MMA | The champion will face the best! I want to fight at the highest possible level, he says

What was the main motivation for moving to the PFL?

I always wanted to go back to the world and fight at the highest possible level. When the opportunity arose, I took advantage of it. It wasn’t that I was unhappy. People keep asking me if it started a dispute with OKTAGON. But I wouldn’t say that at all. I don’t want to be disrespectful to OKTAGON, as the organization is very good on the domestic scene. But it’s not the world’s top, that’s where I want to fight.

How long have you had the contract signed?

There were some negotiations, a draft contract, there were some reservations. It took a long time for the legal side. Although we basically agreed to wrestle there, it took some time for everything to sign. But I’m not able to tell the exact data.

Were there any complications during the negotiations?

Not exactly. The negotiations were the same as in any other job. One has some idea of ​​what the contract will look like, the employer also has some idea. Whether in terms of finances or other benefits. People then try to debate and find a compromise. It’s exactly the same as in any other job.

Have you talked about the date of the first match?

I can’t talk about it at all, I can’t even choose. They follow the tables they sort, and I’ll find out who I’m going to fight against. There is no room for negotiation here. But I was told that at the beginning of the season, which is the turn of April and May, I should have the first match. But I don’t know with whom, or the exact date.

How high do you rank in the PFL? For example, compared to the UFC.

The UFC is still the highest, so I’d say it’s one notch lower. Roughly on the same level as Bellator and ONE Championship. He will definitely be in front of KSW. How many times people leave the UFC for the PFL, even if they don’t have to. For example, Anthony Pettis or Fabricio Werdum. These were wrestlers who were relatively at the top of the UFC and yet moved to the PFL. On the contrary, in connection with the PFL, there are talk of other names that could go to the UFC.

So if an offer came from the UFC, would it be on the agenda?

It was. But what we are going to talk about would certainly depend on the money. I take the UFC as a ceiling in terms of sports. But what I like about PFL is that it is purely focused on sports. The UFC still has such a tendency to make money fights, preferring wrestlers who have great popularity or reach on social networks. In the PFL, according to the table, whoever wins, moves on. There’s no circus like that, at least not yet. Of course, that can change.

Were there other organizations in the game? For example, RFA?

I also talked to other organizations, KSW also contacted me. I had a specific offer from four organizations – KSW, OKTAGON, RFA and PFL.

So why didn’t it work out with RFA?

It wasn’t even there that didn’t work out. They contacted me, made an offer, but that doesn’t mean anything. Here in our country, it becomes a great science. I didn’t want to go there in any particular way. It’s a new organization, you don’t even know what to expect. On the one hand, they promise some things, sports vision and doping tests. The doping tests were the thing I heard. That was why I considered it. But we had a PFL deal at the time, so I told them it probably wouldn’t matter.

How did your surroundings react to this? Did it interfere with your decision-making?

I do not fully consult such things with family or friends. I have a professional environment where I talk about such things. As for the family, I’ll tell them that I’m dealing with an organization, for example. But they don’t move completely in the world of MMA, they don’t follow it, so they probably wouldn’t tell me much about it anyway. It’s not that I’m waiting for them to say that.

The PFL offers an atypical wrestling system. Can you zoom in on what it looks like?

There is a system of seasons, something like collective sports. It will start in April now and will run until about October. The title tournament takes place during the season. In the beginning, there are two matches in the standings in the table. You collect points for those matches, but it depends on how you turn out. Of course, if he wins, he has more points. It also depends on when he manages to win and in what style. Of course, even if he loses by points, he also gets some points, but little. If it is finished, it has no points. According to the total points, a spider will then stand (play-off), where there are three more matches. There is a system of sudden death. Whoever wins all the matches will win the title of champion and a million dollars. This will end the season, then you will have time off until about spring.

Then it starts from the beginning?

Yes exactly. And I like that. The one who won the title in the previous season will start again from scratch together with the others. For example, if I won, I would be the champion for 2022. For 2023, I would go from the beginning again, but I would defend. It’s not like the champion is sitting somewhere and choosing who to go with. Nothing like that.

So isn’t it much harder to work your way up to a title?

It depends. But at least you know what you have to do, how you have to win and who you have to beat. In UFC or OKTAGON, you never know. And this is one of the things that the UFC is often criticized for. Dana White is both a promoter and a matchmaker for both parties. He places matches according to what he wants. There is no further supervision. He can simply choose wrestlers to make it sell well. This is not how it works in the PFL, this is according to the tables. The wrestlers are sure that if they win, they will make it to the title.

There is something similar with Conor McGregor, who will soon return to the cage and quite possibly for the title.

That’s exactly what I’m talking about. It annoys some fans. This is also one of the reasons why some wrestlers who are at the peak of their weight will never get a title chance. Probably because they don’t sell so many tickets. I mean, for example, Gegard Mousasi, who stopped enjoying it and went to Bellator. I still consider the UFC to be the top, but it has a lot of trouble.

In OKTAGON you got the semi-heavyweight champion’s belt. Aren’t you just sorry that you have to give it up?

Not exactly. I am rather sorry that I will no longer fight in front of the Czech audience. Losing the title is just the way it is. Titles come and go. I still have the title. Nobody will take that from me. The fact that I am nowhere mentioned as the current champion does not break my heart so much.

Who are you favoring now for the title?

I wonder how the division will move. There are interesting names. But I would very much like Miloš Petrášek, who unfortunately has now been injured. This is my main favorite. If Melon were out of the game, the match between Rafael Xavier and Stephan Pütz would make sense to me. OKTAGON wants to expand to Germany, so it is possible that they will want to hide the title battle for the German market. Dan Škvor is also needed there. He probably won’t be at the top yet, but he certainly has something to offer. Of course, Pütz is at stake if he continues to fight in OKTAGON.

Aren’t you afraid that people or wrestlers will throw you away from OKTAGON? For example, Vémola could speak.

They can do it. But it’s something that’s stolen from me. If Vémola comes up with that, he’ll just be laughing. Maybe Pütz will say I’m running from him. But I don’t care. Everyone who sees it, especially wrestlers, knows that I am going one level higher. It doesn’t bother me at all. If someone said I was running, I would rather expect it from the fans. From those “casuals” from which I always only see shit. That doesn’t break that much vein.

Martina Jindrová recently signed a contract with the organization, so you are the second Czech. Did you notice that?

There is a bit of a difference in the fact that Martina Jindrová is in the PFL Challenger. This is something like the Dana White Contender Series. The wrestlers fight for a contract to get to that table. That means he’s not in that tournament, I’m there. However, I agree that I am the second Czech to get there. The first was Michal Martínek, who got the contract after beating me. But then the whole season was canceled due to the covid and he went somewhere else. I’m the second, maybe the third. It depends on how it is taken.

What about your American life. Are you missing any things from the Czech Republic?

I miss a lot of things, like plum jam (laughs). You can’t get them here. But I’ve had it set up like this for quite some time. When I’m in America, I train here and it’s more professional for me. I will be here all season now, I will not return to the Czech Republic until sometime in the autumn. I return there mostly after the match. Mostly to greet everyone and rest.