Anthony Pettis Can’t Wait To Fight Gilbert Melendez
UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis has the world at his feet right now; He just beat Benson Henderson and has a long line of contenders willing to snatch the title from his grasp. He could become one of the greatest LW’s of all time if he is able to hold off the division with conviction.
His next opponent is Josh ‘The Punk’ Thomson, a very respected Lightweight contender that recently returned to the UFC with a thrilling knockout win over Nate Diaz. Pettis was on hand to talk to BJPenn.com about his first title defence at UFC on Fox 9 in December:
“The most dangerous thing about Josh right now is that he doesn’t have a lot of buzz around his name. When you’re fighting somebody with a lot of buzz, say you get a Jose Aldo, everyone is going to be saying that this is going to be an amazing fight. With this fight, everyone thinks it’s going to be an amazing fight but I’m not getting the effect of people saying you have a tough fight coming up.”
“Most people are saying that ‘you aren’t going to have any problem with Josh Thomson. You’re going to walk right through him.’ I hate that. I hate it when people tell me that stuff because I don’t even think that way. It’s going to be the toughest fight of my life. It’s my first title defense and I better have a better performance than winning the title.”
Pettis’ mental attitude has never been a question, and his mindset about Thomson is exactly right. There are no easy fights, especially not at this high level. Thomson may not be, in mass opinion, the best 155lb. contender right now but he has just as much talent and ability as most of his counterparts.
“There’s a lot of pressure on my end to have a good performance and a guy like Josh Thomson , he’s great everywhere; a great striker, great on the ground, a good wrestling, he doesn’t really have any holes in his game. He’s coming off a knockout of Nate Diaz so he has some confidence coming into the fight also. He’s 35-years-old, it’s his last chance at a title shot, he’s coming with everything he has and I better be ready for it.”
“I can’t wait to get through Josh Thomson and fight Gilbert Melendez. The fans know what’s up. The real fans that saw his fight with Ben Henderson and saw my fight with Henderson, they know who the champ is. It took me four minutes to finish him and he couldn’t finish him in 25.”
A fight with Gilbert ‘El Nino’ Melendez would be a huge seller for fans of MMA. Two of the most exciting fighters on the globe, Pettis with his explosive and diverse abilities, and Gil with his wrecking ball style.
Amidst all the hustle and bustle at 155, there is the ever present threat of Jose Aldo in his home as 145lb. champ. A place that the longtime FW king is unlikely to reside for much longer, meaning a scrap between Aldo and Pettis is very likely; especially with the history they already have.
“You have all of these potentially great fights and my name is a part of all of them. When I’m doing my job right, the fans want to see me fight. Jose Aldo is a great fighter. I’ve never had any beef with Jose Aldo it’s just that he is one of the best in the world and I’m one of the best in the world and let’s find who the best is.”
The future is looking great for ‘Showtime’ and if he is able to beat Thomson, Grant, Melendez and Aldo; we may just be looking at a new p4p topper. Outer/banner photo courtesy of USAToday.com.
