After coming close, Aaron Jeffery hopes a win at SFT 23 is enough for UFC call
Watch interview with Aaron Jeffery above
Aaron Jeffery is right there.
The middleweight prospect suspects he is close to getting a call to the UFC with his only losses coming from UFC talent. Jeffery is slated to fight Bruno Assis at Standout Fighting Tournament 23 on Aug. 13.
The 27-year-old said this could be the fight that gets him there.
“It still feels like I am at that level,” Jeffery said. “Hopefully the UFC has their eyes on this matchup, it’s in a big promotion. I think it’s a good fight.”
Jeffery expects he’s near a UFC signing since coming close already. Jeffery appeared on season three of “Dana White’s Contender Series” in July 2019.
He suffered a first-round rear-naked choke to Brendan Allen. Allen is still unbeaten inside the octagon at 3-0, most recently defeating Kyle Daukaus via unanimous decision at UFC on ESPN 12 on June 27.
Another reason why Jeffery is convinced he belongs at the next level stems from his only losses coming to guys who are currently unbeaten in the UFC. He completed three rounds in a unanimous decision loss to Sean Brady at CFFC 53 back in 2015. Jeffery answered with four-straight wins before losing to Allen.
Brady is 2-0 inside the octagon with two-consecutive decision wins against Court McGee and Ismail Naurdiev.
“To go three round switch Sean Brady, it’s nice to know I have that experience and I can do that with those sorts of guys,” Jeffery said.
While Allen and Brady find success in the UFC, the Canadian is coming off a second-round TKO win over Dennis Olson at Combat Zone 71.
“I think it looks good. My only two losses are to pretty high-level UFC guys,” Jeffery said. “To be that close and have it taken away, that gives me extra motivation.”
SFT 23
Like Jeffery, Assis is a former contender series competitor. Assis dropped a unanimous decision to Andre Muniz during the second season in August 2018.
Assis rebounded with a second-round submission win against Rustam Chsiev at Brave CF 21 in December of that year. The Brazilian is coming off a first-round knockout defeat to Daniel Pereira at Brave CF 25 this past August.
Jeffery is game to face a guy of Assis’ caliber.
“I think it’s a good matchup for me. He’s a good jits guy, going to be dangerous on the ground,” Jeffery said. “I think I am just a bit more technical everywhere, so I’m looking forward to it.”
After two scrapped bouts and a national pandemic, Jeffery last fought in August. He is thankful for the opportunity, especially for the chance to compete for SFT, one of Brazil’s top promotions.
It’s unclear whether a win over Assis will earn Jeffery a UFC contract, but it cannot hurt.
“You kind of wish things were running normally, but it feels kind of historic to be at one of the events that has no audience,” Jeffery said. “It’s going to be a good fight.”
