“It’s like f***ing Hov said, man, ‘Allow me to re-introduce myself,’” he responds, dropping the opening lyric from Jay-Z’s “Public Service Announcement” interlude on The Black Album.
“Dropping weight classes is not the only change I’ve made,” he adds. “There has been an entire overhaul, but I’ll play it coy with the other changes; keep it on the DL.”
Just as the aforementioned Hall had peaks and valleys in his career before connecting with Coach Sayif Saud and the team at Fortis MMA in Dallas, which has helped him unlock a different level of consistency and success inside the Octagon, Vannata needed to learn the lessons the past five years have imparted on him and do some serious self-reflection in order to reach the point where he could make the changes needed to become the best version of himself as a fighter.
“I would say I wish I took it more seriously from the start,” he says, reflecting on his first five years in the UFC. “I wish that I would have been less lazy in my preparation — more committed, more consistent — but I’m also very thankful for what I’ve learned, where I’m at, and the fact that now I’m the most consistent person I know and the most committed person I know.
UFC 262 FREE FIGHT: Charles Oliveira vs Tony Ferguson
“I wish I learned to be less emotional at an earlier stage, but I think that comes with age and life experience. There are a lot of things I could say I wish I did differently, but the fact of the matter is that where I’m at now, I’m happy, I’m healthy, I feel like a stud every day in practice, even when I’m going with guys that are way better than me, and I’m ready to rock this division.
As we wrap, I ask Vannata what it’s going to feel like to go out there on Saturday night, compete in a new weight class, feeling as good as he does, and get his hand raised.
“It’s going to feel like everything I’ve visualized since my last loss,” he answers. “I use the hashtag #GroovyKing all the time because I feel like I’m coming for the throne, and it’s going to feel like everything I’ve visualized is going to materialize.”
I thank him for his time and tell him I can’t wait to see him compete at UFC 262 and he quickly interjects.
“Do you know what I can’t f***ing wait for?” he asks, allowing a beat to pass before telling me the answer. “17,000 f***ing people in a packed arena! I’m stoked, man.
“The bigger the crowd, the more people, the bigger the energy, the more at home I feel, so I’m stoked.”
