English light heavyweight Luke Trainer hopes to set the foundations for his fighting future – and seal a rematch with his nemesis – when he takes on undefeated prospect Sullivan Cauley at Bellator 293.
It’s a bout that pits two of the promotion’s best up-and-coming 205ers head to head. But, speaking at media day ahead of fight night, Trainer said he isn’t getting caught up in all the talk about his opponent’s undefeated record.
“I’m not focused on the hype, the hype train, and all that jazz,” he said.
“The media builds that, and that’s great for him. Getting the W, that’s all I care about. A fight’s a fight.”
Cauley’s 5-0 record also boasts a 100 percent finish rate, with all five victories coming inside the first round. That’s a trend Trainer is familiar with, having racked up a host of first-round stoppages of his own.
“I think I’ve got five first-round finishes and one second-round finish, and I only needed 10 more seconds in that fight (against Yannick Bahati).
“Especially when you’re good, you fight lesser opponents and build up. That’s what he’s done, that’s what everyone does, so I’m not surprised about that. So, nothing new. And he’s a light heavyweight. We’re supposed to get the easier guys out in the first. If you don’t, then that’s not a good sign.”
With both men more than capable of ending the night early, Trainer said he sees the matchup as a chance to make a statement, then rematch the only man to have defeated him – Cameroon’s Simon Biyong.
“When I say this, I’m not looking past Sully at all. I’m fully focused on this fight, fully ready for a dogfight, for a war,” he said, before revealing his future plans.
“But once I get this win, I’m going back to the UK. I want to rematch Biyong, take his head off, and then I get to re-sign with Bellator after that, make some real money, and just carry on, man. That’s the plan.”
Preparations for the bout have been more difficult than usual for Trainer as he deals with personal challenges away from the cage. And he said that his focus after the fight will be to return home and be with his family as they go through a difficult time.
“It’s been a very testing camp. I’ve had a lot of stuff go on personally in this one. It’s going to make the victory even more sweet. Camp’s been hard. Life’s been hard these three months for myself and my family, so this is going to be a nice release, to get out all of my demons,” he said.
“Like everyone else, this camp has taken me away from my family. I need to spend some time with them; we need together now more than anything, so I’m taking some time off and celebrating (my win) with them, and that time off will be super important for me and my family.”