Kelvin Gastelum Fired Up For Showdown vs. Anderson Silva
Kelvin Gastelum Fired Up For Showdown vs. Anderson Silva
UFC middleweight Kelvin Gastelum eager to show and prove against former king Anderson Silva in Shanghai.
The process of progress is always locked firmly in Kelvin Gastelum's mind. He knows the overall journey will come with victories and pitfalls alike, and making sure to take lessons learned in full is what will allow the accumulative balance to always tip toward the positive.
That said, Gastelum's obstacles -- self-imposed or those which occur inside the cage -- have helped to forge the man he's grown to become. And while his entry into the UFC came at an age younger than most, the fighter who the California native has proven to be is living, breathing, face-punching proof of just how much his personal education has driven his skill set forward.
Coming off a submission loss to Chris Weidman last month, Gastelum has seen the fire that burns within him only grow with intensity. He can face up and acknowledge the mistakes he's made in the lead-up to a fight and once the cage door closed, but that doesn't mean he'll simply accept them.
"You have a choice when it comes to facing failure," Gastelum told FloCombat. "You can either allow it to break you or remake you. I choose to let it reshape me because I learn from it and grow from it. It's a constant education, and facing up to those adversities has always made me stronger.
"Some people allow it to actually defeat them, and once that decision is made, true failure has taken hold. I go a different way. I pick myself back up and come back stronger and harder than ever before."
Photo Credit: © Jason Silva-USA TODAY Sports
For Gastelum, a misstep means he'll be coming back even stronger to validate the work he's invested and to erase the hovering doubt surrounding his capabilities as a fighter. And that's precisely what he intends to do in his upcoming fight, which will undoubtedly be the most high-profile tilt of his career.
The 25-year-old fighter will square off with former middleweight king and pound-for-pound great Anderson Silva in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai on Nov. 25. The bout will anchor the promotion's debut showing in mainland China and will match Gastelum against the most legendary fighter to ever grace the Octagon.
The two were originally slated to meet at UFC 212 back in June, but Gastelum's USADA infraction for marijuana metabolites forced that fight to be scratched. Yet, Silva was up for giving the bout another go, and the showdown in Shanghai was set.
"I'm honestly very surprised [Silva signed] the contract again because he was very public about saying how he wasn't going to fight anyone coming off a loss or accept anything less than a super fight with a very popular fighter," Gastelum said. "He was calling out Nick Diaz and things like that, so I was somewhat shocked he was willing to take the fight with me. That said, I'm super excited he did because it's one hell of an opportunity for my career.
"I think this is a great matchup for me. I have power in my hands, and Silva isn't going to have the wrestling abilities Chris Weidman had. I don't think he'll want to wrestle with me at all, or maybe he will. I don't know, but I do know he lacks the wrestling pedigree to actually compete with me there. I believe he'll want to keep the fight standing, and that gets me excited."
Photo Credit: © Joshua Dahl-USA TODAY Sports
Although Gastelum has talked about plans to drop back down into welterweight waters, the chance to mix it up with the man who was once considered the GOAT was simply too appealing to pass up.
"My game plan was to go to 170 and get a top five opponent who would put me right in the title mix," Gastelum said. "If I'm going to go back down, I want to jump right into the important conversations. Although that was on my mind, this was too great of an opportunity to pass up. To fight one of the greatest ever -- perhaps even the greatest to ever compete -- in China... it doesn't get any better than that."
Despite losing his title and stumbling in numerous bouts since his reign officially ended four years back, Silva still evokes awe and expectation with his skills. And while Gastelum holds tremendous respect for "The Spider," he wants to make it absolutely clear Silva's journey to China will not end well for the man who once held status as the most feared striker in the game.
"I know he's not going to want to take me down, and that's not something I see a lot," Gastelum said. "Most people I face know I'll knock them out if it stays standing, but Silva's best weapons are also on the feet. This is going to be a great fight.
"I'm completely motivated and fired up after how my last fight played out. I was upset and disappointed for a few weeks after that fight, but then this fire started to grow inside of me. I've never wanted to win more than I do right now. I've never felt I've needed to prove myself more than I do going into this fight with Anderson.
