Video: UFC on FOX 10's Darren Elkins cherishes underdog role vs. Stephens

CHICAGO – Darren Elkins is fighting not far from his home turf of Northwest Indiana, so he’s in familiar territory in Chicago.

He’s also in familiar territory when it comes to being an underdog. Once again, Elkins (17-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) finds himself on the short end of the oddsmakers’ picks for his Saturday fight against Jeremy Stephens (22-9 MMA, 9-8 UFC) at UFC on FOX 10.

And while the odds are close – Stephens is just a slight favorite in the featherweight contest – Elkins still is a ‘dog, just like he has been for most of his first nine fights in the UFC.

Against Hatsu Hioki his last time out? Underdog. Against “TUF” winner Diego Brandao? Underdog. Against Tiequn Zhang and Michihiro Omigawa? Yup. You guessed it.

But the former state champion wrestler won all those fights. So being a slight ‘dog against Stephens, well, at this point, he’s downright comfortable with the role.

“That’s what I like. I like that position,” Elkins told MMAjunkie. “I fight best when I have to prove myself. And I have to prove not just to people, but to myself that I’m a better fighter. That’s what I come out here to fight for – to prove to myself that I’m the better fighter and I’m the tougher guy. I cherish the role, and every time I’m the underdog, I’m excited. I’m always excited.”

But there was one time when he was a heavy underdog, and things didn’t work out so well. He took a five-fight featherweight winning streak into a short-notice fight against Chad Mendes in April 2012, and Mendes made quick work of him.

That loss still stings, because Elkins knew it put him right back in the middle of the pack, whereas an upset win – Mendes was a 6-to-1 favorite – would’ve rocketed him up the rankings.

“I’m still thinking about it a lot,” he said. “I like using it to help myself get better. It motivates me. I’m obviously not going to be too cocky, because I just lost a little while ago. But as soon as I think that I’m on top of the world, I remind myself about that loss, about how I got quickly knocked out, and I need a lot of work.”

After his win over Hioki in August, Elkins restarts that work against Stephens on Saturday, looking to make it two straight and seven of his past eight since going to featherweight.

UFC on FOX 10 takes place at United Center in Chicago. Elkins and Stephens open the main card on FOX following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Check out the video above for more from Elkins on his fight against Stephens.

And for the latest on UFC on FOX 10, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.