Eliot Marshall talks about his future plans
In this ultra competitive world of mixed martial arts, every fighter dream sof competing at the best promotion that they could ever be. And this is what’s been occupying Eliot Marshall’s mind lately.
Being a former light heavyweight fighter for the talent-laden UFC, "The Fire" Marshall has only one goal – return to where he truly belongs.
“The goal is the UFC. Let's not beat around the bush, that's where the best fighters fight,” said Marshall.
After being defeated by Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko on his last fight, the Colorado-based Marshall was released from his contract. While this might be upsetting for a guy like Marshall, he’s still determined to bring his fire back in the Octagon.
“Yeah, there's this guy that's here, there's this guy that's there, and you're always going to have this talk like 'what if (Alistair) Overeem, or Fedor, or whatever.’ You tell me where the best guys fight? They fight in the UFC,” explained Marshall.
The always humble Marshall does not even look past other promotions, if ever he’ll be invited.
“Sure, Dream would be cool, go to Japan; Strikeforce would be cool; but overall the best fighters, it's in the UFC,” told Marshall. “I'll fight wherever working up to it, whatever it takes. Do you want to play in the CFL or the NFL?” he quipped, referring to the National Football League and its much smaller Canadian counterpart, the Canadian Football League.
Meanwhile, Marshall has been very optimistic taking about his future on the business. He’s not only patiently waiting to get his feet back on the UFC, he’s also dreaming to get a shot for the title.
“I'm not a fan of everything Chael Sonnen says, but he hit the nail on the head the other day when he was like look, you're a [expletive] coward if when they ask you who you want to fight next, if my answer is not Shogun, I'm a coward,” told Marshall, referring to current UFC light heavyweight champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.
“He's right. Shogun's the best in the world. Shogun's the light heavyweight champion of the world. So that's who I want to fight. Why not? He's right. If you don't want to fight the titleholder, you're a coward,” he added.
Marshall’s dream may become reality, but not for now. Falling off from a ladder means you have to take one step at a time to climb back, and that is what Marshall has been doing.
After his UFC exile, it has been difficult for Marshall to book a fight. Luckily, he was able to enlist himself for two minor promotions: Ring of Rage and Bring the Thunder.
“I'm just excited to have a fight. I'm excited to show I changed the style a little bit, let's go see how we do. Let's see how we do and then use all that frustration, those past four months or however long it's been, let's just put it out there,” he said with great confidence.
The 30-year old Marshall was a former cast of UFC’s The Ultimate Fighter 8 and on his upcoming Ring of Rage bout, he’ll be taking on Josh Haynes, another Ultimate Fighter cast member.
“I can talk the best game in the world if you want me to,” he said. “Let's see what happens in the cage. I bet you it will be 10 o'clock on Friday night,” he continued.
The said fight will happen on Friday, and whatever Marshall’s fate will be, he’ll be heading on to his next fight hungry for a win. Though he never mentioned anything about his opponent, Marshall is definitely up for the next challenge.
After taking some time off the cage, Marshall is back on track. If he will continue to put up good performance on his upcoming fights, he might have a chance to fight for major promotions, and eventually for the UFC. It's not uncommon for fighters to get cut from the UFC but eventually make their way back for another chance if they manage to string together multiple wins in smaller promotions.
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