Big underdog Andre Petroski wants spotlight on Renzo Gracie Academy – and a fight with Gerald Meerschaert

LAS VEGAS – As the biggest underdog at UFC on ESPN 36, it would be understandable if Andre Petroski felt a little slighted.

Then his unbeaten opponent, Nick Maximov, asked to be a part of a pre-fight media day he wasn’t scheduled for and spent much of his time tearing Petroski down. If it bothered Petroski, he saved his response for fight night.

Petroski (8-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) pulled off a stunner in the opening fight of the night when he put Maximov (8-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), a protege of Nate and Nick Diaz, to sleep in just 76 seconds with an anaconda choke.

“I hate to say it, but it really did (go the way I thought it would),” Petroski said at his post-fight news conference. “I’d been telling people all week if I get that position, it’s over. That’s my position. That’s my finish. I was telling people all week – I’m not bullsh*tting – (I’ll) take a first-round sub.”

With the win, Petroski brought his gym, Renzo Gracie Academy in Philadelphia, to 14-0 in the UFC when combined with teammates Pat Sabatini, Sean Brady and Jeremiah Wells. They’ve teamed up for nine finishes in the promotion, and Petroski said the gym needs to be talked about at a higher level.

Between him and Maximov, it’s Maximov’s team with the Diaz Brothers in Stockton, Calif., that had the limelight. But Petroski took some of that shine away and put it on his camp. He also said Maximov’s pre-fight talk is something he might be able to learn from. And he thinks he’ll learn from being put to sleep with a choke, too.

“To me, I feel for the kid,” Petroski said. “He’s got a lot of pressure on him. I know what that’s like, ever since a little kid, always have a lot of pressure. Everyone handles that a little bit differently, and that’s kind of the way I see it. He’s going to find who he is. He’ll figure it out and he’ll have a bright future.”

Petroski called out Gerald Meerschaeart after the fight and said he’d like to get a middleweight matchup with him at UFC 275 next month in Singapore in what would be a quick turnaround.

In particular, Petroski said he wasn’t a fan of Meerschaert’s recent post-win comments that he wants easy fights for easy paychecks.

“I didn’t like that he came out and was like, ‘I want the easiest fights for the most amount of money,’” Petroski said. “I don’t like that. Yeah, money’s important. But I’m fighting for legacy. That’s the most important for me. My kid watches me. My kid looks up to me. I don’t want to fight the easiest guys. I want to climb the rankings. I want to fight the toughest guys. I want to go to Singapore. I want to travel the world.”

Check out Petroski’s full post-fight interview in the video above.