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“To walk into the H.I.T. Squad as a 19-year old kid and see guys on the mat like Robbie Lawler, Matt Hughes, Brian Foster, all those guys…it definitely shows the evolution for myself and this sport as a whole. Spending those three years at H.I.T. Squad was one of those things that let me know I wanted to do this as a professional. At the time, those guys were in the UFC. They were at the top of the game where I thought I wanted to be at the time. So it gets to the point that I was able to hang with those guys in the training room, and really push those guys. They kind of gave me the confidence like, ‘you can actually make a run at this and be in the UFC yourself.’ It definitely jump-started my career and my passion for the sport, for sure.”
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“The Haitian Sensation” speaks in reverent tones when he discusses those days, and the opportunity to complete the classic student-becomes-teacher story arc isn’t lost on him. It’s his chance to bring things full circle.
“One hundred percent. It took over ten years for he and I to get to the point where we’ll face one another,” he says. “But it just goes to show we’ve been doing the right things over the years that I get to face a legend like Robbie Lawler now. The history just adds to it. It makes for an exciting fight. For me, everything I want is standing right in front of me. I just have to go out and execute. Knowing the type of fighter Robbie Lawler is, both from watching his fights on film and being in the training room with him, that just motivates me to go in there and bring my A-game on Saturday night.”