Aussie UFC heavyweight Soa Palelei is back in the UFC and he’s here to stay.
“The UFC is always the goal,” the Perth resident told The Roar. “It’s been a long, hard road and now I’m obviously fighting in the biggest MMA organisation in the world.”
“The Hulk” first entered the Octagon in 2007 at UFC 79, where he came up short in a TKO loss to Eddie Sanchez. He was released from the UFC shortly after and has since battled to re-enter the Octagon.
His comeback fight came against Nikita Krylov at UFC 164 last August. Though Palelei was victorious, he says that a fractured rib that he carried in to the bout had him performing at less than 100 percent.
This didn’t deter him, however.
“[My UFC return] was a long time coming, I didn’t want to quit and obviously pull out of the fight so I went in there with pretty much busted up ribs. As soon as it started I felt a pop and it just went downhill from there. I just couldn’t breathe.”
The result was a TKO victory for Palelei that was less than thrilling for fans to watch. “It’s not the fight I wanted to have, I’m a more exciting kind of fighter but I’ll take the win and it won’t be long until the next fight in December.
That next fight will come against Pat Barry at UFC Fight Night: Hunt versus Bigfoot on December 7 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre.
“Pat Barry is a badass dude,” Palelei said “He’s got really strong stand-up. You never fall asleep [watching him]. I respect him as an opponent.”
Though both fighters are known for their knockout power, Palelei is confident of his well-roundedness.
“My ground and my stand-up is good, so wherever it goes I can try to weather the storm. He’s got big kicks, big legs so I know he’s got that.
“We’ll work on his weaknesses but even his ground (game) has improved so we’ll see. I don’t want to give away too many of my secrets but it will be an exciting fight to watch.”
In 22 fights, “The Hulk” has never once heard the final bell and he doesn’t see this fight being any different. “I really don’t see this fight going past the first round. The fact that Pat Barry is an explosive fighter and I’m an explosive fighter, and we’re finishers.”
Will it be a matter of who gets the knockout first?
“I can ground-and-pound, that’s kind of my main move. I can knock him out standing up as well. Pat Barry is the same, he can knock you out with kicks and punches.
“This is the fight game – the hurt game, I call it. Anything can happen in the UFC.”
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