‘They Were Always Pushing Me’- Junior dos Santos Says He Is Much Happier Leaving the UFC

Junior dos Santos is one of the greatest heavyweights in UFC history. He made his UFC debut back in 2008 and immediately announced himself to the world. He won his first nine fights in the promotion while defeating some of the toughest fighters in the division. Henceforth, he flourished ahead to claim the heavyweight title.

However, the end of his career in the UFC wasn’t great. He lost his last four fights in the promotion and got cut in March 2021. According to ‘Cigano,’ it was because he was being pressured by the UFC to take fights and they didn’t appreciate him anymore.

In an interview with Brett Okamoto, he said, “Things weren’t going – of course, I was losing some fights, but things weren’t right. There were always pushing me and things weren’t good. My last two fights, I took the fights like, they were saying, you take or you out. They weren’t appreciating me anymore to be there.”

Junior dos Santos is much happier now that he’s left the UFC. He said, “I was feeling that I was sentimental. I wasn’t happy anymore. Now, I’m training again, man, I’m running every day. I wake up at 4-5:30 in the morning to go for boxing training. It’s something that I didn’t do for a long, long time. I’m doing abs every day. I’m feeling great about how things are going now. It brought me back, like I said. That good energy, the happiness to be doing something that I love to do, I love to fight. But I wasn’t enjoying anymore because of the pressure, because of the responsibilities that they were putting on myself.”

Junior dos Santos to return to action soon

The former UFC heavyweight champion Santos will make his return to fighting in late February 2022. He will take on 28-2 boxer Kubrat Pulev at Triller’s Triad Combat.

Pulev also appeared in the first Triad Combat against another former UFC fighter, Frank Mir. He put in a dominant performance to secure a thumping win. Pulev is an experienced boxer and has only lost to boxing legends Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko. He will come into the fight as the favorite, but will have his hands full against Santos.

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What do you think of the comments made by Junior dos Santos? Let us know in the comments!