Hakeem Dawodu Says People Shouldn’t Judge Him Based on Debut UFC Loss

Hakeem Dawodu spoke with MMAjunkie ahead of his fight with Austin Arnett at UFC on FOX 30. Highlights are below:

On losing Danny Henry in his first UFC bout at UFC Fight Night 127: “I knew I was slightly off. I don’t want to get into too many details. Camp wasn’t the way I wanted it to be. There was a few things I was dealing with, coming back home, rehabbing, being where I need to be. I kind of just let the past be the past. I knew that wasn’t the best representation of myself, but I’m not letting that affect me too much. People are going to be stupid if they judge me off that.”

On being ready for Saturday’s fight: “It gives me a different level of confidence. Training camp went exactly how I wanted it to go. I didn’t have to work around certain injuries. Definitely I feel like I’m back to the old.”

ON Arnett: “I think it’s a good matchup. I don’t want to give away too many details, but I’m definitely looking to put this guy away. … Of course you want to give your hometown something special, but I’m going to be patient and just treat this fight like every other fight.”