Jack Hermansson undeterred by third UFC on ESPN 19 opponent change, focused on future title shot

Jack Hermansson has seen his opponent change twice in the lead up to Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 19, but he insists his focus hasn’t wavered one bit. After all, “The Joker” has big plans with a victory, and he doesn’t care who is standing on the other side of the cage.

“I’m just as focused,” Hermansson told MMA Junkie. “Every fight is just as important, even if it is a big fight or an opponent that is not ranked. The win is always super important to take you one step forward in your career, and a loss can be one step back, so I feel super motivated, and I feel like the training that I put into this camp has been really, really good, and I feel like I’m a better fighter right now and that I want to show the world that I’m at the next level and ready for the title.”

Hermansson (21-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC), sitting at No. 5 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie middleweight rankings, was originally slated to face British slugger Darren Till. When injury scrapped that contest, Dana White’s Contender Series product Kevin Holland agreed to step up on short notice. However, he then tested positive for COVID-19, and Italian contender Marvin Vettori (15-3-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) agreed to take his biggest fight to date.

Hermansson admits the preparation process has been a bit tedious, but believes he’s done everything necessary.

“We had a very specific gameplan for Darren Till,” Hermansson said. “Then not that specific for Kevin Holland, and now, maybe a little bit more specific again, so that’s the approach. It’s because Darren Till, obviously we had a lot of time to prepare. Kevin Holland, he has some key techniques that he uses, but he’s also really unpredictable, so I felt like I needed to be a bit more open-minded and read the situation. In this one, I feel like Marvin is pretty much the same in his fights. He has a certain style, so it’s a little bit easier to prepare for.”

Hermansson and Vettori first crossed paths when they competed on the same 2016 card under the Venator banner in Italy, and the Swedish-born middleweight said he had a feeling they would face each other one day.

“I followed his career, and I knew who he was since Venator, and I was thinking, ‘Yeah, we’ll fight one day, for sure,’ and now here it comes,” Hermansson said.

That familiarity means Hermansson believes he’s not stepping into unknown territory on Saturday night.

“He’s like a pressure fighter, and he wants to connect with you, and then when he feels he finds his range, that’s when he wants to throw big punches,” Hermansson said. “I don’t think he has anything to offer in the grappling department, and I see myself as a striker, as well. So overall, I see myself as the better fighter, but I know in this game, you always have to be careful. He’s a very strong individual, so he’s always going to be dangerous.”

For Hermansson, the stakes remain the same, regardless of who he faces. The 32-year-old contender is currently 5-1 in his past six appearances, with the lone loss coming to Jared Cannonier, who then went on to fall short against former UFC champ Robert Whittaker in his next appearance.

As Hermansson sees it, he deserves to be considered among the division’s very best. And while current middleweight champ Israel Adesanya is expected to move up to face current light heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz in early 2021, Hermansson believes a future meeting with “Izzy” could still be on the horizon.

“Adesanya looks like he’ll be fighting Jan,” Hermansson said. “In that case, I want to fight with Adesanya. I feel like he fought Whittaker, he fought Paulo Costa. Cannonier is coming from a loss. So I could wait for ‘Izzy’ and give him his next title defense at middleweight after Jan. If the UFC wants me to, I could fight Costa or Whittaker as a contender fight, as well, so I think that’s what’s up for the next year.

“I still feel like the middleweight belt is going to be more precious to Adesanya. Something tells me that he will go down and defend his belt at middleweight. It would be really cool if he managed to do it because I would love to fight him when he’s a double champ and undefeated and all. It would be amazing to fight him at that point, obviously.”

Of course, none of those plans can come to fruition unless Hermansson is victorious on Saturday. He knows it, as well, which is why he says the constant changing of opponents has done nothing to alter his focus.

“All the way until this point in my career, I’ve always said just, ‘Yes,’ straight away, no questions,” Hermansson said. “Right now, I feel like I’m in a position where I want the big fights, so when we’re negotiating with the UFC, I’m always trying to push for the biggest fights possible. But in this moment, right now, I just feel like, yeah, bring it. I’m in Vegas. I want to fight. Just make it happen. That’s the most important thing at the moment.

“I’m definitely looking to dominate in this fight. I want to pick him apart as quick as possible and make a quick finish so we can just go home with a victory. That’s the plan.”

UFC on ESPN 19 takes place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card airs on ESPN2 and streams on ESPN+.