Juan Archuleta Addresses Facing Adversity Before His Bellator 214 Win

Speaking to reporters in a post-fight press conference, Juan Archuleta discussed his Bellator 214 win. Below are some highlights (h/t MMAjunkie).

Archuleta on his adversity going into the fight: “(I had) a lot of adversity coming into this fight. My training partner, T.J. Dillashaw, hit me with emotion last week. I felt like I lost a fight. So I was making adjustments for myself, as well as going in there and just re-analyzing what I’m doing here, what I’m fighting for. I’ve done it before – I’ve been around some of my training partners who lost big fights, Cub Swanson and having to fight the week after. I knew I could pull it off and I knew I could do it. I just had to sit down with my team, sit down with my family, and sit down with a lot of prayer and just get mentally tough again and realize what I was going to be fighting for this week and pull through it.”

Juan Archuleta on losing the first round a lot: “I lost my first round in my whole career, and it’s devastating to me. It feels like I lost a fight because I lost the first round of my career. It’s unfortunate. But I’m going to get better – I’ve got a lot of things to work on.”

Juan Archuleta on the move down to bantamweight: “(It was) my first drop down to 135, and I wanted to challenge myself. The weight cut alone was a challenge – I hadn’t been down there in about two and a half years. I wanted to do it in fashion by calling out the No. 1-ranked guy at 135. He had a great fight his last fight. He made some noise and it definitely put him in contention to be the No. 1 contender. I wnated to challenge myself. My managers thought it was a good call, my team, everyone – I had to stand out if I was making the drop to 135. I couldn’t just fight a Gallagher or someone. Who’s the best out there? The No. 1 contender, Ricky Bandejas. Let’s make the drop to 135 – let’s do it in fashion.”