Ricardo Lamas was supposed to be fighting Ryan Hall at UFC Vegas 8 this Saturday. But pandemic era MMA is even more volatile than the sport is in sunnier times, so not surprisingly, that fight fell through. Instead, Lamas (19-8) now finds himself fighting promotional newcomer Bill Algeo.
Hall of course was a ground specialist, one of the most feared submission experts in the promotion. Algeo is, frankly, a bit of a question mark. He does have a number of submissions on his record, but just one since 2014. In any case, despite Hall’s BJJ credentials, “I wasn’t neglecting other areas,” Lamas told Cageside Press at this week’s UFC Vegas 8 media day. “Just like every camp, I trained for just about anything. I feel prepared no matter who they put me in there with.”
“I know he’s a newcomer, I know he’s going to be trying to prove to people that he belongs here, and I’m going to be trying to prove to people that there are levels to this game,” Lamas added, addressing the obvious danger a debuting opponent brings with them.
“He’s got nothing to lose in this fight. That makes anybody dangerous,” Lamas opined. “I feel like everybody’s expecting him to lose, because he’s a newcomer and he’s going up with a vet like myself. And I need to be wary of that and stay technical, stick to my game plan, and adapt to whatever he brings in the cage.”
There was a point where the 38-year old Lamas, who competed just once last year, wasn’t even sure if he’d be fighting this weekend.
“I didn’t know if they were going to be able to find an opponent. It sucks when it happens at that point, where you’re pretty much in your last week of camp, or last few days of training. For something like that to happen, it’s pretty devastating,” Lamas admitted. Taking half a day or so to process the news, Lamas focused on his training, and eventually the UFC came through.
It’s the second time Hall has dropped out of a fight with Lamas, however. And he wasn’t ready to address whether he’d want the fight back this week. “I’m not even thinking about Ryan Hall right now. I’m 100% focused on Bill Algeo,” said Lamas.
Watch the full UFC Vegas 8 virtual media day press scrum with Ricardo Lamas above.
