UFC can't deny me title shot forever, says Kattar

Top Stories

Calvin Kattar (left) and Dan Ige fight it out on Thursday. - Wam
Calvin Kattar (left) and Dan Ige fight it out on Thursday. - Wam

Abu Dhabi - The No.6 ended Dan Ige's six-fight winning streak on Thursday and is waiting for a shot at featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski

By Ashwani Kumar

  • Follow us on
  • google-news
  • whatsapp
  • telegram

Published: Thu 16 Jul 2020, 10:37 PM

Last updated: Fri 17 Jul 2020, 12:47 AM

Calvin Kattar is getting impatient and destructive waiting for a shot at featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski.
Kattar, the number six, thumped No. 9 Jeremy Stephens in May and on Thursday nailed No. 10 Dan Ige in the main event of the UFC Fight Island 1 - the first of the three Fight Nights in Abu Dhabi.
A dominant Kattar ended Ige's six-fight winning streak and left him with a swollen eye in the Flash Forum.

"This is my fourth win over a top 10 guy. Who's my competition? No one has been busy in 2020, so I am going out there competing, earning opportunities and I can't say much for everybody else in the division," he told reporters.
"If I keep winning, they can't deny me, there's nothing they can do if you keep winning. And that's what I am doing right now. If they don't want to give me a title shot now, I will go out and get another win. They can't deny me forever."
Kattar 'The Boston Finisher' said he is making his case for a title shot with performance in the cage and not from the "comfort of homes" like other contenders.
"All these other guys they all talk. Where I am from, we don't really talk about stuff too much, you go prove and earn it. Here's that's not the business model so it's a little bit of adjustment for me. I just go out, I fight and I try to earn every opportunity in front of me. The champ wants contenders and he won't find them more ready than me."
Kattar said his comfortable win over Ige showed his readiness to take on Volkanovski. "I see myself beating everybody they put in front of me, and the champ's no different. I respect his mindset as a champ. It'd be a good opportunity to go out and compete against him," Kattar added.
Meanwhile, in the co-main event, Tim Elliott returned to winning ways in flyweight division with 29-28 unanimous decision over Ryan Benoit. This is first win for Elliott since December, 2017, and ends the misery of three consecutive losses.
"I feel like I've been climbing out of a hole. I feel the light on my shoulders. It finally feels good to rise to the level of my coaches. I want to have these fun exciting fights, I want to look over and see Dana White shaking his head like this is the guy I want to watch fight," he said.
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com


More news from