Anthony Pettis: Josh Thomson Can Talk, I’m Not Going To Fight Injured
UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis recently suffered a huge setback when he tore his PCL while training for his previously scheduled UFC on Fox 9 title bout against Josh “Punk” Thomson.
First thought to not require surgery, the injury ultimately forced “Showtime” to go under the knife. He’ll most likely be on the shelf for the majority of 2014 with a return timetable tentatively set at 8-10 months. Thomson thought Pettis could have toughed it out a bit but figured he would back out.
He also questioned his toughness, saying that it’s possible to fight with a torn PCL.
While that may or may not be true, Pettis is sick of hearing “Punk” jabber. He recently spoke up to FOX Sports to downplay Thomson’s trash talk:
“He’s gonna talk, whatever. I don’t even know how he got the title shot to begin with. I’m not gonna fight injured. I’m 26 years old. I have a long career ahead of me.”
“Showtime” takes a sharp jab at Thomson’s true deservedness of a title shot, but the fact remains that he earned it by becoming the first man to ever knock out the notoriously tough Nate Diaz at UFC on FOX 7 last April.
On the other hand, Pettis does make a good point by proclaiming that he won’t fight injured. While he’s garnered a bit of a reputation as being injury prone, there’s no need for a flashy striker like him to risk their future by fighting at less than one hundred percent.
Of the injury, Pettis said that his recovery is “right on track,” noting that he would love to face Thomson anyway because the AKA-trained product is a good matchup for him:
“I don’t care, because that fight is good for me anyway.”
Pettis may just get his chance to shut “Punk’s” mouth if Thomson gets by Ben Henderson in their number one contender bout at UFC on FOX 10 on Jan. 25. Thomson is a solid lightweight for sure, but does he really have the skills to dethrone a fully healed “Showtime?”
Hopefully we’ll get a chance to find out sooner than later.
Photo Credit: Benny Sieu for USA TODAY Sports
