Indian MMA fighter Anshul Jubli.
Credit: Instagram/kingoflions_
India's biggest Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) star Anshul Jubli is all set to make his official debut in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) on Saturday in Abu Dhabi, where he will take on American lightweight Mike Breeden.
When asked if he was nervous, Anshul maintained a brave face as he recited a stanza from Shivmangal Singh Suman's poem. “Na haar mein, na jeet mein. Kinchit nahi bhaybheet mein, sangarsh path pe jo mile, yeh bhi sahi aur woh bhi sahi," Hindustan Times quoted him as saying. (this roughly translates to "I am not being afraid of the outcome".)
“I don't feel I'm making a debut in UFC, because my Road to UFC final fight was stacked in UFC card, so the atmosphere is similar and I have the experience how UFC fights are," an unfazed Anshul was further quoted as saying.
He also termed his opponent Mike Breeden “a complete fighter”, adding, "he is good at both grappling and striking so I have focused on all areas. But I think I'm better than my opponent in all aspects. My game is to dictate fights and I'll be waiting for him to commit a mistake and the moment he does that, I'll go for the kill.”
Here are the five things to know about Anshul Jubli:
> The MMA fighter is 28 years old and hails from Uttarakhand.
>After Bharat Khandare, he is the second Indian to bag a UFC contract.
>As mentioned on his UFC page, Jubli fights in the lightweight category (150 lbs or 70 kg).
>Known as 'King of Lions', he has seven MMA wins under his name, two of which were won by knockout and one by submission.
> According to reports, Jubli began his training when he was 22 and later moved to Delhi for better training.
> Jubli had earlier won in the semi-final against South Korean fighter Kyung Pyo Kim and then took on Jeka Saragih in the finale in the Road to UFC competition.