John Alessio steps back into the cage March 16th under the Score Fighting Series banner to take on Ryan Healy, brother of Strikeforce’s Pat “Bam Bam” Healy. The Canadian lightweight has racked up nine wins in his last ten fights and is hoping that a decisive win over Healy will mean a return to the UFC, where Alessio already has an opponent all picked out.
Alessio stopped by MMASucka Radio this past week to break down his fight with Healy:
My whole thing is, I don’t want to beat him up too much and get tired without finishing him. That’s my main concern. I feel like I can beat him up wherever i want to and it’s just a matter of me fighting smart until that finish comes. I believe I have what it takes to finish him and not go three rounds. i’d much rather get it done in the first or second and not even worry about the third.
Other than that, he’s got good boxing skills, he’s got an amateur boxing background. But I don’t feel like his punches are overly fast or hard. He puts them together well and he’ll come straight forward and pressure you but he doesn’t seem like he hits too hard or his combinations are too fast. I definitely feel like I’ll be a faster, crisper, more powerful puncher. It’s just going to be a question of me fighting smart, moving my head and using good angles and footwork.
When people talk about the best Canadian lightweight in MMA today, Alessio’s name is always in the discussion. But he’s not a consensus choice. Alessio realizes this and being back in the UFC will allow him to prove definitively just who deserves that accolade.
The guy I’m gunning for is Mark Bocek, that’s who I want. He’s the one who’s the number one lightweight in Canada. I believe that’s my spot. I believe I’m the best lightweight in Canada, so I want Bocek. Of course that requires me being in the UFC (laughs). Once I beat up Ryan Healy, I’ll take on another ginger and that will be Mark Bocek.
Alessio’s main training camp is at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, which was involved in a minor controversy when Gray Maynard left after his loss to Frankie Edgar. Alessio was able to shed some perspective on the matter, as well as give his thoughts on what happens when fighters blame their camp after a loss.
I think a lot of things got said out of anger when he lost that last fight. It was like the blame game a little bit. I kind of feel like when you lose a fight you need to self-evaluate and not be so quick to blame your trainers and kind of look in the mirror and see what went wrong. Sometimes there is a legitimate case where your trainers made a mistake. But what it comes down to is if you feel like your trainers are making a mistake in camp you need to correct it then and not follow it all the way up to the fight and then blame them for the loss…I have to defend Gil Martinez a little bit. By no means do I think Gray losing that fight was his fault at all.
Alessio will fight for the pride of both Canada and Xtreme Couture when he takes on Ryan Healy on March 16th in Hamilton, Onatrio.
You can listen to the entire MMASucka Radio interview with Alessio here.
Related story:John Alessio Hopes Victory over Healy will Lead Back to UFC
Follow John on Twitter: @JohnAlessio79
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