It’s been a while since Max Griffin has been this excited for a fight.
Griffin (15-7 MMA, 3-5 UFC) takes on Alex Oliveira at UFC 248 on March 7, a contest that has “Fight of the Night” written all over it.
Oliveira (19-8-1 MMA, 9-6 UFC) is owner of four performance bonuses in the UFC and has been involved in some barnburners with the likes of Yancy Medeiros and Mike Perry – and that’s what makes this matchup so exciting for Griffin.
“Man, I’m pumped,” Griffin told MMA Junkie. “I actually haven’t been excited for a fight in a couple of fights. I had the Thiago (Alves) fight, pumped for that, then I had Zelim (Imadaev), Alex Morono. I was like, ‘Eh, ‘Cowboy.” I got out of bed, yes, so pumped.
“They had some contract stuff going on on the other side, so we almost didn’t get the fight. Two weeks later we get the fight. We get the bout agreement two minutes later, and we’re back in Vegas. Huge show, UFC 248, beautiful fight.”
Griffin, like Oliveira, has had inconsistencies in the octagon. He has lost three of his last four, in frustrating results where he believes his opponents didn’t want to engage with him.
But with Oliveira, he has no doubt that he’s in for a battle.
“A lot of guys, even if they’re fighters, they don’t fight,” Griffin said. “They’re not in there to fight, they’re just in there to kind of win, but Oliveira would die on his shield out there. He actually enjoys being out there, and I think that mixed with – you got a killer guy. I mean we’ve both been in ‘Fight of the Nights.’ He’s had many more than me, but he’s been around, he’s a legend, and I’m ready to make it happen.”
“I’ve had some weird losses that – I looked back at my record that I could easily be way over .500 in the UFC. This fight is huge. I know that Oliveira is on a losing streak, but that means he’s hungry. He’s going to want to win. He doesn’t want to get cut, but he’s going back to Brazil, and that’s that.”
Off Guard: Max Griffin pumped for 'beautiful fight' with Alex Oliveira at UFC 248
