Athletes
Jimmy Crute Is Back To His Best
After Returning To Competition Earlier In 2025, Jimmy Crute Believes Now Is The Time To Show His Best Self And Get His Hand Raised At UFC 318: Holloway vs Poirier 3
Some sports fans would argue against the merits of a moral victory, but when it comes to a sport as mentally and physically taxing as fighting, the equation changes a bit.
The isolated nature of the sport forces the weight of each result onto each individual athlete and, paired with the fact that a fighter might compete only a handful of times per year, means that result stews in the mind a little longer, as well.
So, when Jimmy Crute has nothing but positive things to say after his majority draw against Rodolfo Bellato at UFC 312, it’s an understandable conclusion for the 29-year-old.
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“The last fight was a heap of fun,” Crute told UFC.com. “I didn't care about the result, man. I was just happy to be back in there. (If) people were seeing where I come from, they would understand that it was just nice to be back in there. But this time, I'm coming for the victory.”
The place Crute alluded to before his return in Sydney included about a year-and-a-half away from competition to sort through what he called an “unhealthy obsession” with the sport. After starting his UFC career with four wins in his first five Octagon appearances, Crute went winless in his next four before taking the hiatus. He returned with a refreshed perspective on life and fighting, one which now emanates from him during fight week.
Even though he didn’t break his now five-year winless streak in February, Crute said he “couldn’t have been happier” with how he expressed himself against Bellato.
“I don't care about the results in this,” he said. “It's just about performances and enjoying it. We only get one life, so we're going to go out there and make the most of it, and sitting in hospital(after UFC 312), I was just thinking, ‘Damn, that was fun.’”
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That isn’t to say Crute isn’t working hard in training, nor does it mean Crute doesn’t want to experience that rush after a win, either. Quite the contrary. The Australian, who said he practices visualization regularly, says he thinks about the moment of getting his hand raised nearly every day. The difference is, now, he doesn’t allow the what ifs of the fight game to occupy his thoughts every waking moment until he makes the walk.
Of his last fight, Crute was happy to have gone through a tough 15-minute bout with the Brazilian for his return. The Octagon time gave him plenty of tape on which to make notes, and he believes he and his coaches have addressed everything to set up a “dominant” performancewhere he can “impose his will” on Marcin Prachnio.
“It's (my) presence,” Crute said. “It's just me being myself in the in the Octagon and backing myself and having full faith within myself. He can't stop it. He can't stop what's coming.”
Crute won’t get ahead of himself in terms of his goals for the rest of 2025, but it’s hard to not think about his potential if he can right the ship on July 19. Still young, particularly for the light heavyweight division, Crute has a heap of experience against top-level talent in the Octagon, and he has shown a well-rounded skillset through 10 UFC bouts, as well.
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For him, though, it’s all about putting his work on its best display. Everything else can wait until after the fight, and that mentality is exactly why he believes he is set up for success in New Orleans.
“My life's good either way,” he said. “I just put in too much work not to be the best, and I'm going to show that.”
UFC 318: Holloway vs Poirier 3 took place live from Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana on July 19, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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