Kelvin Gastelum: Learning how to be champion outside of camp will head UFC bounce-back
Less than one month removed from his loss to Joe Pyfer at UFC 316, Gastelum (19-10 MMA, 13-10 UFC) won't speculate who his next fight will be against or who it will be.
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"It's unfortunate he couldn't fight in Mexico City because we wanted to use the elevation as a weapon," Gastelum recently told MMA Junkie Radio at the UFC X fan experience. "We went out there a month ahead and did everything right so that we were able to use the elevation and the training that I had out there as a weapon."
Throughout his career, Gastelum has had ups and downs – quite literally. He bounced between welterweight and middleweight, but has firmly nestled himself into the mix at the heavier weight class. He has not interest in dropping back down.
What Gastelum is focused on are the adjustments he can make to get a different result. Largely, Gastelum thinks the most room for improvement can be found in the areas of outside-the-cage discipline.
"I think I just need to make some changes maybe in my daily life," Gastelum said. "Maybe, I'll sacrifice a little bit more when I'm not in training camp. I do whatever, whenever. I go party. I go out to restaurants more than I should. When I'm not in training camp, I need to learn how to be a world champion, even when I'm not in training camp – staying disciplined and making sacrifices, even when I don't have a fight."
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"... "I think over the last few years, I've been making changes in my daily life to make necessary changes so I can reflect on my career. It's a never-ending game, this MMA. I'm still trying to figure things out 13 years later, which is crazy. But here we are."
MMA is a sport of momentum, in Gastelum's eyes. Although he's alternated losses and wins across his most recent five outings, the goal hasn't changed. UFC gold is still what he strives for.
"I just know that I need to restart, man, get a fresh start, get a streak going and keep it going, just keep the ball rolling," Gastelum said. "It's so hard to build that momentum when it comes to fighting. I'm just trying to build that momentum up again to go on a run and ultimately, that's what I want."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Kelvin Gastelum: Learning how to be champion outside of camp will head UFC bounce-back
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