Light heavyweight Sam Alvey (33-11-1) will be competing in his 17th UFC fight when he faces Jim Crute on short-notice at UFC 234 in Melbourne, Australia this weekend.
That means he averages over four fights a year as he enters his fifth year with the promotion. So what exactly is driving him to compete so much?
Love of MMA
Speaking to John Hyon Ko of The Body Lock, the American spoke of how he wanted to compete for a long time simply due to his love of mixed martial arts.
“I just love this sport. I love what I do, I love that I get to go to Australia on two week’s notice and perform in front of…actually, they’re really not hostile, they’re fantastic fans. But I get to perform in front of, not my people, and it’s just so much fun. That’s really it, I want to do this forever.”
“I always joke that Dan Henderson retired when he was 46. I’d like to make it to 46 in a day just to be able to say I did it. And if I can do it all with the UFC, I’m going to. I love what I do. I love the opportunities I’m afforded and that that’s my goal.”
First pay-per-view card
As recently noted by
One of the greatest records in UFC history will be broken this weekend:
UFC 234 will mark Sam Alvey’s 17th UFC fight. It'll also mark the 1st time he fights on a numbered card (PPV or prelims). What a run.
Once the fight happens, Trevor Smith will sit atop the leaderboard @ 11.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) February 5, 2019
That came as news to Alvey, who revealed he only realized he’d be fighting on a pay-per-view after agreeing to fight Crute on short notice.
“Actually, I didn’t know it was a pay-per-view when I took it. They just said, ‘hey, you want to fight this guy?’ I said, ‘yeah, okay, let’s do it.’ I was actually talking to my brother. They looked it up and said, ‘Sam, you’re fighting on a pay-per-view!’ I said ‘no s–t, am I?’ Then I looked it up. Oh my God, it’s not only a pay-per-view card which I’ve never fought before. I’m on the actual pay-per-view [main card].”
“If my friends and family want to watch me fight, they have to pay for it. It’s never been the case before but I’m pretty excited. … I think they’re almost happier than I am that they have to pay to watch me and that’s just something I didn’t know I was in for and now I’m so excited.”
Bouncing back with a win
Alvey is wary of the task ahead, however. Crute is an unbeaten 22-year-old who has looked impressive so far in the octagon. Not to mention, he will be fighting on home soil.
But Alvey is expecting to put on one of his best performances and come away with the win as he looks to bounce back from his knockout loss to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira back in September.
“It’s going to be [a] good [performance]. I’m really pumped that it’s pay-per-view. I have had a tendency of being a little slow in the past, I got a lot of power and I like saving it up I guess, but I don’t see that being the case this time. The pay-per-view is getting to me, I’m so excited for this.”
“It’s my first shot. Hopefully, I never fight in anything but pay-per-views for the rest of my career. And it can start on the 9th. I’m going to go out there and just win, I’m going to win and it’s going to be impressive.”