PARIS – Fares Ziam is looking to make a statement in front of his home fans.
Fresh off a new four-fight deal, Ziam (12-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) meets newcomer Michal Figlak (8-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 209 at Accor Arena in Paris. The card streams on ESPN+.
Prior to signing with the UFC, Ziam had finished all but one of his professional wins. He went the distance in his two octagon wins over Jamie Mullarkey and Luigi Vendramini, but is eager to notch his first UFC finish against Figlak.
“I want this to be a very good fight,” Ziam told reporters at Thursday’s UFC Fight Night 209 media day. “I want all my skills to be good, but I want to finish the fight. I want my first finish in the UFC, in Paris, for the fans, and I want a big knockout.
“It’s a good fight for me, good fight to be Fight of the Night or Performance (of the Night bonus).”
Ziam is coming off a quick submission loss to Terrance McKinney at UFC Fight Night 202, which marked the final fight of his contract. Many were under the impression that he was released by the UFC, but the promotion decided to re-sign him just as it landed in France for the first time.
“For this fight, it’s a new contract,” Ziam said. “I’m happy to have a new contract because before, I was not cut, but I was free (agent). I’m happy I have a new contract and I feel good to perform.
“Mentally, I learned a lot because for me, Terrance McKinney is a very good guy, a very good fighter. He won a lot of fights now. But I think normally, I beat him. But this night, I don’t know – I’m in the cage, but my mind was not focused on the fight.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 209.
Fares Ziam eyes first octagon finish at UFC Paris, wants ‘big knockout’ against Michal Figlak