One of the best and most likely entertaining fights of 2015 will take place next Friday night at Bellator 140 as two-time tournament winner Andrey Koreshkov will look to become a Bellator champion when he meets welterweight champion Douglas Lima.
Koreshkov (17-1) secured this title shot last year when he won the season ten tournament with victories over Nah-Shon Burrell, Justin Baesman, and Adam McDonough.
The win in the tournament final against McDonough nearly came one year ago and he has been out of action due to an injury. Just like Koreshkov, Lima has been out of action for over a year due to an injury and Koreshkov believes that the inactivity by both fighters will not play a factor in how the fight plays out.
“Of course, I think there is nothing good in the fact that a fighter can not compete for a long period of time,” Koreshkov told The MMA Report through a translator. “Layoff is never good for a fighter. But at the same time, Douglas Lima is in the same condition as myself because he was not able to fight for over a year for the same reason. An injury so we are in the same condition as him and that has kind of put us on an even surface. We will be in an even condition so I do not think it will be that bad.”
When you think about the fight between Koreshkov and Lima, one of your initial thoughts may be this will be a fight that will play out on the feet. Both fighters are known for their knockouts scored in the Bellator cage, but Koreshkov will be ready to go to the ground if Lima decides to take it there.
“Frankly speaking, I do not think that Douglas will try to take me down,” he said. “I think he will try to keep the fight standing and utilize his strengths. Which is very powerful low kicks and punches. However, it he changes his strategy and tries to take me down. I am ready for it. I am ready to defend it and ready to fight basically anywhere.”
In terms of the fight, Koreshkov is not making any predictions. He is prepared to battle Lima for five rounds if that is what it takes to walk away with the Bellator welterweight title around his waist. When it comes to keys to the fight, Koreshkov explained why he believes movement and different types of attacks will be a key to victory for him.
“There are actually a number of keys. The most important one is to not stay in one place,” Koreshkov explained. “I have to always to be moving and move all the time. Attack him from different angles with different combinations on different levels. I have to confuse him all the time. He should not be able to understand what is going to happen to him in the next moment. I have to be unpredictable. Movement and different types of attacks will key factors to win this fight.”
If Koreshkov is able to defeat Lima next Friday night, he will become fourth welterweight champion in Bellator history and tie Ben Askren for the most wins in divisional history.