While it was heartbreaking to not get the win and miss out on a UFC contract, Kirk knew deep down that maybe it wasn’t his time yet.
“I think, ultimately, at that moment, even though I thought that I was ready to be in the UFC, there were some things outside of fighting, like the way I’d run my camps, the way my weight cuts would go, the way I would reload once I’d step off the scale, those were things that we hadn’t quite dialed in that we’re so much better at now. I would say that’s the biggest difference between where I was at three years ago compared to now, is that we have everything dialed in. It just comes with time and experience.”
Kirk couldn’t be more right. Fight experience is something you just can’t chase. For someone like Kirk, who is only 27 years old, he truly has all the time in the world. He may not have realized it then but cornering Saldana and competing on DWCS was the exact experience he needed.
At this point, Kirk is comfortable being in the UFC spotlight now. He knows he earned his spot on the roster; now it’s time to let his division know that his time is now.
“The fan in me was like, ‘This is so cool to be here. They’re handing me this Venum bag full of UFC gear, this is amazing!’ But then the fighter and hard worker in me said, ‘No, you deserve to be here. You worked your ass off to get here.’ I feel like I belong. I feel like I’m at home.”
