Regina Sask.’s Austin Russell (3-0) has made a quick ascendance to the top of the BFL bantamweight division.
Just two fights into his stint with BFL, Russell has upset highly-touted prospect Indroop Virk via first round submission, as well as former bantamweight title challenger Gio Planton. Russell, 24, will keep rising to new heights as he will challenge Serhiy Sidey (6-1) for the BFL bantamweight championship on Thursday night at BFL 72.
Russell's rise has been one of the more improbable runs on the Western Canadian circuit — a fighter from Regina who keeps showing up in Vancouver as the underdog and keeps leaving with the win. The Virk upset alone would have put him on the map; following it with another finish over a touted opponent is what turns a surprise into a pattern.
In all of Russell’s fights for the Vancouver-based promotion he has been the underdog, a role he said he relishes.
“Right now, I’m just taking that in as my identity,” said Russell in an interview with MMA Empire.
“I’m always the person who is the underdog, always going to the other person’s backyard to fight and upset the crowd. Right now, I’m cool with it.”
The underdog label is doing a lot of work here, but it's worth noting that Russell is no longer really an underdog in the traditional sense — he's a fighter with a documented ceiling who's simply being priced that way because he's not from the local scene. That distinction matters. Fighters who keep winning fights they 'aren't supposed to win' eventually stop being underdogs and start being contenders.
While Russell and the fan base consider him the underdog going into this fight, Russell feels his style and speed are going to be the keys to victory for him.
“With this matchup, I think we match up pretty well and I think we are going to bring out the best in each other this fight. I’m really excited just as much as he is,” said Russell.
“I think my speed will give me the advantage going into this fight. I just don’t think he’s seen anyone or gone up against anyone with the type of speed and explosiveness that I have, that will catch him off guard. But wherever the fight goes I feel like I can have the advantage.”
Speed is the attribute Russell keeps coming back to, and it's the right lens for this matchup — Platon's game is built on early aggression, and the counter to early aggression is a fighter who can stay calm, read the openings, and be first when it matters. Whether Russell's hand speed translates against a finisher is the real question this fight answers.
