Tim Caron (9-1 MMA) is seeking an emphatic rebound when he fights Vinicius de Jesus (5-2) at Bellator 207.
“The Bear” technically enters the bout riding a two-fight winning streak, but he lost his last bout to Jordan Williams. The fight was overturned to a no contest after Williams failed a drug test for Marijuana. That fight was on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series, which means Caron fell short of a chance to reach the UFC.
Caron admitted the bright lights of the Contender Series made him freeze up and he failed to fight to the best of his ability. He said that won’t happen again. Now, he’s hungrier than ever to get back to his winning ways.
“You’re going to see an angry ‘Bear’ this time,” Caron told MMASucka. “I’ll go in there and take someone’s head off. I’ve got a point to prove now.”
Caron was originally scheduled to fight Reginaldo Felix, who pulled out of the bout. De Jesus, traditionally a welterweight, is moving up to take on New England’s No. 1-ranked middleweight in Caron. He’ll aim to protect that against de Jesus, the No. 10-ranked New England welterweight.
“I pride myself on being the best at most things I do,” Caron said. “Having that No. 1 rank as a pro MMA guy is a big deal for me. [De Jesus] is not going to take it from me.”
Caron vs. de Jesus
Caron feels it’s a great match-up for him, especially with de Jesus coming up in weight.
“He’s a black-belt in Jiu-Jitsu and a wild striker,” Caron said of his opponent. “I think that mixes very well for me. He shouldn’t be able to get me to the ground and I’m too technical a striker for him.”
Caron is hoping a win in his next fight will open up doors to bigger opportunities. He said his main goal is a big, national contract. He’s either looking to earn a big contract from Bellator to fight some of its top middleweights, or another opportunity to reach the UFC through the Contender Series.
The New England fighter feels he could have had that big contract with Bellator, but the lone official loss of his career came at an inopportune time. Caron was 7-0 at the time fighting 6-0 Jordan Young, who was able to submit Caron. Now that he has another shot with Bellator, he’s looking to finish de Jesus.
“I’ll have to put on a show,” he said. “I can’t drag it out or let it go the distance. I expect a huge KO. He’s a wild thrower so one of us is probably getting knocked out.”
Caron predicted that he’ll need 4-5 wins to get himself a fight with the likes of Rafael Lovato Jr., John Salter, Rafael Carvalho or any of the other top 185’ers Bellator has.
First things first, he has de Jesus to deal with.
“It’s gonna be on the feet, and it’s gonna be a stand-up war,” he said. “It won’t last very long. First-round knockout. I can almost guarantee you that.”
Bellator 207 goes down on Friday, October 12 from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT.
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