Latest Rory Mac blog:
While many of you reading this will have enjoyed the Easter weekend to the maximum, I wasn't quite so lucky. A fight against Che Mills on April 21 -- less than two weeks away now -- meant I had to cut out the Easter eggs and the overindulgence and instead keep my mind focused on what lies ahead.
As an alternative, I went to church and hung out with my second family on Sunday. We sat around the table and ate good food and, though I wasn't able to eat too much, it didn't annoy or frustrate me. I'm on a strict diet regime right now and know the benefits of sticking to it.
Sometimes I'll make up for this lack of good food after the fight. It depends on my cravings. Most people expect fighters to go crazy with food after a fight's done, because they've been dieting for so long, but that's not always the case. There have been many occasions when I've finished a fight and haven't wanted to eat anything afterwards. My body might have grown accustomed to dieting and not eating bad foods.
Anyway, Sunday also acted as my rest day and the chance for any little niggles and injuries to heal up. I needed that more than any chocolate. All in all, it was a pretty successful Easter.
I've got a pretty tough week ahead of me now, but for the most part, the toughest stage of training is now done and I'm just gearing up for fight week. I was sick for a couple of weeks, when everybody in the gym was fighting a cold, but I haven't let it impact my training or my progress. I still feel extremely strong and fit, despite having to shake off that cold along the way.
There are always bugs and illnesses going around the gym and that’s just something you have to deal with. Very few fighters will ever go through a camp completely unscathed. You'll either pick up some sort of cold or niggle. That's just the business we're in. If you feel 100 per cent and perfect going into a fight, there's a good chance you weren't training hard enough.
Luckily, this training camp has been one of my healthiest to date. Aside from the cold I mentioned, there has been very little else wrong with me during preparation. This has allowed me to knuckle down and work harder than ever for this fight.
With Easter now passed, I'm focusing solely on my fight with Mills on April 21. I will also be an interested observer when the UFC visits Sweden for the very first time this coming weekend. In particular, I'm very keen to watch my friend Francis Carmont fight. He was a major part of my training camp and we have spent a lot of time together over these last few weeks. He's a very, very good fighter, with a lot of potential in this sport. Not only do I expect big things from him in Sweden, I think he can do some major things in the UFC beyond this fight. I'd advise everybody to keep an eye on him.
The fight between Alexander Gustafsson and Thiago Silva is a very solid main event and a great crossroads clash. Gustafsson is the guy on the way up and Silva is somebody who may have already had his time. We'll probably find out whether that's true or not in this fight. If Gustafsson has aspirations of one day fighting for and maybe even winning the UFC world title, he needs to make a statement against Silva this weekend. There will be a lot of pressure on him fighting at home, but he seems mature enough to deal with it.
The co-main event between Brian Stann and Alessio Sakara should also be a really fun fight. I'll take Brian to win via decision or late stoppage, but I've always been a fan of Sakara's boxing style. He's very good with his hands, does everything by the book and also punches quite hard. Brian might be better in more areas, but Alessio is good enough to give him a few scares along the way.
After a recent dry patch of UFC events, it's great to have some events back in our lives. This one in Sweden will act as the ideal appetizer ahead of UFC 145 the following weekend, and all the inspiration I need to destroy Che Mills...
Originally Posted by Beelzebubzy
