26-year-old kickboxer Tyrone Spong spoke with MMAJunkie.com about considering a transition to MMA and how he believes he will do. Here are some highlights:
His promise to the American fans: "The American fans have shown me a lot of love and a lot of respect. They motivate me. It's guys like that help you keep pushing to get better. If I do come here to the U.S. to do MMA, I will entertain you. That's a promise."
His inspiration for making the transition: "The first time I thought about trying MMA was about five years ago. I came into the States and trained with Floyd Mayweather Sr. for almost three months in Las Vegas. Before I was there, I was in Miami and trained with the Gracies. They told me I should start thinking about MMA because I was picking up the ground game very quickly. At the same time, when I was working in Vegas, Floyd Sr. and Bob Arum wanted to offer me a three-year contract for boxing, only. At that moment, I realized I know how to adjust. When I train, I pick up things very fast. I can do anything in fighting, in this game. It's just about how you adjust and how you utilize your abilities. At a certain level, it just comes down to how talented you are. I think I'm very talented, and I want to prove it."
How he believes he will do: "Everything I do, I do it to be the best at it. If I compete, I don't think – I know for sure – that I will get a title for sure. Otherwise, it doesn't make sense for me to compete in a sport.Why should I compete in a sport if I don't want to be a champion? I want to be the best at it. If I do try MMA, I know I will get a title."
