UFC star Modestas Bukauskas returns to the same arena where he suffered a horror leg injury determined to re-write history.
Bukauskas, 29, was cut from the UFC just one month after having his knee blown out by Khalil Rountree Jr in their September 2021 fight. The Brit underwent two surgeries to reconstruct his knee and received a short-notice call-up to fight Tyson Pedro at UFC 284 in February after reclaiming his Cage Warriors light-heavyweight title.
'The Baltic Gladiator' capitalised on the opportunity and pulled off an impressive win against Pedro down under. Bukauskas now returns to the UFC Apex in Las Vegas for his fight against Zac Pauga this Saturday and it will mark a full-circle moment for the Brit having not stepped foot in the venue since his leg break against Rountree.
Who wins this Saturday - Modestas Bukauskas or Zac Pauga? Let us know your prediction in the comments section below
"This is my chance to almost flip the script on history, rewrite history in a way," Bukauskas told Mirror Fighting. "The last two times I have been to Vegas and fought at the Apex it hasn't gone my way, but now this is my third chance. It's my time to show the improvement, levels and what I can really do, to finally put on that spectacular performance that I've been waiting for at the Apex."
Bukauskas wants to go unbeaten for the entirety of 2023 and earn himself a spot in the rankings at 205lb. The Brit went 1-3 in his last UFC stint, only having his hand raised in his promotional debut against Andreas Michailidis. Bukauskas revealed that Pauga was a fighter he asked to face following his win against Pedro as he feels the American has good name value.
"He is one of the names that I put forward to my manager about fighting next. He is dangerous and has a good name, been on The Ultimate Fighter and is well-versed in every area. For the amount of years that he has fought, he's managed to acquire a good skillset in such a short amount of time," Bukauskas added.
"At the end of the day, I'm just that much better and that's something I am ready to go out and show. He is good, but he hasn't seen all the attributes that I possess. If he thinks he is going to have an easy fight in one area, he's got another thing coming. I'm going to be violent, vicious and it's going to be a hell of an entertaining fight."
