UFC Atlantic City's David Branch needed loss to Luke Rockhold because he was 'unraveling'

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – David Branch’s setback against Luke Rockhold in his most recent bout was a critical career moment, the UFC middleweight said ahead of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 128 event.

Branch (21-4 MMA, 3-3 UFC) was thriving with an 11-fight winning streak prior to his September encounter with Rockhold (16-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC), which he lost by second-round TKO. He had gone on a dominant run outside the UFC to claim belts in two divisions under the WSOF banner. But when facing the former UFC champ, he got a reality check.

According to Branch, it was absolutely “needed.” He admits to putting himself in the wrong frame of mind and said a wake-up call was required. He got it, and now he feels like a new man headed into his matchup with Thiago “Marreta” Santos (17-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 128.

“I was unraveling a little bit,” Branch told MMAjunkie. “Sometimes it’s a little toxic to not lose in that long. That’s a long time. Having that champion mentality, it just let me know that I need to start over again like I did when I was over there (at WSOF). It’s a process. I was just trying to replace something that was more ego-driven and me being a champion, I was just coming over here and wanted to be a champion again, just like I was the champ. I just forgot about the process.”

UFC Fight Night 128 takes place at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J., with Branch vs. Santos set to air on the FS1-televised portion of the card following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

Branch flamed out of the UFC in early 2011 following a 2-2 run. He reinvented himself with WSOF, going on the long winning streak to win multiple titles. He returned to the UFC for a second stint in May, beating Krzysztof Jotko at UFC 211. That set him up for the headlining bout with Rockhold at UFC Fight Night 116.

Although Branch had some moments of success against Rockhold, the fight ultimately didn’t go his way. And with that came some perspective, which Branch admits he didn’t really know was needed until after the fact.

“Totally wasn’t in the right place,” Branch said. “It was mostly ego-driven, it was definitely financial driven, but mostly ego. I just wanted to be champion again. I had my old toys taken away from me and I wanted new toys again. Now I’m just focused, and I’m done with the Hollywood stuff. I just want to do my job and take care of business or Saturday.”

Branch’s road to getting back on track goes through an opponent with as much momentum as anyone at 185 pounds. Santos is riding a four-fight UFC winning streak, and has stopped every opponent in that stretch by knockout. The Brazilian has some of the most lethal striking in the division, but Branch said he sees a clear avenue to victory.

“He’s up there with the rest of them,” Branch said. “Everyone in the UFC is tough. You wouldn’t get here if you weren’t tough. He’s a big, strong dude. Coming to throw big kicks, big punches. He’s probably worked on a lot of things. He’s probably going to be worried about going down to the ground, but I’m a well faceted MMA fighter. I’m going to use my intelligence in there and I’ll get the job done.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 128, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.