When Titan FC 34 takes place next Saturday night, it will have been exactly 18 months since featherweight Freddy Assuncao stepped into a cage.
Assuncao (8-1) will be meeting Cody Bollinger in a key bout in the Titan FC featherweight division and he is extremely excited to be fighting again.
His last fight took place at WSOF 8 in January of last year and scored a split decision victory over Brenson Hansen. It was his first fight in nearly two years due to a knee injury and he believes he will be a different fighter next Saturday night then he was back at WSOF 8.
“I think I am very different. At that fight, I had just came out of ACL surgery,” Assuncao told The MMA Report. “Knee was not 100 percent. Confidence was not at 100 percent because of my knee. It still bothered me a lot. This is going to be a different fight definitely.”
Due to the time away from the cage due to injury, Assuncao does not want to waste anymore time. He made this clear when he signed with Titan FC that he wanted big fights and he has a big fight next week against Bollinger.
“When I signed with Titan, I spoke with [Titan FC CEO] Jeff Aronson and told him I wanted to go right to the top,” he said. “I am not 24 years-old and I do not have a lot of time to waste. I am ready. Cody is just really a guy in my way and I am going to walk through him. Get to where I need to be.”
One of the popular cliché’s we hear from fighters is “this is what makes my opponent dangerous.” While some fighters may talk about striking or grappling in what makes their opponent dangerous, Assuncao views Bollinger in a different way.
“What makes him dangerous is that he probably does not have much to lose. I think he won his last fight and he does not have as much to lose as I am. That can make him a little dangerous. But at the same time, I have the fear of losing,” Assuncao explained. “That also makes me dangerous. I am going to do everything in my power not to lose. Nothing in specific makes him dangerous. Just like any other opponent, he has a chance. In MMA, anything can happen. I am planning to getting in his face and winning every aspect of this fight.”
When you look at the record of Assuncao, you will notice that five of his eight victories have come by decision. He wants to change that in this fight and score his fourth career victory by stoppage.
“I am going to go there and really try to get the finish. I just do not want to get a victory to get a victory. I do not want to be a fighter to have a cool lifestyle. I want to be a champion. The goal is to no matter how, get the finish. Not just get the victory. Get the finish.”
Assuncao will be a guest on Friday’s edition of The MMA Report Live to discuss his fight next Friday and what it’s like to be part of a fighting family.