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Garrett Armfield: 'My Time Is Coming'
Rising Bantamweight Garrett Armfield Hopes To Extend His Winning Streak To Three At UFC Fight Night: Perez vs Taira
It’s June and Garrett Armfield is already making his second Octagon appearance of the year against Brady Hiestand. That’s just fine with him.
“I love it,” he said. “Right now, I'm on a schedule where every four months I'm fighting and so it's three a year and I'm super cool with that.”
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Armfield also has no problem keeping up the tradition of his Marathon MMA squad to be consistently fighting alumni of The Ultimate Fighter. And after beating two-time TUF winner Brad Katona his last time out, Armfield wants some hardware for the gym should he defeat TUF 29 finalist Hiestand.
“I'm cool with it,” he said. “It doesn't really matter who it is or where they come from, but I see a trend starting to happen where they keep giving all the Ultimate Fighter guys to everybody at Marathon because all my teammates fought them, too. We want our TUF trophy.”
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It is a good storyline, and if there’s one thing the 27-year-old Armfield knows, it’s a good story. That makes him not just marketable, but a pleasure to talk to. So if he keeps winning, expect to hear his name a lot. But for now, he’s in the prospect stage and building that name. And that comes with its share of sacrifices and struggles. Luckily, he’s got his lady, Emily, there with him every step of the way.
“I've known her since I was in middle school, so she's always been there throughout the entire process,” said Armfield. “She fully understands all of it and it's pretty cool. She sees that I really love what I do, and she supports that. I've explained to her before how the reason I love to fight so much is I get to be my pure self one hundred percent.. And I just so happen to be good at it.”
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He is. Owner of a 10-3 pro record, Armfield lost a short notice rematch to David Onama in July of 2022, but has since stopped Toshiomi Kazama and decisioned Katona, putting him in a good spot heading into his bout with Hiestand, who also brings a two-fight winning streak into the APEX on Saturday.
I’ve written it a million times before, but it’s the kind of matchup between rising stars that you just don’t see in boxing anymore. It’s risky for the combatants, but it can also be a star-maker, and the opportunity Armfield has been waiting for.
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“How do I stay patient, I don't know,” Armfield laughs. “I just know it's coming. I don't know why, but I know my time is coming.”
UFC Fight Night: Perez vs Taira took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 15, 2024. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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