Francis Marshall | Ready For His Breakthrough Moment

Marshall was getting good work in Jersey with UFC vet Kurt Pellegrino, and now he’s getting good work in Coconut Creek. So how would he describe the difference?

“Oh, man,” he laughs. “It's like having an iPhone or having an Android. Some people don't mind the Android. Some people could last with the Android, but the iPhone is just superior.”

If we’re staying on that theme, Marshall isn’t working on one of those old iPhones. He’s got an iPhone 16 Pro Max, even though it’s tough sometimes to see where the upgrades are.

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“I think it's hard to tell sometimes because you're in a room with such good guys and as you're getting better, they're getting better, too,” he said when asked about the improvements he’s seen this far. “But the little improvements, I could tell a big difference from when I came down here full-time in July to now. These last 7-8 months have been a huge improvement when I look back like that. The day-to-day grind, you kind of don't notice it. But if you zoom out and look at the whole picture, I could definitely see a big difference.”

Add in a full eight-week camp, and fans may be in for a breakout performance from Marshall, who has gone 2-2 in his four UFC appearances since earning a contract on season six of Dana White’s Contender Series. 

“There’s nothing like waiting for the short notice or having the week notice again,” he laughs. “It's great to get a full camp again. If a good short notice opportunity came up, I would've taken that, too. But obviously I’d rather have the full camp.”

It’s the dilemma of the young fighter. They all think they can walk through walls, so short notice is never an issue. But over a full training camp, they can build their skillset to compete successfully at this level. Marshall has been willing to take fights without a full camp, but now, he’s seeing the benefits of playing the long game, not just physically, but mentally, as he realizes that he can hang with the best in the game. 

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“It definitely plays a mental part, just being able to train with such high-level guys consistently, and being able to work with them,” Marshall said. “Before I came here, you put those guys on a pedestal and you look at them differently and you're like, ‘Wow, that's a Top 10 guy, that's a Top Five guy.’ And then you get here, and you train with them, and you realize everyone's just a normal person. They put their pants on the same way as you do in the morning, one leg at a time, one sock at a time. So you start to realize you're one of them and you're also at that high level.”

Marshall has shown glimpses of his potential throughout his UFC run, and when he’s on, he’s on. When he’s not, it’s clear that he’s a work in progress. You expect that from a prospect, and Marshall realizes that world champions aren’t born overnight. So he is actually learning each step of the way, which is good, because he’s been fighting killers from the jump.

Marcelo Rojo. William Gomis. Isaac Dulgarian. Dennis Buzukja. 

That’s a pretty tough road. 

“I think I've been given opportunities to show that I'm as good as the guys that I've fought,” he said. “The Gomis fight was a big fight that I dropped that I should have won. I didn't execute the game plan until the third round, and now he's on the brink of the Top 15. So I think that just plays into the fact of where I am, my skill level and how good I am. But also fighting a guy like Dulgarian, he’s super good. Honestly, I think he should have won that fight against C-Rod. He's a killer. And then just fighting Rojo in my first fight, he’s a guy with a lot of experience. So I think I had a good road. I don't think it was any tougher or easier than some guys. I know some guys get it way tougher and some guys might think you have a breeze, but I feel like in the UFC there's no easy fights anymore, so I feel like everyone has a little bit of a tough time.”

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But he’s survived, thrived, and he’s still standing. That’s got to be a confidence boost. 

“It definitely helps,” Marshall said. “I love having the tough fights. I wouldn't want an easy layup route, and I don't think anybody's really going to get that, especially in the UFC. So, confidence wise, it's knowing I've been there before, knowing I'll be there again and knowing that it's good that I'm getting tougher fights because that means I'm winning and doing better and they're giving me higher level opponents.”

Now he gets a fellow young gun in Brazil’s Santos, who is making his first start since winning The Ultimate Fighter 32. On paper, it’s a firefight waiting to happen, and Marshall is ready for all that smoke. On a numbered pay-per-view event, no less.

“After watching some film, he's definitely a good guy, tough guy, tough striker,” he said. “So it should be a good matchup. I'm excited to get back in the arena and back in front of fans. Ultimately that's what we want to fight for. You want to fight in front of the biggest crowds on the biggest stage, and that's where I'm back at.”