EXCLUSIVE | 'Leon Edwards vs Colby Covington a bigger fight than Leon vs Belal Muhammad'

This week in the ultimate fight world, UFC Vegas 76 is scheduled to take over. The match card is all stacked up with Sean Strickland vs Abus Magomedov, defined as the headliner of the night. Aside from the main event, the weekly show inhibits seven more high-profile fights.

The Newsmaker

Max Griffin made his UFC debut in 2016 and squared off against Colby Covington in his maiden outing at the biggest MMA promotion in the world. After an impressive performance against Chaos, the fighter found success in the Welterweight division and became a veteran in the weight category over the years. At UFC Vegas 76, Griffin will take on the undefeated Michael Morales, who carries a 14-0 record.

In an exclusive interview with republicworld.com, Max Griffin laid weight on the variety of subjects regarding his UFC career and opened up about the upcoming fight. He expressed his views on being handed with "new dudes" more frequently than anyone and also shed light on who he thinks would be the potential contender to challenge Leon Edwards for the Welterweight strap. 

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Excerpts...

Q. You have quite a history of fighting undefeated guys. This Saturday at UFC Vegas 76, you will be up against another one. What are your thoughts on fighting Michael Morales, who has a huge hype going around him?

I like fighting these new undefeated guys. I fought a guy Zelim Imadaev, who is a Russian 8-0 all KO, Ramiz Brahimaj, they say 8-0 all submissions first round, I took his ear off his head. I love fighting these new guys, they like Michael Morales, he is 14-0. He's fighting the wrong guy. I am going to crush him. I am so experienced I fought the best guys on the planet and I beat them and I train with the best guys on the planet. I am going to teach him a lesson, everywhere.

Q. Is it frustrating that they keep handing you these new guys, leaving you at a precarious everything-to-lose situation?

Interestingly enough, this guy is the favourite, which to me is a joke. In the people that I know, they have no clue how is this even possible. I don't get finished, I am a tough go, so, they are really riding this hype. I don't know why. When I finally watched his fight, cause I wait till the last two weeks to watch the fight, and my coaches they look at the stuff, so when I am doing my strategy I am not too worried about it and at the end when I finally watched the fight and they were telling me what to look out for, I am so prepared. I say what he does, saw his style, they were even more right than I thought and I am ready to beat this guy everywhere.

Q. You are currently at a successful run in the UFC, your right hand is firing real shots, so, at this stage in your career, what is your objective? 

The Ultimate Game! I want to get paid, that's the ultimate game. I've been here for a long time. This is my 4th or 5th contract, and I found my groove, I am still getting better, but I mean, I've got 5 win bonuses in a row. The Neil Magny fight, they gave me that win money; they thought I won, so that's 5 straight. I am ready to go. I am ready to get paid. I am ready to fight these big fights. 

Q. How has been the training camp before this fight?

It's been great. They told me I fight in March. So, I've been getting ready to fight for months, March, April, May, I've been training for 7 months. I've been ready for 5 months. Now, when I got this guy, first I was pissed off, I am not gonna lie, I was a little mad the first day I got this name. I was like Mike Morales! What? He has beaten Tim Means, Kevin Holland beat Tim Means and then he headlined in Florida against Wonderboy. I thought I was going to get some kind of good fight and then Michael Morales, I was like new dude. Oh my god! I was pissed for a day but used that kind of not anger and initial frustration like a chip on my shoulder. Oh, this fool thinks he's going to beat me, I am going to be in better shape, faster, meaner, I am going to be more calculative, sharper I am going to bury this guy. So, it made me train harder, I always train hard and there's always more levels and I keep getting better and better so he's the one going to pay.

Q. Any word on the mental aspect of the game, like, what a fighter does to keep the nerves intact at the Octagon?

I put my Super Saiyan, Che power up in the back. I am a monster, once I turn into a monster, I don't feel anything.

Q. You have fought Colby Covington before, and he’s seen as the premier challenger for the Welterweight title. Any comment on that and do you think Belal Muhammad in the mix as well?

I like Colby; I did pretty good against him. I did the best anyone's did against him, except Usman in the last 5 years. He's beaten the crap out of everyone. I almost kimured (Kimura lock) him, I dropped him. I had a pretty decent fight against him. That's the only fight I lost that I felt I lost. But I learned so much. I have respect for him. Belal though, I think he's 9 straight. He's good. He does not get the credit he deserves. I think it is more of a draw. UFC is political, and it is about money so, Leon Edwards vs Colby is going to be a bigger fight than Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad. 

Q. What do you predict how will it go this Saturday against Michael Morales?

I am going to teach him a lesson, I am going to brutalize him. I want to beat him down and make him quit.

*Watch the LIVE coverage of UFC Fight Night – Strickland vs Magomedov on Sony Sports Ten 2 (English), Sony Sports Ten 3 (Hindi) & Sony Sports Ten 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels at 4:30 am IST on 2nd July 2023