While there’s no denying 2020 was a low point for many fighters, for some the year turned out to provide enough opportunities to qualify as an up year. For Bellator lightweight Chris Gonzalez, 2020 ended up being one of those up years.
After capping off his 2019 with three wins in a row, Gonzalez would go on to add an additional two more victories, bringing his current undefeated streak up to five.
“For myself, personally, 2020 was a pretty good year,” Gonzalez told MMAWeekly.com. “I was fortunate to be one of the few fighters to get a few fights in.
“Health and pandemic permitting I’d like to get in more fights in a year, but it was a good year. I added a couple wins to the column and I’m starting to establish myself and where I want to be not only in Bellator but in the MMA lightweight world.”
When it comes to his wins over Aaron McKenzie and Vladimir Tokov in Bellator last year, Gonzalez admits that he’ll always have issue with his performances, even if he picks up a victory.
“I’m always going to be my own biggest critic,” said Gonzalez. “There’s always things in the fights that I wish I would have done or could have done better, but that’s why we train and go back to the drawing board and the adjustments you make.
“At the end of the day it’s all about getting your hand raised. I’m always going to happy with myself for getting the job done, whether it’s a highlight finish or a tough fight.”
On April 2 in Uncasville, Connecticut, Gonzalez (5-0) will look to remain undefeated when he takes on Roger Heurta (24-12-1) in a preliminary 155-pound bout at Bellator 255.
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“I don’t really think my game plan is going to adjust too much on a fight by fight basis,” Gonzalez said. “I’m not one of those fighters who tries to reinvent the wheel. I know what I’m good at.
“I’m always working on things that I need to improve on and keep the white belt mentality, but the game plan is always the same: go in there and create pressure, hit him more than he hits me, end up on top, ground and pound him and get him out of there or do that for 15 minutes straight.”
Having faced increasingly more difficult opposition as he’s gone along in his career so far, Gonzalez sees no reason to let up and is looking forward to tougher challenges as he navigates 2021.
“I’m not really one for padding the record,” said Gonzalez. “I want to be challenged. I want to force myself to leave home and be in those uncomfortable positions, because that’s when you’re going to show yourself.
“Your true character and resilience is going to show when you’re getting pulled into those deep waters.”
Chris Gonzalez shares his Bellator 255 game plan