Karlos Vemola Plans to Prove He Should be a Main Card Mainstay

It’s crazy to think that almost exactly two years ago, when Karlos Vemola first debuted in the UFC, he came in as a heavyweight looking to find a home inside the Octagon.

Fast forward 24 months and now Vemola is about to have his fifth fight in the UFC, but he’s moved down two weight classes and has found his footing at 185 pounds.

After a dominant win over Mike Massenzio in his middleweight debut, Vemola is a leaner, meaner version of the fighter that first debuted in July 2010 and he’s looking to take the 185-pound division by storm in 2012.

“I definitely feel better, feel fitter, feel faster; I feel good,” Vemola told MMAWeekly.com. “It definitely was a good decision because I kept my strength and my fitness definitely improved.”

For his second trip to middleweight, Vemola will face French fighter Francis Carmont who currently sports a 2-0 record in the UFC. Vemola is excited for the match-up because he knows he’s not facing someone trying to outpoint him; he’s facing someone who wants to finish him and that’s an exciting proposition.

“Obviously, he’s good all around. He’s coming from a good camp training with (Georges) St-Pierre, so he’s going to be good all around. It’s definitely a very good fight for me because he’s one of the fighters who doesn’t like to fight for decisions. I’m that way as well,” said Vemola.

“He likes to come and fight and move forward, so it’s going to be an exciting fight. We will both try to finish the fight.”

The aggressive nature of what Carmont does in the cage is exactly why Vemola loves this fight.

“I want someone to come in and fight me, then I’ve got more chances to open my game as well. He’s going to come out wild, I’m going to come out wild, and it’s definitely going to play into my gameplan,” said Vemola.

The fight between Vemola and Carmont is a featured bout on the UFC on Fuel TV 4 main card, and it’s something the Czech fighter takes very seriously. The main card is special, so Vemola wants to show the UFC he belongs there from now on.

“Now I’ve been given the chance to fight on the main card, and I know if I win this fight then I’m always going to be on the main card. It’s a big motivation for me,” Vemola stated. “I need to win this fight to prove I belong on the main card to Dana White and Joe Silva. My place is to be on the main card.”

Being on the main card doesn’t mean, however, that Vemola is working by the hour. He plans on putting Carmont away quick and then enjoying the rest of the night off.

“Just win in the first round,” said Vemola. “That’s all I want.”

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