“It’s crazy to think,” he continues. “But I’m grateful. Fighting has been good to me and my family, and I honor that.”
He will also honor his Korean heritage this weekend as he engages in one of the biggest fights of his career.
“It holds a special place for me,” he said of fighting in South Korea. “Two of the best people I know, my father and my grandmother, were born in Korea, so it’s always been a place I felt close to. But I’m an American citizen and I’m happy to go over there and be an ambassador, I suppose.”
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With both Korea and America in his heart, Schnell doesn’t have to worry about any divided loyalties on fight night, considering Pantoja is Brazilian, but there is always another thing to fight for every time he steps into the Octagon, and that’s the 125-pound weight class that was on the verge of extinction in the UFC not that long ago.
“Every time I step out there, I’m a representative of what this division’s capable of,” he said. “I’ve always held the idea that this is an individual sport because it’s only me out there, but I do have to step out there and perform, not only for myself, not only for my family, but at this point for my division too. I have no problem going out there and putting it on for my division and after I get this win, I’m gonna get on that microphone and let everybody know that not only is this division here to stay, but I’m the guy to maybe reign supreme and bring it from obscurity. I’ve always felt that (UFC matchmakers) Mick Maynard and Sean Shelby brought me in hoping that I could be one of the guys to help this division out and bring a little excitement to it. And that’s what I plan on doing.”
