M. Shogun (photo) asks for a new fight against P. Craig. Photo: Reproduction/YouTube UFC
One of the most exciting duels in the UFC Sao Paulo, which took place this Saturday (16) was marked by the co-main fight. In the dispute between the legendary Mauritius Shogun e Paul Craig, the public was excited by the performance of the athletes, who had chances for a knockout and did not shy away from striking. After three well-fought rounds, the judges decided to determine a draw between the combatants. In a press conference after the event, the Curitiba native confirmed his desire to repeat the clash.
See too
“We've already talked about a rematch, I don't know where, but I accept it. I think this fight deserves a rematch. I don’t think this was resolved very well, with all due respect to him, he is a great athlete”, said Maurício.
In an interview with SUPER FIGHTS/MMA Press which took place last Thursday (15), the Curitiba native had stated the difficulty in changing the fight strategy due to the fact that Paul, who replaced Sam alvey, being a fighter based on jiu-jitsu. Therefore, the former light heavyweight champion said he had to prepare for the fight on the ground. However, during this weekend's confrontation, the athlete confessed that he was surprised to realize that Craig accepted the frank exchange.
“Paul took me by surprise. I thought he was going to want to take me down, and he came to change. In the second round, I came back to exchange with him, because I was very cautious about defending takedowns in the first round”, said Shogun.
Asked if he would accept a clash in Scotland, Craig's home country, Maurício did not hesitate and confirmed his desire.
“I would definitely (accept). If my team authorizes it and the UFC agrees, I would definitely do it,” he said.
The Brazilian also spoke about the first draw in his career, which completed 38 fights this weekend. The athlete, in all his presentations, either lost or won. He had never had a similar result against any opponent.
“It’s definitely frustrating. I can't understand the judges' discretion, but it's not in our control. We train and do our best, then something like this comes and happens. But, move forward”, he concluded.
Even with the declared draw, Maurício said he believed he was the winner of the fight. According to the native of Curitiba, he was only inferior in the first round.
“I think I clearly won. I think he really won the first round. But the second and third, I won. He spent the entire fight on the ground and I think that scores a lot. In the end, he managed a takedown, but it was very little compared to what I did”, he concluded.
Shogun, 37 years old, assured that he intends to take some time off to travel with his family and will analyze when he will return to training for his next commitment.
Comments