Mark Godbeer is preparing for a heavyweight match-up against Todd Duffee next month.
Godbeer’s Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut wasn’t a successful one. He was submitted by Justin Ledet in the first round back in Nov. 2016. Before the defeat, “The Hand of” was on a three-fight winning streak and was the BAMMA heavyweight champion.
He’ll have a chance to get back in the win column on March 4 inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. His opponent will be Todd Duffee, who hasn’t competed since July 2015.
Speaking with Flo Combat, Godbeer said a win over Duffee will get him back on track:
“I’ve dusted off the UFC nerves, and now is the time to just go in there on a big show and show everyone what I’m capable of. I was more than happy to take the fight as they offered me. Obviously, Todd Duffee, I was like, ‘That’s the perfect opponent.’ It’s perfect to put me right back in the mix. This guy, everyone knows him, and he’s known for being a destructive striker, so a win over this guy will put me right back in the mix.”
It won’t be an easy task. Duffee has a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) record of 9-3. In all nine of his victories, the American Top Team fighter has knocked out his opponents. He has also been knocked out in all of his losses. With those numbers, his bout against Godbeer isn’t likely to go the distance.
UFC 209 will be headlined by a welterweight title rematch. Champion Tyron Woodley will once again do battle with Stephen Thompson. In their first encounter, Woodley dropped bombs on his opponent, but “Wonderboy” survived the onslaught and made the fight so close that it was ruled a majority draw.
The co-main event features an interim lightweight title bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson.
