Credit: Dominick Barbero Photography
Tobias Baker: ‘This is the beginning of something special’
Unbeaten prospect Tobias Baker discusses his upcoming fight at PureCombat: Battle for the Brave on this Saturday. The event will take place at the Salem Armory in Salem, Ore. and will air exclusively on FITE TV.
Baker was originally scheduled to face John Simon, the cousin of UFC bantamweight Ricky Simon, but Simon was forced to withdraw from the bout due to an injury. Baker will now face Utah’s Aaron Thomson in the event’s headliner.
The 23-year-old discusses how he got into the sport of MMA, moving from South Dakota to Oregon to go after his dream of being a full-time fighter, his marquis win at this point in his young career, how he stays humble in the sport with his recent success, the mentality at his gym Art of War in Eugene, Ore., what he has learned since beginning his training, why he wants to paint the biggest target on his back and much more.
With his recent success, Baker also talks about why he’s evolved so quickly in the sport and how this is just the start of a long journey.
“I think it’s the beginning of something really special,” Baker told MyMMANews.com. “Everything has been clicking and falling into place. The moves, the technique, everything has been flowing really well. I’ve been going from one fight camp into the next — whether it’s me being in fight camp, or my training partners being in fight camp. It’s been a lot of training, a lot of technique and I feel like that really has helped me progress as fast as I have been.
If all goes well on Saturday night, Baker will be showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, he has his sights set on the hallowed Octagon and wants to do so sooner rather than later.
“I definitely see myself in the UFC in 2020, or going into 2021,” Baker said. “That’s definitely the long term goal for me, as it has been since I started this sport. I don’t plan on slowing this train down at all. I want to go full steam ahead, stay undefeated, definitely want to add some knockouts — some cold blooded, clean KOs — just because that’s the fighter in me. I definitely don’t want to hear people call me a wrestler because I’m much more than that. I’m a well-rounded fighter and I am so ready to prove that Nov. 16.”
Check out the full interview, and learn more about Tobias Baker before he headlines PureCombat: Battle for the Brave this Saturday in the video above.
*Note, the interview was done while Baker had his originally scheduled opponent.
