Athletes
Vicente Luque | Ready For The Harvest
Brazilian Veteran Aiming To Turn Tough Lessons Into Positive Results At UFC 310
Vicente Luque was forced to learn a difficult, but exceptionally important, lesson the last time he stepped into the Octagon.
Paired off with Joaquin Buckley in the co-main event of the UFC’s return to Atlantic City at the end of March, the Brazilian entered as the higher-ranked fighter — the tenured veteran that had risen to the brink of title contention and shared the cage with some of the best to compete in the division. Across the Octagon stood an ascending talent who had won each of his first two appearances since relocating to the 170-pound weight class, but had yet to face someone with Luque’s experience and wide array of skills.
For the first time in his career, Luque was positioned as the experienced hand tasked with serving as the measuring stick for an emerging fighter. Midway through the second round, Buckley secured the finish.
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“Against Buckley, that was the first time I was in that position, and it was a fight for me to understand that it’s different,” said Luque, who returns to action in a similar position against Themba Gorimbo on Saturday at UFC 310. “It was good for me to face Buckley and live that before I fight Themba because now I know what kind of energy I have to have in there.”
That may sound like a strange statement to some, but the reality of the sport and competing at the highest level in any arena is that different opponents and different situations bring different circumstances and approaches, and the intensity isn’t the same every time out.
For Luque, who has been a member of the welterweight Top 15 for the last several years and has shared the Octagon with current champ Belal Muhammad twice, former champ Leon Edwards, and a host of other top-ranked talents, fighting against someone looking to take his place in the pecking order was a new experience.
“When you go to high-level fights, like me against Belal, we were both at the top of our game that night, and we’re fighting to see who is gonna win. There is so much in the game and we’re focusing on that, and we kind of put a little of that tenacity aside.
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“Now when we’re fighting up-and-comers, I remember all the tenacity I brought into fights, and I’ve got to bring that back,” Luque added with a smile. "Buckley woke me up to that.
“I’ve got to go in there and really want it more than them; not just come in here and think my technique and my experience is gonna be enough.”
Full Fight | Vicente Luque vs Tyron Woodley
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Full Fight | Vicente Luque vs Tyron Woodley
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Armed with that new understanding of what is required in these types of situations, Luque has brought that mindset and approach to training, as well, because, as he explained, there is something unique to mixed martial arts compared to other athletic ventures, and that takes a different kind of preparation.
“At the end of the day, we’re fighting, and we cannot do fighting like other sports, he said, laughing, but 100 percent correct in his assessment of things. “It’s a fight. I’ve gotta fight, and I know how to fight, so I’ve got to do it.”
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Coming away from his fight with Buckley, Luque combed through the years of sparring footage he’s amassed, looking to identify what differences he could see from the months leading into his last appearance and camps from several years back, when he was the one hunting down higher ranked foes.
In addition to his own assessments and research, he leaned on his inner circle at Kill Cliff FC, coach Henri Hooft and teammates Gilbert Burns and Gregory Rodrigues, relying on them to pull no punches with him when it came to keeping him dialed in and focused on getting back to his old, tenacious self.
“It’s a big adjustment that has to be done, because it’s much more than a mental switch,” said Luque in regard to re-wiring his approach in the gym. “Obviously, that’s part of it, but keeping it real with all my coaches, with the guys I train with — Gregory, Gilbert, Henri; we were very open after I lost that fight.
“Sometimes it’s hard to listen to what you don’t want to, but you need to, because they’re the ones that are going to keep me (on task) through these months. Gilbert was very objective about it. He said, ‘You remember how you trained with me? How you trained with other guys? Everybody feared sparring you because of the skills you have and because we had to be aware of what we’re doing. Now you’re sparring very technically. You’re checking all the boxes you have to check, but there is more to it, and that’s what is missing.’”
He paused, the tough truth hanging in the air for a beat.
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“It would be great if I could get to the fight and switch it right there, but it took me years to develop the style I have, to become that fighter where I’m gonna win and I’m gonna find a way to finish my opponents, and if I don’t keep that in training, I’ll lose that.”
And so in the months since his loss to Buckley, “The Silent Assassin” hasn’t just been ticking the boxes — he’s been working to bring out the tenacity that carried him to impressive wins over Muhammad, Mike Perry, Tyron Woodley, and Michael Chiesa, and listening when his closest friends offer critical assessments that are difficult to hear, but come from a place of love and concern.
Now, after initially being paired with Nick Diaz for a second time, Luque is right back where he was in Atlantic City, poised to share the Octagon with an ascending fighter with designs on securing the biggest win of their career and taking his place in the rankings.
This time, however, he knows how he needs to approach things, and has been training with that approach in mind the entire time.
“I have to go in there and just be as dominant as I can be,” he said, offering his thoughts on Saturday’s pairing with Gorimbo, who enters on a four-fight winning streak. “He’s gonna come and bring his best, too, and that’s what I want to see; I want my best tools against his best tools, and let’s go to war.
“He wants to be in the Top 15, I am the veteran that is in the Top 15, and I’m gonna show him what the levels are in the Top 15.”
The last eight months, Luque has been planting the seeds of victory in the gym, toiling every day in order to get earn the result that escaped him in March the next time he makes the walk into the Octagon.
He finally gets that chance this weekend in Las Vegas, and he plans on celebrating an exceptional harvest on Saturday night.
“That’s something I’ve been waiting for, for months,” he said with a wide smile when asked about earning a victory and having the kind of performance he can be proud of this weekend. “We’re gonna harvest everything we have planted.
“That night is gonna be a night of harvest, and showing the division and the fans that I’m seeking the top again, and this is the start of it.”
UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 7, 2024. 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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