Monday, November 17, 2008

Goulet Eager to Face Swick After Lengthy 15 Month Wait


Originally posted on FCFfighter.com

n some respects the last year has been a good one for Canada’s Jonathan Goulet. During that time the veteran welterweight fighter has won 3 straight fights, and since returning to the UFC last December, Goulet has put together back-to-back wins over Paul Georgieff and Kuniyoshi Hironaka to extend his record fighting for the organization to 4-3. On the other hand, Goulet has spent much of 2008 on the sidelines with injuries, unable to capitalize on the momentum he has gained. A tough pill to swallow, particularly due to the fact that his last win, a TKO stoppage of Hironaka at UFC 83 in April, not only granted him Fight of the Night prize money, it also came at the UFC’s first ever Canadian event in Montreal.

“Yes, it was tough, it was tough,” said Goulet who has only fought once thus far in 2008. “I was doing nothing. I’ve been stuck on my couch for months because I broke my foot twice. I was unable to train well for at that time. It’s helped in a way because it gave me a break from training, but I didn’t want to take that long of a break.”

Up next, Goulet (22-9) will look to close a chapter in his life, which by the time he fights Mike Swick on December 10th, will have dated back nearly 15 months. The 29 year-old was set to fight the highly regarded Swick last September, which as it will be in 3 weeks, is a huge opportunity for Goulet to make his mark in the promotion’s 170lb. division.

“Yes, I was supposed to fight him in September, 2007,” said Goulet who will meet Swick in Fayetteville, Carolina, at the UFC’s “Fight for the Troops” card. “I fought Josh Koscheck and that was the most important fight in my career, but you know right now, I think this is a big step. Mike Swick is no joke, he beat Marcus Davis and Josh Burkman, and those guys are good. He was good at 185 so maybe he will be even better when he fights me. You never know what’s going to happen. I always think that my opponent is going to be as good as GSP. You know what I mean? I always prepare like he’s the champion. I will do my best and I will win the fight. It’s going to be my night.”

Despite Goulet’s recent successes he will likely be seen by most as the underdog heading into his December 10th bout with Swick (12-2). Until the former “Ultimate Fighter” competitor was overwhelmed by the much larger Yushin Okami at UFC 69, talk abounded that Swick might soon fight for the promotion’s 185lb. title. Although Swick didn’t blow away either Davis or Burkman in his first two bouts at 170, he continued to demonstrate improving wrestling skills, and showed no signs of being overpowered physically like he sometimes was at middleweight.

Click here to read the entire article at FCFfighter.com

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