White Doesn’t Believe Gastelum’s Entering ‘Crossroads Fight’ At UFC Fight Island 2

Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports

Kelvin Gastelum will try to end the first two-fight losing streak of his professional career later this evening (Sat., July 18, 2020) at UFC Fight Island 2 live on ESPN+ from inside Flash Forum on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, when he takes on middleweight contender Jack Hermansson in the co-main event.

Gastelum, 28, has fallen on tough times in the UFC’s jam-packed middleweight division. After compiling a 3-1 (1 NC) record over his first five fights since returning to 185 pounds back in 2016 Gastelum had the opportunity to fight Israel Adesanya for the interim title at UFC 236. Gastelum ended up losing that middleweight affair as “Last Stylebender” poured in one of the best fifth rounds you will ever see in a title fight.

Following his loss to Adesanya, Gastelum attempted to right the ship by welcoming Darren Till to the middleweight heap last November at UFC 244. Till ended up defeating Gastelum via split decision by utilizing his range and size on the feet. It was the first time in Gastelum’s career that he tasted back-to-back defeats.

Despite his recent lack of success inside of the cage UFC president Dana White isn’t quite ready to count Gastelum out at 185 pounds. Instead of looking at his co-main event clash with Hermansson as a potential passing of the torch White knows that Gastelum still has what it takes to turn in a tremendous outing.

“That kid’s always exciting,” White said. “He’s always in fun fights, and I think (Saturday) night’s going to be the same, too. I think that’s a really fun fight. He’s always in it. He’s always right there. We’ll find out. I don’t think it’s a crossroads fight, though. This is a kid that win, lose or draw will still be in the top 10, will still be exciting and can pull out a win with one punch.”

It should be noted that while Gastelum has been finished once in his professional career Hermansson has tasted defeat four times via knockout or submission (three of which came under the UFC banner). That means that Gastelum should have the chance to end the fight early if he’s able to bypass Hermansson’s longer frame and dangerous clinch game.

If Gastelum is able to capture victory over “The Joker” it will do wonders for his 2021 campaign as he pushes for an eventual rematch with Adesanya. But if the former Ultimate Fighter winner drops his third fight in a row he may end up asking the promotion to move back down to 170 pounds for a fresh start (again).

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Fight Island 2 fight card HERE, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” undercard bouts at 5 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time at 8 p.m. ET.

For much more on this week’s UFC Fight Island 2 event click here.