"Fighting's not that scary when compared to everything you do on a daily basis" - Jordan Leavitt on how he handles anxiety ahead of stepping into the octagon
Jordan Leavitt recently revealed how he manages to handle the anxiety of fighting inside the octagon.
Fighting under the UFC banner takes a lot of mental preparation and courage. However, Leavitt believes that day-to-day activities are riskier in terms of the chances that he could get hurt.
During UFC London media day, the lightweight fighter said that adrenaline takes away the pain during a fight, meaning it is an easier task than sparring or other activities.
Here's what the 27-year-old told Sportskeeda MMA and other reporters ahead of his return to action this weekend:
"It's the trauma from growing up. Yeah, honestly like, fighting is not that scary, when compared to everything you do on a daily basis. I had a higher chance of getting hurt in the Uber on the way here, have a better chance of getting hurt while sparring. Honestly, sparring is lot of times a lot harder than the fight. There is no adrenaline when you are sparring on a day-to-day basis. All the aches and pains, injuries, you feel. But during a fight, you don't feel anything. It's just like the rush and the energy and that's pretty cool. You never feel that anywhere else."
To prove his point, Leavitt noted that he didn't feel sad after his sole career loss against Claudio Puelles:
"It's a positive experience, even when I lost my fight, I had a good day. Went on a date with my wife. It's just a fist fight at the end of the day and I just like to do it and I get paid for it. But, it's not too big a deal."
Watch Jordan Leavitt's media day appearance ahead of UFC London:
Jordan Leavitt can steal Paddy Pimblett's hype this weekend at UFC London
Jordan Leavitt is set to take on fan favorite Paddy Pimblet at The O2 arena this weekend. Pimblett has gotten off to a flying start to his UFC career, finishing both of his fights in the promotion inside the first round.
There is already a lot of hype behind 'The Baddy' and a win against 'The Monkey King' will further raise his stock.
That said, Leavitt is a promising lightweight due to his own excellent skills and he will likely be the toughest test of Pimblett's career to date. 'The Monkey King' could steal all of Pimblett's hype with a win this Saturday and potentially set himself up as the next big star in the division.