LAS VEGAS – UFC mainstay [autotag]Jim Miller[/autotag] hopes to get his final bout at another century-mark pay-per-view event.
Miller (35-16 MMA, 24-15 UFC), who debuted with the promotion in 2008, returns to action at UFC Fight Night 219 to take on Alex Hernandez in the feature preliminary bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
In what will be his 40th bout with the UFC, Miller hopes to get a few more in before calling it a career. Miller has competed at UFC 100 and UFC 200, with a goal of making it to the next milestone event.
“I said I wanted to get to UFC 300,” Miller told reporters at media day Wednesday. “I’m pretty certain at this point that my body can make it, you know, barring something catastrophic. I’ve said if that I make it there, I want it to be my last UFC fight, and I’m pretty good with that. But I don’t want it to be one more fight in between. I would like UFC 300 to be my 45th UFC fight.”
“So that means I fight Saturday, fight in like July, then maybe November, March, and then July again – which is a good pace, the pace that I like to fight at. That would get me three fights this year, and then two next year. I would be 100 percent content with that.”
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Miller has been on a hot run as of late, winning his last three outings. Not only did he defeat Erick Gonzalez, Nikolas Motta, and former title challenger Donald Cerrone, he finished each of those opponents in the second round.
Hernandez (13-6 MMA, 5-5 UFC), who replaced Gabriel Benitez on short notice, enters on an opposite trajectory as a loser of his last two outings. Who Miller actually shares the cage with is at the bottom of his priority list during fight camps. His main goals are to ensure he is training properly, staying healthy, and being in shape to take on the man standing across from him come fight night.
At this point in his career, Miller looks at each fight simply as an opportunity to show off his skills. However, his one main objective is to hit that UFC 300 milestone event as potentially the only fighter to compete at UFC 100 and UFC 200.
“I put that date on the calendar, and I need to get there.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 219.
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