del Rosario okay with Fedor taking SF GP alternate spot
Shane del Rosario seemed to earn the top alternate spot for the Strikeforce heavyweight tournament when he submitted Lavar Johnson…
Shane del Rosario seemed to earn the top alternate spot for the Strikeforce heavyweight tournament when he submitted Lavar Johnson on Feb. 12. Fedor Emelianenko lost to Antonio Silva the same night, though, and Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker wasted no time in suggesting that Fedor could be the first replacement fighter if one is needed.
It’s not that big of a deal for me, del Rosario said recently during a Savage Dog Show interview on the Sherdog Radio Network. I’m glad I just had an opportunity to fight on the same card as Fedor and some of these guys. To me that was a great honor. If I don’t make it into the tournament this year … it’s not a big deal. I would rather actually have another four fights this year if possible and just earn my own spot into the tournament next year.
I’m at eleven fights. I’d like to get to at least 15, just get more ring time.
I can’t fight forever. I’m really trying to be methodical about this and really think about it. That’s why I was never really into calling out the champ right away or wanting to fight the top guy right away. I need to pay my dues and get some experience and really get to the point where I can beat those guys and stay there and make a run at the belt.
At the same time, if someone gets injured and they want me in, I’m definitely going to be training hard and coming in to fight. I’ll definitely take the opportunity.
Listen to entire interview… (1:27:10 mark)