Alexander Gustafsson Taking Short Break From Fighting To Find Motivation
UFC light-heavyweight title contender Alexander Gustafsson had a tough 2015. His road to recovery includes a short break from competition and a change in camps…
Known as the man that gave Jon Jones the most trouble for his light-heavyweight title when they fought at UFC 165, Alexander Gustafsson has rapidly become one of the division’s most popular contenders. For all his hard work in the gym and classic results in the octagon, there’s been some rather harrowing lows for the Swedish ‘Mauler’ to deal with. 2015 turned out to be a pretty tough year for the big Swede to digest.
Opening the year with a contender bout against heavy hitter Anthony Johnson, ‘The Mauler’ suffered a brutal first round knockout loss. Fortune would quickly shift in the favor of Gus after ‘Bones’ was stripped of his title though, as he was moved forward to the number one spot when ‘Rumble’ lost out to Daniel Cormier for the vacant strap at UFC 187. Once again on the brink of championship glory, Gustafsson was fended off by ‘DC’ in a five round classic at UFC 192.
With Jones now back in the picture, and ‘Rumble’ back to his scary winning ways, there’s still a whole lot going on in the UFC light-heavyweight division. The scene will no doubt be very busy with DC vs Jones 2 set for UFC 197, but Gus reveals to the MMA Hour h/t MMAMania that he’s going to sit out of active competition, at least for the next few months. Check it out:
“I’m just having a tough time with my motivations. Some days it’s better, some days it’s a little bit worse.” explained Gustafsson. “I just tell my fans how it is and how it is to be a fighter on this level. That it’s always tough with losses, 2015 was a tough year for me.”
“So that’s why I did that interview to tell them how I felt and how I feel. But, I feel better after I said it and now I’m in San Diego to change my environment a little bit. I’m feeling good,”
“I’ve been here before, it’s hard to go from going one day being the best fighters in the world to stop doing what you love doing,” he said. “I am a fighter and that’s what I live for. Quitting is not an option if you put the cards on the table. It’s just emotions, feelings, and thoughts that you battle everyday as an athlete.”
“”When I feel good in training, when I’m in peace and feel good in everything, we’re going to look for a new challenge,” declared “The Mauler,” who insists he was not offered a Rashad Evans fight.
“Until then, I am just going to enjoy the training. I will fight in 2016. I just need a little bit of time to get on my feet and get my mind and motivation right. I just want to fight for the right reasons. You will see me fight this year,”
It’s always tough to see a likeable character like Alexander Gustafsson falling on hard times, but perhaps a change of scenery in the form of San Diego’s Alliance MMA, and a break from competition is just what he needs.
It’s clear ‘The Mauler’ can most definitely hang with the elite of the division, but just needs a few tweaks to get those big wins again. We tip our hats to you Gus.
