UFC middleweight Marc-Andre Barriault booked what may be his toughest fight against Shara Magomedov at UFC Abu Dhabi just a couple days after coming off a highlight reel knockout.
“The fight in Montreal was one of my best highlight of my career for sure. Less than 48 hours (after I got home) I was already on the phone with my manager,” Barriault told reporters on Wednesday.
“All good news for sure, but I was kind of, ‘ok I need to jump back right away’ At this point of my career I just want to make the most of it. I’ve been here like six years now. Kind of my peak right now and I’m super happy that the UFC gave me the opportunity to come here and fight with this guy for sure.”
Barriault (17-9) finished Bruno Silva with elbows at UFC 315 which scored him a win and a bonus on the night. Now he moves onto a very tough test on foreign soil against Magomedov.
“I’m not going to lie. At first I was kind of ok why they offer me this guy? Stylistically I was not like super excited at first. The more I was thinking about the matchup, the fight, and also all the confidence that I gained from my last fight I was ‘ok Markey, you belong here. You can fight with anybody in this division for sure’,” he said.
“I have what it takes to be here. Jumped right back into a training camp.”
Watch the entire media day scrum with Marc-Andre Barriault above facing Shara Magomedov at UFC Abu Dhabi.
