There aren't too many fighters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight division that possess the well-rounded skill set that Ben Rothwell does.
The Wisconsin native has absolutely decimated the competition en route to a four-fight win streak, including victories over Josh Barnett and Alistair Overeem, and will have the opportunity to further pad his resume in hopes of locking down a title shot when he takes on Junior dos Santos this Sunday at UFC Fight Night 86 in Zagreb, Croatia.
In a recent interview with FOX Sports (shown above) following Saturday's weigh ins, the hulking 34-year-old briefly discussed his confident approach and future aspirations.
"They called up and said you can wait if you want but we really can't find anyone to fight in this fight. It's a main event, it's against Junior dos Santos, it's against a guy I've calling out for the last two years," said Rothwell in regards to putting his divisional momentum on the line opposite JDS. "So I had to do it. I looked at the landscape of the heavyweight division and I knew I'd be sitting for a minute and there's a couple of other guys on my heels that are trying to stay busy as well. I needed to stay busy, this is a top 10 opponent."
Rothwell added that he believes a victory of the Brazilian will finally be enough to earn him a shot at divisional gold. Current Heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum will defend his title opposite Stipe Miocic at UFC 198 on May 14, so Rothwell would probably have to wait until the end of the year to cash in on a red hot resurgence.
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