UFC 128 – Brendan Schaub admits he had to pinch himself after finding out he’d be fighting Cro Cop

UFC heavyweight prospect, Brendan Schaub has been speaking about his upcoming fight with former PRIDE legend, Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 128 in Newark, New Jersey, explaining he’s a huge fan of the Croatian knockout artist and that he had to pinch himself the morning after he found out he was going to fight him.
Speaking via UFC.com, Schaub said:

“I’m pretty ferocious inside the Octagon and that kinda stuff goes out the window,” smiled Schaub. “Before or after, my hat’s off to Cro Cop and I’m definitely a fan, but when we’re in there, I definitely show no mercy and there will be no high fives or hugs.”

“He was my favourite. I even wore a shirt that said “Cro Cop Security” and had the Croatian flag on it. When he fought Fedor (Emelianenko in 2005), I even convinced the guys who don’t watch mixed martial arts to chip in on the Pay-Per-View because I couldn’t afford it myself. It’s crazy to think back to that and now I’m fighting him.”

“There’s not a lot of times, whether it’s the boxing world or at the UFC level, where you get to fight legends of the sport, so for me, it’s unbelievable and such a great opportunity. The next morning after I got the call, I kinda pinched myself and was like ‘man, you’re really fighting Cro Cop on a huge card. I’ve never been so excited about a fight.”

“It’s easy because I expect to be here. I expect to be on the big cards and if it’s not the main event or for a world title, then I’ve got a lot of work to do. So for me, I expect these things and when I get the call to fight the big names, I’m like ‘yep, this is right, this is the next step, and I expect to be here.’ The pressure’s the same for me in all the fights, but this is definitely a big one, I’m looking forward to the challenge, and it’s just my time. I know that and I’m gonna prove it March 19th.”

Schaub is currently on a three fight winning streak which includes two first round knockout wins and a unanimous decision win over former title contender, Gabriel Gonzaga late last year. The sole loss of his career came at the hands of former IFL champion, Roy Nelson on the season ten finale of the reality show. Stay tuned to MMABay for more build-up to this one as we get it.