[autotag]Gaston Bolanos[/autotag] says anything good he’s done thus far in his MMA career has just been the warmup.
Now that he’s in the UFC, Bolanos thinks the ride is about to get really interesting. Bolanos had nine fights under the Bellator umbrella before he signed with the UFC in 2023, and he’s hoping the experience at what was at the time the sport’s second most visible entity pays dividends now that he’s at the promotion at the top of the food chain.
“I can’t tell you I didn’t feel any pressure,” Bolanos told MMA Junkie Radio about his career before the UFC. There was always pressure for every fight, but I was lucky enough that I started my career in such a big platform as Bellator, and before that Lion Fight. So coming into the UFC, I was like, ‘Wow – is this where I’ve always meant to be?’
“I felt like I was at home, if anything. I felt like, ‘Wow – this is it.’ I wouldn’t say (I felt) pressure. I just felt like this is where I make my name and this is where I become who I’ve always Supposed to be. So coming into the second (UFC) fight, I’m excited.”
Bolanos (7-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) returns to bantamweight action next week against Marcus McGhee (8-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) at the ESPN+-streamed UFC Fight Night 234 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The two were set to meet this past August, but Bolanos had to pull out with an injury.
McGhee has a 100 percent finishing rate and has been on a tear since the lone loss of his pro career in LFA in 2022. Since he came to the UFC in 2023, he has back-to-back stoppages and both won $50,000 bonuses.
Bolanos knows he’s in for a test against McGhee, but also knows a win could kick off something big.
“I know Marcus is bringing everything into this fight,” Bolanos said. “I’m bringing everything into this fight. I know we’re both ready to really die in there and give everything that we have. I’m prepared to die, and (other fighters are like, ‘I have nothing else to prove. I’ve done so much in the sport.’
“I just want to give everything that I have, and I just want to show everyone who ‘Dream Killer’ really is.”
A kickboxing and muay Thai standout, Bolanos said no one should be surprised if he brings out some wild striking against McGhee.
“I think as long as people get to see world-class striking from me, which they can always expect when I’m fighting, I think that’s what my fans want to see,” he said. “That’s what they come to see. When I do seminars, they’re always like, ‘You already showed us all this, now show us the spin.’ You can always expect me to spin at some point in the fight. It could happen – it could be a knockout. It could not. There’s been like seven, eight knockouts that way. I’m just looking forward to letting it all loose. I feel like a complete mixed martial artist, and I’m looking forward to showing that.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 234.