UFC Fight Night 109's Trevor Smith quick to accept bout he expected to happen with Chris Camozzi

STOCKHOLM – Short-notice replacement offers might usually require some consideration, but Trevor Smith needed only one hour to say yes to a fight with Chris Camozzi.

Smith was at the gym when, in late March, he got the call to step in for Sweden’s own Magnus Cedenblad in what will now be UFC Fight Night 109’s only scrap between two American fighters. With Camozzi (24-12 MMA, 9-9 UFC) in his sights for a while, Smith (14-7 MMA, 4-4 UFC) says he needed only a quick chat with his coaches before agreeing to Sunday’s middleweight bout.

“It was a quick turnaround, a big name and a fight that I’ve expected to happen for a little while,” Smith told MMAjunkie ahead of the FS1-televised preliminary card bout at Ericsson Globe in Stockholm. “We’ve kind of been on similar cards, and we’ve both been around for a long time.”

While that last part is true, they also bring in quite different records. The 30-year-old Camozzi, who started his first UFC stint back in 2011, holds a professional 36-fight record; the 36-year-old “Hot Sauce” Smith comes in with 21 pro bouts to his name.

On his end, Smith doesn’t read too much into those types of numbers. While he’s aware that Camozzi has had a “ton of fights” over an 11-year long career consisting of three separate UFC stints, Smith has no way of telling how this affects his opponent.

But looking to bounce back from a decision loss to Andrew Sanchez at last December’s UFC Fight Night 102, Smith can speak for his own growth since what he perceives as a positive career change.

“I was a late starter – I’m just now finding a gym that I’m very comfortable at,” Smith said. “I was very loyal. I think people can be loyal to a fault. When you stay in a gym where you don’t necessarily grow, you don’t have the partners, and you’re not doing the things you need to do. And I’ve tried to make that transition over the last two, three years down at Arizona Combat, where I have a little better room. I’m learning a little bit more. I’m applying myself.

“I may have been doing it a little while and not taking as many fights, but I’ve also, for the last two years, been learning a ton. So everybody’s got their own path. You’re going to meet different people along the way. I’m happy with where I’m at. I guess we’re going to see how those match up on Sunday.”

To hear more from Smith, check out the video above.

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