J. Lineker (photo) is currently number six in the flyweight rankings. Photo: Josh Hedges/UFC
The duel between John Lineker and Ian McCall at UFC Uberlândia, held last Saturday (08), was seen by many as an eliminator for the flyweight belt and would define the champion's next challenger. Demetrious Johnson. However, the fight was canceled at the last minute, less than a day before it took place, due to health problems with McCall. If the North American has already shown himself in favor of rescheduling the fight, the Brazilian has no interest in facing him and declared that he considers it fair that he receives, straight away, a chance at the title.
“Considering that I wanted to fight McCall and ask for a title shot, why can't I just go ahead and fight the champion? UFC, please give me this opportunity. I've developed a lot since my first fight in the UFC and I'm 100% ready to fight for the title”, said the Brazilian to the “MMA Fighting” website, also revealing his strategy to stop the champion Demetrious Johnson. “With my hands of stone. When my hand goes in, it will stop,” she assured.
With recurring problems making weight since his debut in Ultimate, Lineker assured that this time he did not reach 57 kg on the first attempt due to a logistical error. "I made a mistake. I thought I would weigh in at 18pm, but the weigh-in was at 16pm. Weighings are no longer a problem. I weighed 56,9 kg in my last fight and I can weigh 56,7 kg for a title fight”, said the flyweight, who also criticized McCall's provocative stance during the weigh-in. “He paid for his jokes. He made fun of my situation, drinking coconut water (after weighing himself, before the face) while I had to lose 300g and God punished him (laughs)”, he said.
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At 24 years old, John Lineker has a record of 24 wins and seven losses. “Mãos de Pedra”, as he is known, has seven fights in the UFC, with five wins and two losses, and is coming off a devastating knockout over Turkish fighter Alptekin Ozkilic in his last fight, on July 16th. Currently, the Brazilian occupies sixth place in the official Ultimate rankings in the flyweight category.
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