When Pat Curran entered the Bellator Season 2 Lightweight Tournament, few seemed to recognize him as a legitimate threat to advance to the semifinals, never mind the finals on June 10. Two months later, Curran is in the midst of final preparations for a showdown with Season 1 veteran and come-from-behind submission specialist Toby Imada after dispatching GSP protege Mike Ricci with a first-round knockout and following that up with a Unanimous Decision over tournament favorite Roger Huerta in the semifinals.
Curran recently spoke with Tapology’s Steven Kelliher about his consecutive upset victories and what prompted the elevation in his performance level, how the prize money won in the quarter and semifinals has already changed his life for the better, and how he is approaching his finals bout with Imada now that a title fight with Bellator Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez is within reach.
Tapology: I want to go back to your first fight in the tournament, when you upset undefeated GSP protégé Mike Ricci with a first-round knockout. Did that win give you some confidence heading in against Huerta in the tournament semifinals?
Curran: A little bit. It’s nice to know that I have one-punch knockout power, and I think people respect that now too, but I didn’t go into the Huerta fight overconfident. I think my hands are starting to develop, so confidence-wise it helped me a little bit.
Tapology: On the mental side of things, discounting the knockout, did it help you knowing that you had already defeated a favorite in the first round of the tournament?
Curran: I was an underdog in the last two fights. In the Ricci fight, everyone was calling him the next GSP, and he was undefeated, but if you look at his record he really hasn’t fought anyone tough, so I wasn’t too worried going into that fight. In the Roger Huerta fight, I went into that with a “nothing to lose” attitude because everyone expected me to lose, so I made up my mind to put on a good show and do my best.
Tapology: That was a competitive fight, so when it went to the judges’ scorecards, were you nervous that they might give it to him?
Curran: Yeah, a little bit because he was the favorite to win. Bellator brought him in and had really big plans for him, but my coaches and my corner were telling me that I won the fight, so I thought in my head that I won. I was actually surprised to hear that it was a Unanimous Decision.
Tapology: Talk us through the fight itself. From ringside, it looked like some of the kicks you hit him with to the body took something out of him. Do you think that was the case?
Curran: Yeah and I started off with a nice head kick that smacked him right in the face, so I think that started the pace, and then I was keeping my distance from him, using the push kicks. That took a lot out of him—it pretty much knocks the wind out of you—so I was just keeping it at my range and making it my fight.
Tapology: Was Huerta either more difficult or less so in certain areas that surprised you?
Curran: Stand-up wise I knew he was a really good striker. He puts a lot of pressure on and sets a high pace, but like I said I went in there with nothing to lose and fought my fight.
Tapology: You mentioned that your hands have been developing lately. Since you are only 22 and just now managed to put together wins over top competition, do you think you will start coming into your own as a complete fighter within the next few years?
Curran: Definitely, especially with the last couple of wins. I’d just like to say that my last three losses that I’ve had, I wasn’t in great shape. I felt like I didn’t go into the fights 100% and then I changed up my cardio and conditioning and I feel like a different person.
Tapology: You will be fighting Toby Imada in the lightweight tournament finals on June 10. What do you think about him as a fighter and how are you approaching this fight?
Curran: I know he’s durable, he’s tough, and he’s going to go until he can’t go anymore. We’re still going to go in with the same game plan and try to out-strike him, but I’m comfortable anywhere the fight goes. I think the problem with everybody else was that they just got too comfortable and they just got caught.
Tapology: What can you do during the fight to minimize his success if he does get you to the ground?
Curran: I’ve been training a lot of ground every day. I started out with wrestling—that’s my background—and I moved into Jiu-Jitsu from there and train with very high-level Black Belts. If it goes to the ground, I’m not going to be worried because I’m just as dangerous there as I am standing up.
Tapology: How do you stop yourself from overlooking a guy like Imada with a potential title fight with Eddie Alvarez on the line?
Curran: I just take it one fight at a time and I don’t overlook it. I really can’t tell what’s going to happen after this.
Tapology: This is the first major promotion you have fought for, so financially how big has the prize money been for you?
Curran: It changed my life, it really did. I was working a full-time job, 40 to 45 hours a week on top of training and now I took time off from my job and I’m in the gym four to five hours a day, I’m eating really healthy, and I’m getting enough sleep now. My skill and my level has been jumping and I’ve been very happy with my performances lately. There is a big difference once you are able to train full time, but you have to go through that stuff as an amateur and even starting out as a pro.
Tapology: We’re talking months down the line, but should you win the lightweight tournament, how do you approach a fight with Eddie Alvarez?
Curran: I would approach it the same way I approached Roger Huerta and I’d go in there with nothing to lose. As long as I put on a good show and a good performance, people are going to respect that and respond to that, so win or lose, it’s only going to help me.
Tapology: Thanks for the time, Pat.
Curran: Thanks.
