“The Natural Born Killer” returns to the octagon on Saturday for the first time in nearly two years. At UFC Fight Island 4, Carlos Condit takes on fellow veteran and TUF winner Court McGee. For Condit, it’s a chance to snap a five-fight skid that has seen him go without a win since 2015, prior to his welterweight title fight with Robbie Lawler.
The Abu Dhabi-based card, the second of the UFC’s current Fight Island stint, will see a very different scene await Condit (30-13), a two-time title challenger in the UFC’s welterweight division.
Gone are the fans. The media presence, at least on site, is limited. There’s COVID-19 testing, quarantines. “It’s been interesting,” Condit said of the change during a virtual media scrum on Wednesday. No doubt, given his popularity among fight fans. However, the Jackson-Wink fighter isn’t worried about the setting. “When it comes down to it, I’ve got a guy across the cage who’s going to try to take my head off, and I’ve got to take his off first,” he observed. “That’s really what it boils down to.”
When it comes to that opponent, well, Court McGee is a fighter Condit acknowledged that he has a “good rapport” with. So much so that initially, he considered asking for someone else.
Five minutes of contemplation resulted in Condit taking the fight anyway. After all, it’s just business, and a fun fight on paper. “Court brings it every single time. He’s well-rounded, comes from a great camp, he’s got a great skill set, and I think we’re going to put on a hell of a fight,” observed Condit.
McGee, for his part, is excited at the match-up as well, he admitted during the event’s media day. Responding to that, Condit suggested that “honestly I think this fight’s going to be special. We’re both a couple of dudes who are passionate about fighting. Style wise, and the way that we approach the game, it’s going to be an interesting fight. I think it’s going to be something to watch.”
One factor you cannot ignore heading into the bout, however, is Condit’s recent struggles. Whether the fighter could endure a sixth straight loss and continue to move forward is a big question. “I don’t know as far as continuing on in my career, but the UFC’s probably going to get sick of me not showing up,” Condit admitted. “So I should probably win.”
And so that’s the plan. “I put in the work, I did the preparation. And I’m going to go out there, show up, and I’m confident I’m going to come away with the win,” he added, later dismissing the notion that a loss could spell the end of his run.
“I think it’s must-win in the sense that if I lose, it’s going to hurt really bad and suck,” said Condit. “But I’m not really attached to ‘this is a doomsday scenario for my career.’ I think that’s putting too much pressure on things I can’t control.”
Outside of his own fight, Condit also took a moment to address the Greatest of All Time debate. As tired as GOAT discussions can and do get, Condit is one of the few who have spent time with the two leading candidates at this point. He fought Georges St. Pierre, and has trained with Jon Jones.
Asked for who he sees as the greatest, Condit sided with “Bones.”
“Because of the era that Jon fought in and the opponents, I think I’d have to lean towards Jon,” he opined.
Watch the full UFC Fight Island 4 virtual media day scrum with Carlos Condit above.
