UFC 269 goes down inside the T-Mobile Arena this weekend, and Josh Emmett has a purposeful mindset heading into his pivotal featherweight affair with Hawaii’s Dan Ige.
As one of the hardest hitters in the featherweight division, Josh Emmett put his name on the map after defeating Ricardo Lamas by KO in round one back in 2017. Emmett was signed to the UFC in 2016 but his signature knockout power didn’t start revealing itself until the Lamas fight about a year into his featherweight tenure.
With an overall record of 16-2 as a pro, Josh Emmett is a tough out at 145-pounds. The 36-year-old is on a 3-fight winning streak, and unfortunately, the only thing holding him back seems to be nagging injures. In fact, the 145-pound fighter explained that he’s been forced to endure quite a few surgeries, and most recently had an operation on his knee.
Josh Emmett Talks Road To Dan Ige Fight
Speaking with Cole Shelton on Just Scrap Radio at BJ Penn.com, Josh Emmett spoke about the arduous road that led to a fight with Ige at UFC 269. During camp, Emmett enthusiastically explains how his grappling, striking, and wrestling has attributed overall to increased mobility.
“It was a tough road, I have had a lot of injuries but this knee injury I went through has to be at the top of the list. It wasn’t the initial surgery, it was that I had to go in and do multiple things, just a lot of issues,” Emmett said on Just Scrap Radio at BJPENN.com. “I have been busting my ass for 15 months straight, but a few months ago everything clicked that I was able to start doing wrestling, grappling, everything, and getting back to my athletic style and using a lot of movement. For a while, I didn’t know if I’d ever get back to where I was at.”
“I’m always prepared for a 15-minutes war. I hope it doesn’t go that long. But, he has had so many fights and he’s never been finished,” Emmett explained. “Of course, that is a goal of mine (to finish him). I’ve fought a lot of people who have never been finished or knocked out and I was able to do so.” Ige said.
Both featherweights like to stand and bang so fans are in for an early Christmas present on Dec. 11 at UFC 269. With intentions of finishing Ige, there is little doubt the fight won’t be fireworks since “50K” is looking to make a statement after losing handily to The Korean Zombie in June.
Do you think Dan Ige can get back in the win column against Josh Emmett at UFC 269?
