UFC featherweight Westin Wilson has revealed both his excitement and nerves about facing a new opponent this Saturday.
The 34-year-old was scheduled to face Gabriel Santos in his second UFC outing. However, he will now face fellow Brazilian Jean Silva after Santos withdrew from the bout.
Silva is unbeaten since 2018 with 73% of his wins coming by way of knockout and heads into this clash as a huge -800 favourite.
Despite the odds being stacked against him, Wilson is relishing the challenge of facing a different opponent.
He said: “It was the stages of anxiety of like ‘Okay, but what’s this guy going to do different and I don’t know anything about this guy’. And so, I’ve been going through all of that while I’ve been here in Vegas.
“It all happened as I was flying out to Vegas, [they were] like ‘You got a new opponent’. I was like ‘Okay’. It was one of those things, you can’t really say no you just have to – you just have to do it.
“So yeah, it’s all good, I enjoy the challenge, I enjoy the mix-up. I like having a shorter camp anyway, so now I’m looking at it as I’m starting camp over again.”
Weston Wilson Reveals Different Game Plan For New Opponent
Wilson’s style is a well-rounded one. 11 of his 16 wins have come by way of submission, with a lot of them in round one. But, on the other hand, he possesses a striking background due to his relationship with Karate expert Stephen Thompson and the rest of the team in Simpsonville, South Carolina.
The American even once described himself as a “Walmart-brand version” of ‘Wonderboy’.
For the upcoming fight with Silva, Wilson has revealed his desire to implement a grapple-heavy game plan.
He said: “The way I strike and the way I stand, it’ll always be the same, doesn’t matter who they give me.
“This one though. I think I’m gonna – I’ve changed up a few things, I think I want to grapple more with Silva versus Santos.
“So, I’m actually going out to Austin to go train with New Wave Jiu-Jitsu, so [John] Danaher, Gary Tonon, my buddy Joe [Dierkhising], he’s one of their heavyweights out there.”
Westin Wilson Full Exclusive Interview
You can watch the full interview with Westin Wilson below:
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