Modestas Bukauskas experienced the high of being signed to the UFC and having his first fight booked, only for his debut to be put on hold by the emergence of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
It’s meant the 26-year-old Lithuanian-born light heavyweight from Buckinghamshire, England has seen his planned octagon debut in the U.S. scrapped, and now he’s patiently waiting for his first UFC fight to be rebooked.
Chatting to MMA Junkie, Bukauskas (10-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) said he’s raring to go, and he explained he’s making sure he takes full advantage of the difficult situation he currently finds himself in.
“Mate, I’m ready – I’m ready to fight whoever, whenever,” he said. “I was preparing as if I had a fight for May, which is when I had something scheduled.
“I think as an athlete and as a professional you’ve always got to be ready. I feel as well, yeah, it’s good to have training partners, it’s good to have the sparring, but you’ve got to be able to train and find ways to improve yourself without that. I feel like I’m still gaining a hell of a lot right now. You can still improve in other areas. You may not feel as sharp in some of your technical abilities, but use a dummy. For me, I’ll just grab my dad, ‘Hey! Come and do a move or two with me!’”
Bukauskas earned his shot on the big stage after capturing the Cage Warriors light heavyweight title last summer at “Cage Warriors 106: Night of Champions.” His fourth-round knockout win over then-undefeated Norwegian Marthin Hamlet Nielsen showed he was close to being “UFC ready.”
Then, in November 2019, a first-round finish of Italian Riccardo Nosiglia – whose only previous loss came against Polish UFC 205er Michal Oleksiejczuk – gave Bukauskas the statement title defense he needed to alert the UFC brass, who eventually signed him to a contract.
Bukauskas was all booked to make his debut in April against an undisclosed opponent, and with the likelihood that his fight will now take place on Dana White’s “Fight Island,” as opposed to on U.S. soil, Bukauskas isn’t sure who or when he’ll be fighting. But he’s making sure he controls his side of the situation and promises he’ll be ready for whoever, whenever.
“I’m ready to fight whenever as soon as that ‘Fight Island’ is good to go,” he said. “Whenever they’ve got something going, man. I”m staying ready, in shape, ready to make weight whenever the time may come.
“Obviously I’m welcoming whoever it is. I would like to fight my original opponent, but if that doesn’t happen and I get someone else, I just want the chance to prove myself, so whoever they give me, I feel I’ll be able to do that. Whatever style, whatever situation they put in front of me, that is going to be my chance to highlight my particular skillset, because I’m going to be working extremely hard to be able to handle any skillset or any style. I’m ready to fight whoever they throw at me.”
Modestas Bukauskas says he'll be 'ready to fight whoever, whenever' on Dana White's 'Fight Island'
