Curt Warburton on Stevie Ray "He's young, he's hungry so I think it's going to be a good fight"

Curt Warburton talks to Kingdom MMA ahead of his CWFC Title fight at CWFC 69: Super Saturday

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

In what could be described as the renaissance of his career, Curt Warburton (13-4) is on the threshold of strapping Cage Warriors gold around his waist next Saturday night. The former UFC lightweight headlines Cage Warriors 69: Super Saturday when he faces Steven Ray for the vacant lightweight title in London.

It'll be Warburton's second Cage Warriors outing and he is looking to put his UFC release in 2011 well and truly behind him. Warburton made his UFC debut in October 2010 and just three fights later found himself on the end of that dread news.

Since his UFC release Warburton has struggled to deal with the cut and the circumstances surrounding it, despite stringing a succession of wins together in promotions such as BAMMA and KSW and most recently Cage Warriors.

Speaking to KingdomMMA.co.uk Warburton said:

"It'd be nice to get back in and get a little bit more of a chance. You look at some other guys that people have fought and compared to me I don't think I was given a great chance."

"I got the chance, some people never get a chance, I got one. When you first start that's what you do it for. You think about the UFC and then you get there and you don't get your fair chance."

"I went in and got taken straight to the top. There's people on 3 or 4 fight loosing streaks yet I got beat by Joe Lauzon and got axed. I didn't think that was fair but you have to dust yourself off and get back on it."

Warburton made his UFC debut in a defeat to Spencer Fisher, he won his second fight against Maciej Jewtuszko and followed that up with a submission loss to Lauzon and was subsequently axed from the company.

Warburton added: "How many other Brits have fought someone like Joe Lauzon after three fights? Some Brits have fought ten fights and still haven't."

"That's what you dream of and when that happens and you got an email saying your contract has been terminated, end of, it sort of puts you in a bit of depression. Like all of that hard work for that and that's the way it ends."

"I came out had a few fights in BAMMA. Maybe I should just have gone straight to Cage Warriors. That's a regret not just going straight there. But I'm there now."

Reflecting on his experience in the big time, he said:

"I'm more experienced. I used to just do what I was told, 'do this, do that'. Then when the shit hit the fan you're there by yourself and you've got to cope by yourself, everyone else just moves on."

"Now I just do what I do. I do whatever I want to do. I have a bit more say in what I want to do and I want to train because at the end of the day, when the shit hits the fan I've only got myself to blame."

"You get beat and it's really lonely. Especially when you strive to get to the UFC and sort of go out the way I did."

"You think 'well why didn't I get just get a chance like everyone else?' and I did go through a bit of depression."

"One minute you're working, you're grafting, you're training all the time. You start thinking you can make a little bit of money so you can have a better life and it was no different."

"I started thinking "what's the point?" because I might as well go back to work. At least that way i can go out shopping on the weekends or go see your mates, but you can't do that because you're always training all the time."

"As a fighter people think you have a great lifestyle. Obviously it's great because you're doing what you love but you look at the other side of it and you're always skint and you're juggling things about."

"But UK MMA is growing but you're never going to earn a fortune out of it unless you're at the very top but you're just doing what you love."

Warburton and Ray are now entering the final difficult week of weight cutting ahead of the fight on June 7.

With the new Cage Warriors policy on 60-per-cent fines for fighters missing weight kicking in this weekend Warburton has expressed a desire for more weight classes in MMA. He said: "It's our job to make weight. I think something had to be done."

"Whether the 60-per-cent is going to work I don't know. I mean we're not the greatest paid athletes in the world and 60-per-cent taken off plus if you have a manager that's 20%, you're only left with 20% and people are just going to think 'well I'll just pull an injury'."

"Personally I think there should be a light-welterweight category. You look at 62kg to 66kg, that's a 4kg difference, then 66kg to 70kg, again a 4kg difference.

"Lightweights aren't big guys. If there was a light welterweight division that would be perfect for me something around 73kg or 74kg would be an ideal weight to fight at."

Saturday night will be the second time Warburton and Ray will lock horns following a fight at BAMMA 12 last March, a fight which Warburton won.

This time around though it should be a very different fight.

Warburton said:

"The last time we fought I was supposed to fight Rob Sinclair and it was only a few weeks notice we got to know we were going to fight each other."

"Obviously he's going to improve but I'm going to be a lot more physical than I was in the first fight. I'm feeling stronger than I was in the last fight."

"I've been doing a lot of strength and conditioning since that fight but like I say Stevie has improved as well. He's young, he's hungry so I think it's going to be a good fight."

Warburton is undecided as to who his win in the first fight favours heading in to this one. He said: "It's certainly going to make him hungrier to get that win back so maybe he'll be a lot more psyched up."

"I'm not going to take anything for granted. i know exactly how tough he is and I know what I'll have to do. I have to be twice as determined than the last fight and maybe twice as good."

Cage Warriors 69: Super Saturday take plane on Saturday June 7 from The Forum, Kentish Town, London.