UFC Fight Night 101's Jake Matthews committed to being '100 percent purebred Australian fighter'

MELBOURNE, Australia – Jake Matthews is committed to representing Australian MMA until the end.

It doesn’t matter how many wins he gets or how many losses he experiences, Matthews said he’s sticking true to his roots in the sport and nothing will get him to veer from that.

Fighters born in regions where MMA is not a prominent sport can often struggle to get the quality of training needed to thrive at the UFC level. Many fighters from around the globe move stateside to join a major gym, but Matthews said that’s not part of his plan, nor will it be.

Matthews (10-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) wants to rise to the top doing it his way, with the pride of Australia on his back. At just 22, he’s expected to have a bright future in the sport, and the next chapter in fulfilling that hype comes Saturday when he faces Andrew Holbrook (11-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) in UFC Fight Night 101’s co-main event.

“Not that I want to be in the limelight and be the poster boy for Australian MMA; I just want to lead the way,” Matthews told MMAjunkie. “It’s just about growing the sport here in Australia. I think that’s why (Robert Whittaker) came back from over in the states to train in Australia. That’s why I’ve stayed here. For me, it’s just about staying 100 percent purebred Australian fighter. I think that means staying here and training here. Even though it’s harder, it’s just the way to make it work and show other people you don’t need to go overseas and train. Even though it’s good, you can make it work here.”

UFC Fight Night 101 takes place at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The lightweight bout between Matthews and Holbrook co-headlines the FS1-televised portion of the card following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

The road to the top of the UFC, especially in the deep 155-pound division, is long and grueling. Matthews wants to the be first Australian-born UFC champion, though, and he said overcoming setbacks is part of the process.

Matthews experienced arguably the worst setback of his young career in his most recent outing when Kevin Lee overwhelmed him via first-round TKO at The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale in July. It was the first time Matthews had been stopped by strikes in his career, but he said the loss was important because it opened his eyes to an important aspect of game-planning.

“We knew he was a wrestler,” he said. “We thought he would try to stand up and stay away from my ground gam. Then he started bombarding me with double legs, and it really just threw me off. I didn’t know what was going on. I got back up, and I thought he would stand up. Then he shot again and shot again. This time I’m going in with an open mind. We know what Holbrook’s strengths are, what he weaknesses are, but we’re ready for anything.”

After losing to Lee, coming back home to Australia is the perfect scenario to help Matthews get back on track, he said. “The Celtic Kid” is 7-0 in his career when fighting in Melbourne, and he said he doesn’t intend to allow Holbrook to snap that undefeated streak.

“I definitely know I’m going to win this fight; I’ve never lost in Melbourne before,” Matthews said. “I think using my speed and explosiveness are definitely going to shock Andrew. I don’t think he’s fought anyone that’s as fast as I am. He’s a pretty big lightweight – I’m bigger. I don’t think he’s used to fighting people bigger than him. I’m going to shut down his wrestling, keep it on the feet, and the ultimate would be to get a first-round knockout.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 101, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.