The fight that’s been talked about for the better part of a year is finally set to take place this weekend.
New Westminster, B.C.’s Josh Kwiatkowski (5-2) will look to extend his winning streak to five fights when he meets Lethbridge, Alta.’s Lucas Neufeld (5-1) in a featherweight bout for the main event of BTC 10 on Saturday night in Vancouver, B.C.
Throughout his career so far, Kwiatkowski, 27, is a proven finisher, winning four of his fights via knockout or TKO. On the contrary, Neufeld has proven his durability, having yet to be finished dating all the way back to his amateur career.
Kwiatkowski acknowledged the durability of Neufeld, but believes he has the tools to be the first man to finish him.
“He doesn’t quit, he doesn’t look for a way out. That in itself, that’s a skill, that’s a talent. When you look at his record, no one’s found a way, no one’s made him quit, and he’s fought high-level guys,” said Kwiatkowski in an interview with MMA Empire.
“When you go in there with him, you know that’s something he’s got and, fortunately for me, that’s something I’ve got too, so they cancel each other out. Now we’re going down to skills, and I believe my skills are going to be enough to find a way to lead Lucas out of the fight.”
Kwiatkowski enters action on Saturday night having won four straight fights, three of which were via knockout or TKO.
And while he knows Neufeld’s durability will make another knockout a tall task, Kwiatkowski said if he fights smart, he believes he can put Neufeld away in the first round.
“I feel if I go in there and fight smart, I can finish the fight in the first round,” said Kwiatkowski.
“I have faith in my power, I have faith in my coaches, I have faith in my team that supports me, and I have faith that if I fight smart, I can show people the power I have at 145 and I can put him away in the first round.”
This bout was originally scheduled in the co-main event slot, but after the intended main event didn’t come to fruition, Kwiatkowski and Neufeld received the bump up into the headlining position.
Given the hype and eyes on this fight, Kwiatkowski said the main event is where he and Neufeld belong on Saturday night.
“To be honest, if we weren’t the main event, we were still the main event,” said Kwiatkowski.
“We would’ve just been making the main event feel bad, so now it’s just respectful on both ends to make us the main event because it deserves to be, it should be, and now it is. We’re not going to let anyone down.”
Kwiatkowski has managed a quick start to 2021, already having fought back in March at Rise FC 6.
Now set to make his second appearance of the calendar year, Kwiatkowski said he hopes to get three or four more fights in for 2021, and has a solid game plan as to what that may look like.
“I don’t want to look past this fight. All I want to look at is June 5 where I have a very tough test,” said Kwiatkowski.
“But if I had a game plan, I would like to go beat Lucas, go win a belt for BTC at 145 because I believe it’s vacant, then take my ass to another organization and beat their champion, and then I believe I’ll be ready to go to the show. Or maybe, before that, go through the Contender Series. Who knows what path I’ll go with the fights, but all I know is on June 5 is my first test.”
Kwiatkowski’s Shoutouts
“I’d like to thank Whole Cuisine for my meal prep, Catalyst Kinetic Group, Strike Recovery, all of my coaching staff, and all of my teammates.” Follow Kwiatkowski on social media: FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM
