The vacant CES MMA featherweight title will be on the line next month in Lincoln, Rhode Island as Matt Bessette will meet Pedro Gonzalez at CES MMA 37.
Bessette (19-7) enters this fight on a four fight winning streak and is coming off a submission win at CES MMA 36 against Ran Weathers. During his winning streak, two of the four wins have come in the CES MMA cage and both of those wins came by submission.
During last week’s episode of “The MMA Report Podcast,” Bessette was a guest on the show to preview his fight against Gonzalez and explained what it’s like to be fighting someone that you like as a fighter.
“I am very familiar with Pedro and I actually like him a lot too,” Bessette stated. “The first time I fought someone I really like was Joe Proctor. It was the hardest first round in a MMA fight I have ever had because I felt like I was in a sparring contest. It took me a full round to be like ‘get out of this Matt. This is a fight. You have to win this fight.’ So I have to kind of recuperate and come back. Get back into the mindset of the fight.”
“Over time, I have fought a few guys that I have knew,” he continued. “I did not want to fight Josh LaBerge because I knew him and I respect him as well. I was a veteran at that time when I fought Josh and not so much a veteran when I fought Proctor. My mentality has changed. I can like somebody as much I’m fighting my best friend in the cage. It’s perfectly fine. I would still go out there and try to take his head off. After I do that, I congratulate him. Shake his hand or whatever. When I heard it was Pedro, the first thing that popped into my head, it kind of sucks I got to fight someone in the northeast again. But it’s for a world title. I am not saying no.”
Check out Bessette’ complete interview from last week’s edition of “The MMA Report Podcast” below and be sure to subscribe to the show on iTunes and Stitcher.