It appears Pat Healy's unanimous decision victory over Kurt Holobaugh last night (Jan. 12, 2013) at Strikeforce: "Marquadt vs. Saffiedine" was enough to earn an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) contract, as "Bam Bam" claims his spot on the UFC is roster secure.
Going into the event Healy was one of the 22 competitors on the card fighting for his future with the world's biggest mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion. After the big win, the 29-year-old says UFC officials informed him his next fight will take place under the UFC banner.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's a done deal," Healy told Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting in a post-fight interview following his victory over Holobaugh. "I mean they kind of talked to me right before this (interview) and said I was pretty much going to come over, so I would say yeah it's a done deal."
Healy (29-16) earned his sixth consecutive win in a hard-fought contest over the relatively unknown Holobaugh, surviving a couple of frightening moment over the course of the 15-minute affair. The nearly 12-year MMA veteran has competed in the UFC once before, losing to Anthony Torres at UFC Fight Night 6 in Aug. 2006.
The Team Quest product was scheduled to face Gilbert Melendez for the Strikeforce lightweight title at Saturday's event, but an injury to Melendez forced him off the card and and Healy faced Holobaugh.
While Healy would prefer to face Melendez in his first UFC fight, he knows "El Nino" is likely to challenge Benson Henderson for the UFC's 155-pound title, leaving him to seek alternative options.
One UFC lightweight Healy has his eyes on is Joe Lauzon, a fighter with a reputation for his thrilling bouts and post fight bonuses -- which is exactly the reason Healy wants to trade fisticuffs with "J-Lau."
"I named Joe Lauzon earlier because I think he's a great opponent and he wins a lot of ‘Fight of the Night's' and I could use that nice little cushion money, you know, would just love to mix it up with a dude of his caliber."
A timeframe for Healy's next fight is unknown at this time.
For complete results and blow-by-blow coverage of Strikeforce: "Marquardt vs. Saffiedine" click here.