Coming into 2022 on a six-fight winning streak to start off his career, welterweight Roman Faraldo has managed to not only keep his good fortunes going inside the cage, but outside it as well.
In addition to picking up a first round TKO of Kelvin Rayford at Bellator 276 in March, Faraldo has seen good things for his teammates and his personal life as well this year.
“Everything’s been progressing as far as my career; I got a good fight in March and was able to get in and get out with no injuries; I started off the year making big improvements in my game as far as the grappling aspect,” Faraldo told MMAWeekly.com.
“My main training partner Johnny Eblen just won the (Bellator) middleweight belt, my daughter just turned one, it’s been a great year. It can only go up from here.”
When it comes to the evolution of his game, Faraldo feels like he’s made improvements everywhere, including in areas he feels he was already strong in to begin with.
“As far as my striking I knew I could strike with the best of them, and I’m still making improvements there,” said Faraldo. “I’ve seen drastic improvements in my wrestling, jiu-jitsu, and my grappling. I’ve seen drastic improvements in my conditioning and my mental (game).”
This Friday in Tacoma, Washington, Faraldo (7-0) will look to remain undefeated when he takes on Luis Iniguez (5-1) in a preliminary 170-pound bout at Bellator 283.
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“I think I need to show up and be me,” Faraldo said. “If I show up and be myself I don’t think anybody can beat me.
“(Iniguez) poses a threat like anybody poses a threat with their fist clinched. Can he knock people out? Yeah, but so can anybody else. But other than that I don’t see him being a threat. I can out-wrestle, I can out-grapple him, I can out-condition him, I think I’ll just the more superior fighter in every aspect of the game.”
Should Faraldo comes out of his bout on Friday without issues; he’s got a very specific idea of how he’d like to close out the remainder of his 2022.
“Fighting in November at the Hard Rock in Florida would be the cherry on top,” said Faraldo. “Finishing the year 3-0 with my career at 9-0, at home, maybe even with another flying knee, I think maybe they might put me at Number 1.
“Everything’s been on the up and up and we just past half way through the year. I plan on finishing out the year 3-0 and going into next year looking to sign a new contract.”
Roman Faraldo doesn’t see Luis Iniguez as a threat heading into Bellator 283
