UFC Fight Night 99 headliner Gegard Mousasi sees title path going through Hall, then Rockhold

BELFAST, Northern Ireland – Although Gegard Mousasi has mentioned his desire to rematch Uriah Hall time and time again since suffering a massive upset loss to “Primetime” at UFC Fight Night 75 in September 2015, he admits he didn’t think it would ever happen.

Mousasi (40-6-2 MMA, 7-3 UFC) said circumstances are everything in the world of MMA, so when Saturday’s planned UFC Fight Night 99 headliner between Gunnar Nelson and Dong Hyun Kim was scrapped, the UFC needed a main event. They called upon “The Dreamcatcher” for a second fight with Hall (12-7 MMA, 5-5 UFC), and despite the short-notice nature of the proposal, he didn’t hesitate to accept.

“You need circumstances,” Mousasi told MMAjunkie today. “A lot of times you need luck. So for me it worked out well, but I wasn’t thinking they would do the rematch. …They needed a main event so they contacted me and asked me if I wanted it and I said yes, then they called Uriah and we have the fight. I’m happy. It’s a quick turnaround (from my last fight). It’s better for me. Don’t need to get chubby, don’t need to get out of shape. If I fight next month I will do it again.”

UFC Fight Night 99 takes place at SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The entire card streams on UFC Fight Pass.

Another reason Mousasi thought the chances of a rematch with Hall were slim was because the trajectory of their careers in the middleweight division have gone in different directions since their first clash. Mousasi has rattled off three consecutive wins, the most recent being a second-round TKO of Vitor Belfort at UFC 204 in October, while Hall has suffered back-to-back losses since his beating Mousasi.

Although Mousasi could have likely demanded an opponent higher in the ranking that would have helped move him closer to a title shot, he said it was more important to exact revenge against Hall, even if it meant a 42-day turnaround and putting himself in a position where he had more to lose than gain.

“It’s just a detour,” Mousasi said. “I need to settle the score and after this, if I win, probably some guy like Luke Rockhold. ‘Jacare’ (Souza) I fought twice, so he’s the next guy that’s going to get me a title shot. I’m very close. It’s a risky fight for me to take this one. But it’s a fight, that’s what I do. We’ll see how it goes.

“The first fight I think I was rushing in too much. I wanted to finish him very bad. I wanted to make a statement. This fight I’m going to take my time. I’m going to pick my shots and I will be just fine. I’m away of the spinning back kicks. He’ll have to come up with something new. But overall my standup is good, so I’m not worried.”

Mousasi has gone as far as to label his loss to Hall as a “fluke.” After dominating the action on the ground for more than a round, Hall unleashed a violent and well-placed spinning back kick to the head which stunned Mousasi. He followed with a flying knee to Mousasi’s jaw, and moments later the fight was waved off.

With the rematch just a few days away Mousasi is giving Hall slightly more credit for his previous performance, but still thinks he is the vastly superior fighter and intends on showing as much on Saturday.

“It’s a fluke because let’s say if we fight 10 times, nine times I’m going to beat him,” Mousasi said. “But he won fair and square. He landed the kick. He did that kick. I can’t take that away. He’s not a cheater, he didn’t do anything. You have to give the credit he deserves. I feel like I’m the better fighter and just to prove that and nothing else.

“I got nothing personal against him. Hopefully he doesn’t have something personal against me. It’s just a fight. Afterwards I’m going to shake hands with him and it’s done. We’re not like the women fighters who hold grudges. You know women.”

If not for the loss to Hall, Mousasi would be on a six-fight winning streak in the 185-pound division. His ultimate goal is a title shot, and if he can redeem himself from that setback it would be of great benefit to argument as one of the top contenders in his weight class. He admits fighters like Yoel Romero, who is expected to challenge champion Michael Bisping next, and Ronaldo Souza, sit ahead of him in terms of worthiness fighting for the gold. However, he said a win over Hall would put him right there as well.

“(This fight is) going to get me another win and then a matchup with like Luke Rockhold, he’s the next guy, or Anderson (Silva), he’s a big name, it always makes sense for me,” Mousasi said. “I need one more fight after this to fight for the belt. I need to win this one first then the next one if very important.

“I need to be a contender and then I will fight for the belt,” he continued. “Once I win it then hopefully people know (I deserve a shot). Of course (Bisping) has to deal with Yoel Romero now. You have ‘Jacare’ waiting for him and then after that it’s not really decided who’s next. I’m coming, but I have to win. I just need to perform and I need to perform on Saturday night.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 99, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.