Robert Drysdale on UFC Signing: I’m Very Confident With The Best Grapplers in the World
Robert Drysdale was known as one of the toughest competitors around the jiu-jitsu circuit, training Frank Mir and other fighters in the ground game. Now he’s taking his own career to the next level, signing with the UFC to face Ednaldo Oliveira at UFC 163 on August 3rd.
Amidst a whirlwind of fight bookings, injuries, and eventful news, the signing comes as very interesting for MMA fans who have followed Drysdale’s dominant wins in BJJ tournaments worldwide. Drysdale recently spoke up to Bloody Elbow to discuss his upcoming UFC debut and his big advantage when the fight goes to the ground:
“I’m certainly very confident when the fight goes to the ground, from either the top or the bottom. I think when someone else is training jiu-jitsu, like when I’m going up against someone that knows jiu-jitsu well, it kind of makes me happier. I prefer it, because I feel that someone being good at jiu-jitsu is not going to stop me from doing what I do. Even with some of the best grapplers in the weight class, I’m very confident, and I know I can do well.”
Drysdale will definitely be at the top of his weight class in terms of BJJ without ever stepped into the Octagon, having won gold in both the ADCC Submission Wrestling Championships and the World Jiu-Jitsu Championships. But he also knows that could lead to him being predictable, so he’s working on becoming much more well-rounded in order to compete with the top levels of competition that he’ll face in the Octagon:
“On the other hand, the down side of that, I’d be usually predictable. People will know what I want and I don’t hide what I do. It’s very obvious, so I know exactly how people will prepare to fight me, and I try to work my camps based on what I know that they know. I know that they know I want to take them down, so I prepare based off that. I’m a pretty predictable guy in that sense, but that’s changing now. I’m becoming more and more comfortable on my feet, so if the day ever comes that I have to stand and strike with someone, I’ll be more than ready.”
The signing of Drysdale shakes up the light heavyweight division a bit, especially if he can rise to the point of facing off against top five competition. He’s got a lot to prove before that happens, but he’s handily destroyed all of his opponents in MMA thus far, and all with first round submissions. We may find that he’s too one-dimensional to take on the world’s best, or he may turn out to be a sort of Ronda Rousey in the men’s division. Either way, it’s going to be fun to find out where he goes.
