Decky McAleenan Unfazed By Late-Notice Opponent Change to Tobias Harila: “I Want The Most Dangerous Opponents”
Watch the full video interview with Decky McAleenan above.
Cage Warriors lightweight Decky McAleenan (7-4-1) enters his Cage Warriors 134 matchup against Tobias Harila (9-2) unfazed, despite multiple late-notice opponent changes.
The Irishman was originally scheduled to face undefeated Englishman Dan Collins (5-0) on the London show, which takes place this Friday, March 18. However, McAleenan received a message from matchmaker Ian Dean, letting him know that Collins was no longer able to compete. After a few days of waiting, McAleenan received word that a new opponent was lined up, 6-fight Cage Warriors veteran Paull McBain (7-2).
Unfortunately, the Cage Warriors team were left scrambling after an unfortunate neck injury to headliner and interim featherweight champion Paul Hughes scuppered the biggest fight the promotion has featured in years, which would have seen Hughes rematch featherweight champion Jordan Vucenic in the main event to unify the belts. As a result, James Hendin was elevated into a short-notice title shot vs Vucenic, which left Swedish prospect Tobias Harila without an opponent.
So, Decky McAleenan’s phone rang once again, and finally Harila vs McAleenan was made. Though the pre-fight chaos left much uncertainty lingering, the Newry fighter is rolling with the punches.
“I’m enjoying all this messing about. This is the way my early pro career was with different opponents, chopping and changing. I think the most I’ve ever had was 4 in a week. So, this is just behind that. Hopefully, that’s us done now!” McAleenan laughs.
Entering Cage Warriors in 2021, there was much hype surrounding Harila in his promotional debut. The Swede rode a 6-fight win streak into his contest with Aidan Stephen, and he’d already bagged 6 first-round finishes in 8 pro fights. Now 1-1 in Cage Warriors, Harila’s walk-forward style and one-punch KO power sustain the excitement of fans when he competes, and McAleenan believes that he ended up with the ideal opponent for Friday night:
“I know ranking-wise, and hype-wise, Tobias is higher ranked than Paull [McBain]. I don’t think he’s any better or worse than Paull McBain, but I know he’s further on. He’ll do a lot more for me, beating him at this stage of my career”
“The risk and reward in this fight is all for me. I don’t see any issues in taking it. He is a top prospect for a reason. He is very good at what he does, but I just think that what he does matches well with my skill set”
https://twitter.com/CageWarriors/status/1503702809405014018
McAleenan has long been known for his own exciting style on the Irish domestic scene, one that has transcended across to Cage Warriors, though not always producing the results the 30-year-old Team Torres fighter desires. Heading into the Harila fight, McAleenan is excited by the potential crowd-pleasing barnburner this matchup has, but he also wants to show his true capabilities:
“If I play my cards right and don’t have a thick head on me…If I want to, if it gets down to it, I’ll bump into him in the middle of the cage and we’ll see who goes down first. I know I’m going to be the bigger man there”
“I see he’s going to be walking forward, hitting air an awful lot. This is the perfect fight for me to get back to my Karate roots, picking my shots, moving, and just showing everyone how good I actually am!”
Though McAleenan is confident that he will prevail victorious, he is conscious of the threat that Harila poses. But having experienced a lull in motivation for recent opponents, it is that exact threat that arouses the primal energy McAleenan craves as he enters the fray to engage in war:
“I know I’ll not have to do anything to get excited on the night”
“I want the most dangerous opponents! He sparked Aidan [Stephen] with a shot from Aidan’s guard. That was a statement! But I’m a big lad for lightweight, and he’s coming up from featherweight. I’m a lot bigger than any featherweight going in against him. I think, personally, that everything is in my favour. He is dangerous, and don’t get me wrong, if I get caught standing with my chin in the air, he could take it home with him, but I don’t see that happening.”
Decky McAleenan vs Tobia Harila will take place on the main card of Cage Warriors 134 on Friday 18th March. The event will be broadcast live on UFC Fight Pass.
Cage Warriors 134 Fight Card
Main Card
Jordan Vucenic (c) vs. James Hendin – featherweight title bout
Will Currie vs. Patrick Vallèe – middleweight bout
George Hardwick vs. Łukasz Kopera – 161lbs catchweight bout
Tobias Harila vs. Decky McAleenan – lightweight bout
Nik Bagley vs. Ben Ellis – featherweight bout
Prelims
Kingsley Crawford vs. Aidan James – bantamweight bout
Lone’er Kavanagh vs. Ryan Morgan – flyweight bout
