On Friday night, Samuel Giguere (0-3) steps into the cage against France's Islam Taisumov (2-0) at Trophee des Etoiles 15. The featherweight matchup unfolds at Arena Du Pays D'Aix in Aix-en-Provence, France.
Giguere's most recent appearance came against Cody Kent at BTC 8 in November 2019. He showed resilience, navigating difficult situations and completing the full distance, though external challenges heavily weighed on that bout.
"To be honest, that fight it's kind of a pain for me because I just got through a lot of things during my fighting camp. And it was a really tough camp. I had one of my best friends pass away the week before the fight and I said okay, I'm just going through it then. I'll fight, I'll fight him," said Giguere in an interview with MMA Empire.
"It doesn't turn out really well in the end. I'm glad I made it, but I could do a better job against Cody. Cody deserved the win because he worked really hard, but I wish I could go back and fight him again."
Those difficult circumstances shaped his performance—he described feeling a split-second behind on every strike.
Over the following 19 months, Giguere, now 32, honed his craft through the pandemic, with pacing becoming a central emphasis. Cardiovascular conditioning has emerged as his most significant area of development, according to Giguere himself.
Even with limited footage available online, Giguere managed to piece together a game plan for Taisumov ahead of the matchup.
"I managed to find some video of him training and some of his fights. There is not much of stuff I found on the internet about him, but from what I see and from what I've been told, this guy is a sambo-style fighter. So, pretty much, he will be fighting pretty much the same thing that I'll try to do," said Giguere.
"He's a brawler at heart—he loves standing toe-to-toe and exchanging strikes. His kicking game is unconventional, which makes for an interesting matchup. If I can apply enough pressure and pin him against the cage, I'll look to close the distance for a takedown and secure the finish."
Giguere chose to arrive in France ahead of schedule so he could prepare properly for the bout.
"I'm currently based at Prana Family in Montpellier," explained Giguere. "I actually spent time there previously while running my own gym back home in Canada."
"I've been training alongside them for roughly a week now, hitting the mats daily. These guys are incredibly skilled in grappling, and it's given me excellent preparation for what's coming."
Though MMA was only recently legalized in France, the caliber of competitors competing there suggests otherwise.
"It's certainly a newer scene here, but the French training community is deeply committed to martial arts in general," Giguere noted. "The gym I'm at is top-tier—the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioners are exceptional. There's a real depth of talent here."
"I think MMA legalization was something they'd been eagerly awaiting. It's been a relief for the community, and everyone's buzzing about pushing the sport forward."
While the organic growth of MMA in emerging markets is undeniably positive, this specific card does have one notable drawback—limited online streaming availability.
"It's something that disappointed me somewhat, since the event won't be available to stream online. Hopefully that changes down the line," Giguere shared.
"Coverage will mainly come through articles, Facebook posts, and Instagram updates. That's perfectly fine with me, but I'd genuinely love to see video highlights of my fight circulating online."
Connect with Giguere on social media: FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM
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