It’s been well over a year since featherweight Josh Emmett last stepped inside the octagon, but that layoff ends when the main event of UFC Vegas 105 arrives this Saturday.
There, Emmett (19-4) faces England’s Lerone Murphy in a key fight for the 145lb division, where the title currently sits vacant. His return has Emmett fired up, and despite the lengthy (and self-imposed) exile from the cage, the #8-ranked featherweight said on Wednesday that the time away passed quickly.
“It’s exciting. The last time you guys saw me out here was December of 23. It seems like forever, but at the same time it went by so quick, and I can’t be more excited to get back in there and show the world who I am,” exclaimed Emmett, speaking to reporters at the UFC Vegas 105 media day. “I’m stoked for Saturday night.”
As noted, Emmett’s time off was self-imposed, a matter of bettering himself and getting back to where he felt he should be, rather than injury or lack of opponents.
“Yeah I could have fought, but I felt like I owed it to myself, my coaches, my wife, my family, the fans, the UFC— the last handful of years I haven’t been fighting at my best, I’ve been fighting at a fraction of myself. So I had to work on myself to get back to 100%. And I’m fighting and training the way I used to, so you guys are going to see something special Saturday night.”
It’s clear Emmett feels the time is right for his return, though he also underscored on Wednesday that there were no “mental markers” set for when he should come back. “No mental markers ever with me. I know what’s 100% and I know what’s 30%,” he stated. “I feel like I’ve been fighting the last few years with the best guys in the world. There’s fights I definitely want back, but the first thing is I need to get through Lerone Murphy, and the good thing is, the title fight, the vacant title fight is the following weekend. So I will be in the conversation and the talks, but first and foremost I have to go out there and beat a tough, talented Murphy.”
Alexaander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes face off at UFC 314 for the title vacated by Ilia Topuria, so Emmett’s decision to get back to work now is a fortuitous one. In terms of who he was targeting for his return, it seems ultimately anyone in front of him would have been his preference. That hasn’t happened, as Murphy sits at #10, two spots behind Josh Emmett himself in the UFC rankings.
“I wanted someone in front of me. I want to fight the best in the world. Someone in the top three, if not the number one contender so I can get the next shot at the title,” said Emmett. “At the end of the day, I know what I’m capable of. I just have to go out there, and I’ll fight anybody.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 105 media day appearance by Josh Emmett above.
