Jeremy Stephens: 'I'm going to decimate Dennis Bermudez'
Jeremy Stephens can look directly at his last two losses and he knows exactly where he went wrong both times.
It wasn't a lack of training or conditioning. It wasn't knowing the correct escape from a submission or failing to stuff a takedown.
Stephens lost to both Charles Oliveira and Cub Swanson because his mind wasn't in the right place and his body reacted. He questioned himself in spots where he shouldn't have had any doubts and ended up over thinking in a spot where he should have relied on killer instinct.
"The thing that I learned in those fights is just my mindset," Stephens told FOX Sports. "I'm 100-percent confident in my abilities now. In the time of the Charles Oliveira fight, I was in between strength and conditioning coaches. I felt like I could have been better prepared for a situation like that. That problem is fixed.
"That was the only thing holding me back in the Cub Swanson fight. I rocked him and normally I would be all over somebody once that happened and that could have been the difference in the fight. I should have went for the finish but I was being conservative because I didn't want to gas. Off those losses, my confidence has grown. In those things I was fearful, I'm now confident."
Stephens isn't afraid to admit his shortcomings in both of those fights, but he's also smart enough to learn and adapt so it doesn't happen again.
"The last fight, there were a lot of mistakes I made, but I fixed those. I'm good at evolving," Stephens said. "I'm like the Charles Darwin theory, I like to adapt, come back, get better, get stronger and learn from my mistakes. It won't happen again."
For his upcoming fight at UFC 189, Stephens faces Dennis Bermudez on the pay-per-view main card in a bout that could end up stealing the show. The two fighters have combined for 10 post fight bonuses during their respective UFC careers and Stephens believes this will be a crowd pleaser from start to finish.
He also knows how fighters approach him once they get a taste of his power inside the Octagon. Stephens has rattled a few jaws in his career including a highlight reel finish over current UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos.
Stephens hopes Bermudez is there to put on a show, but he also understand that he turns a lot of fighters into wrestlers the moment they begin to exchange combinations with him.
"That's the way it is. You're just speaking the truth. I know that. I know from the moment that we come out, if you decide to stand with me, you know as soon as there's an opportunity I'm going to crack you. If I do, I know within your eyes and your body language you're going to be looking for a shot," Stephens said.
"I'm going to be looking to crush your face the whole time. That's just what I do. That's just my style. I know these guys are going to try to wrestle me. That's the only way they're going to win."
Stephens is well aware that for all the accolades Bermudez has racked up during his career, he still has a wrestling pedigree to fall back on if things go south for him on July 11. Stephens believes he's ready to counter the takedowns and even if Bermudez gets him on the ground, he then has to keep him there.
While he can't predict a round or a time for the finish, Stephens knows that whether it's in the opening exchange or just before the final horn sounds -- Bermudez is getting his clock cleaned at UFC 189.
"He's a gamer, but I know he's going to try to put me on my back. Because once he gets hit, it's over. He could take me down for the whole 14 minutes and 59 seconds, but I guarantee I'm going to land that shot that's going to change his life," Stephens said.
"I'm going to decimate Bermudez. There's nothing that's going to stop me. I'm going to go forward and I'm going to do everything in my power to finish this guy."
