MODESTAS BUKAUSKAS is ready to punch his ticket to the upper echelons of the light-heavyweight division after reaching the peak of his physical and mental powers.
The 31-year-old is on the best run of his UFC career, which many thought was over when he suffered a devastating knee injury in September 2021.
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‘The Baltic Gladiator’ is on a three-fight win streak following victories over Marcin Prachnio, Rafael Cerqueria and Ion Cutelaba.
The Lithuanian-born Brit’s recent handiwork is not solely down to the continued honing of the skills given to him by dad and long-time head coach Gintas.
It’s the reward of the maturation of his body and soul, which he admits weren’t ready for the big show during his first stint in MMA‘s top promotion.
In an exclusive interview with SunSport, he said: “I feel like God puts certain situations in life when you’re ready for them. My first UFC run, I was just not ready. I was too young.
“All the thoughts and dreams and goals that I had back then, I was just a human and not ready for them.
“Whereas now, I feel like I’m ready for it. And the way that I’m doing things and changing things is different.
“If you keep making the same mistakes over and over again, you’re going to end up with the same results.
“So I had to change those things. So I think even just being like way more disciplined.
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“And I’m also now not searching for validation or anything like that.”
Bukauskas’ success has also coincided with becoming a permanent fixture in the tight-knit team put together by Andy Aspinall, the dad and head coach of heavyweight champion Tom.
He said: “The people that I’m training with, I mean, you can’t not have confidence.
“Training with the likes of Tom Aspinall and Ante Delia and, you know, Phil De Fries as well.
“You’ve got James Webb, you’ve got such high-level guys all in one room training together trying to level each other up.
“So I credit a lot of it to that. I’ve [also] been taking a lot of notes from Tom in the way that he conducts himself inside and outside the octagon.
“He’s a true, true professional. The way that he handles his family life, the way that he handles his training, the way he does his diet.
“And recovery and all of these things.”
Bukauskas’ 3.0 will look to make himself a bona fide contender at 205lbs on Saturday night on a stacked UFC Paris card.
Standing between him fights against the top-15 is a fellow beloved Brit, Scottish submission specialist Paul Craig.
The booking of the fight was met with sighs from UK MMA fans eager to see both men excel in the stacked division, not take part in a ‘Battle of the Nice Guys’.
“He’s a very cool guy,” Bukauskas said of Airdrie assassin Craig. “Everyone who has spoken to me about him has spoken very highly of him.
My first UFC run, I was just not ready. I was too young. All the thoughts and dreams and goals that I had back then, I was just a human not ready for them.
Modestas Bukauskas on his first UFC run
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“Obviously, he comes into the fight with a lot of intensity, raw aggression and a war moment mentality.
“But that’s part of the fight game. Do you know what I mean?
“But yeah, like I said, I don’t really have a bad word to say about him at all. I know he’ll probably say the same for me.
“But ultimately, we just got to go in there and see who’s better. It’s the Battle of the Brits.
“The battle for the number one light-heavyweight spot in the UK. And yeah, it’s a very exciting matchup.
“I’m just looking forward to it because it’s a domestic matchup that’s been in the making for probably a very long time.”
A place in the rankings will likely be Bukauskas’ reward for getting the job done over fan favourite Craig.
But the prospect of having a number next to his name when the rankings update next Tuesday won’t be entertained until he gets his hand raised.
He said: “There’s always talks about top-15 and blah, blah, blah. And I understand that’s part of the media game.
“But realistically, I’ve still got a job to do. I’m fully focused on that and I’m just excited for the matchup”
