UFC Vet John Gunderson Looks to Rejuvenate Career at WSOF 9 as a Featherweight

Upon his release from the UFC in 2010, veteran lightweight John “Quick Guns” Gunderson split his next eight bouts, going 4-4. It was then he decided a change was needed.

Heading into his World Series of Fighting return this Saturday, Gunderson will be doing so in a new weight class. It’s a move that’s been a while coming, but was especially evident was needed after his last WSOF bout last June.

“I won two big fights (in 2012) and then had two losses in fights set me back, so I decided to drop down to 145 (pounds) and see what I could do there,” Gunderson told MMAWeekly.com.

“When I got to the UFC I fought a couple of guys (at lightweight) and noticed how much bigger they were than me, but I was still putting on a good fight, but just felt undersized. And after my last fight in WSOF against Dan Lauzon, that’s when I really felt that I was way undersized and I knew my next fight would have to be at 145.”

Gunderson feels he won’t lose much with the move down in weight.

“I feel great at 145,” he said. “I feel like I’m just as strong as I was at 155 and I thought I was pretty strong at 155, so I feel great.”

When Gunderson (34-15-2) steps back into the cage at WSOF 9 this Saturday in Las Vegas, he’ll be facing Chris Gruetzenmacher (11-1), who hasn’t fought since the two were featured on the same card in 2012.

“Chris is a tough guy who is well-rounded and comes from a good camp, so I feel he’s one of the top prospects out there at 145 and is a perfect opponent for me to show where I’m at in the featherweight division,” said Gunderson.

“I don’t think (Gruetzenmacher’s two-year layoff is) going to make much of a difference. He’s probably been in camp with Ben Henderson and all those other fighters this whole time. I’ve only had a few more fights than him since his last fight, so I think it’s going to be like two bulls locking horns.”

At 35 years old and with 40-plus fights under his belt, Gunderson could very well be nearing the end of his career. But until he feels he’s no longer able to perform outside the cage, he’ll keep on performing inside it.

“I’m not really thinking about that,” he said. “I’ll start thinking about that when I’m breaking down in the gym and am not feeling good in the gym.

“As long as I’m doing well in the gym and I’m able to hang and do well in the gym, then I’ll keep competing. It’s when I can’t compete in the gym that I’ll stop competing in fights.”