Buchinger explained why he turned down the offer from the UFC and admitted he is grateful to the Octagon

Ivan Buchinger is a legend of the Czechoslovak MMA scene. When he signed with Oktagon, he confirmed that he is definitely not an old man, becoming the first two-time champion in the history of the organization. However, he has also received offers from the UFC in the past. Why did he turn it down?

The Slovakian legend, the only fighter from Czechoslovakia to have faced the star Conor McGregor, became a champion of several organizations, undoubtedly one of the best fighters from Europe at least.

Although Ivan Buchinger has most of his career behind him and some big career move to a bigger organization cannot be expected anymore, he has experienced a lot. He could have even been the first Slovak in the UFC, but he turned down the offer at the time.

“I was a psychopath, I killed a lot of people and as I was moving up, I got one offer. As soon as I got to Germany and my managers found out, they came to me, they gave me a contract from the UFC that I should sign,” he expressed in the video The Road to the Octagon.

And why did he refuse? “I couldn’t train the way I needed to train. I didn’t have a normal coach, sparring partners, or facilities. It was a different world. That’s why I decided to stay in the German MMA Spirit and not go to the UFC,” explained “Buki” his decision.

However, he is happy with his career. He thinks that he has achieved a lot of success and won many valuable scalps. He doesn’t regret his decision in retrospect.

What’s more, he is now happy to be in the Octagon, where in just one week’s time he will present himself to the fans in Frankfurt, where the Czechoslovak organization will hold its first tournament outside of Czechoslovakia.

“I’m happy to be fighting in the Octagon. I used to kill the whole world and nobody knew me in Slovakia,” the legendary fighter admitted his gratitude.

Source: Oktagon MMA