Las Vegas, NV — Entering UFC Vegas 78 off a “super-relieving, super-gratifying” win last time out, Josh Fremd isn’t feeling any pressure.
In fact, despite the feeling of relief after picking up his first UFC victory, over SD Dumas, Fremd (10-4) wasn’t feeling pressure before his last bout either. Despite the obvious perils of being on a two-fight skid across his first two contests inside UFC octagon.
“Honestly I know it’s hard to believe, but there was no pressure. I knew where I stood, i know where I stand,” Fremd explained during Thursday’s UFC Vegas 78 media day. “I just knew that I needed to go out there and fight. At the end of the day, it’s a fight. All this extra cameras and microphones and all that, it’s just extra to it. This is a fight, and I just needed to go out there and fight.”
“That’s what I told my coach about this fight here,” said Fremd, briefly distracted by a bit of background noise at the UFC Apex. The venue has been a busy one of late, between the Contender Series, this week’s Fight Night card, and a Power Slap event. “I’m in the same predicament. I just need to go out there and fight. There is no pressure. Because if I felt the pressure, that means I didn’t do the right things in camp, I didn’t do the right things to prepare myself. So I’m prepared. Even though it was short notice, I was prepared. It is what it is.”
Fremd is kicking off the main card against Jamie Pickett this Saturday, and the middleweight “would like to think that it’s because I’m handsome as hell,” he joked. “Cool placement.” In reality, the 29-year old doesn’t care why the matchmakers chose him to open up the show on ESPN.
“I don’t really care if I’m the first fight on the whole card, or if we’re doing this out in the parking lot,” said Fremd. “I’m here to fight, and that’s all I’m thinking about right now.”
In Pickett, Josh Fremd sees a fighter similar to old foe SD Dumas. “A better version of him, if you will,” he suggested. “I think he’s going to be tougher a little bit, but I think I can break him.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 78 media day appearance by Josh Fremd above.
