Lighty Knows Little About Larkin, Doesn’t Mind
Sherdog.com Staff Apr 1, 2011
This is nothing new for Scott
Lighty.
He had been preparing to fight Satoshi Ishii on Friday at Strikeforce Challengers 15, but the promotion announced Monday that Lorenz Larkin would be replacing the Japanese fighter due to visa issues.
“I feel like my whole career I’ve never known exactly who I’m going
to fight,” Lighty (Pictured) said Wednesday on the Sherdog
Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show.
Lighty is a veteran of various kickboxing tournaments in which he didn’t know his opposition until they advanced in a same-night field. That didn’t bother him any more than Larkin replacing Ishii.
Lighty knows very little about Larkin, an undefeated light heavyweight prospect who is 8-0 as a pro. In fact, Lighty said he has seen just one clip of his opponent.
Unlike Ishii, an Olympic judo gold medalist transitioning into MMA, Larkin’s resume suggests he’ll bring some dangerous striking to the cage. He has knocked out opponents in a variety of ways, including via an elbow, a head kick and punches. Against Lighty, though, Larkin will be making his promotional debut in Strikeforce on a Showtime-televised card. It’s an opportunity for both fighters to shine, but with that said, the stage doesn’t make much of a difference to Lighty.
“A fight’s a fight,” he said. “If it’s a Challenger card in the backyard of my house with 10 people watching or 20,000, it’s all the same. I just believe if you do well on a small show or a big show, people are going to notice you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small show. I could care less. I like big shows, I like small shows, I like it all. I just like fighting.”
Lighty is 6-1 in roughly three years of MMA competition. He got into the sport just to prove to himself that he could do it, but now he’s enjoying getting paid to do what he loves. He’s also always wanted to fight in the UFC, and that possibility doesn’t seem too distant since the UFC bought Strikeforce.
His matchup against Larkin is a one-fight deal. A win could catapult Lighty on to bigger and better things, but he’s keeping it basic heading into Friday night.
“The way I think about it is, if you don’t win and you don’t put on a good show, then no one wants to see you fight,” Lighty said. “It’s kind of cut and dry. Either you go out there and do what you train … or you pack it up and do something different.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 21:20).
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
He had been preparing to fight Satoshi Ishii on Friday at Strikeforce Challengers 15, but the promotion announced Monday that Lorenz Larkin would be replacing the Japanese fighter due to visa issues.
Advertisement
Lighty is a veteran of various kickboxing tournaments in which he didn’t know his opposition until they advanced in a same-night field. That didn’t bother him any more than Larkin replacing Ishii.
“I always go in there with the same game plan … and that’s to win
and to make an exciting show for myself and for everybody else,”
Lighty said.
Lighty knows very little about Larkin, an undefeated light heavyweight prospect who is 8-0 as a pro. In fact, Lighty said he has seen just one clip of his opponent.
Unlike Ishii, an Olympic judo gold medalist transitioning into MMA, Larkin’s resume suggests he’ll bring some dangerous striking to the cage. He has knocked out opponents in a variety of ways, including via an elbow, a head kick and punches. Against Lighty, though, Larkin will be making his promotional debut in Strikeforce on a Showtime-televised card. It’s an opportunity for both fighters to shine, but with that said, the stage doesn’t make much of a difference to Lighty.
“A fight’s a fight,” he said. “If it’s a Challenger card in the backyard of my house with 10 people watching or 20,000, it’s all the same. I just believe if you do well on a small show or a big show, people are going to notice you. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small show. I could care less. I like big shows, I like small shows, I like it all. I just like fighting.”
Lighty is 6-1 in roughly three years of MMA competition. He got into the sport just to prove to himself that he could do it, but now he’s enjoying getting paid to do what he loves. He’s also always wanted to fight in the UFC, and that possibility doesn’t seem too distant since the UFC bought Strikeforce.
His matchup against Larkin is a one-fight deal. A win could catapult Lighty on to bigger and better things, but he’s keeping it basic heading into Friday night.
“The way I think about it is, if you don’t win and you don’t put on a good show, then no one wants to see you fight,” Lighty said. “It’s kind of cut and dry. Either you go out there and do what you train … or you pack it up and do something different.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 21:20).
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
Related Articles
