Wrestling ace Cole Konrad has showed improved standup. | Photo: Dave Mandel
That would have made sense. Konrad, the Bellator heavyweight champion, is a two-time NCAA wrestling champion as well. However, he’s also been working on his striking, and it showed as he outstruck Buentello to earn a unanimous decision in the non-title bout.
“I’m sure it did throw him off. That’s the reason I did it,” Konrad said during a “Savage Dog Show” interview on the Sherdog Radio Network. “Why would I go out there and give him exactly what he thinks I’m going to do? He’s waiting on me to come diving in on a shot and throw his uppercut. I’m just assuming that was his game plan, but why would I take the chance if I thought I could outstrike him on my feet? Which I was able to.”
Buentello is a crafty striker, but he looked confused by Konrad’s willingness to trade. In turn, Konrad looked frustrated by Buentello’s reluctance.
“I expected if I’m going to stand and exchange, he’s going to love it,” Konrad said. “He’s going to come at me and want to throw punches. It just wasn’t happening. I was a little bit frustrated, but that’s part of the game too. It was my bad for even showing the emotion. I don’t know what was wrong with me that I was showing it. I should have just kept it to myself and just kept in the zone there.”
Still, Konrad’s improvement as a striker was impressive. He credits UFC veteran Pat Barry for his development. The two train everything together: striking, grappling, cardio and weightlifting.
“I’ve been fortunate to have Pat Barry up here training with me every day,” Konrad said. “When you exchange punches with a guy like that every day, you have no choice but to get better. … Having him in the room has helped me immensely. He’s been great to work with, both with my standup and then me helping him with his wrestling and ground game.”
Konrad believes the partnership is just starting to pay off. Besides the technique he’s picking up from Barry, he’s also gaining the confidence to let his strikes go, including kicks.
“I was training it before, but I wasn’t throwing it before,” Konrad said. “The confidence to throw it, just seeing when it’s there, being able to throw it -- I think that just comes from training with a guy like that who does throw a lot of leg kicks when we’re training. You pick up a lot of the little tweaks to it to know how to throw it properly and how to time it.”
That showed against Buentello, though Konrad wasn’t able to finish the fight. Some fans didn’t enjoy the pace of the bout either, but Konrad asks them to be patient. He sees himself as his harshest critic.
“It’s coming along, but it’s not where I think it can be,” Konrad said of his game. “I think I’ve got a long ways to go yet before I’m anywhere near my full potential. I’m learning a lot and I think I’m developing a lot, but I think there’s still a lot more I can get out of myself.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 1:03:17).
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