"I'm coming out with fire in my fists and in my heart," he concluded. "Something has changed inside of me because of that last fight, and I'm going to show the world what I'm made of."
Don't miss breaking news, feature stories, event updates, and more. Sign up for the FloCombat mailing list today.
That said, Gastelum's obstacles -- self-imposed or those which occur inside the cage -- have helped to forge the man he's grown to become. And while his entry into the UFC came at an age younger than most, the fighter who the California native has proven to be is living, breathing, face-punching proof of just how much his personal education has driven his skill set forward.
Coming off a submission loss to Chris Weidman last month, Gastelum has seen the fire that burns within him only grow with intensity. He can face up and acknowledge the mistakes he's made in the lead-up to a fight and once the cage door closed, but that doesn't mean he'll simply accept them.
"You have a choice when it comes to facing failure," Gastelum told FloCombat. "You can either allow it to break you or remake you. I choose to let it reshape me because I learn from it and grow from it. It's a constant education, and facing up to those adversities has always made me stronger.
"Some people allow it to actually defeat them, and once that decision is made, true failure has taken hold. I go a different way. I pick myself back up and come back stronger and harder than ever before."
Photo Credit: © Jason Silva-USA TODAY Sports
For Gastelum, a misstep means he'll be coming back even stronger to validate the work he's invested and to erase the hovering doubt surrounding his capabilities as a fighter. And that's precisely what he intends to do in his upcoming fight, which will undoubtedly be the most high-profile tilt of his career.
The 25-year-old fighter will square off with former middleweight king and pound-for-pound great Anderson Silva in the main event of UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai on Nov. 25. The bout will anchor the promotion's debut showing in mainland China and will match Gastelum against the most legendary fighter to ever grace the Octagon.
The two were originally slated to meet at UFC 212 back in June, but Gastelum's USADA infraction for marijuana metabolites forced that fight to be scratched. Yet, Silva was up for giving the bout another go, and the showdown in Shanghai was set.
"I'm honestly very surprised [Silva signed] the contract again because he was very public about saying how he wasn't going to fight anyone coming off a loss or accept anything less than a super fight with a very popular fighter," Gastelum said. "He was calling out Nick Diaz and things like that, so I was somewhat shocked he was willing to take the fight with me. That said, I'm super excited he did because it's one hell of an opportunity for my career.
"I think this is a great matchup for me. I have power in my hands, and Silva isn't going to have the wrestling abilities Chris Weidman had. I don't think he'll want to wrestle with me at all, or maybe he will. I don't know, but I do know he lacks the wrestling pedigree to actually compete with me there. I believe he'll want to keep the fight standing, and that gets me excited."
Photo Credit: © Joshua Dahl-USA TODAY Sports
Although Gastelum has talked about plans to drop back down into welterweight waters, the chance to mix it up with the man who was once considered the GOAT was simply too appealing to pass up.
"My game plan was to go to 170 and get a top five opponent who would put me right in the title mix," Gastelum said. "If I'm going to go back down, I want to jump right into the important conversations. Although that was on my mind, this was too great of an opportunity to pass up. To fight one of the greatest ever -- perhaps even the greatest to ever compete -- in China... it doesn't get any better than that."
Despite losing his title and stumbling in numerous bouts since his reign officially ended four years back, Silva still evokes awe and expectation with his skills. And while Gastelum holds tremendous respect for "The Spider," he wants to make it absolutely clear Silva's journey to China will not end well for the man who once held status as the most feared striker in the game.
"I know he's not going to want to take me down, and that's not something I see a lot," Gastelum said. "Most people I face know I'll knock them out if it stays standing, but Silva's best weapons are also on the feet. This is going to be a great fight.
"I'm completely motivated and fired up after how my last fight played out. I was upset and disappointed for a few weeks after that fight, but then this fire started to grow inside of me. I've never wanted to win more than I do right now. I've never felt I've needed to prove myself more than I do going into this fight with Anderson.
"I'm coming out with fire in my fists and in my heart," he concluded. "Something has changed inside of me because of that last fight, and I'm going to show the world what I'm made of."
Sign Up For The FloCombat Newsletter
Don't miss breaking news, feature stories, event updates, and more. Sign up for the FloCombat mailing list today.