Luke Rockhold, right, is ready for Jesse Taylor.
Luke Rockhold is fighting on his fourth Strikeforce card. He had won his previous four bouts all by submission.
He has fought guys who aren’t necessarily known by the the general public, or even some of the more hardcore fans.
But all of that changes today, when he takes on Jesse Taylor, a man known for his great run on the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” and his antics outside of the cage.
“It’s real nice [to fight Taylor],” Rockhold (5-1) said. “Now the names are being more recognizable. It could do nothing but good. I train with the best guys in the world. I prepared for him. I respect what he brings to the cage. It will be big.”
Rockhold isn’t in any hurry though.
He’s preferring to take his time with his fights, considering that none of his fights have left the first round, and in total he has less than 15 minutes of actual fight time.
So fighting on the Strikeforce Challengers series, provides him an opportunity to gain valuable ring time, as well as prepare him for the bigger challenges that lay ahead of him.
He also added a win over Taylor, can set him on the course for bigger fights on the main Strikeforce shows.
“I don’t want to jump too fast,” Rockhold said. “I’ll take whatever [Strikeforce] gives me. There’s a good chance, I can be on the main cards, but I don’t want to look to ahead and handle business.”
Another way he plans on negating the lack of ring time, Rockhold is using intense training sessions at the well-known American Kickboxing Academy to get him ready both physically and mentally for the grind of a potential three-round fight.
By training with the likes of Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Daniel Cormier, Cain Velasquez and others, Rockhold gets to work on all aspects of the fight game and become a more well-rounded fighter.
“We fight like three days a week,” Rockhold said. “Not many teams spar like us. We put on pads and fight for at least 15 minutes a day, if not more. I definitely think it gives me a big edge.”
He added that having fresh fighters switch him, makes him push harder.
Taylor (13-4) brings a strong wrestling base, but that doesn’t necessarily concern Rockhold because AKA has some of the best wrestlers a camp can have in former NCAA champions and Olympians in Cormier.
“It was a very good training camp. Best I had so far,” Rockhold said. “My stand up is coming along. I’ve been working with a lot of wrestlers. I was working with Cain, Fitch, Nate Moore and Daniel Cormier. I’m prepared for big wrestlers and make it easier for a smaller one.”
All of the high-level training is leaving Rockhold confident that he will earn his victory in the Strikeforce cage.
“It’s going to be a fast-paced fight,” Rockhold said. “I’m going to keep it on my feet. There will no stalling time. I’m prepared for his wrestling style and keep it a high-pace fight. It will be good. I’m not stopping.”
