Cage Warriors 142 main eventer Stipe “Checkmate” Brcic is interested in Aaron Aby fight in the future.
Cage Warriors 142 in Wales was a hit of an event, showcasing numerous prospects and top-class fighters from the UK and Europe. The biggest European name from the card was none other than highly touted flyweight Stipe “Checkmate” Brcic. Brcic (10-3) featured in the main event of the show, fighting for the Cage Warriors flyweight championship, but lost to UK’s own Sam Creasey in the first round.
The Build Up to CW 142
Stipe Brcic began his professional career back in 2015 and spent over 6 years running through European flyweights before making his way over to the UK for his recent bout earlier this week. Brcic spent most of his time fighting for the European organization Elite MMA, where he went 5-0 in the company. During this run, Stipe competed in a one-night tournament, where he was victorious twice in the same night.
Interview With Stipe Brcic
Was fighting in the UK different compared to fighting in Europe? Did it affect you at all with Creasey being the hometown fighter?
“It doesn’t matter to me where I fight, it’s quite similar in the UK to the rest of Europe. I didn’t have any pressure because Sam is a home fighter. I’ve fought in a lot of different organizations so I’m used to everything that the away field has to offer.”
Will your next fight be in the UK? and will it be for Cage Warriors?
“Regardless of my poor performance, I have a lot of offers from different organizations. I owe it to the British audience because I didn’t get to show my skills in the last fight. I will talk to my manager and my coach, and we will what we do next.”
Stipe Brcic’s Future Plans
When are you aiming to fight next?
I’m getting married in 3 weeks, so after that, I need about 5 weeks of preparation and it would be ideal to do the fight in November”
What are you looking to improve on and do differently in your next fight?
“I always work on all segments, so nothing will change. I’m not a campaign fighter, I always train hard so I can’t say I lost because I accepted the fight on “short notice”. The only problem the short notice could cause is the weight cutting.”
What are your short-term and long-term goals within the sport?
“My short-term goals are to fight in Europe with the best possible opponents. I like challenges and I don’t want to fight unranked opponents to pump up the score. As for long-term goals, I would like to test myself with the best fighters in the world (UFC and ONE).”
Is there anybody that you’d like to fight next or think would be an interesting match-up?
“If I was to do another fight in Cage Warriors, I think it would be an interesting match-up against Aaron Aby. He’s a great character. I know that the audience loves him and that he would have a lot of support (I’m used to the opponent’s fans, but it would be nice if all the fighters got support, after all, this is a special sport with a lot of sacrifices, I always invite my fans to cheer and pay tribute to my opponent. Warriors don’t deserve to be booed). I would like the British audience to accept me, but I know I have to earn it. Aaron and I both have losses to Sam (Creasey) and we both lost at CW 142. Like I said before, I want fights with the best fighters possible.”
About Stipe Brcic
Explain why you chose the nickname ‘checkmate’?
“Chess can be very well compared to an MMA fight in which, for example, one wrong move decides the victory. The checkerboard on my head symbolizes the checkerboard in the Croatian flag and the checkerboard on the chessboard.”
You are the #1 ranked flyweight in Western Europe right now. What qualities do you think you have that put you ahead of the rest?
“Now I’m probably no longer number 1 in Western Europe, but I’ll be back soon! I’m probably ahead of them because I’m fighting good opponents, but I want to be number 1 beyond Western Europe. For such a result, some things must concede.”
Featured image credits to EMC MMA
Love to see how this one plays out.