Athletes
Charles Jourdain: ‘I Want To Bulldoze Him’
The French-Canadian Wants To Put On A Dominant Showing Against Nathaniel Wood In UFC's Historic First Event In France
Charles Jourdain wasn’t going to miss a chance to fight in Paris. No matter who UFC asked him to fight, the French-Canadian featherweight wanted to take part in the organization’s first event in the City of Light.
“They could have told me, ‘You're fighting Francis Ngannou,’ (and) I knew I would have done it,” Jourdain told UFC.com. “(This) is going to be a historical first UFC event. I'm going to tell my kids about it and my grandkids. Everybody knows I'm going to be part of this historical moment.”
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It’s one thing to take part in a milestone moment for the mixed martial arts leader, but it’s another to compete and win. Sporting a UFC record of 4-4-1, Jourdain’s road in the Octagon hasn’t gone the smoothest since coming to the promotion as a 23-year-old. However, Jourdain took his lumps well, and from his demeanor to his performances, he seems to have found his footing at the highest level.
The turning point came almost a year ago to the day when Julian Erosa submitted him at UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs Till. The loss was Jourdain’s first inside the distance, and it spawned a shift in his mentality.
“The loss to Erosa was something (different) because every time I lost was a decision (and) I liked to say, ‘I've run out of time. I was not hurt after those fights,’ and everything,” Jourdain said. “Now, I got choked out. There's literally a referee that came in and saved my life, so you need to ask the question, ‘Are you just ready to kill or you're prepared to die as well?’ And I wasn't prepared to die. That event just changed my whole mentality, my preparation, the way I work. There's literally a referee that saved my life and saying that just gives me fire and a bad taste in my mouth. I don't want that to happen ever again.”
He bounced back a few months later in a dominant decision win over Andre Ewell, stepped up to fight Ilia Topuria on short-notice (though the fight fell through when Topuria was forced to withdraw) and submitted all-action man Lando Vannata in the first round at UFC Fight Night: Lemos vs Andrade.
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That led to a date with Shane Burgos on Long Island at UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs Rodriguez. Most assumed the fight would take place in a phone booth with wild exchanges, but Burgos switched up his marauding style for one more akin to a grappler. Jourdain got off on the feet more than a few times and cracked “Hurricane Shane,” but ultimately, the judges gave the majority decision nod to Burgos. Although it snapped Jourdain’s first UFC winning streak, the scorecards were hotly debated, and Jourdain still believes he did enough to win. That said, he concedes the fact that “complaining never got anybody anywhere.”
Jourdain did, however, take plenty away from the bout. He felt as though he remained in the clinch too long against Burgos, which kept his back against the fence as he attempted to land knees and elbows, but ultimately, the fight – and Burgos’ decision to grapple instead of brawl with him - only boosted his confidence.
Charles Jourdain Wins By TKO | UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Muhammad
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Charles Jourdain Wins By TKO | UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Muhammad
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“I can fight with the craziest guy,” Jourdain said. “I think in the division there was Burgos, (Edson) Barboza, Topuria and (Max) Holloway, who were really guys who are the most violent guys, and now I know I changed one of these guys into a wrestler. So, knowing that gives me a lot of confidence coming into my next fight, but I need to work.”
That last point, which Jourdain deemed “changing monsters into wrestlers,” changed Jourdain’s expectations, particularly for his upcoming date with British standout Nathaniel Wood. Despite Wood’s 5-2 promotional record, Jourdain – who has long been open about the fears he deals with before fights – said he doesn’t get the same kind of chills thinking about Wood as he did before fighting Vannata and Burgos. Instead, he sees it as a fight “against himself” to perform the way he believes he should.
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Wood made his name one to watch with a slew of knockouts (half his wins are KOs), but he started his UFC career with a trio of submissions. After nearly two years away, Wood moved up to 145 and looked sharp in a clinical destruction of Charles Rosa. “The Prospect” did well to chip away and take Rosa’s legs away before picking his shots up top, but Jourdain predicts more of a technical, strategy-based affair in Paris.
“I don't think there's going to be a war,” he said. “I think it's going to be me trying to have proper distance and just breaking (Wood) until he shoots and I can snatch his neck. I'm not expecting him to stand and bang with me, and it's unfortunate for the French people, but yeah, if he gives me his neck, I'm going to crack it.”
Jourdain is eager to fight in front of the Parisian crowd, particularly after fighting multiple times in enemy territory, and he is the kind of fighter who invigorates the audience while feeding off the energy they give back to him.
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Since that loss to Erosa almost a year ago, it feels like things are clicking into place for him. If Jourdain’s loss to Burgos showed he could hang with the top-15 at 145, he’s hoping Saturday’s performance cements that line of thinking and puts him back on a path toward another crack at the rankings. In terms of the type of performance he anticipates, “Air” wants to leave little-to-no doubt he is levels above Wood.
“I want to bulldoze him,” Jourdain said. “I want to always be in his face, always scream, (a lot of) exchanges… The last four weeks of training camp were so intense on boxing and hand speed. Then, if I find a way to finish him with a kick, I'll do it. But it's mostly going to be just hand fighting, a proper boxing match and I'm going to be ready to sprawl and ready to take him off me when he's going to try to survive.”
UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Tuivasa took place on September 3, 2022, live from the Accor Arena in Paris, France. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
