Photo via ONE Championship PR
Buchecha ONE: Winter Warriors post-event interview
Buchecha secured a first-round submission win over Kang Ji Won at ONE: Winter Warriors. The rear-naked choke victory at Singapore Indoor Stadium on December third marked the sophomore MMA effort for jiu-jitsu leviathan Marcus Buchecha Almeida.
Marcus Almeida took part in an internal Q&A session curated by ONE Championship after the contest. A few excerpts from that are below.
Buchecha
Going 2-0 in MMA and the thoughts on the performance
“I think it was just like you said, perfect. The gameplan worked really well. I knew he was a really dangerous opponent. Five fights, five knockouts. So I knew it wouldn’t be an easy challenge for me. But that’s what drives me, the challenges. So it was just perfect. So glad I could use jiu-jitsu, my striking was pretty good, and everything worked out really well.”
The beauty of the finishing sequence and what was going through Buchecha’s head prior to the finish
“Yeah, the takedown was good timing. So when he kicks me, I got really the perfect timing, let’s say it like that. And once I got into the cage, I think the punches helped me to progress my jiu-jitsu. To move forward. I think it was just a good night. Because I didn’t rush anything, I didn’t do any mistake… I got the push kick. I think I didn’t get like really strong.”
ONE: Winter Warriors
Buchecha continued, “But made him respect a little bit more and make him worried. Because I think he was waiting for me to shoot really fast like the last fight. So I’m training a lot, I’m not scared to be on my feet. Because I think as an MMA fighter you have to be comfortable in every aspect of the fight. So I was really confident. I was really comfortable on my feet. So I think we would strike more. But I saw the opportunity to take him down and I did.”
If a world championship opportunity could materialize for Buchecha’s third MMA bout
“I don’t even think about title shot yet. Just think about my next fight right now. So be honest, I don’t know. It was hard to find fights and I just don’t like to think too much about one name. Because it keeps changing a lot. So I just keep training for not just for one more opponent. But I’m training to get better, to keep evolving, and that’s my goal now. Because if I think too much about one name and this fight doesn’t happen, it’s kind of a little frustrating. So I don’t want to think like that. Stoic mindset and let’s get better. Be ready for the next one whoever it is.”
