When looking back on his 2017, lightweight up and comer Brandon Jenkins acknowledges it was a year of ups and downs.
After breaking through to the national level in joining the LFA in January of last year, Jenkins managed to pick up two wins in three fights with the promotion, but firmly believes he should have had victories in all his bouts.
“I made my LFA debut against my heated rival, Billy Christianson,” Jenkins told MMAWeekly.com. “I was a huge fan of Billy’s as I was coming up the ranks, then he started talking trash about me and saying he wasn’t impressed by me and all that stuff. We fought at LFA 2, and I ended up winning by a second round knockout.
“I returned again against Jeff Peterson (at LFA 20), and I felt like I out-struck him the whole fight, but I lost a controversial decision. Everybody thought that I won. Then I had a Fight of the Year (at LFA 29) against Karl Wittstock after that. So it was kind of an emotional rollercoaster (of a year).”
When it comes to his development, Jenkins feels like recently he’s begun to grow in areas of his game that help complement his already solid striking and allow him to use that more efficiently.
“I had a strictly Taekwondo and kickboxing kind of base, and then this year we’ve had a lot of Oxford College wrestlers come over to our gym at ATT Savage, and those guys have really helped me with my wrestling defense,” said Jenkins.
“We didn’t have the same caliber of wrestlers where I’m from in Florida that we have here in the Midwest. My wrestling and takedown defense has grown leaps and bounds, so I can keep it on the feet. I’ve added more movement to my game. I use my elbows and knees more.”
On Friday in Prior Lake, Minn., Jenkins (11-5) steps into a 155-pound main event championship fight against Robert Watley (9-1) at LFA 34.
“Seven of my 11 wins are by knockout, so that’s where I definitely want to keep this fight, on the feet,” Jenkins said.
“I love to be recognized as a champion. It’s one step closer to the UFC also, but I really just like testing myself against the best guys. The fights get bigger and bigger, and the guys get better and better. I have a couple of amateur belts; I haven’t won a pro title yet, so I’d love to do that.”
While the goal is always to work his way to the top tier of MMA, Jenkins is first and foremost focused on facing Watley, claiming his first pro title, and then going from there.
“I take it fight by fight and don’t look too far ahead of myself,” said Jenkins. “I’d love to win the belt, and maybe get another shot at Jeff Peterson, and defend it another time. I want to keep fighting on TV. I love the exposure and love putting on great fights.”
