Josh Emmett: Rematch with Ricardo Lamas Would Go Even ‘Worse’ For Him The Second Time Around
Josh Emmett picked up the biggest win of his career this past weekend when he slammed home a left hand that knocked out No. 3 ranked featherweight Ricardo Lamas in dramatic fashion.
The victory was even bigger considering Emmett accepted the fight on just two weeks notice after the UFC searched for a replacement to step into the matchup after Jose Aldo was pulled to compete in the featherweight title bout at UFC 218.
The only downside to Emmett’s win was that the Team Alpha Male fighter failed to make weight on Friday, coming in at two and a half pounds over the contracted featherweight limit.
Following the event, Emmett was asked on the post fight show if he would be willing to offer Lamas a rematch considering he missed weight before landing the knockout blow in the first round.
“Someone asked me because I missed weight and there would be an asterisk by my name if I would give him a rematch, if he wanted and of course I said yes,” Emmett said on Monday following his win. “Because he gave me this opportunity. He didn’t have to do this and it was risky as hell for him to do that and he still took it. Lamas is a stand up guy. He’s a real fighter in the fight business.
“I didn’t even know you could say no to fights before I got into the UFC. To this day, I’ve never said no to a fight. He’s just a tough guy. So I said yeah, I’d give that to him out of respect for what he did for me. It was truly a life changing opportunity he gave me so I said I would do that.”
While Emmett stands by his original statement, the fact is he doesn’t believe a second fight with Lamas would play out any differently, especially considering he really didn’t even have a training camp to get ready before stepping into the Octagon this past Saturday night.
Emmett still has nothing but respect for Lamas giving him the opportunity to fight in the co-main event on FOX, but ultimately he doesn’t see how a rematch would somehow give him an advantage better than facing someone on two weeks notice who had no time to prepare.
“Moving forward, I don’t think that would be good for him because to be honest, I did not train for that fight. I trained for two weeks and then went out and cut weight,” Emmett said.
“So if they want to give me an 8 to 10 week camp where I’m actually training for that fight and I’m healthy, I think it would be even worse [for him]. I don’t know if they would want that rematch either.”
It’s tough to imagine the UFC rebooking the fight considering the result but anything is possible.
As far as Emmett goes, he’s keeping his sights set on the future and that means looking ahead to an eventual title shot against featherweight champion Max Holloway and whatever it takes him to get there.
“Moving forward, I’m gunning for that title,” Emmett said. “That’s why I got into this sport. That’s my ultimate goal and I will be a champion.”
