Krzysztof (The Polish Experiment) Soszynski tasted defeat for the first time in his UFC career last Saturday, but he certainly isn't doing any mourning.

In an interview with sportsnet.ca's James Brydon, the light-heavyweight fighter from Winnipeg talked about what made the difference in the unanimous-decision loss to Brandon Vera and where he goes from here, as well as his thoughts on Randy Couture and why he was disappointed with UFC colour commentator Joe Rogan.

James Brydon: During the fight did you know you were behind on the judges' scorecards?

Krzysztof Soszynski: I thought the first two rounds were pretty close. I even thought I had possibly won the second round, that's what my corner told me, that it was 1-1 going into the third.

I knew that he did a little bit more work with his punches and kicks. I didn't counter as much as I should have. But I knew I was in the fight and I was doing well, but I needed to do something big and it just didn't work out that way.

Up until that takedown in the third period I thought the fight was really, really close, and it could have gone either way. But I figured that takedown in the third sealed it for him.

I definitely got a little tired. My shoulders were a little heavy and I couldn't pull it off in the third.

JB: What do you think the difference was in this fight than in your previous few? Was it just a higher level of competition?

KS: To be honest, Brandon Vera is the very first A-level contender that I've ever fought in my career. That definitely plays a big role in the fight. He's very, very talented, very skilled, and you can see it in the fight, that I was a little bit behind.

Going in, he was always off to the side. He would strike, I would try to counter and he was already gone. It was definitely tough to catch up to him, meet him level-to-level. I tried a couple of shots, I got it to the ground, he popped right back up, he got a good underhook on me.

The gameplan was there and was working very well. We wanted to move a lot, I checked every kick. I was kind of disappointed in Joe Rogan, because he was saying (Vera) was beating on my legs and stuff, but to be honest with you, I checked basically every single kick of his.

Even after the fight when I went to see (Vera), he had ice on both his shins from me checking his kicks, and he told me that. Even when he went to the body, I didn't feel anything really. Nothing really happened to me, to my body, from his kicks or anything like that.

The gameplan was working, I just didn't counter as much as I should have. I didn't go forward as much as I should have. I just felt a little flat in the fight.

JB: You took the fight on short notice. Do you regret it?

KS: I would never regret any fight in the UFC. They offered me to fight at UFC 103. We took that fight, then two days later we got a call to fight Vera. And the fight at 103 was supposed to be on the undercard, and this fight was, even though it was only five weeks to go before the show, it was a huge opportunity. To fight an A-level fighter, a contender, to see where I am. To see where I belong in the UFC.

And to be honest, I'm not that far off. I feel like with another six months to a year of really solid training, with the right people with the right teammates, I could definitely be up there, Top 10.

So that's what I got out of the fight. It was a huge opportunity.

On the main card as well, just to get my name out there even more.

I'm not disappointed at all with my performance. Yes it sucks to lose. But being 3-1 in the UFC, with two submissions, one knockout and a loss to Brandon Vera where we had a decision is not a bad thing at all.

JB: Did Dana White or Joe Silva talk to you afterward?

KS: Absolutely, they both thanked me very much for taking the fight. They told me that many people turned down a fight with Brandon Vera. They told me I was the only one who stepped up and said yes. They really appreciated that from me.

Joe Silva said that I'll be back for sure. I don't have nothing to worry about. He said it was a tough fight. So, yeah, there's no problems with me in the UFC, I'm in there and I'm going to be in there for a long time.

JB: What's next for you?

KS: I'm really not sure. (I was) back in the gym Wednesday with my striking coach. (I'm going to) just keep working hard on getting better and better. I've improved so much over the last year that I think I'm almost there.

I'm not sure who I'll be fighting next, but I think there's a lot of good matchups out there for me. I'm just really excited to get another opportunity at it.

JB: What's the biggest thing you're going to take from that loss?

KS: I was a little nervous before the fight, more than I usually am, because it was such a big fight, because I wasn't sure if I did belong or not. So that's the biggest thing I'm going to take from this, the thought, "Hey, I do belong in the UFC's light-heavyweight division."

I will be a contender one day because I'm very close to being there already. If I just put a little more hard work into it, focus on what I have to do, I will be there.

JB: What did you think of the atmosphere there in Portland?

KS: The atmosphere was great. The crowd was very knowledgeable, they know what's going on. Randy's fight (vs. Nogueira) was absolutely remarkable. It was so loud, my wife actually had to put in earplugs during the fight.

JB: Lastly, what did you think of their fight, watching it?

KS: You know, I was just in awe. I had my mouth open the whole time. I was in the back watching the fight. It was an incredible fight. To do what Randy is still doing at his age is remarkable.

After Nogueira coming off those really bad injuries, he was back to his old self again. And he's going to be definitely a force to reckon with in the heavyweight division. That was some remarkable skill work on the bottom, sweeping Randy like that twice. Also dropping Randy a couple of times and showing how good his chin is as well.

Nogueira's definitely back and Randy is going to have many, many fights before his career is over.