Khalil Rountree comes into his first UFC title shot as a pretty sizable underdog at UFC 307, this weekend.
In what will be his 15th time stepping inside the Octagon, he will challenge Alex Pereira for the light heavyweight title in Salt Lake City.
A big reason why a lot of people believe that “Poatan” will retain his title on Saturday night is the style that his next challenger brings to the table.
The #8-ranked contender finds himself in position for a title shot because he’s able to produce devastating knockouts with his striking skills which, ultimately, makes him an ideal match-up for Pereira because of his elite kickboxing background.
Khalil Rountree Says That His Belief And Overall Ability As A Fighter Sets Him Apart
Only Israel Adesanya has been able to defeat Pereira since the Brazilian entered the UFC and he did that whilst striking with “Poatan”.
That being said, it’s hard for many to imagine Rountree out-striking the champion because though he’s very dangerous, he doesn’t have the same extensive kickboxing pedigree of either Adesanya or Pereira.
In fact, the challenger believes that rather than his striking being better than the champion’s, it’s his overall ability as a fighter and current self-belief that makes him different to Pereira’s previous opponents.
He is confident that this is the right time and place for him to capitalize on this opportunity, as he spoke about in a recent interview with ESPN MMA on fight-week.
“It’s a little bit difficult for me to say this but I’m going to do this because I should. What makes me different is my overall ability compared to the guys that he’s fought. I feel like my strength and my athletic ability and my discipline, my skills, my experience, I think that like all of that kind of plays into me and my style and I don’t think that there’s been a fighter that is as like put together as I am and feel now.
“I’ve been through a lot and I’ve spent my whole career in the UFC and this is the first time that like I can fully back myself. I don’t have to talk and yap and sometimes it’s uncomfortable for me to say, like I feel amazing. I am 100%, I have belief in myself and I don’t know who can present the same… the same stuff that I have right now. I don’t know, there’s just something that I feel in myself right now.”
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