BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – Long before he was scheduled to face Paul Craig at UFC on ESPN 3, Alonzo Menifield made a list of fighters he would like to face off with once he entered the UFC cage. It just so happens Scotland’s own was on that list.
UFC on ESPN 3 takes place Saturday at Target Center in Minneapolis. The card airs on ESPN.
“I think (Craig) likes to go 15 minutes, but his style is like wrestling and jiu-jitsu,” Menifield said at a pre-fight media day Thursday. “I want to test myself, so I put him on my list.”
Menifield later added, “I’m a film guy. I played football and we watch film and study. That’s a thing I do. I watched Paul Craig before I even got in the UFC. And he was on my list. So to get this call, ‘Hey you can fight Paul Craig’ – I’m like, this is pretty cool.”
Like Menifield (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), Craig (11-3 MMA, 3–3 UFC) has also had his fair share of emphatic finishes as of late. He’s ended two out of his last three bouts with come-from-behind, Hail Mary triangle chokes.
“Great job by him,” Menifield said. “He was getting his butt kicked and he stuck in there and pulled those off. Me? I plan to devastate him in that area.
“You definitely have got to watch out for that. That’ll be smart. I plan to beat him into the third round. So if I can just slow-paced beat him up until the third round, that’s what I want to do.”
The UFC’s light heavyweight division is on the verge of a resurgence. After years of the same top-ranked competitors clogging the top spots, the divisional roster finally has a new wave of prospects on the horizon. Menifield is included on that list of up-and-comers.
“There’s life,” Menifield said. “There’s a lot of top prospects (and) big dogs in there. I’m looking forward to fighting them …I’m not thinking about them yet, but I see them. I’m sharpening my blades, trying to get my skillsets ready for them.”
For more on UFC on ESPN 3, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
