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CHRISTIAN LEROY DUNCAN feels primed and ready to mix it with the big dogs in the UFC’s middleweight division.
And the former Cage Warriors 185lbs champion reckons a statement win over Eryk Anders this week will punch his ticket to top-15 contention.
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CLD clashes with the veteran early on Sunday morning on a stacked UFC Vegas 109 card at the promotion’s Apex Facility in Las Vegas.
Anders is by far the biggest name Duncan will have locked horns with during his stint in mixed martial arts’ premier promotion.
And he firmly believes a win over the American will be his ride to bigger and better things.
In an exclusive interview with SunSport, he said of potentially fighting a top-15 opponent next: “Naturally, it comes to mind. Logically, it makes sense.”
Duncan was revved up and ready to go as soon as matchmakers presented him with a Sin City showdown with Anders.
He said: “As soon as they gave me the name, I had that rush [and excitement] of [finally being able to fight somebody of his calibre at this point.
“I definitely put a serious push on my training and my mindset throughout this camp, leaving no stone unturned.
“I do that naturally, but it’s even more of a locking in and focus on fighting an opponent of this calibre.”
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Duncan faces Anders on the back of a March return to win column against Andrey Pulyaev at UFC London.
It was, however, a frustrating night at the office as the Russian was on his bike for the majority of the fight.
“I was definitely expecting more of a meet in the middle, kind of exchanging fight,’ Duncan said of his most recent outing. “But like you said, he backed off quite a bit.
“So it’s hard to get anything going. It was hard to kind of build momentum in that fight.
“But we got the win and it builds us now to this opponent, Erik Anders.
“He is well known in the UFC, a veteran and a very experienced, tough, and durable guy.
“He just fought Chris Weidman, the previous middleweight champion, so he’s no pushover.
“So it’s a great test of my skill at this level. And I feel if we do well here, it could definitely push us forward well.”
Despite being excited by what a win over Anders will potentially do for his career, Duncan is refusing to put the cart before the horse.
“‘I’m focusing on what’s happening now,” he said. “So I acknowledge that it’s [fighting a ranked opponent next] a possibility and it would happen.
“But it’s not as important [right now]. When it comes, that’s when I can put my full focus on something like that. But for now, my focus is on Anders.”
Duncan’s cautionary approach and insistence on focusing on the here and now is a testament to the mindset that head coach and Brit MMA pioneer Mark Weir has helped instil in him over the years.
It’s a great test of my skill at this level.”
Christian Leroy Duncan on his showdown with Eryk Anders
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He said: “When I first started, it was probably within three months of me first ever starting in MMA, and we would discuss a kind of plan of where I wanna get to.
“He would ask me where I wanna get to and he’d lay out like a little plan which would be like, ‘You need to do this in your amateurs.
“‘And then when you get to the pros at this level.’ And it’s crazy how things are starting to play out that we’ve visualised and spoken about from early on.
“So he’s definitely been a part of that, developing that mindset.”
Claiming the scalp of Anders will be no easy feat, despite the former American football player being on the back nine of his career.
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And Duncan is treating the 38-year-old like he’s still at the peak of his powers.
“He’s very much a pressure fighter who likes to go forward,” Duncan said of Anders. “[He] likes to be on the front foot and likes to dominate.
“So it’s gonna be more of me implementing my style onto him and seeing how he reacts and copes with that.
“I believe my style will overwhelm him in the right areas at the right time.
“And I think he’ll be surprised with my speed and my movement once we’re in there.”
