Lando Vannata is back inside of the Octagon next month at UFC 230, taking on Matt Frevola in a lightweight division encounter.
The lightweight prospect is coming off of a loss to Drakkar Klose and Vannata started making changes for the future once he got back in the locker room after the fight.
“A lot, a lot, a lot man. The first thing I did was sit down in the locker room…pretty bummed, the first thing I did was message the sports psychologist that I know and said ‘hey, lets work.’ It was all mental in that one, it was like that fight was the lowest…I was coming off of the lowest point in my life and I had very little confidence at that point. I never got into a state of flow, I never got into a zone. I never performed how I should have and I really just shit the bed in that fight, I lost to (David) Teymur and that’s when I got my strength and conditioning coach and started getting in better shape. This one was a blessing in that aspect, now everything is just coming together man. I made a lot of changes in between this last fight and this one, at a different gym…different coaches. I see a sports psych coach now, f*cking confident…I feel great,” says Vannata in an exclusive interview with Fightful’s James Lynch.
Vannata has yet to really find his groove in the UFC, having won just one of five in the promotion.
A new look Vannata is expected to enter the Octagon on November 3 and Vannata cannot see a scenario where he doesn’t get the victory on that night.
“I’ve played it out in my mind a million times and I’ve seen it go every which way, so I just see myself utterly dominating and outclassing him. It’s just like I said about being on another level,” says Vannata.
UFC 230 takes place on Saturday, November 3 from Madison Square Garden in New York, New York with Daniel Cormier and Derrick Lewis headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, with a post-show podcast to follow.