Mar-11-2010

Ross Pearson: Great Expectations

By Elliot Worsell

Ross ‘The Real Deal’ Pearson couldn’t have looked better in winning season nine of The Ultimate Fighter. He defeated Richie Whitson, Jason Dent and then teammate Andre Winner in the final, more than living up to his audacious nickname. Fast-forward five months and Pearson incredibly looked even better, this time mauling veteran American Aaron Riley in his official UFC debut in Manchester.

Seemingly improving at a rate of knots, the hard-working Sunderland lightweight is quick to add a cautionary warning ahead of his next outing.

“Obviously I’m going to try to be better with each fight and to train harder for each one, but you just never know how things work out,” says Pearson, who next appears at UFC Fight Night 21 on March 31st.

“I feel that I’m a better fighter than last time, but not every fight can be improved upon. I know I’m going to win this fight – and I’m not doubting myself in any way – but I just hope people don’t have too high of an expectation this early into my career.

“I’m still learning, still improving and still finding my feet. I want to be twice as good as I was in the Riley fight, but I just hope UFC fans aren’t expecting it. You never know what kind of fight you’re going to get. It could be a grinding fight and I may have to dig deep and show another side to my game. I feel 10 times better than I was for the last fight, but it’s all about taking that form into the Octagon.”

Despite the boundless potential, Pearson is still only 25 years of age and boasts a mere 15 professional bouts to his name. While still looking to find his way in the sport, Pearson won’t be issuing any outlandish boasts or predictions anytime soon.

A quiet and humble individual who has grown exponentially – as a fighter and interview subject – in the past 12 months, Pearson is purely concentrating on the thing he enjoys most – training.

“I went back to the gym on the Tuesday night after my last fight,” he says with a smile. “Now that I don’t work alongside my MMA career, I find it easy to concentrate on just training. It’s almost like I’ve got nothing else to do but train. I also love what I do and love going to the gym and sparring with the lads. I don’t see why I should stop or hold back on doing something I love.

“It’s all go every day and my body is feeling it now. I’m sharp, fit and ready to go. I’m actually finding it hard to put weight on now as I’m constantly in the gym.”

The North-East workaholic owes much of his improvement to an unmatched work ethic and willingness to learn. Since his breakout appearance on The Ultimate Fighter, Pearson has simply grown with the exposure and opportunities that have come his way. Well aware he’s not yet the finished article, Pearson is taking his UFC main card appearances one step at a time.

His next – a March 31st date with German Dennis Siver – will undoubtedly be his toughest test to date and the ideal indicator of his rapid progress.

“I was super excited when the UFC told me the date and the opponent they wanted me to fight,” beams Pearson.

“I’d seen Dennis fight before quite a few times and most recently at the UFC 105 card in Manchester. His name got the heart racing a bit. He’s a good fighter and dangerous. He’s got one-punch power, fast hands, and he’s powerful and explosive. He’s a very skilful fighter. A lot of other fighters at this stage in their career might try and avoid a fighter like Siver. I’m just excited to prepare for a guy like him. It doesn’t scare me.”

It’s amazing what an emphatic UFC debut win can do to a fighter’s self-belief. After all, the consensus opinion before UFC 105 was that Pearson had every right to be scared of Aaron Riley – an experienced, durable and relentless veteran, who had been to places Pearson could only imagine.

However, roared on by the Manchester crowd and their chants of ‘knees, knees, knees’, Pearson put on a striking clinic, eventually halting Riley in the second round via a cut. The Brit’s boxing was technically sound and accurate, his clinch-work was devastating and his physical strength and workrate was simply too much for a bewildered Riley.

“Everyone was saying Aaron Riley was a huge step up for me and that he was a really experienced veteran who could prove to be too much for me,” recalls Ross, who moved to 12-3 with the win.

“I listened to all of that before the fight but knew, in my heart of hearts, that I would be too good for him. I’d watched plenty of his fights over the years and knew his game inside out. I had a ton of respect for Aaron and trained like a mad man for him, but I always knew I was a lot better than he was. I was completely confident I was going to beat him that night.”

Pearson remains confident ahead of post-TUF bout number two, yet admits that Siver may well prove an altogether trickier test than Riley did last November.

“I’m really confident of beating Siver, too, but I just feel he’s got a bit more of a danger factor than Riley did,” admits Pearson. “There’s a bit more of an unknown element to this one.

“Siver is ranked number two in Europe and I’m at number three. I’m a little bit younger than him, but we’re both at a stage now where we want to step up in competition and start mixing it with the big names in big fights. We’re meeting at a great stage in our careers and this fight will ultimately prove which of us is ready to break into the big time first.”

Pearson’s respect for Siver shines through in everything he says about the unorthodox German. Lest we forget, Pearson was warming up for his own UFC 105 bout when he watched Siver impressively stalk and stop fellow Brit Paul Kelly with a punishing spinning back-kick on the same card. Though his focus was entirely on Riley that night, Pearson made a mental note.

“I look at every lightweight in the world and see potential opponents,” explains Pearson. “I know that I could fight any of them at some stage. I actually shared a sauna with Siver before UFC 105 when we were both cutting weight. We didn’t speak to each other at the time, but it did cross my mind that we could one day meet inside the Octagon.”

That day arrives on March 31st and, armed with a combination of video research and close-quarter viewing, Pearson knows fully well what to expect from Siver.

“We know he’s very famous for his spinning back-kick,” adds Pearson. “He’s stopped a few opponents with that shot now.

“He’s also very powerful, very explosive and very dynamic. He’s got fast feet, fast hands and puts his punches and kicks together well. I’ve been concentrating on dealing with all the things he does well.

“I believe I go into this fight as the faster and more powerful and explosive fighter. I think we’re kind of similar in many ways and that’s what’s going to make for an entertaining fight.”

Given Pearson’s all-action style of fighting, it’s highly unlikely he’ll ever be involved in a dull bout throughout the duration of his UFC career. He grabs on to his opponents like Velcro from word go and refuses to let go until his arm is raised at the bout’s inclusion. Even Riley, one of the lightweight division’s most intense and hard-working competitors, had to accept second place to Pearson’s relentlessness.

Whisper it quietly, but Pearson even sees a little of himself in Siver. If that’s the case, UFC fans could be about to witness one of 2010’s early ‘Fight of the Year’ contenders.

“He’s a well-rounded fighter and can do a bit of everything,” admits Ross. “He’s a dangerous striker, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if Siver tried to take me down at some stage.

“I think we’ll both put on a really good mixed martial arts spectacle. We can both stand and bang and we can also use the clinch and then go to the ground. I think the fans will see some striking, some clinch work, some wrestling and some jiu-jitsu. You could see it all from this fight.

“I feel that we’re just going to go out there, touch gloves and go at it straight away. The fans won’t even have time to catch their breath. There won’t be any nicey-nicey or feeling out process at the beginning. It’s going to be 100 miles per hour from the get-go and this fight has got war written all over it.”

Having dipped his toes in the UFC waters last November, Pearson is now ready to swim with the sharks. He would never say it himself, but a win over Siver will effectively dump Pearson into the big and bad ocean of the 155-pound division. First things first, though.

“To beat Siver I’m going to need to use fast footwork, fast hands and to punch in combination,” assesses Pearson. “I need to keep mixing it up and never get predictable. I need to put together my boxing, Thai-boxing, wrestling and jiu-jitsu and then keep Siver guessing throughout. I want to just have fun in there. My fight at 105 was a breathtaking experience and I just can’t wait to get out there and do it again.”

Pearson expects a repeat performance. But then he’s allowed to.