Atlanta, GA — Two fights, two first-round finishes for Rob Wilkinson, and he credits Factory X.
On Friday, “Razor” knocked out Viktor Pesta to advance into the playoffs. Since Wilkinson made a move to Factory X in Englewood, Colorado, he has finished first in the 2022 PFL light heavyweight regular season with 11 points, and is the top seed going into the playoffs starting in August.
He explained the decision to go to the top MMA gym following his latest victory.
“For one, with traveling back and forth from Australia every, you know, five to seven weeks, it’s a lot of travel in that short time especially getting over jet lag,” Wilkinson told Cageside Press in his PFL 4 post-fight interview. “[Second reason] is everything with COVID and stuff going on. It’s cleared up a little bit now, but I didn’t want to get stuck somewhere and not be able to fight because of that. And then I got recommended the gym by friend Richard Welsh, and I talked to Marc [Montoya] and thought it would be a good fit as well. I love my gym back home, but I don’t have anyone that’s my size, really anyone on my level. You know, it’s a much smaller gym. So, I kind of wanted to go to a gym where I also get some good work with some high-level guys.”
If it is big guys that Wilkinson is looking for, Factory X has them. Anthony Smith, Josh Fremd, and Dustin Jacoby are just a few of the bigger fighters at the acclaimed gym.
“So I’ve been there for seven or eight weeks now training with some really high-level guys like Dustin Jacoby and Cody [Brundage] and everyone there, so some really good USA guys. “It’s good to be able to work with those guys,” Wilkinson said.
With two first-round knockouts in the PFL and riding a four-fight win streak with two more first-round knockouts, the Australian believes all of the fans who remember his UFC run should be impressed by the improvements he has made.
“It does [feel good]. The two fights in the UFC weren’t my best fights, and I definitely have improved a lot since then. So it’s good to be able to show the world how good I really am and what I’m capable of,” Wilkinson said.
Watch the rest of Rob Wilkinson’s PFL 4 post-fight interview above.
