WSOF 8’s Tyson Nam on Bollinger: It’s going to end with somebody unconscious

It had been five years since Tyson Nam was knocked out prior to his most recent World Series of Fight appearance. Close to three minutes into the first round of his March fight with fellow bantamweight contender Marlon Moraes, that streak came to an end.

Coming off a performance where he failed to show his best, Nam wants to take all his pent-up aggression from his brain-rattling loss and administer it on someone else.

“My last fight was pretty disappointing,” Nam told MMAjunkie. “In MMA, anything can happen at any given moment. I zigged when I should have zagged and I got kicked in the head.”

The fight with Moraes was the most meaningful of Nam’s career thus far, so the premature ending was disappointing to him – especially because Nam believes he wasn’t out-skilled that night, he simply was the victim of something most who have been in the sport long enough have experienced: He got caught.

“It wasn’t something where I felt I was being outclassed or anything,” Nam said. “I felt like right before [the knockout], I kicked him in the leg twice pretty nice and I was just getting into my groove. But like I said, it’s MMA – anything can happen, and it just so happens I came up with a loss. I got kicked upside the head.”

After putting together a career-high five-fight winning streak leading into the fight with Moraes, Nam’s confidence and momentum was at an all-time high. When the defeat came, though, it made him raise questions about his future in the sport.

“At first it was a little bit of disappointment from the loss, a little bit of soul searching if this is really the thing that I want to do,” Nam said. “It was just a real brief couple of days. It was just depression more than anything because I hadn’t lost in a long while and I got kicked upside the head.”

It’s not uncommon for fighters to think about when and how they will exit it the sport, but for a 30-year-old who appeared to be in the midst of his prime, the timing raised legitimate concerns.

But Nam ensures any critics that he is wholeheartedly dedicated to the sport, and commitment will be a non-issue going forward.

“I’ve never been kicked upside the head before, so it was a surprising thing. But when Monday came around, I was ready to get back into it,” Nam said. “This is what I do every day. Wake up, work out, go and eat, train – and this is what I want to do. I want to be a professional athlete and compete at the highest level possible.”

If there is any part of Nam that is still waning interest in the sport, it could be exposed in his next fight at “WSOF 8: Gaethje vs. Patishnock” later this month.

Nam (12-5) will face “The Ultimate Fighter 18? cast member Cody Bollinger (14-2) in a main-card bout, Jan. 18 from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The event airs on NBC Sports Network with preliminary card action streaming on MMAjunkie.

While Bollinger admittedly wasn’t a fighter on Nam’s mind when thinking about potential opponents, he found the matchup to be a pleasant surprise and is excited for it.

“I felt that he was definitely one of the favorites to win ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ show,” Nam said. “So when they did announce I would be matched up with him for WSOF 8, I was very excited to get matched up with a very game opponent.”

One of the major story lines following Bollinger in his young MMA career is the fact he was kicked off “TUF” for his inability to make weight for his semifinal bout.

Missing weight, especially on “TUF,” can draw criticism from fans, fellow fighters and other figures in the sport. That’s exactly what happened, as Bollinger’s mistake was magnified because of the reality show.

While Bollinger is likely to be the larger fighter inside the cage, Nam isn’t concerned about what could potentially go down on weigh-in day and has faith his opponent has learned from the past and won’t repeat his errors.

“You made one mistake and I believe that as a true professional you won’t make that mistake ever again,” Nam said. “He’s had an ample amount of time to prepare for this fight so I’m pretty sure that he’ll be right on track to make weight and go to battle.”

With WSOF still being a relatively young organization, weight classes are still being developed and several championships have yet to be introduced.

One weight classes without a champion at this time is the bantamweight division, and the winner of Nam and Bollinger is likely to be on the short-list of fighters to compete for that belt if and when it’s introduced.

While a title shot, and perhaps even a rematch with Moraes, could be on the horizon for Nam should he emerge from WSOF 8 as a winner, the fighter claims none of those factors will cross his mind until his hand is raised.

“Right now I’m not thinking about the title,” Nam said. “I think a win over Cody would put me back up as one of the best bantamweights in the world, but right now I’m not looking at any talk about title shots, belts or my next opponent until I secure this victory.”

Having not fought in roughly 10 months, Nam is extremely eager to get back in the cage. He claims to have diversified his game during his time off and the results are going to show in the cage, as regardless of who comes out on top, he predicts a knockout finish.

“For this fight I’ve added a lot of new skills and I expect to have one of the best performances of my career on Jan. 18,” he said. “I’m pretty sure the fight is going to end with somebody unconscious.”

For more on WSOF 8, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.