LONDON – Nathaniel Wood thinks it’s time for a step up in his rise at 145 pounds.
Now 3-0 since moving up to the featherweight division, Wood (20-5 MMA, 7-2 UFC) wants to get one of the more seasoned and respected names of his weight class. For him, that means fighting one of two people.
“I would like to fight a legend of the sport, and that would be Edson Barboza in Brazil,” Wood told reporters at the UFC Fight Night 224 post-fight press conference. “It would be an absolute honor again, like I just said with Andre Fili. I’ve been a fan of his for years, and I know he’s coming toward the end of his career.
“For me, someone like (Chan Sung Jung), ‘The Korean Zombie,’ that would be something special. I would like to get one of the legends before they kind of retire from the sport or go on decline. Edson Barboza is coming off a win. He’s still a dangerous opponent. For me, that’s a fight I would like. But whatever the UFC wants. I will fight anyone they give me and start making my way up the rankings.”
This request to fight one of the more known names at 145 pounds comes after Wood’s latest triumph – defeating Andre Fili (22-10 MMA, 10-9 UFC) in a split decision on the main card of UFC Fight Night 224.
Although Fili might not carry the same prestige as Barboza or “Korean Zombie,” he’s still someone with a lot of history in the division and a name Wood respects.
“It was amazing to share the octagon with Andre Fili,” Wood said. “I sounded like a fanboy, but I was watching him way before I was in the UFC. It must’ve been when I was semi-pro, amateur. I was following him, Urijah Faber and all his boys.
“Facing him in the octagon was an honor, and to come out with the win – he obviously made me work for it, but I’d like to think I won two rounds to one, and we came out victorious.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 224.
