Mauler: I just need a little more time
“I am just going to enjoy the training. I will fight in 2016. I just need a little bit of time to get on my feet and get my mind and motivation right.”
UFC light heavyweight Alexander Gustafsson appeared recently on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour, and described his current state of mind. 2015 was a tough year for ‘The Mauler’. He lost in the first to Anthony Johnson, and considered retirement. Then he got shot at the title, but that didn’t go his way either. Now he is training at Alliance MMA in San Diego, and says he is not going to quit, but is not sure when he is going to fight next, either, beyond that it will be this year.
“I’m just having a tough time with my motivations. Some days it’s better, some days it’s a little bit worse.” said Gustafsson, as transcribed by Adam Guillen Jr. for MMA Mania. “I just tell my fans how it is and how it is to be a fighter on this level. That it’s always tough with losses, 2015 was a tough year for me.”
“So that’s why I did that interview to tell them how I felt and how I feel. But, I feel better after I said it and now I’m in San Diego to change my environment a little bit. I’m feeling good.”
“I’ve been here before, it’s hard to go from going one day being the best fighters in the world to stop doing what you love doing. I am a fighter and that’s what I live for. Quitting is not an option if you put the cards on the table. It’s just emotions, feelings, and thoughts that you battle everyday as an athlete.”
“When I feel good in training, when I’m in peace and feel good in everything, we’re going to look for a new challenge.”
“Until then, I am just going to enjoy the training. I will fight in 2016. I just need a little bit of time to get on my feet and get my mind and motivation right. I just want to fight for the right reasons. You will see me fight this year.”
