“Get Belts and Checks”: Corey Anderson Down to fight Francis Ngannou next if the money is right

Corey Anderson's long discharge finally ends on Saturday when he was in heavyweight in a heavyweight decade with a fight against 2024 Pfl -Champion Denis Goltsov.

In the past 16 months, the last champion of the Bellator Light Heavy was the last champion in purgatory while waiting for his bosses in the PFL to book a new fight. He was initially expected to return to a trilogy against Vadim Nemkov in January, but this matchup was drawn in the end and continued to wait for a call that would bring him back to work.

When he finally got the news that Pfl was offering him a heavyweight struggle, Anderson did not blink the opponent because he was ready to resume his career after the longest break he ever started since he started the competition for the first time in 2013.

“This heavyweight struggle when it came [my manager] Ali [Abdelaziz] called me with the name “Brother, what do you think?” I didn't really think I said I will take it, “said Anderson to MMA Fighting.” He said: “You are sure? Did you look at him at all? 'No, I didn't really look at him, but I will take it.

“After I had talked on the phone, I got super nervous, it was like 11 a.m. and I'm like oh snap, what did I do?

To be honest, Anderson didn't really see many great options in the light heavyweight, so it was a new, entertaining challenge. In addition, the nervousness that Anderson felt was strangely exciting because he simply did not get the same mood from one of the potential matchups with £ 205.

“The thing about the people who left around 205 [pounds]As soon as Vadim has gone, it was so nice as if I was still training every day – I will still train, I will be hard – but this fear was not there, “said Anderson. Nothing that I have never seen before. Nothing like you could be hard fights, but what if?”

There is a risk and a reward in every fight, but the payment that Goltsov beats could be even greater if Anderson looks impressive and decides to stay in the heavyweight.

The biggest name in the PFL is currently the former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, who only fought for transport once without fighting again.

Anderson has no insights into the plans of Ngannou for the future, but he is certainly open to this fight if the PFL has the same idea in mind.

“I don't know what's going on with Francis? Has anyone heard something?” Said Anderson. “They promote his plastic Africa and all the stuff and then you have the coach of Francis to say that he is ready to return to the UFC. What's wrong with him? He is still on the table so that people can fight?

“As long as the money makes sense, I am everything about it. I am in this career. If I get belts and checks, that's it.”

To be honest, Anderson may only have better options in heavyweight than the current harvest of competitors in the lightweight department.

“Ryan Bader went. What does the belt look like there?” Anderson said about the former Bellator heavyweight champion. “You say the winner of the Pfl tournament should fight against the heavyweight champion, but now there is no heavyweight champion from Bellator. I told the Pfl -Champion from last year that this year should fight 205. That is [Dovletdzhan] Yagshimuradov, I've already hit him.

“So if I win that and I am still the 205 pound champion, in itself, who will he fight? Will you let him fight against the champion this year? You just don't know.”

At the moment Anderson can only worry about what is right in front of him, and that's Goltsov.

When he does the job on Saturday and Goltsov dominates or ends, Anderson expects new and exciting opportunities to fall in his lap. Perhaps this is the Ngannou fight or something else, but Anderson will not withdraw from every challenge as long as he serves his long -term goals of winning championships and making his bank account so strongly.

“We will prepare and see what happens,” said Anderson. “If you say we will go back to 205 next [or] When the fight is as dominant, you are like “We want you to fight for the heavyweight belt or we want you to fight a super fight against Francis.” Whatever it is, we will only be prepared.

“If there is no money, it makes no sense. We know that the money will be there. The same applies to Goltsov. The only reason why the opportunity came is.