Under Construction: Mike Guymon Rebuilding His Career Under the Bellator Banner
Following a disappointing stretch in the UFC that saw him lose three of four fights, Mike “Joker” Guymon rebounded in 2012, winning back-to-back fights for the first time in three years.
“I ended up coming back and fought at lightweight – a weight class I had never fought at before – and I wanted to prove something to myself that I could come back off the medication, see if I could win, show what I can do and handle the weight loss,” said Guymon. “I was pleased to have two victories.
“The last victory I had (against Mike Dizak in July), I have no idea how I won that fight. I have no idea how I fought. I had a completely fractured shoulder and I ended up pulling through and winning, so I’m happy.”
Having taken time off to heal, Guymon will be looking to etch his third win in a row when he makes his promotional debut Thursday at Bellator 85 in Atlantic City, NJ against former IFL vet Savant Young.
“I’ve done a lot of research and talked to other fighters that Savant’s fought, and they all say the same thing, that he’s so explosive and when you think you’re out of punching distance, don’t underestimate how fast he can close that distance,” said Guymon. “I think I have an edge in cardio. I don’t see too many people being able to out-cardio me. I obviously have a huge height and size advantage. I plan on taking advantage of all that.
“I have to do everything on my terms. I can’t do things on his terms. I want to take away his explosiveness. I want to be moving in a direction where he can’t really do much. And then I want to explode and take advantage of those situations.”
For Guymon, to be able to step into Bellator is not only a chance to continue his career, but possibly put to rest the disappointing run he had in the UFC.
“I love the opportunity to step into Bellator,” he said. “It’s a huge promotion that’s coming up and getting a lot of recognition. I’m happy to have it on my resume and dealings with them so far.
“The last two fights in the UFC were so frustrating for me because I was so flat and was not me because of the medication I was taking. Now that I’ve moved past that, I’m excited to show people what I can do.”
While getting a shot in Bellator is a big move for Guymon’s career, don’t expect him to say he’s going to take the promotion by storm, but rather is focused on taking things one step at a time.
“I just want to take each fight as it comes and win it,” Guymon told MMAWeekly.com. “Right now, signing that three-fight contract and being a part of a tournament, I don’t see any of that, I only see Savant and I want to deal with him and that’s it. All I see is Savant.”
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