Melendez: Knockout or be knocked out
Gilbert Melendez knows that his might be his last chance for a UFC title and knowing that plans to go for it, even if it means getting knocked out:
Gilbert Melendez knows that his might be his last chance for a UFC title and knowing that plans to go for it, even if it means getting knocked out:
Going through that experience then and knowing where I’m at now, those reasons aren’t there anymore, Melendez says. This time I’m going to go for it and get knocked out in the process, or else knock him out in the process.
To hear Pettis tell it, it’s going to be the former, and the champ doesn’t expect it to take more than a round. While a bold prediction, it’s also not inconsistent with Pettis’ recent performances. He’s finished his past three opponents in the UFC, all in the first round, and all with significant help from his dangerous and destructive kicking game.
But when Melendez hears Pettis promising a first-round finish against him, he says, I kind of have to laugh.
No one’s ever finished me, ever, says Melendez, whose three career losses have all come via decision. The opponents whom Pettis has put away in the first, he adds, may have contributed to their own demise by allowing themselves to become awed by Pettis’ aggressive kicking game.
That’s not going to be the case with me, Melendez says. I can’t wait to see his face at the end of the first round, when he knows he’s down one round to zero, and he realizes he’s in for a long night.