Brad Katona has experienced plenty of tough opponents over the years, yet he thinks Hunter Azure might finally be facing a genuine test.
Katona (8-1) aims to demonstrate Azure (7-0) the caliber of competition he will encounter in the UFC when the two cross paths in a bantamweight matchup at UFC ESPN+ 16 in Vancouver, B.C. Saturday night.
The 27-year-old Katona feels Azure hasn't been genuinely challenged throughout his career and has avoided significant adversity inside the octagon.
"Look at the fighters he's run into leading up to this, including his most recent outing," Katona remarked during an interview. "There's been a noticeable skill gap between him and his opponents. He's been clearly superior to them."
"He's never known defeat and never had to bounce back from it. I've been in that position — take the Bryce Mitchell fight, for instance. We were split going into the third round and I was trailing, but I managed to flip the script. Those moments prove your toughness and resilience. I doubt he's encountered that situation yet, and the first time you face it, you're never quite sure how someone will respond."
Long before his stint on The Ultimate Fighter Season 27, Katona relocated from his native Winnipeg, MB to Dublin, Ireland to train with the squad at SBG Ireland.
The fighter explained he has been training full-time at the top-tier Irish facility, not solely during fight camps, which has accelerated his development.
"I'm living there and training year-round with all those killers, and I believe that's the real advantage," Katona noted.
"I'm based year-round at an elite gym instead of just showing up for training camps. That's how I think you should approach it — extracting that learning and developmental value from camp."
Katona is rebounding from the first defeat of his career, a unanimous decision loss to the highly regarded wrestler Merab Dvalishvili.
Facing another formidable grappler in Azure, Katona stated he and his coach, John Kavanagh, have been diligently plugging the gaps Dvalishvili exposed in their previous meeting, while also examining and addressing other potential vulnerabilities.
"It's not only about returning to fix the holes Dvalishvili found — obviously we want to close those — but it's about creating more of those scenarios in the gym, forcing out those weaknesses, and then patching them," Katona explained.
"We really put my game under a detailed microscope and considered how someone would beat me, then worked on building a defense against it."
Azure is Fight Ready
In addition to bringing an elite wrestling pedigree, 27-year-old Azure has also relocated to Fight Ready for this training camp — the same gym where one of the UFC's top wrestlers, Henry Cejudo, trains.
Formerly with The MMA Lab, Azure noted the transition to Fight Ready has returned him to his comfort zone.
"It's been fantastic; it kind of brought me back to my roots and where I started from," Azure told reporters.
"The wrestling level there is absolutely top-notch with the coaches they have. It just brought me back to where I'm comfortable."
Azure steps into the UFC octagon for the first time after a contract-winning performance on the latest edition of Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, securing a unanimous decision win over Chris Ocon.
Azure described the entire Contender Series experience as something he genuinely needed to go through to advance his career and ready himself for the major stage.
"It was an incredible experience, and something I definitely needed to get under me with that kind of pressure and exposure," Azure said.
"Sitting in that chair afterward with four finishes that night, and my fight being the only one that went to a decision, I wasn't feeling very lucky. I didn't know if I was going to get the contract that night, but with two strong fighters in myself and Ocon, I ended up getting the contract too. I knew my time was coming and I just had to keep winning."
Thus far in his career, Azure has not tasted defeat, with four of his seven victories coming before the final bell. He also arrived in the pro ranks following an impressive amateur campaign with an 8-1 record.
Whether via finish or decision, Azure feels he will emerge victorious in his UFC debut in dominant fashion Saturday night.
"With my striking and wrestling getting much better and mixing it together, I can definitely see myself finishing him," Azure said.
"But if I don't get that finish, and I'm not going to rush it, I'm definitely going to just dominate him for three rounds."
Follow Katona on social media: FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM
Azure's Shoutouts
"I'd definitely like to thank all my coaches, teammates, and training partners for putting in the work with me at Fight Ready, and my strength and conditioning coaches at NeuroForce1." Follow Azure on social media: FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM
