Atlanta, GA — Bantamweight Kris Moutinho returns to the UFC this weekend, three-years on from a two-fight stint that included a Fight of the Night showing against one of the sport’s biggest stars, Sean O’Malley.
Despite that short-notice showing, a follow-up loss to Guido Cannetti saw Mouthinho bounced from the promotion, leading to a very dark time in his life, he explained during Wednesday’s UFC Atlanta media day, ahead of his promotional return.
“I went through a really bad, bad time. With relationships, with everything else. My life was just a mess,” explained Moutinho (14-6), who has since turned things around inside and outside of the cage. “I was very close to ending this thing, ending it all and being done. F*cking, I don’t know, I don’t want to talk too much about it, but it was a bad time, one of the worst times of my life.”
Moutinho credits his current partner with helping him get back on track, and returns to the UFC, on short notice once again against Matthew Wellmaker, on the strength of a five-fight win streak. The parallels to his first stint are clear. “It’s pretty much the same thing that happened last time. I’m fighting a tall, lanky, good striker, nine day’s notice. It feels pretty similar, but I’m a different person than I was then. I’m a lot older, a lot at peace with myself, and where I’m at in life. And hopefully it’s going to be a better show.”
Asked how he’s changed from his first run in the UFC, Kris Moutinho noted that caring less has actually allowed him to enjoy MMA more, resulting in better performances. “This sport has, in the 12 years, 13 years that I’ve been doing it, has taken a lot from me. I care less I guess about the sport and less about what I’m doing and that’s somehow freed me to enjoy it more when I am in there and I am training and I am fighting.”
“I got back to what I did when I started this stuff. I would mix in the game. I got a little too punch-crazy, I wanted to throw punches and get hit by punches and I enjoyed it a little too much. Didn’t pay out well when I was here the last time. Opened my game up a little bit, worked on the flaws I had the last time, and I’m just a more complete fighter now.”
Watch the full UFC Atlanta media day appearance by Kris Moutinho above.
