Paradeiser: Title? It means even more to me because it failed twice before. I don’t have any extreme talent, I’ve earned everything

Ronald Paradeiser managed to defeat Slovak MMA legend Ivan Buchinger at the Oktagon 50 tournament and is the new lightweight champion of the organization. What did he say at the post-tournament press conference and what will he do with the performance of the night bonus?

Slovakian prospect Ronald Paradeiser took on the experienced Ivan Buchinger in January 2021. Back then, the fight ended in the first round when Buchinger choked out his opponent. The rematch took place almost three years later and the roles were reversed.

Ronald had moved on a lot in that time and he wanted to show it. And at least in the first half of the round, it showed. Buchinger was brutal in the standup, going to the ground. It almost looked like the fight was about to be stopped. But Buki showed a hard chin, a big heart and held on.

The first round offered the best part of the tournament so far, and the fans awaited the second round in anticipation. It was once again absolutely insane. Hard punches flew on both sides, Buki tried shots from the turn, but Paradeiser had the advantage in the stand-up due to his size playing in his favor.

The third five minutes continued at an excellent pace. Most of it again took place in the stand-up, where we saw some tough exchanges and both fighters inflicted considerable damage on each other. The bigger one though was to Buchinger’s face and that proved fatal as he was unable to continue the fight after the end of the third round when his corner preferred to stop the fight, even though Buki himself wanted to keep fighting.

Thus, Paradeiser made his third title fight and became Oktagon champion for the first time in his career. “I want to thank Ivan, he is a great champion in my heart,” he expressed after winning the title. He was able to add a few words to one of the biggest career milestones at the press conference

Paradeiser at the press conference

“The title? It means even more to me because it didn’t work out twice before. I don’t have any extreme talent, I’ve earned everything. I never give up, I always move forward and I’m glad I could win it against Ivan because it was against him that I didn’t win the first title fight so I appreciate it now,” he said.

The promoters then gave him a bonus for the performance of the night, with Matej Peñaz being the favourite going into his match, as he finished Ole Magnor in a flash. What will he do with the bonus?

“I don’t know, I think I’ll reward my family, I’m very happy that this and the title went well. I’ll probably put it back into my preparation as well,” admitted the promising Slovakian fighter, who has his teeth cut by Losene Keita.

Source: Oktagon MMA