Efrain Escudero (23-9) och Kelvin Gastelum (10-1) kommer att coacha TUF:Latin America 2 och Escudero pratar om att det har varit hans mål att ta sig tillbaka till UFC.
Escudero vann den åttonde säsongen av TUF, men blev släppt av UFC efter fem matcher och var den första TUF-vinnaren att bli av med sitt UFC-kontrakt. Escudero jobbade sig tillbaka till organistationen, men blev släppt igen och har nu fått en tredje chans.
Escudero vann sin senaste match mot Rodrigo Lima (8-3-1-0) och det gjorde att han fick chansen till att vara coach.
“To be able to come full circle is great,” berättade Escudero för MMAjunkie. “I always wanted to do it. It’s a dream come true. I always told myself when I was on ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ that I thought I could do it. I told myself that. It was a joke, though. It was just a dream.”
Filmningen för TUF: Latin America 2 börjar den här månaden och Escudero ser fram emot det väldigt mycket.
“We both know what the guys will go through, what kind of training they need to do, and what kind of stuff we can do,” sa Escudero. “I think we can relate more to the guys, and I’m super excited to do that.”
“I think I can teach a lot about hard work and how everything pays off. I can relate a lot to these kids and young athletes who are just starting to get their break and make it big. But I want to help them with everything – even the smallest things that I overlooked like nutrition, just little things that will benefit them in the end.”
Escudero erkänner att det var svårt för honom att se Ryan Bader (19-4), den andra TUF-8 vinnaren, lyckas så bra i UFC medan Escuderos karriär inte gick som han ville.
“It’s been very hard for me – being on the show with some of those guys who are doing so good,” sa han. “Ryan Bader is way up there right now. It was disappointing for me not being there as a fellow winner. Now being able to carry on the legacy for the team by being a coach is exciting.”
Escudero och Gastelum kommer inte att möta varandra efter filmningen är slut, men Escudero känner ändå tävlingsinstinkten slå in.
“Regardless, I want to win this show,” sa Escudero. “I want my guys to win. I will coach them as best I can. Kelvin is a great friend of mine. We went to the same high school under the same coaches in wrestling. We know each other. What we have to do, Kelvin and I, we have to be competitive. We hate to lose. Even if it’s playing a video game, we hate to lose. I’m not going to lose to Kelvin, and he’s going to have that same mentality. It’s going to be fun.”
Att vara coach kommer innebära att han behöver ta ett uppehåll från att gå matcher, men det är inget som oroar Escudero.
“I always wanted to get back in the UFC because the UFC has the best fighters,” sa han. “I was staying busy with other promotionsm and it was never hard for me to fight or find fights. I’ve been able to stay afloat like that. My life is pretty good. There was a time where I was just like, ‘Man, when is the UFC going to call back? What are we going to do?’ I started doubting myself because other promotions don’t pay as much. They don’t have the quality competition, and I just started doubting myself.”
“At the end of the day, I’ve got to be thankful for everything I have in life. I’m thankful to be in the UFC, and now that I’m back, I’m going to make the most out of it.”
