Kelvin Gastelum may be young and relatively inexperienced, but he is well aware that he is the favourite in his upcoming match-up on Saturday night.
The Ultimate Fighter season 17 winner is scheduled to take part in the upcoming UFC Fight Night event in San Antonio, Texas, where he will face Nico Musoke in a featured contest on the main card. The 8-0 fighter is well aware of the task at hand, and understands that he is in a sensitive position with an opponent who has “nothing to lose.”
“He’s not really well know over here in the United Sates, but yeah he’s looked great in his fights and he’s big, he’s strong coming down from middleweight,” Gastelum told Submission Radio. “He kinda has that Urijah Hall type of body frame, so he’s big you know. So it’s nothing I haven’t seen before, but it’s something to keep in mind absolutely. You know, I just feel like he’s in the same position I was when I was fighting Rick Story. He has everything to gain and nothing to lose from this fight.
” He has everything to gain and nothing to lose from this fight.”
Another recent change Gastelum has had to make was the transition down to welterweight, which is something the young fighter is still adjusting too. He revealed that he can get to as heavy as “200-225 pounds” in the off season, which means a weight cut includes intensive dieting.
“Yeah I mean, it’s just something that I’m still trying to figure out. I think that we’ve got a hold of it this time pretty well. You know, this is my third time going down to welterweight, so it’s relatively new still, but we’re figuring it out pretty much, and I think this time we’ve got a pretty good hold of my weight and my diet.”
While he is not looking past his upcoming opponent, Gastelum did not shy away from expressing his interest in a potential fight on the UFC’s debut trip to Mexico.
“I don’t like to look past my opponents, you know I can’t help but be excited for that Mexico card in coming up in November. I’m VERY excited for that.”
“I’m not looking past Nico at all, but I can’t help but be excited for that Mexico card. That’s when Cain Velasquez fights Fabricio Werdum, and if everything goes as planned I’m looking to fight someone in the top 10 that will keep me moving up the ranks”
UFC Fight Night: Swanson vs. Stephens takes place Saturday night at AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas. Follow all the play-by-play action here.
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