Veteran fighter Yves Edwards (41-17-1) will look to shine in the spotlight once again when he meets TUF 13 winner Tony Ferguson (12-2) at The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
For the 35-year-old, it was a long, arduous journey back into the UFC talent pool, but after making the necessary changes at the famed American Top Team, Edwards has gone 4-1 in his last five professional bouts.
As time has gone by with the success of The Ultimate Fighter, some bitterness has ensued with a few veterans of the sport, but not Edwards. Admittedly, the “Thugjitsu” master didn’t even watch season 13, but he firmly believes that exposure doesn’t make a fighter good.
“I didn’t watch that season, I wasn’t too interested in welterweights, but I’ve watched (Ferguson’s) fights since then and the guy looks tough,” Edwards told MMAWeekly Radio.
“He’s won all of his fights since the show and he’s topped everyone. He came out and fought Riley and he looked good there. I’m expecting a tough one.
“I look at it as a tough strong guy trying to punch me in the face and I don’t want to let him. It doesn’t matter if he came off the show, if he came from some planet far, far away and got polished from the yellow sun, he’s a guy I got to fight and I got to go out there and stop him.”
While primarily known for his wrestling, Ferguson showed an ever-improving stand-up arsenal in his bout with Aaron Riley, but for Edwards this is all about attacking from every available position.
He believes that, at this stage of the game, in order to be successful, you have to make adjustments to everyone’s game in order to find a weakness.
“It’s one of those things where I’m not going to prove out there that I’m a better boxer, a better wrestler, or a jiu-jitsu guy. I’m going out there to prove that I’m better at MMA. The guy who is going to have the most success is the guy who can make adjustments and I’m ready to make any adjustments that I need to make.”
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