By Geoff Grammer, Albuquerque Journal
Something was missing earlier this week when Diego Sanchez arrived at the Sunport.
When he arrived several hours later at George Bush International Airport in Houston, it still was nowhere to be found.
The nervous sensation the Del Norte grad has brought with him to each of his previous 29 professional mixed martial arts fights is gone as he readies for Saturday’s fight with Gilbert Melendez on the main card of the UFC 166.
PROGRAMMING ALERT: Watch four UFC 166 prelims Saturday starting at 6:00 p.m. ET on sportsnet.ca then four more fights on Sportsnet 360 at 8:00 p.m. ET
“It was a different feeling showing up at the airport,” said Sanchez, the 31-year-old Albuquerque native who has been fighting with the UFC since 2005. “Usually I get a little bit of nerves and that makes my stomach and my body come alive. But not this time. I just went, ‘I got this. This is mine.’ I’ve never been more sure. I’ve never been more sure. Never before have I been in this mindset.”
The cool, calm and collected confidence Sanchez (24-5) is feeling he shared with the world on Twitter after landing in Houston when he sent out the following message: “Right now I feel very calm and calculated like a experienced assassin on a mission of destiny.”
Truth be told, Sanchez has a golden, albeit unlikely opportunity ahead of him. Despite not being ranked in the UFC’s top 10 in the lightweight division, the promotion inked him to a main card fight against Melendez (21-3), the No. 2 contender in the division who is coming off a controversial split decision loss to champion Benson Henderson in April.
It was a fight Sanchez feels Melendez won, prompting him to frequently refer to his Saturday opponent as the “uncrowned champion” of the division.
Despite the challenge ahead, Sanchez said his confidence is at an all-time high because of the work he put into what he says was the most focused training camp of his career. It’s a far cry from years past when he admittedly partied, drank and smoked too much.
The focus he’s shown over the past several months wasn’t lost on his coaches at Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA, leaving his corner confident in the fighter’s chances of an upset.
“He’s the underdog, but Diego, he walks through fire,” Mike Winkeljohn said. “He’s got the biggest heart out there. He’ll turn it into a fight and try to break Gilbert and try to win the fight with constant pressure and out-tough him — out-heart him.”
That heart, Sanchez will tell you, has much more of a role in this fight thanks to a recent addition to his family.
His daughter, Deijah Rose Sanchez, was born in July and her dad dedicated his training camp to her.
“Gilbert Melendez has made a statement that he’s going to go in there (Saturday night) and try to kill me,” Sanchez said. “That’s how he fights. Well, he’s going to have to kill me because there’s nothing else that can stop me. I’m fighting for that baby girl and he’s not going to take the bottle out of her mouth.
“I’m fighting for my family. I’m fighting for the fans that believe in me. And I do have what it takes to be the champion of the world.”
Saturday
UFC 166: Houston, Diego “The Dream” Sanchez (24-5) vs. Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez (21-3) Sanchez’s fight is one of six on the pay-per-view main card portion of the event Main card six fights, pay-per-view, 8 p.m.; Four prelim fights on Fox Sports 1, 6 p.m.; Four prelim fights webcast online, 4:15 p.m.
