Lyoto Machida motivated by Eryk Anders’ call out ahead of must-win fight at UFC ‘Belem’

After Eryk Anders took care of Marcus Perez at UFC Fight Night 123 to collect his tenth straight win, the undefeated prospect (10-0, 2-0 UFC) took the opportunity to call out former Light Heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida.

Ask and you shall receive.

Ahead of their upcoming scrap at UFC Fight Night 125, which takes place this Sat. (Feb. 3, 2018) inside Mangueirinho Gymnasium in Belem, Brazil, Machida tells UFC.com though he was bit perplexed by the call out, he used it as motivation to deliver in his hometown.

“I try to not pay attention to that. I try to pay attention to my camp and everything. When he called me out, I was a little surprised because it’s not normal that somebody calls somebody out like that, but I respect his point of view. It’s a big motivation to me. I’m very motivated to be back. I like what I do – I like to fight, I like to train – and, for me, this is a fight that I have to win. He wants to challenge me and I think it’s going to be a great opportunity. I’m ready and I’m ready to fight and we’ll see what’s going to happen.”

While Anders is scorching hot at the moment, Machida has cooled down quite a bit, losing three in a row and four of his last five while getting finished in his last three bouts.

It truly is a mist-win situation for the Brazilian bomber, who at one time was considered one of the best to compete in the sport, and has only competed once in the last two years due to a failed drug test.

Four straight losses won’t look good for his overall resume, which could force him to ponder his fighting future, if he indeed has a spot inside the Octagon following next Saturday night.

To see who else is fighting at UFC Belem click here.