Ukrainian bantamweight Liudvik Sholinian recaps LFA 74 win, says it’s either UFC or LFA for him moving forward.
Riverside, CA — Liudvik Sholinian improved to 6-1-1 Saturday night at LFA 74 with a split decision win against Vincent Cachero. A bantamweight out of the Ukraine, Sholinian seemed to make some adjustments after the first round, which enabled him to take control over the next two frames.
Speaking to Cageside Press following the fight, however, Sholinian said it all went to plan.
“Basically first round was tough, but that’s what we planned to do,” he said. “We knew he was coming to come out hard, and it was going to be hard to take him down, so we didn’t rush takedowns.”
In fact, “I think it was harder for him,” Sholinian suggested, “even though he won the first round, but it was harder for him mentally. Because he was seeing I kept coming forward. So I knew the takedown was coming.” So despite the early pressure, “I was really calm. Second, third round I knew what I was going to do exactly, that he was going to start getting tired, and that’s when I was going to get him to the ground.”
The crowd was very much behind opponent Cachero Friday night, but “I didn’t even pay attention honestly,” said Sholinian. “I had a lot of fun there. It was a good atmosphere out there. They were cheering. I didn’t even really notice who they were cheering for. I was just having fun. It was a great time.”
“It would be worse if there were no one cheering for no one. So at least they were cheering for someone, so it was fun,” he added.
Sholinian, who has fought for Bellator in the past, now looks to the future, and he sees only two promotions on the radar. Speaking via his translator, the bantamweight said he “loves it in LFA,” and that the only organization after LFA he sees himself in “is UFC.” To Sholinian, LFA is the second best organization in the world, right after the UFC.
Which means the UFC is his “only goal. Either [that, or] staying in LFA for a couple more fights, then go to the UFC.”
Watch our full LFA 74 post-fight interview with Liudvik Sholinian above!
