Athletes
Brad Tavares: A Veteran’s Approach
Middleweight Brad Tavares Faces JunYong Park This Saturday at UFC Fight Night: Royval Vs Taira at UFC APEX In Las Vegas, Nevada
For more than a decade, Brad Tavares has remained a constant in the middleweight division. He entered the UFC in 2010 after competing on Chuck Liddell’s team on The Ultimate Fighter and, since then, he has been in the Octagon with some of the best to ever do it.
Tavares has yet to win a title, but his competition stands out, having fought current champion Dricus Du Plessis, Israel Adesanya, Robert Whittaker, Yoel Romero, and Chris Weidman.
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He’s back at the APEX this Saturday, and although his last outing in the Octagon didn’t go the way he wanted against Gregory Rodrigues, Tavares’s approach to handling losses has gotten better over time.
“As I’ve gone along in my career, that’s gotten much better,” Tavares said. “Give yourself that 24 hours, be depressed, sad, and cry or do whatever you got to do. You have your one day, but the next day you got to get over it, and we’ve got to get ready for the next guy. “
This weekend, Tavares faces JunYong Park, who has been getting close to the middleweight rankings. It was a fight that was originally scheduled for July 20, but Park was forced to pull out after making weight because of a medical issue. It was scheduled to be a co-main event the first time around, and for take two, they are in the same position for UFC Fight Night: Royval vs Taira.
MORE FIGHT NIGHT: Fighters On The Rise | Dawson Ready | JunYong Park: Déjà Vu | Taira Interview | Rodriguez Interview | Royval Interview
Both Tavares and Park went through entire fight camps, and to have the bout cancelled on weigh-in day was irritating for both. Fight camps demand a lot of effort, and after going through one, Tavares wanted to make sure he recovered.
“I took a little break right after we were scheduled to fight,” Tavares said. “And I made sure that I gave my body some time to rest and recover and get ready to start again. We did it and now I’m feeling great.”
Being a veteran, Tavares understands how crucial it is for him to manage his body during fight camp.
“Honestly the main thing was making sure I don’t overdo it,” Tavares said.” It’s one thing to go into a fight and have a little break, but to go pretty much back-to-back, fight camp to fight camp, it was just all about making sure I don’t overdo things, and I feel like I accomplished that.”
When Tavares fights, it often sees the judges’ scorecards, but that doesn’t diminish his technical ability on the feet. He’s strong when fighting at long or medium range and has never been submitted in 24 UFC fights.
When discussing his upcoming fight against Park, Tavares knows he has a challenge in front of him.
“I think he’s very tough and very durable,” Tavares said. “I would say that he’s very well rounded, decent everywhere. I don’t think he’s the greatest in any one aspect; you know he doesn’t have the accolades of being a wrestler or being this world champion jiu jitsu guy or world champion kickboxer or boxer, but, that being said, he puts MMA together well.”
When Tavares enters the Octagon, he will break the record for most fights in the middleweight division in UFC history at 25, breaking a tie with Michael Bisping.
It’s a demonstration of consistency in this sport, and when it goes down this Saturday against Park, expect a technical approach from both athletes.
UFC Fight Night: Royval vs Taira took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 12, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!