Gunnar Nelson will be pulling for Demian Maia in his championship bout with Tyron Woodley at UFC 214.
On July 29, Maia will challenge Woodley for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight title. Nelson once fought Maia and lost via unanimous decision.
The defeat hasn’t deterred “Gunni” as he’s won his last two bouts. During a recent appearance on MMAFighting.com‘s “The MMA Hour,” Nelson said he’s ready for top ten competition once again:
“Anyone in the top ten or preferably, anyone in the top five. As I’ve said before, my mind doesn’t really work that way. I don’t really put faces on my opponents anyway. I just want to face the top guys. I would also like to get the chance to fight (Demian) Maia at some point, that’s a little dream of mine. I’d like to be able to challenge him maybe for the title if he gets it, which I hope he does.”
As far as Maia’s title bout goes, Nelson is pulling for his old opponent.
“I think he definitely can (win), yeah. I think so. I’m rooting for him anyway. I pretty much always root for him when he’s fighting, except for when he’s fighting me, but that didn’t help, did it?”
