Athletes
Kyle Nelson Has Everything In Check
Canadian Featherweight Kyle Nelson Has All The Tools Lined Up In Order To Come Out Victorious Against Dooho Choi At UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Spivac
Kyle Nelson believes he still has more to show inside the Octagon.
The 31-year-old has gone 2-3 in the UFC since making his debut back in 2018, his most recent fight coming against Jai Herbert in London last July. And while Nelson didn’t leave the O2 Arena that night with a win, he immediately went back to the drawing board and feels more confident than ever heading into his bout against Dooho Choi this weekend.
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“Definitely the best training camp so far,” Nelson said. “We got my nutrition and stuff dialed in really early and we got ahead of the ball on that one. Sometimes, especially when I cut down to 145, it's late notice or we start a little behind the eight ball and then the training camps are more about losing the weight and less about the training, whereas this one, we didn't have to worry about the weight at all; we were able to focus really hard on the training.”
The featherweight is confident that he has all the skills he needs to come out victorious at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Spivac, it’s just a matter of making sure that all the pieces line up. That final missing piece is the weight cut. But now that he has gotten it down to a finer science and with the right amount of time, Nelson feels that he can compete with the best at 145 pounds.
“I feel like all my fights in the UFC, except for my last fight in London, have all kind of come down to the weight cut, whereas I feel like I performed well, looked like I gassed, but it was more or less just the hard weight cut kind of catching up to me in the second and third round,” Nelson said. “This training camp, I've been able to train four or five rounds without getting tired at all.”
His opponent on Saturday night is one that hasn’t seen the Octagon in three years. Choi’s last fight in the UFC came on December 21, 2019, against Charles Jourdain in Busan, South Korea. He enters his fight against Nelson on a three-fight losing streak, one of which started with his Hall of Fame bout against Cub Swanson.
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“The Monster” isn’t doubting his opponent by any means, noting that Choi has probably still been working on his game even in his time away.
“It's always hard not competing for a while, but I'm expecting the same ‘Superboy’ that we've seen against Cub Swanson and who had all those super exciting fights, if not even better, because he has had lots of time,” Nelson said. “I think he's going to come forward with his aggressive standup style and I'm going to meet him with my aggressive standup style and it's going to make for a really exciting fight.”
With the right nutrition tools under his belt, the Canadian believes he is the perfect size and style for the featherweight division.
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“I think I'm going to hit harder, and then I think when it comes down to skill again, he's a great boxer, he's got some kicks and stuff, but I think overall I'm a better striker,” Nelson said. “When it comes to wrestling and jiu-jitsu, I think I'm a couple levels ahead of him, but I definitely look forward to meeting him in the center of the Octagon and striking with him.”
Kyle Nelson Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Spivac
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Kyle Nelson Fight Week Interview | UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Spivac
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Nelson wants to prove to fans that he can make it all three rounds if needed. He felt that in previous fights the first round would go his way, but due to bad weight cuts, he would slow down in the second or third rounds, which led to interesting comments from fans about him as a fighter.
But leave no doubt this time around, if “The Korean Superboy” makes it past the first round, Nelson will be ready to go. He is eager to earn a victory on Saturday night and continue to stay active throughout the year.
“I'd love to start fighting every two or three months, keep my weight down, stay ready for ‘45 and just build off this fight,” Nelson said. “I think I'm going to be stealing a lot of hype from ‘Superboy,’ so I'd like to get that and then get right back in the Octagon and stay busy. “
UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs Spivac took place live from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on February 4, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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