Bellator MMA Bantamweight Champion Eduardo Dantas will be defending the gold against LFA Bantamweight Champion Leandro Higo this Friday Night at Bellator 177.
Higo is a late replacement for the injured Darrion Caldwell, but Dantas is confident the title will be coming home with him Friday Night.
“I train hard for this,” Dantas said to MMA Junkie. “I think no one trains harder than I do. I eat very well. And with every fight I feel more confident, I feel better with every fight, and I’ve been proving that. So my confidence is not unwarranted. I’m not just saying I’m going to do this or that. The results are proving it, in my last two fights. This confidence stems from my mind, which I’ve been working a lot on for a while, and from my training, because I really like what I do. When we really like and believe in what we do, the results always come. And I really believe in what I can still do.”
Dantas is currently on his second reign as bantamweight champion and he has already defended the gold once in that time.
Even though his opponent is known for his wrestling skills, the champion is looking for the knockout inside the cage.
“Every time I fight, especially when it’s a title defense, I take that pressure (to finish) off me, and I try to enjoy the fight for five rounds,” Dantas said. “The knockout is about timing. I can’t wait to kill him at all times. It’s about the gaps he exposes. When he makes a mistake, opens that gap, I’ll go after that. I’ll knock him out. I’m going in there prepared for everything, either to finish the fight on the ground or on the feet. But I think I can finish this fight on the feet. Since he’s a guy who accepts the stand-up, I’ve been preparing a lot for that. I always get guys who go for the takedown, and I was happy to get a guy who strikes more. I was happy, and I think it will be a great fight. So it is a fight that I want to finish on the feet.”
Bellator 177 takes place on Friday, April 14 from the Budapest Sports Arena in Budapest, Hungary with Eduardo Dantas and Leandro Higo headlining. Fightful will be providing live coverage of the event.
