Misha Cirkunov won't trash Volkan Oezdemir's ranking, but 'I put in way more sweat, blood and tears'

Every elite fighter has a moment where they jump the barrier into the top echelon of the sport. Misha Cirkunov sees his upcoming UFC Fight Night 109 bout with Volkan Oezdemir as his opportunity.

Cirkunov (13-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC), who meets Oezdemir (13-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) in the May 28 light heavyweight co-headliner on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm, will look to continue the strong start to his UFC tenure with a fifth consecutive win and ninth-straight victory overall, dating back to March 2012.

Positioned beneath a main event between 205-pound contenders Alexander Gustafsson and Glover Teixeira, there’s an opportunity for Cirkunov to deliver a performance which will make an impact on his division. His goal is to be taken seriously by those in the championship mix, and in his mind, beating Oezdemir moves him further down that road.

“If I win, especially if I’m able to stop the fight, then I’m going to be riding a five-fight winning streak, and it’s hard to argue I’m the guy to watch out for,” Cirkunov told MMAjunkie. “I’m not just some random guy who got lucky once or twice. I’m somebody who comes in packing a lot of heat with a lot of skills. They should watch out for me as well, just like I watch out for them.”

Regardless of the nature of his potential victory, there will be questions about what beating Oezdemir really means. Oezdemir is No. 5 in the latest official UFC rankings, but he got that spot after just one UFC victory against a slumping Ovince Saint Preux. His standing was also improved due to a number of additional happenings in the division, including the suspension of former champ Jon Jones and the retirement of top contender Anthony Johnson.

Despite three more UFC wins than Oezdemir (all of which came by stoppage), Cirkunov only sits at No. 7 in the UFC’s rankings. That may seem backwards, but Cirkunov said he’s not going to complain. Instead, he’s simply going to take what’s his inside the octagon.

“I think that I put in way more sweat, blood and tears towards (a place in the rankings) at this time,” Cirkunov said. “But having said that, I can’t talk poorly about him, because first of all, he has a better record than me – that’s one. And second of all, he fought an elite level fighter such as ‘OSP’ and was able to get the win, so I respect that, too. It’s hard for me to just say, ‘I deserve this; I deserve that.’ What I deserve, I will eventually get. I believe in hard work, and hard work will get me what I want.”

Cirkunov is coming off a first-round submission of Nikita Krylov at UFC 206 in December. The bout marked the final fight on his previous UFC contract, and for a moment it appeared the Canadian would not return to the company because of how badly renewal negotiations had soured.

UFC President Dana White publicly stated Cirkunov was “done” in the UFC, but eventually cooler heads prevailed and a deal was struck between the two sides.

Cirkunov is self-managed and chalked the entire situation up to “just business.” He said no ill will exists on his end, and he’s ready to start his new contract with another big performance at UFC Fight Night 109.

Cirkunov, No. 9 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA light heavyweight rankings, believes his co-main event spot against Oezdemir proves the UFC is behind him going into the next chapter of his career. He knows it’s crucial to meet expectations in his next fight, especially if he wants to put his name in the conversation with the likes of Gustafsson, Teixeira, Jones and champ Daniel Cormier.

“Being a co-main event is definitely going to get a lot more attention towards my fight and towards my name,” Cirkunov said. “It’s amazing. I feel like slowly I’m getting the recognition I’ve been working my whole entire life towards, and it’s nice. I think it’s deserved with the hard work.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 109, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.