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There’s no denying Michael Morales is in the UFC welterweight title picture, and his coach Raul Arvizu can see things getting a whole lot more serious should they get their hand raised in their next bout.
Morales (18-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC), an undefeated rising welterweight contender, takes on Sean Brady (18-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) on the main card of UFC 322 on Nov. 15 in New York’s Madison Square Garden. In Arvizu’s opinion, the winner could be in line for a shot at the division’s title.
“It depends on how he wins, but I think we’d be up for a title fight or a title eliminator bout,” Arvizu told Hablemos MMA in Spanish when asked about what’s at stake at UFC 322. “You obviously got Belal (Muhammad), Ian Garry, and then we have to see when (Shavkat) Rakhmonov comes back. I think (Rakhmonov) still needs a little more, they’ll likely give him a tune-up fight for his return, I don’t know.
“I think they’re doing like a FIFA tournament, and we’re right now at quarterfinals, and going to semis with whoever wins in Qatar. It’s like a Pride bracket. So I think if things go well, we’ll probably get the winner of Belal vs. Ian Garry. If we win that one, then we’re fighting for the belt. Also, they could have a boring fight or get injured, and Michael could do something spectacular, you know the UFC wants to sell good fights – so let’s see what happens.”
Brady vs. Morales is the fight that opens up the two championship bouts headlining the card – Valentina Shevchenko vs. Zhang Weili for the UFC women’s flyweight title, and Jack Della Maddalena vs. Islam Makhachev for the UFC welterweight belt.
Arvizu recognizes they’ve been placed on an important card, and in an important spot, and believes it’s done with good reason. The Entram gym head-coach feels the UFC has recognized the potential in Morales, and that’s why he’s being pushed at UFC 322.
“I know (Madison Square Garden) is historic, and they put us right below the championship fights, which means they see something in Michael,” Arvizu explained. “Everyone tells me, ‘I see something in Michael. I see something in Michael.’ Everyone sees it, but it’s still not easy. Getting better is hard, training is hard. He’s a phenomenal talent and a great kid with good values, and on top of that, he has the ‘it’ factor – he’s good-looking, people like him, he has charisma. He could be a champion that sells well, which is something that matters to the UFC. So here we are with this fight, and let’s see what happens.”
