"5-second flying knee" – Jared Vanderaa lays out his game plan for his short-notice fight with Azamat Murzakanov at UFC Vegas 44

Azamat Murzakonov (left), Jared Vanderaa (right) [Images Courtesy: @murzakanovazamat @jaredvanderaa on Instagram]

UFC heavyweight Jared Vanderaa is set to step up on short notice this weekend to face off against Azamat Murzakanov at UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Aldo. This is the third replacement opponent for Murzakanov, who has already had fights with Philipe Lins and Marcin Prachnio fall through.

In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda MMA's Frank Bonada, Jared Vanderaa sat down to discuss his game plan for the upcoming short-notice fight. 'The Mountain' has a reputation for outlandish predictions, and once again he lived up to it, initially stating:

"We're gonna go flying knee. We're going Masvidal Askren, right here. Five second flying knee."

48 hours before his now iconic flying knee against Ben Askren, Jorge Masvidal was filmed practising that exact move in training 🔥

What does @GamebredFighter have up his sleeve for #UFC251? 😏 https://t.co/5Z6VdvRhUJ

However, in a more serious tone, the Washington native broke down how the matchup will likely play out, stating:

"Okay so, he's more or less gonna be faster than me. So I'm not gonna rush in there, try and chase a guy that's quicker than me, and then just tire myself out getting nowhere. So, I'm gonna see how it goes because I know he's went through two or three opponents so I'm pretty sure he's flustered. So it's just like, alright, well, we gotta see what happens in the cage. I know once I get in the cage there's a few things that I always like to do. Immeditally punch. Land the first strike. And then I just kinda go from there."

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Jared Vanderaa names two potential opponents he would like to face next if he is victorious over Murzakanov

Whilst Jared Vanderaa does acknowledge the cards will be stacked against him in the Murzakanov fight due to the short-notice nature of its booking, he is also aware that a win could see him face off against a high-profile opponent next.

Tanner Boser and Ben Rothwell were both names that interested 'The Mountain' for a potential matchup somewhere down the line. He stated:

"Eventually I would like to fight Tanner (Boser). It just looks like a fun fight on paper... I would like to fight him but I'm also not picky. If they're like, hey, you gotta fight anyone on the roster... I'm not one of those people that, it has to be Boser. I just think it would be a fun fight. Stylistically, I was told that I was being disrespectful for calling out Ben Rothwell, but you know, I thought that would've been a fun fight to have... That's Ben Rothwell, it would be f***ing awesome to share the cage with him."

You can check out our full interview with Jared Vanderaa below: