It was a bit surprising that Paul Felder agreed to fight Rafael Dos Anjos on five days notice. Now he reveals that he is still in great shape, despite not having a training camp.
When Islam Makhachev pulled out of his main event with RDA, there were several potential opponents thrown around as a possible replacement. Few expected though, that UFC would eventually land on Felder, who was actually supposed to work commentary for the event. Nevertheless he swapped his suit and tie for gloves and a mouthpiece, agreeing to step in on less than a week’s notice for a lightweight bout against the former champion.
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From the booth to the Octagon… The Irish 🐉 rises to step up on five days notice vs RDA. #UFCVegas14
Paul Felder Was Training For A Triathlon
Typically when fighters take bouts on such short notice as Paul Felder has, there is concern about what kind of shape the athlete will be in when they show up. However this is not something to be worried about in this case. Speaking in an interview shortly after taking the fight, Paul revealed that he was actually training for a triathlon when he got the call for this fight.
“I was on the treadmill running,” Felder explained. “I’ve been getting ready for a triathlon and I’ve been doing this for months now, staying in shape, still hitting pads, still doing MMA on the side, but nothing serious. My body feels really fresh. It was a spontaneous decision and we talked some things out and we made it work. Don’t get me wrong, I’m nervous. I’m just going to go in there and try to spoil the party.”
Felder goes on to explain that he had discussed volunteering for the fight, but decided against it. However the UFC would approach him for the fight, leading to his manager calling him while he was running. Shortly thereafter he took the fight, and began the preparations to cut weight.
Lean Mean Irish Fighting Machine
One of the reasons the fight between RDA and Paul Felder was so surprising was the fact that it was still a lightweight bout, despite the short notice nature of the fight. “The Irish Dragon” explained that this is something that would typically pose a problem, but that because of his triathlon training he is much lighter than he would normally be. While he did not give an exact weight, he said that he is about 20lb heavier than the lightweight limit.
“I’m much leaner and lighter than I ever would be taking a fight on short notice,” Felder explained. “Normally this wouldn’t even be in the cards, to even think about because I would be 195-198. I’m nowhere near that. I’m well under 80, I’m in the 70’s so I’ll give you that. So with some time and water loading and dehydration I’ll be fine.”
Heading Into the fight, Paul Felder has discussed a lack of motivation to beat up his body, but he seems positive and motivated heading into this fight. There is nothing but respect to be offered to him for taking this fight on short notice.
