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Austin Bashi | No Time To Waste
Undefeated Prospect Austin Bashi Is Eager To Make His Mark In The UFC Ahead Of His Promotional Debut At UFC Fight Night: Dern vs Ribas 2
A little over four months ago, Austin Bashi earned his UFC contract with a second-round submission of Dorian Ramos on Dana White’s Contender Series.
You might assume that he’d want to bask in that glory for a while, but this Saturday, the 23-year-old is making his Octagon debut against Christian Rodriguez.
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“I like staying active,” he said. “I liked fighting on the Contender Series, and then it's nice to celebrate for a little bit, but after a few weeks, I got back to the gym and back to my routine.”
That routine has been part of the West Bloomfield, Michigan native’s life for, well, most of his life.
“This was it,” said Bashi, who has wanted to be a UFC fighter since he was a kid on the wrestling mat. He ultimately became a two-time All-State wrestler, a black belt in jiu-jitsu and a two-time Muay Thai National champion.
And a mixed martial artist.
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He turned pro in 2020, and he hasn’t shied away from fighting all comers. That’s in his DNA, or maybe his manager just didn’t like him.
“That too, maybe,” he laughs. But seriously, Bashi hasn’t carefully crafted a career. He’s looking to test himself every time the gloves are on.
“Even my professional debut, I had a real tough guy, but my whole thing was getting the best experience in the regional scene,” he said. “So that way when I did make it to the UFC and if they offered me a tough guy, I was ready for it. And that's exactly how it played out. Rodriguez is a super, super tough guy, but it's nothing that I haven't seen before.”
Bashi has the confidence of a 23-year-old with a perfect 13-0 record, but Rodriguez, a 27-year-old prospect in his own right, has truly earned the unofficial nickname, “The Prospect Killer” after giving Raul Rosas Jr., Cameron Saaiman and Isaac Dulgarian their first pro losses. Bashi doesn’t plan to be the next on Rodriguez’ victims list, and he owes that not just to his talent, but his experience against legit competition on his way to the UFC.
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“I really took my time this whole entire career,” he said. “I have 13 fights going into this, 12 fights going into the Contender Series, so I really gained a lot of experience on the regional scene and I made sure to have some tough fights. If you go look at my resume, I really fought some tough guys coming up and I felt like now was the right time and it worked out right.”
He even did it by working through the holidays, something he became accustomed to during wrestling season. He must like this stuff.
“A little bit,” Bashi laughs, with no signs of the jitters that usually come along with a UFC debut.
“With it being at the APEX again, I feel like it's almost the same as the Contender Series. And Contender Series kind of felt like my UFC debut.”
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So this is Contender Series 2.0?
“Exactly.”
UFC Fight Night: Dern vs Ribas 2 took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 11, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!