DWCS 54 winner Daniel Marcos says time away helped him become a better fighter

LAS VEGAS – Despite a long layoff, Daniel Marcos looked in top form at Dana White’s Contender Series 54.

Marcos (13-0) defeated Brandon Lewis by unanimous decision Tuesday, and the Peruvian was able to impress the UFC brass to earn a contract.

Tuesday marked Marcos’ first fight in almost three years. Although he slowed down toward the end of the contest, the undefeated fighter said the time away only benefitted him.

“No, I don’t think it impacted me,” Marcos told reporters, including MMA Junkie, through an interpreter. “I think I’ve always trusted myself. I’ve trusted the training. I’ve trusted God. I think the time away helped me be a better fighter and helped me tweak some things, and now we need to just watch the tape and improve a couple of things and go from there.”

Marcos stunned Lewis twice on the feet and battered his leg, but a tough Lewis just wouldn’t go away. Marcos wsn’t too surprised that Lewis was able to survive the early onslaught.

“I went for it. The original intention was to finish the fight and you saw it,” Marcos said. “I came out with the overhand, tried a couple of knees in there, as well, kicked him a lot, and he wouldn’t come down. But you know what? That’s kind of normal because this is your chance and you’re trying to get to the major leagues. It’s something that’s expected, and obviously I’m going to go back and look and try next time to not get it to the later rounds.”