Zac Pauga has only been in the UFC for two fight. His debut came up a weight class following the Ultimate Fighter and ended unceremoniously. He bounced back with a win down at his natural weight class and evened his record. With a short list of fights outside the organization, you might not expect that many had his name circled. However, that was precisely the case for Modestas Bukauskas.
Coming off a huge win as a late-replacement underdog at UFC 284, Bukauskas actually had Pauga’s name on the tip of his tongue.
“He was actually one of the opponents that I kind of put forward to my manager,” he said. “It’s mad because I know he’s probably been watching me fight for quite a long time and I’ve actually been watching him fight for quite a long time. He’s obviously fought in Cage Warrriors and I remember when I was just about to sign back with Cage Warriors that was one name that kind of popped up.”
Back when Bukauskas was looking to rebound from a rough UFC stint that saw his release and a surgically repaired knee, he saw Pauga as a possible path back to the big show.
“If we’re going for the belt, this guy wants to fight for the belt,” he said noting that Pauga was a prospect people would respect a win over. “Obviously then, he went to the Ultimate Fighter.”
With a little of the homework already done, Bukauskas recognizes that his opponent is a tough one. However, that doesn’t taper his confidence in the fight in any way.
“He’s well-rounded. He’s good in every area. Nothing really stands out for me as one particular area or skill set that’s spectacular… he’s just very good at everything,” he said. “I believe I’m going to finish him. Doesn’t matter if it’s in the first, second or third – I will finish him.”
Bukaukas’ fight with Zac Pauga will open Saturday’s UFC Vegas 75 prelims on ESPN+. The fight card begins at 7pm EST.
You can hear the entire audio of this interview at 22:04.
