mma / News

Eddie Wineland Says UFC on FOX 20 Win Was Just What He Needed

July 24, 2016 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas

Eddie Wineland spoke with MMAjunkie after his win at UFC on FOX 20 last night. Some excerpts are below:

On considering retirement after his broken jaw at UFC Fight Night 40: “I broke the jaw and I wasn’t sure I wanted to come back. The only reason I wanted to keep fighting was for my 2-year-old son, just to prove a point to him that if you get knocked down, you get up and you keep moving forward. Get up and keep moving. This win tonight is exactly what I needed. I questioned myself quite a bit throughout this training camp – do I want to keep doing this? Is this really what I want to be doing? Not that I don’t love fighting, but the bumps and the bruises – I don’t heal like a 22-year-old boy anymore. I’m a 32-year-old man and I’ve got aches and pains all day, every day. To get in there and realize that because I’m a 32-year-old man, I’ve still got it.”

On thinking he was even up going into the final round: “Keith [Wisniewski] said he thought it was 1-1 – it was a close fight, and (he thought) the winner of (the third round) takes it. I was patient. I took my time and kind of stalked him down, and the first time I knocked him down, he wasn’t ready yet. The second time, I felt him go limp and then it was time to pounce.”

On the performance bonus: “My biggest goal is to pay my house off so my wife doesn’t have to continue to work…I would like it so my wife doesn’t have to work, and if I could pay the house down low enough and refinance, she doens’t have to go back to work.”