Montreal’s Yves Jabouin takes on Brad Pickett on the main card of Saturay’s UFC Live: Struve vs. Miocic in Nottingham, England.
Jabouin took time to speak with Alain Fournier of MMA Nouvelles to discuss the matchup, where he thinks he stands in the bantamweight division as well as recent injuries to fighters including teammate Georges St-Pierre. Fournier provided the full Q&A to sportsnet.ca.
Watch Jabouin’s fight as part of UFC Live: Struve vs. Miocic on all Sportsnet regional channels Saturday at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT. Also, watch the preliminary fights on sportsnet.ca starting at 1:45 p.m. ET / 10:45 a.m. PT.
Here is the interview with Yves Jabouin:
This Saturday, you’ll be facing Brad Pickett. He has fought such fighters like Ivan Menjivar and Renan Barao. What type of fight do you expect?
I think it will be a very exciting fight. His style matches really well with mine. He usually comes in the Octagon to fight, not just walk around. It should be a real war.
You mention that his style matches yours. Does that mean you expect a standup type of fight?
Exactly. I expect a lot of standup, but he’s also good on the takedown. I believe he will try some two-shot combinations and mix it up with some takedown attempts.
Your training partner Menjivar fought Pickett in the WEC. Do you see that as an advantage?
Yes, of course. Ivan can, in a way, imitate Pickett’s style since he fought him. So I can imagine what he has in store for me. But I can’t rely 100 per cent on that. He probably changes his way of training. But it does give me an idea. The fact that Ivan has fought him in the past, I do believe it is an advantage.
You train at Tristar in Montreal, where there are presently a lot of fighters in training camp mode. How’s the atmosphere?
The atmosphere is great. There is a lot of competition right now. It is really a great thing for my own training with all the talents out there. I’m truly blessed.
Is it possible that having a lot of fighters in training camp could actually slow down your training because they don’t want to get injured?
Before each training session, especially sparring, our coach, Firas Zahabi, always asks us to be in control of our body, of our shots. Recently, there’s been a lot of fighters who have suffered injury. MMA is a very complex sport. We really need to be there for one another to try to prevent injuries. At Tristar we really know each other well. We are like one big family and we are able to control our shost. We take care of one another.
Two of your Tristar teammates came back from serious injuries, Alex Garcia and Georges St-Pierre. Did having two fighters getting serious injuries during training change the way you train?
When you train and one of your partner gets injured, you get a weird feeling. You look at that and think this could’ve been me. A torn ACL can happen to any one of us. Those events makes us realize how much we need to watch each other.
We live on a day to day, fight to fight basis. On a financial plan, it is very difficult when you get injured. We are paid to fight. That’s why we need to really listen to what our body tells us. Sometimes, we just need to rest. When we see two of our great fighters, Alex Garcia and Georges St-Pierre, come back from those injuries, it makes you think.
Do you think the UFC had too many events this year, and that it could be a reason for all the injuries fighters have been suffering this year?
I don’t think it is a reason for all those injury. As a matter of fact, we need a lot of events to be able to get our three fights a year. To be really confortable in the Octagon, we need those three fights a year. The UFC gave us a chance to get those fights.
There are a lot of great fighters right now in the UFC, so I don’t believe the number of events is the cause of those injuries. I think it is more a training problem. Some fighters spend all their time at the gym. They train two to three times a day!
Where do you see yourself in your division, and do you think you’re close to getting a title shot?
With my three consecutive victories in the UFC I believe I’m in good position inside my (bantamweight) division. A win against Pickett would definitely make me a top 10 contender. Right now, I’m only thinking about my next fight. That fight will answer the question.
Follow Alain Fournier on Twitter @afourniermma.
