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MMA, as far as professional sports go, is very fast-paced. Even though a layperson or casual fan might get bored watching a grappling exchange on the ground, the rounds still only last five minutes, compared to a baseball game that can see a few hours of little-to-no action. So, when the Professional Fighters League created a tournament format with points and a quick turnaround between fights, it added a new macro level of action to an already swift game..
Longtime UFC veteran Chris Camozzi went from fighting an average of three to four times per year for a decade to taking a couple years off from MMA to focus on his career in GLORY Kickboxing. After a return to MMA for a couple of fights in 2019, he was set to compete in the 2020 PFL tournament. Of course, those plans were derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic. When the 2021 PFL tournament kicked off in April, he was back in the saddle once again. Camozzi went the distance with Emiliano Sordi in a losing effort.
2021 PFL Light Heavyweight Chris Camozzi: New Beginnings
It’s never too late for a fresh start.
UFC veteran Chris Camozzi spent a chunk of 2020 outside of a formal training environment. It was a step or step back, to be more accurate that he needed in order to get going in the right direction.
Camozzi’s storied career now spans a decade and a half. He made his pro debut when he was 19 years old and went 12-3 through his first 15 outings. He eventually made it onto
The Ultimate Fighter in the show’s 11th season. He was only 23 years old at the time, and while he won his fight to get into the house, an injury prevented any further advancement. Camozzi didn’t get to go through the TUF season, but a win on the show’s finale event was enough to secure a UFC roster spot.
Just like “orange is the new black” or “40 is the new 30,” COVID-19 is the new injury bug. In MMA, short-notice replacements and fight cancellations have long been due primarily to injuries. However, since the UFC came back online in May 2020, COVID-19 has been the primary affliction ravaging fight cards. One particular UFC middleweight match-up was impacted by both injury and the virus.
In June 2020, Ian Heinisch was scheduled to face Brendan Allen at UFC on ESPN 12. Heinisch was coming off a first-round submission of Gerald Meerschaert only three weeks prior after suffering back-to-back losses in the second half of 2019. Allen, on the other hand, was riding a six-fight winning streak and looking forward to a huge opportunity against a ranked opponent. However, less than two weeks before the fight, Heinisch had to pull out due to an injury.
It is in the spirit of a warrior to travel around gathering the best tools and knowledge to improve one’s skills. When a warrior stays in one place for too long, their spirit and drive can become stagnant.
Throughout time, there have been thousands, if not millions, of warriors who were eventually beaten because they got too complacent and comfortable with their training and never put in the effort to shake things up.
UFC middleweight Ian “Hurricane” Heinisch started to feel that he was getting too complacent as 2019 drew to a close. He was 1-2 on the year after dropping decisions to Derek Brunson and Omari Akhmedov. So, early in 2020, he, along with training partner and UFC veteran Nate Marquardt, made a trip out to Thailand. They eventually landed at Tiger Muay Thai & MMA.