James Krause: ‘I have multiple ways to win’ against Sergio Moraes at UFC on ESPN+ 22

Though he hasn’t had a fight yet in 2019, welterweight James Krause isn’t sweating it. Not one to want to fight as much as others do, having a bit of time off from active competition isn’t a huge problem for Krause.

Along with being fine with fewer fights in a year than others, one thing that helped Krause deal with his time off was the abundance of things he has to do outside of the cage in his life.

“I feel like I’ve been doing this a long time, so I don’t like to fight as much as some of the younger kids do,” Krause told MMAWeekly.com. “I’d fight twice of a year.

“(Fighting twice) would be my ideal, but with the newborn coming and stuff like that it just didn’t work out that way. I have a lot of stuff going on at home and a lot of stuff I want to do after fighting, so that’s what this last year has looked like; just real estate investing, having a baby, coaching a lot, that’s pretty much the gist of it.”

Having been training fighters for longer than he’s often given credit for, making the switch from helping others to focusing on himself isn’t as big of a deal. It’s made easier due to the fact that Krause no longer has to establish who he is and what he’s capable of due to his veteran status.

“I always do a good job balancing I think,” said Krause. “I’ve been coaching guys pretty much my entire UFC career. I’ve just getting a little bit more recognition now for it. It’s really nothing new for me. I’ve been doing it this entire time.

“I know exactly who I am and what I’m capable of. I feel like this last fight was the very first fight that I can look back on and I can say that I finally showed you guys what I’m capable of, now sit back and watch some more and we’ll keep it popping.”

On Saturday in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Krause (26-7) will return to action for the first time in over a year when he faces Sergio Moraes (14-5-1) in a preliminary 170-pound bout at UFC on ESPN+ 22.

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“Sergio is a very dangerous opponent,” Krause said. “I feel like on paper I should win this fight, but he’s a three-time world champion and has some legitimate wins and some legitimate finishes. He’s a very good opponent.

“All that being said I feel I’m a very difficult match-up for him. I feel my style is going to be hard for him to deal with. I think he has one way to win this fight, and that’s to take me down. I feel I have multiple ways to win the fight.”

For Krause, the quality of his fights is what matters more than quantity, so he’s just going to see what comes up and go from there in the coming year.

“I like fights that intrigue me,” said Krause. “This one intrigued me because of the danger factor.

“I don’t want to disrespect the game and opponent by looking past him. I take it one fight at a time. I don’t know what I’m going to do tomorrow, let alone what I’m going to do in 2020. I have to prep for Sergio and what he’s going to bring to the table.”