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Anthony Wint | Forever A Work In Progress
Ascending Heavyweight Anthony Wint Talks Busy Schedule, Calculated Risks, Football Influence On MMA Outlook
Anthony Wint carries a very different perspective on fighting than you would expect from an undefeated heavyweight prospect with his athletic background and physical gifts.
Not to paint with too broad of a brush, but some fighters — even those that weren’t Division I football standouts and former NFL linebackers — will tell you they’ve long been ready to compete with the best in the world and would trounce the reigning champion in their division tomorrow if given the chance. Wint, however, is of a much different mindset.
“Fighting is such an egotistical sport that a lot of fighters won’t sit there and admit, ‘Hey, I’m not ready for that guy,’” Wint said. “I’ll sit here and tell you that if I fought Ciryl Gane right now, it would be a problem, even though there’s a route to victory… If me and him fought 10 times, some of those 10 times, I’m winning, but there are skills that I need to clean up before I can get to the level to beat that dude.”
That is an atypical answer and outlook, but one that feels like it will serve the budding star well going forward as he approaches his second UFC bout since earning his contract in August on Dana White’s Contender Series. In Salt Lake City, Wint faces newcomer Lucas Armand at UFC 332: Silva vs Wang.
Anthony Wint: “I'm Not Your Regular Fighter” | UFC 332
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Anthony Wint: “I'm Not Your Regular Fighter” | UFC 332
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Asked where he developed that measured view of himself, the undefeated heavyweight said it stems from keeping the focus off himself.
“People like to say, ‘You’re the main character of your movie,’ but I’m not; God’s the main character,” he said. “One day I’m mopping the floor, the next day I’m on a stage talking, next day I’m playing guitar, day after that I’m Superman saving somebody, and the next day I might be the guy in the coffee shop that gives Spiderman his coffee… It’s knowing that whatever role God has for me, that’s the role I have to play, and if I’m too presumptuous in thinking ‘I’m supposed to be a world champion’ — which is true; I’m supposed to be a world champion — I can step out of the timeline God has for me… I can be a world champion next year, but at what cost if God says, ‘You can be world champion in three years and not take one punch’ and everybody is gonna talk about Anthony Wint never got punched, never got dropped, got a whole bunch of bonuses and none of them were Fight of the Night, (and) they were all Performance of the Night… That’s the kind of career I want.”
The outlook might sound contradictory as Wint steps back into the fray less than eight weeks after earning his place on the roster with a rapid first-round stoppage win over Matt Adams on the opening week of Dana White’s Contender Series Season 10, but speaking with him, you understand that all of these steps are thought through.
As confident as Wint is in his abilities, he felt the same way about football and had to reckon with the reality that his gridiron dreams were not going to come true. Wint played one season with the New York Jets in 2018 and signed with the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats before the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting him to opt out of his contract and start chasing other dreams.
“It creates a high-level opportunity to be able to evaluate yourself,” he said. “Football is a very accountable sport — a sport where we say, ‘The film does not lie,’ and there’s not a lot of excuses to be made. ‘This was your assignment; this is what you were supposed to do. Did you get it done, or not?’ Fighting is a little more open-ended where, if you win the fight, it’s ‘Hey, you won; there’s not a lot to talk about.’ … But football prepared me for fighting in that there is always an evaluation period. I’m always looking at myself as ‘I’ve gotta get better.’ Even in the ones where I won in 30 seconds — and it was three in a row — it’s like, ‘How did you feel going in? What was your approach? What was your intention doing what you did?’”
Wint’s football career gave him perspective. Even if he reaches the peak in his mixed martial arts career, he believes will “go to the valley again, eventually.” Instead of focusing on the results of his career, he is more occupied with how he is doing spiritually.
A key element of staying on that track is having quality people around to keep him humble, but not so much that he starts wavering in his confidence should a big opportunity comes up.
“I think the balance is the faith that I have in myself, knowing that I’m never a finished product, and knowing that the person is front of me is gonna have something on me,” Wint said. “It’s just my job to impose the things I have on him and create a perfect game plan.”
Anthony Wint Secures R1 Submission In UFC Debut | UFC Sacramento
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Anthony Wint Secures R1 Submission In UFC Debut | UFC Sacramento
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This weekend, he steps back into the Octagon against Armand, an undefeated prospect from looking to author another big upset in the heavyweight division. Similar to Wint’s initial opponent, Terrance Chatman, Armand was signed face the developing 31-year-old.
Wint and his team know all fights carry risk, and there will come a time when they decide to dial things back, but when they got this offer, it was full steam ahead.
WATCH: Every Episode Of UFC 332 Embedded
“My coaches and my management have talked to me and said, ‘Hey — how many times do we want to do this?’” he said with a chuckle. “I’ve been saying it all day, ‘I don’t cut no weight, and if I don’t waste no time, why do we gotta wait?’ If I don’t get injured — I think the UFC likes me, so they’re not gonna feed me someone, but I’m also not in here to not take risks… Lucas Armand is a risk, but it’s a calculated risk. They called me short-notice. I didn’t have a full camp, and they gave me someone where it’s ‘Hey, you should be favored’ and I get to show up again and not just think about winning the fight.
“My job is to dominate and put on a performance where I can ask again and hopefully get an answer if I do ask.”
Wint entered his debut having won three fights in less than 37 seconds each, so the expectation was that Wint would blow through Chatman without any resistance. However, that was not the case. Chatman challenged Wint and made him work, but eventually locked up an arm-triangle choke with 31 seconds remaining in the first round.
Although it didn’t measure up to the expectations observers had for Wint heading into the fight, Wint himself was pleased with his performance and believes he can do something even more impressive on Saturday.
“I felt comfortable last fight, and I know I can dominate Lucas,” he said. “I’ve got him beat in every area except for size and height, but he’s a fighter. I think him and his coach are gonna put a great game plan together, but it’s gonna be hard for me not to hunt him down… I think I get him within two or three exchanges, but if it takes a round, it takes a round, and if it takes the whole fight, it takes the whole fight.”
He smiled.
“At the end of the day, I’m gonna hunt him down, and his face is gonna touch the canvas.”
UFC 332: Silva vs Wang took place live from Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah on October 3, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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