Conor
McGregor.
“A few months before receiving the invitation to the Contender
Series, I broke my left hand in the first fight of the Centurion FC
Grand Prix, when I knocked out Conor
McGregor sparring partner Corneliu Lascar,” he said. “Then I
had a very difficult task in the finals defending the takedowns of
former UFC fighter Ronys
Torres only using my hips and footwork. It was a hell of a
challenge, but I defended all his takedown attempts and knocked him
out in the second round. That´s why when the UFC invited me to the
Contender Series my hand was not healed yet.”
Aware that he has a lot to prove before facing the champion, Ruffy
asked UFC to give him Bobby Green
as his next oponent.
“I think in my Octagon debut I was able to prove I’m on a different
level, knockout out a 10-fight UFC veteran in the first round,” he
said. “I truly hope the UFC gives me higher-level opponents, so I
have more competitive challenges and give better shows to the
fans.
“I would love to face Bobby Green
because of the style matchup. He loves stand-up fights and I think
it would be a war. And I could knock him out in the first round.”