LAS VEGAS – It shouldn’t come as a surprise, but Andrei Arlovski finds himself back on another winning streak.
The former UFC heavyweight champion and longtime MMA staple has put together three wins in a row over the past year and will attempt to make it four Saturday. Arlovski (33-20 MMA, 22-14 UFC) returns to the cage in the UFC on ESPN 35 co-main event against Jake Collier (13-6 MMA, 5-5 UFC).
It’s the first time Arlovski has more than two consecutive wins since his 6-0 UFC title contender run from 2013-2015. At 43, Arlovski is not ruling out another crack at UFC gold.
“(I want to) be champion again, to fight the top fighters,” Arlovski said at Wednesday’s UFC on ESPN 35 media day. “I’m an employee of the UFC and I’m going to fight what they give me to fight. Jake is another tough, young stud and a dangerous heavy hitter. I have to be alert and I have to stick to my game plan, as usual – keep my hands up and move around.”
On top of having a chance to extend his wining streak to four, Arlovski also can tie the record for most wins in UFC history. Arlovski currently sits at 22; Donald Cerrone and Jim Miller lead with 23.
Arlovski does appreciate being in the record books, but beating Collier on Saturday is far more important to him.
“For me, of course it’s nice. But it’s more important for my striking coach, Paulino Hernandez,” Arlovski said. “He’s all about the records like strikes per round, etc., etc., etc. For me, it’s more important to beat my opponent.”
