J. Walker plays in the Octagon after his UFC victory. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook @ufc
The Brazilian Johnny Walker will have the chance to try it, this Saturday (2), at UFC 244, in New York, which is not just an Ultimate promise. Against Corey anderson, the athlete, who has three quick wins since debuting for the organization, admitted that he wants to play for three rounds and revealed that he will 'take it easy' on the North American to have more time in the Octagon. The statement was made in an interview with 'Combate'.
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“I think they will see three rounds this time. I'm going to hit Corey a little weaker to see if he can survive, and then the guys will see if I have the gas, if I don't, if I defend a takedown or not. I’m going to hold off for a bit to see if I can fight three rounds”, said Johnny.
The athlete said that he intends to show his future opponents and admirers, conquered around the world, that his latest performances were not 'lucky'. To do this, the fighter intends to leave all his weapons inside the octagon in the fight against Corey.
“Ah, I have to show it, right? So people already know and will be scared when they fight me. They’ll think: “Oh, screwed, the guy has gas. It’s good at the top, good at the bottom, it defends a takedown, what am I going to do?” It’s for people to get scared right away”, he said.
This weekend's commitment will mark the biggest challenge of Walker's career to date. Despite having faced a ranked opponent (Misha Cirkunov) in his last battle, this will be the first time that the fighter faces an opponent close to the top 5. The victory could put the Brazilian from Belford Roxo (RJ) on the front line to officially challenge Jon Jones, undisputed champion of the light heavyweight division (up to 93kg.).
“In the last fight I had, the opponent was already ranked and it was a springboard, but now I'm taking another springboard. And I'm going to keep taking these springboards, always looking closer to the top. This jump could be straight to the belt, depending on my performance, or I would have to do one or two more fights”, said the athlete.
Although Johnny has publicly challenged Jones in recent weeks through interviews and his social media, the fighter stated that he is in no rush to fight for the division title. Given his age, he could still wait a while for the fight of his life.
“I'm young, 27 years old, I'm in no rush. I just want to get back to fighting as soon as possible. I still wanted to do one more fight this year, regardless of weight. It can be heavyweight or 93kg. (light heavyweight), but I don’t want to sit still”, he confessed.
To emerge victorious against Anderson, however, the Brazilian will have to interrupt the North American's streak of three consecutive victories. In seventh place in the category ranking, Corey was last beaten in November 2017. The athlete is now enjoying a good phase in his career.
Walker, in turn, hasn't known what it's like to lose since June 2016. After the setback, the fighter managed a great recovery, which resulted in nine consecutive victories.
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