“That just kind of forced me to be attentive throughout my training camp,” Magny said. “I can’t take a moment for granted, and I can’t take him for granted. I understand I have a tough, dangerous opponent ahead of me. Knowing that going into the fight, I think it will bring out the best in me.”
UFC 283 Countdown | Gilbert Burns vs Neil Magny
Prior to his fight with Daniel Rodriguez in November, Magny had spent time training with fighters at Marquez MMA in Philadelphia such as Sean Brady and Jeremiah Wells. Being able to train with people of those caliber pushed Magny out of his comfort zone.
“When I go to Philadelphia to train with those guys, there’s not a single easy round ahead of me,” Magny said. “It’s that mentality, the pace, the pressure, everything is just kind of different. It forces me out of my comfort zone, and I was kind of leaning into that. I was like, ‘Man, this kind of sucks, but I love it.’ Going to Philadelphia every round was a tough round. It was a tough moment. I needed that at this point of my career and this particular training camp, I need to go out there and feel uncomfortable.”
Being comfortable in his own element was one of the main things that “The Haitian Sensation” took away from his last fight against Daniel Rodriguez, in which he came out victorious with a third-round submission. Magny acknowledged that sometimes he trains one way in the gym and then performs differently on fight night, but that wasn’t the case in the Rodriguez. He knew what he was capable of, and he executed.
