Tichota is clear before his fight with Keita: I will be the new Oktagon champion on Saturday!

Jakub Tichota is facing the second biggest match of his career in terms of importance, but the biggest ever in terms of his opponent’s ranking. On Saturday he will face a big challenge. He will face Losene Keita for the interim title.

One of the greatest Czech talents, if not the greatest. That’s Jakub Tichota. The up-and-coming fighter put on his biggest fight yet in December. Unfortunately, he was beaten on points by Mate Sanikidze for the featherweight title.

After a tough, even and attractive five-round fight, the Georgian didn’t have to choose his opponent for his first defence for long. For Losene Keita, the lightweight champion, claimed his weight.

And so their fight was arranged. However, Sanikidze’s preparations were first disrupted by his arrest for political protests, during which he was defended by rival Keita, with whom he had sparred at the now legendary Oktagon Time press conference in March.

The fight, which was already scheduled to take place on Saturday in Bratislava, will not take place. The Georgian was injured and Keita was quickly replaced by Tichota. The latter was preparing for a fight that was supposed to take place in May at the O2 Arena.

But when Tichota was offered to fight for the title again, even if only provisionally, he didn’t hesitate. He’s a big underdog. Keita is almost 400 places higher in the world rankings, he is ranked in the world’s elite 50.

Moreover, Tichot’s opponent is still undefeated. “Just because no one has found a recipe for him yet doesn’t mean the paths aren’t there. I am well aware of some pathways that I will try to push through there. I will beat him on Saturday and I will be the new champion of the Octagon,” believes the Czech talent.

He doesn’t feel the pressure for now. Also thanks to the fact that he took the fight a few days before it took place. And that he is perceived as an outsider? According to his coach André Reinders, Tichota still hasn’t shown us his full potential in the cage. So we probably have a lot to look forward to.

Source: Octagon MMA