Video: Zach Makovsky ‘not carrying the Bellator banner or anything’

SACRAMENTO – Zach Makovsky is known by most hardcore fans as a former Bellator MMA bantamweight champion. But the 31-year-old veteran said he’s forging a new identity in the UFC.

“I’m not carrying the Bellator banner or anything,” said Makovsky (17-4 MMA, 1-0 UFC) after a unanimous-decision win over fellow flyweight Scott Jorgensen (14-8 MMA, 3-4 UFC) on the UFC on FOX 9 preliminary card.

“That’s just the promotion that gave me my start when I was trying to make it into televised MMA and be able to support myself fighting,” said Makovsky, whose bout aired on FOX Sports 1 from Sacramento’s Sleep Train Arena. “They gave me a shot, and I won the bantamweight title. But I didn’t feel pressure to represent Bellator or feel like I’m the Bellator guy. I’m just representing me and my team.”

Makovsky, who trains out of Philadelphia Fight Factory, wasn’t expecting to fight for the UFC when he got the call to replace an injured John Dodson at tonight’s event. The offer came just after Thanksgiving, just three weeks after a five-round win in Resurrection Fighting Alliance, and Makovsky’s diet wasn’t exactly strict.

“I was eating a lot, but I never stopped training,” he said. “When I got the call, I wasn’t looking at the scale. I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I have no idea what I weigh.’ But I was much lighter than I thought. I was only 141 (pounds), so everything worked out.”

Indeed, Makovsky, whom Bellator released in 2012 after back-to-back losses, appeared at ease inside the octagon. Absent were the much-discussed jitters that affect UFC newcomers.

Over three rounds, he dominated Jorgensen en route to earning three scores of 30-27.

“I feel the same pressure, no matter where I fight,” Makovsky told MMAjunkie. “The stage never bothered me. It’s always the same nerves. Obviously, I’m thrilled to be here, and there’s no place I’d rather fight. But I knew Jorgensen would be super tough guy and give me trouble.”

Now that he’s gotten past that trouble, Makovsky has no intention of returning to his former weight class. Moving forward, he’s a UFC flyweight.

“The last three guys I fought at 135 (pounds) walk around at 165,” he said. “I’m usually under 145, so I think [flyweight] is where I belong.”

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