Jorge Rivers | Source: MMAWeekly.com
Longtime UFC veteran and UFC 122 co-headliner Jorge Rivera spoke with Tapology’s Steven Kelliher recently to discuss what he feels will be a fight to remember against Alessio Sakara on Saturday night.
While Rivera experienced a few setbacks in the Octagon from 2007-08, he is currently riding a three-fight winning streak, with the two most recent victories coming by way of TKO.
“I feel great,” Rivera said about his career resuscitation. “My career is on the right track, I’ve been fighting well and I feel like everything’s finally coming together for me, and I’m enjoying the ride. I think I’m around better trainers that understand how I think and how I approach the fight game and that helps me perform better.”
Rivera takes it to Rob Kimmons at UFC 104 in 2009 | Source: MMAWeekly.com
At 38 years old, Rivera is one of the oldest veterans in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, but that does not concern him at the moment.
“I don’t think about the ramifications of what I do until I have to,” Rivera said, adding, “otherwise I wouldn’t be able to perform up to the best of my ability.”
On the flip side of the age-coin, Rivera is a crafty veteran who has done battle with all-time greats such as current UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and former title holder Rich Franklin.
“I’ve fought some of the best in the world,” Rivera said. “I’ve seen what doesn’t work and I’ve learned from those experiences. I’ve really just been training smarter and pushing my conditioning more in recent camps. I don’t spar as much as I used to—I actually don’t spar much anymore, just once every week or so—and I do a lot of drilling on technique.”
Rivera betters fellow veteran Nate Quarry earlier this year | Source: MMAWeekly.com
With a focused, settled Rivera gunning for him in Germany tomorrow night, American Top Team’s Sakara will certainly have his hands full. No matter what the outcome, however, Rivera believes this fight was made for the fans, and he plans to deliver.
“We’re both exciting fighters, both great strikers, both move forward; I think it’s a fight that was made for the fans. It might come down to who has a better chin, who can take it and keep coming,” Rivera said.
Finally, when asked about the prospect of launching himself close to title contention with an impressive victory, Rivera refused to speculate.
“I’ll leave it up to the fans and the powers that be,” Rivera said.
