\n<\/p>\n
Edmonton \u2014 After his UFC debut backfired on him back in Winnipeg this past April, Mandel Nallo got a chance for a do-over of sorts on Saturday at UFC Edmonton. And he did not disappoint.<\/p>\n
Lightweight Nallo (15-4, 1NC), long one of the most talked about fighters on the Canadian scene, picked apart Nate Landwehr to open the main card at Rogers Place in Edmonton. It was a textbook display of mixed martial arts, and saw Nallo earn a TKO win on home soil. His first UFC victory, with more to come no doubt.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s funny. You feel a lot worse after a loss than you do feel good after a win. But it\u2019s nice,\u201d Nallo told media outlets including Cageside Press following the fight. \u201cI\u2019m excited to do the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the UFC going back to Toronto in January for UFC 336, the next one will likely be soon. \u201cIf the rumors are true, there\u2019s nothing in the world that will keep me off that show. I would love for that to be the case,\u201d exclaimed Nallo. \u201cHopefully we get a special opponent, and we can do something cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll almost certainly be on the card, after winning a Performance of the Night bonus in Edmonton. Though Nallo still feels he has more to show.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe way I fought tonight, I don\u2019t think it was perfect, but I think it showed a glimpse of the way people on the Canadian MMA scene have been talking about me for years. And so to show a bit of that ability on the night is a good thing for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his post-fight interview, Nallo admitted to having been dreaming of a bonus back in his debut fight at UFC Winnipeg, when he suddenly came to the realization that he\u2019d been finished. Keeping focused in the cage has actually been an issue throughout his career, with his mind sometimes wandering.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is a problem that I\u2019ve had in my career, is you get kind of bored in there and you start to daydream about other stuff. Even thought it\u2019s only 15 minutes and it\u2019s a fight,\u201d noted Nallo. \u201cHaving people like Firas [Zahabi, TriStar Gym head coach] around me to just remind me that I have a job to do for 15 minutes, like don\u2019t forget yourself, don\u2019t start talking to yourself in there and thinking like \u2018I hit him with the jab three times, there\u2019s no way he\u2019s going to block the fourth.’\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to let the fight play out, you have to let every ten seconds happen naturally, and believe in the skills you\u2019ve worked on,\u201d Nallo added. \u201cYou can\u2019t start psyching yourself up or out of situations.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the most talked about, and replayed moments of UFC Edmonton\u2019s Fight Week was Nallo picking his nose during the ceremonial weigh-ins. It was clearly a gag, but just how did it come about? Turns out, his sons requested it.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I was texting, my wife was putting my boys to bed during the weigh-ins. And I was like \u2018do you and the boys want to see me weigh in, you want to see the live show, before bed?’\u201d revealed Nallo.<\/p>\n
Mandel Nallo\u2019s sons don\u2019t really know what their dad does for a living just yet, but he asked them what they wanted him to do, to show that he knew they were watching. \u201cThey said \u2018pick your nose,\u2019 so I picked my nose. And then it turned into a thing because I shook Dana White\u2019s hand, so it was a whole thing,\u201d he finished with a laugh.<\/p>\n