“Oh, I was extremely upset,” he said. “I thought I really did enough to win that fight. I thought I clearly won the first couple of rounds, and the thing that bugs me the most about that fight is one of the judges gave round two to Rountree. And clearly, that was my most dominant round of the fight. I just don’t know how he got away with that decision. But it is what it is and I’ve moved on from it. I have to let it go in order to take the next steps that are ahead of me, and to keep climbing the ladder, you got to let go. And I did that and now I’m focused on Azamat.”
Azamat is Azamat Murzakanov, unbeaten in 12 fights and the one who will stand across from Jacoby on Saturday night in Kansas City’s T-Mobile Center. It’s an important fight for both ranked light heavyweights, and a good opportunity for “The Hanyak” to bounce back from his first loss since he was submitted by John Salter in January of 2015. That’s a long time to be unbeaten, and having that latest loss come in a fight where he wasn’t dominated or finished stings a little more, especially when a poll of media members taken by MMADecisions.com after the bout saw Jacoby picked by 14 out of 16.
“You guys weren’t the only ones,” said Jacoby. “I haven’t heard from one person that told me otherwise besides those judges that night. And that’s no disrespect to Rountree and not taking anything away from him. The guy’s a hell of a fighter. He brought the fight to me and it was a great fight by both of us. We both were unwilling to go away. And that was something that he impressed me with in his game. He really surprised me in the third round when he came out as strong as he did. But there’s no doubt, man, I looked him in the eye, shook his hand before that decision was read, and it was clear what he thought and what I thought. And I think he was just as surprised as I was shocked when his name was called.”
The loss hurt the ego, hurt the paycheck and killed the nine-fight unbeaten streak, but with a new contract and a spot still secured in the Top 15, the 35-year-old Jacoby was able to put it behind him and move forward into his meeting with “The Professional, someone he is taking very seriously.
“Azamat has got my full attention,” said Jacoby. “The guy’s a dangerous striker. He’s got nine knockouts in 12 fights. He’s pretty aggressive and he brings the fight to his opponents and he’s got my full attention.”
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It’s a, pardon the pun, professional attitude from Jacoby, but then again, he’s always been like that and always knew in his heart that he was going to get paid for his sporting endeavors, whether they came in the Octagon and ring, or on the gridiron or basketball court.
“To be honest, there really was no Plan B,” said Jacoby. “I always looked at myself as one day becoming a professional athlete from the time I was a kid. Just wrestling, playing ball, I always had a ball in my hand, I was always playing sports. And sports have just been the love of my life – sports and competition. And there was no backup plan. Even in college, I still thought I was going to become a professional football player. And then my twin brother got into MMA, and that’s where I started going. I had a couple fights and there was no doubt in my mind I would be a professional MMA fighter. So there was no Plan B. I just always pictured it, and I’ve always believed it. And here I am today, 35 years old, and for 35 years I’ve been that competitor and that athlete just stepping on the playing field.”
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And there’s no place he’d rather be.
