Las Vegas, NV — “The Monkey King” got back in the win column at UFC Vegas 45, and he felt a bunch of different ways about it.
After losing for the first time in his professional career back in June, Jordan Leavitt (9-1) got back in the winner’s circle on Saturday. So far, Leavitt is 2-0 in December, and both of his wins have been highlight-worthy. In his UFC debut, he retired Matt Wiman with a slam, and then on Saturday, he tapped Matt Sayles with an inverted triangle choke.
The win over Sayles had him feeling like the color turquoise.
“I’m feeling pretty good, not going to lie—lots of feelings. I can’t think of a word; it’s kind of cathartic. Like, I’m happy, I’m excited, pumped, prideful but also feel humble. High and low-it’s like a color, I’m turquoise,” Leavitt told Cageside Press during his UFC Vegas 45 post-fight interview. “I don’t have the word for it. While I’m doing this whole fight thing, I’m going to have to find out the word that describes how you feel after you win. It’s not quite like when my daughter was born; it’s not like the first water after weigh-ins. There isn’t a word for it. It is amazing, so it’s just color right now.”
Leavitt wants to be active in 2022, like he was in 2020, fighting four times. He would particularly like to fight for Black History Month.
“February or March would be awesome. Maybe fight for Black History Month, I don’t know. I want to stay active. It’s easier for me to train when I have an opponent in mind. Until then, I will focus on myself; that’s kind of what I did this camp because I made a mistake after my fight before my last one. I prepared so much for the fighter, but he hadn’t fought in two years, and he had improved so much. It was like fighting a phantom; he didn’t exist,” Leavitt said.
“The Monkey King” hopes to fight someone who isn’t coming off a layoff so that he can actually study tape. All three of his opponents of late were coming off layoffs, so he wants something different.
Watch the rest of Jordan Leavitt’s UFC Vegas 45 post-fight interview above.
