Anyone that thinks Basharat is trying to protect his unbeaten record hasn’t been paying attention or doesn’t follow the sport closely enough to understand you don’t face seasoned, dangerous foes like Jones and Gravely in your first two trips into the Octagon if you’re looking for relatively easy nights at the office.
He did well against Jones in February, showing glimpses of the complete arsenal that makes him someone to keep tabs on in the 135-pound weight class this year, and was forced to deal with a little early adversity in the fight with Gravely after sustaining a cut fairly early into the opening stanza.
“I took away a lot from that fight, to be honest with you; it gave me a lot of confidence,” said Basharat, reflecting on his September unanimous decision win. “I know I can dig deep, and in that fight, I had to dig deep.
View Basharat’s Athlete Profile
“The cut was bothering me from the beginning. As soon as it happened, it was the first minute, and my game plan had to change. I always knew that I could do it because I’m put in these positions in training, but obviously you can’t emulate a cut during sparring. The fact that it happened so early in the fight, I had to change my game plan up. I still managed to do the things my coaches wanted me to do, but in a different way.”
While Year One saw him go the distance for the first two times in his career, the elder Basharat was ultimately satisfied with his efforts and how his rookie campaign inside the Octagon played out.
“I’m definitely happy overall,” he began. “If I was to have a rookie year like that — to have only two fights —I would have been very annoyed, but the fact that it was against two very good competitors, I was happy with the results.”
See What’s Happening In The Bantamweight Division
Now he’s ready to take another step towards the rankings by showing Mendonca the difference between being a freshman and a sophomore.
“He’s got very intense offense; he’s going to be pushing the pace,” Basharat said of his Brazilian opponent. “He’s well rounded, he hasn’t felt defeat, so he’s going to be very confident in his skills, but I’m going to keep doing my thing.
