Marcin Bandel Vows To Get Back To Winning Ways Against Steven Ray
For many Scottish MMA fans Marcin ‘Bomba’ Bandel is about to become a household name. He faces off against Scotland’s very own Steven ‘Braveheart’ Ray on April 11th at UFC Fight Night, Gonzaga v Cro-cop 2 in Krakow, Poland.
Bandel is brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and by all accounts is a bit of a submission wizard. Prior to his TKO loss against Mairbek Taisumov at UFC Fight Night Nelson v Story, Bandel won 12 fights in a row all coming via first round submission. And he doesn’t appear to be a one trick submission pony either. 6 of those wins came by heel hook, 4 by arm bar, a rear naked choke and rarely seen in MMA, the omaplata.
His last loss against Taisumov is no reason to write him off either. Taisumov is a fighter on the up and no stranger to winning via KO or TKO.
Fight Talk Scotland were given the opportunity to speak with Bandel about his upcoming fight with Ray and the change in his opponent,
“Unfortunately these things happen in fighting, I am ready to fight and come April 11th I’m ready to show the world what I can do.
I honestly don’t know that much about Steven Ray, other than he is the Cage Warriors light weight champion. I know that he is an aggressive fighter who doesn’t back down.
I don’t know if he is a tougher opponent than Jason Saggo but I know that I would be able to beat either him or Steven Ray.
I’m incredibly focused. Once I’m in the cage I’ll take every chance that comes my way. If that means winning by submission or KO, I’ll take it.
Coming off a loss and fighting in his home country could add some pressure to Bandel but he doesn’t feel that way,
“Maybe there is a little added pressure, but I don’t let this affect me. I’ve been training and fighting for almost 10 years and I’m ready for this fight.”
Bandel will come into this fight eager to get back to winning ways. Coming off a loss and fighting in his home countries first ever UFC event will surely add to this. For Ray, it’s his promotional debut against a highly decorated grappler and submission artist and he likewise will be eager to show the world what he has to offer in the octagon.
Whether this fight takes place on the ground or standing up it’s sure to be a good one. The undercard can be watched live on UFC Fight Pass.
Marcin ‘Bomba’ Bandel can be found on facebook here.
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