LAS VEGAS – It’s all full circle for Lerone Murphy.
The final time he was in Las Vegas was in 2015, not as a fighter however as a fan. Quite a bit has modified since Murphy (13-0-1 MMA, 5-0-1 UFC) attended UFC 189, a consensus all-time card headlined by Conor McGregor vs. Chad Mendes.
At the moment, Murphy was an beginner, undefeated at 3-0. The goose egg within the loss column was maintained by means of another beginner combat and 14 skilled bouts.
The success has led him to his first promotional predominant occasion on Saturday at UFC Battle Night time 241. The cardboard streams on ESPN+.
“It’s huge,” Murphy advised MMA Junkie and different reporters Wednesday at a pre-fight information convention. I visited Las Vegas in 2016 to observe McGregor and Mendes, and since then, I’ve at all times thought it is a place I must combat. That is the combat capital. Now, we’re right here. … My ideas (after I heard of this matchup) have been, ‘Wow. That is my alternative. That is my breakthrough. That is my time to shine now.’”
Murphy has a well known and formidable opponent for his first five-round conflict. He battles the always-exciting Edson Barboza (24-11 MMA, 18-11 UFC), a person he respects tremendously.
“Not likely the side of being predominant occasion, that’s not likely it,” Murphy mentioned. “Who I’m combating is extra so the massive factor. I’m combating Edson Barboza, a legend of the game, a harmful fighter. That’s what excited me, yeah. … (A win) places me up there, solidifies my identify, places me among the many elite of the elite. It offers me a shot at that high 10 afterward.”
Ten weeks after UFC Battle Night time 241, the promotion touches down in Manchester, England for the primary time since October 2016. The timing is actually not very best, however Murphy hopes the celebrities align the place he leaves Saturday’s bout unscathed sufficient to compete in his residence metropolis.
“After all, I wish to be on that card,” Murphy mentioned. “It’s a Manchester card. I’m a Mancunian. I say, once more, I’m the one Mancunian on the roster ever, born and bred. So it’d solely be proper for me to be on there. However I believe it’s six weeks away. Clearly, I’m in a five-round combat. I don’t anticipate on there. But when we will get by means of this combat unscathed and with a win, then I’ll positively be asking the matchmaker to place me on.”
For extra on the cardboard, go to MMA Junkie’s occasion hub for UFC Battle Night time 241.
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