Athletes
Kennedy Nzechukwu Eyeing A Finish In “Brilliant Fashion”
Heavyweight Kennedy Nzechukwu Is Hungry To Pick Up His Third Straight Win Against Martin Buday On Saturday
Kennedy Nzechukwu is planning to bring “relentless violence” in his fight against Martin Buday on Saturday night.
That wouldn’t be anything new for the heavyweight, who earned back-to-back first-round finishes in last two fights after making the move from light heavyweight last October. After picking up a win in his heavyweight debut against Chris Barnett at UFC 308, Nzechukwu went on to compete less than two months later, when he stopped Lukasz Brzeski at the end of the first round. It is safe to say the move has been more than beneficial for “African Savage.”
“The move up to heavyweight has been awesome, especially on my body,” Nzechukwusaid. “I've been able to have time to heal and also to focus on my skill set instead of the weight cut, because the weight cut consumed a lot of my time when I was a light heavyweight. I was so focused on the weight cut that I had no time to focus on the skill set, so now I get to dial in, focus on my striking, my kickboxing, my jiu-jitsu, my wrestling, and also just my mental part of the game.”
WATCH: Kennedy Nzechukwu's Fight Week Interview
Heading into his last fight, Nzechukwu talked a lot about how he wanted to showcase his striking in that bout. He believed during his time at light heavyweight that people weren’t able to see the full Kennedy and all of the skills that he possessed. Now, after yet another impressive finish, Nzechukwu is focusing on making sure all aspects of his game are aligned.
“I've been able to work with different disciplines and different coaches of different disciplines, especially boxing,” Nzechukwu said. “I've been able to separate my boxing training from my jiu-jitsu training. Too often, we tend to merge all three together every single time, and you don't really have time to focus on one discipline. So now I get to focus on each one and then merge them together by myself with my own timing. Everything's been working perfectly and I'm grateful.”
Six years into his UFC career, the 32-year-old has experienced a handful of highs and lows in the sport, but looking back on it, he is grateful for the time and experience he was able to gain at 205 pounds and believes everything has led him to this moment.
Now, he aims to pick up his third win in a row, as he faces a tough test in Buday, who has won 13 of his last 14. Buday’s last fight was in June, when he edged out a split decision victory over Andrei Arlovski.
Saturday's Full Fight Card Preview
Nzechukwu has done his homework on “Badys.”
“I actually have been studying him before this, before I was matched up with him,” Nzechuwku said. “I've done a lot of tape studying and I’ve just been plotting, strategizing different types of sequences I can employ on fight night. It's going to be something new. You're going to see something different, a new Kennedy.”
With ten of his 14 wins by knockout, Nzechukwu is someone that possesses strong power in his hands, and that has been evident in his last two outings. Things could get interesting for the Nigerian, who competes in a division where you could quickly move up the ladder if you string together a few wins. And now that he doesn’t have to spend so much time worrying about weight cuts, staying active is the key.
“We are in a weight class that you don't have to cut weight,” Nzechukwu said. “You should be ready at all times. You shouldn't be waiting to prepare for a fight. You just stay ready at all times. That has been always my mindset and my approach. I'm not always doing the torturous training camps because that's how you get hurt. If you stay ready, stay training like you have a fight tomorrow, you don't have to get hurt and you won't get hurt. I'm always ready.”
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His 2025 campaign starts with defeating Buday, in what he says must be done in a “brilliant matter and fashion.” So, if all goes according to plan, what does that look like on fight night?
“It has to be a finish in the first round,” Nzechukwu said. “Someone has to fall and it's not going to be me, but it has to finish in the first. I'm bringing violence, wicked and calculated violence.”
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