Eric Spicely Thinks the Top 15 at Middleweight Is Wide Open in the UFC

MMAjunkie Radio recently interviewed UFC fighter Eric Spicely ahead of his bout with Antonio Carlos Junior at UFC 212, which is set for later today. Below are some highlights.

Spicely on his wrestling: “I used to do a lot of pro wrestling. I used to wrestle a lot with Chuck O’Neil (former pro wrestler and ‘The Ultimate Fighter 13’ cast member), who was in the UFC, and Matt Riddle (former UFC welterweight and current pro wrestler). So I’m very into that, kind of playing the heel role and kind of taking that all in. When I came out there, I kept being like, ‘I can’t hear you guys’ and they were getting even more mad. Even at weigh-ins, someone was trying to jump over the guard rail because I kept being like I couldn’t hear them or something. It was intense. I was like, ‘Oh, man, I was just kidding.’ But, yeah, I feed off that. And I’ve had a friend, I think he made his debut down there, and he was like, ‘Man, that was the scariest.’ That really threw him off. And for me, it doesn’t bother me. It really makes me motivated.”

Spicely on the top 15 is wide open at 185 pounds: “It’s actually really exciting. It’s a good time. Especially for me, I’m on a two-fight win streak and I feel like the top-15 is kind of wide open. Guys are retiring, Tim Boetsch just lost, and he was No. 15. And Sam (Alvey) was in there, and he just lost. A couple of quality wins, and you can get in the top 15. I already have a win over Thiago Santos, who was No. 15, so that puts me kind of right on the cusp. So I think a couple more big wins, and I’m kind of in the picture to make a run at the title.”