Mousasi Has ‘Nothing To Gain’ From Fighting Uriah Hall
Gegard Mousasi will get his chance at redemption this weekend (Saturday November 19, 2016) in Belfast when he takes on Uriah Hall in the main event of the evening, as ‘Primetime’ handed the Dutchman his only loss on his record in his last six fights.
Hall finished Mousasi in the second round of their UFC Fight Night 75 contest in Japan last year with a highlight reel jumping spinning back kick, followed by a flying knee and some strikes for good measure. Mousasi has since called the loss a fluke and is eager to get back in the cage with the former Ultimate Fighter finalist to prove so.
Mousasi recently spoke with FOX Sports to discuss the upcoming rematch, giving all props due to Hall for finishing him their first time out, but admits he is seeking revenge:
“He won fair and square. I’m not going to take anything away from him. I respect him for giving me the rematch. It’s a fight, anything can happen. Anything can happen in this fight, but I’m not going to go be too aggressive, over committing, I believe nothing will go wrong this time. I have something to put straight,” Mousasi said. “Not so much against Uriah Hall but you have people who are sitting and just waiting for you to fail so they can have a laugh. So it’s more to set straight something with the idiots who don’t know anything about the sport.
“I’ve got nothing against him. He’s probably a nice guy but I want my revenge. It’s more personal but not against Uriah Hall. It’s against people that thought that he’s the better fighter.”
While Mousasi doesn’t believe he has anything to gain with a potential win over Hall, he admits the contest is a little more personal than anything as he believes he could be fighting for the title straight away rather than sharing the Octagon with ‘Primetime’:
“It’s something more personal. I’ve got nothing to gain, it’s a risky fight for me actually because I’m fighting Uriah Hall,” Mousasi said. “I could go fight somebody in the top four and go fight for the title right away. So I’m going to take two fights to get to a title shot instead of one guy to get to a title shot. It’s more taking an extra risk just to get even.
“I have to put this right and make everyone know that I’m coming for the title. I’m almost there.”
Mousasi would like to finish the contest with a knockout of his own, however, if the contest does find its way into the championship rounds, the former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion believes that he will carry the advantage after 15 minutes:
“Hopefully a knockout, that’s always more impressive than a decision,” Mousasi said. “He’s tough to submit, he doesn’t give up, but I feel like I will easily dominate and take positions.
“I’m going to take my time. I don’t believe it’s going to go three rounds, but if it goes five rounds, I don’t believe he’s going to look so good. I’m in the mood to fight. I’m in the mood to put my punches in his face.”
”The Dreamcatcher’ has embarked on a three-fight winning streak since his loss to Hall, earning victories over the likes of Thales Leites, Thiago Santos, and most recently Vitor Belfort. With his second round finish of Belfort last month, Mousasi has been making his claim for a chance at the 185-pound title that is currently held by Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping, but it seems he’ll be looking to extract revenge from Hall in Belfast first.
Mousasi and Hall will meet in the main event of UFC Fight Night 99 live on UFC Fight Pass, from The SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland this Saturday night (November 19, 2016).
