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A rematch that has been in the making for the last eight years is finally here in ONE Championship. Veteran fighters Alex Silva and Rene Catalan are gearing up for battle.
Having won their initial fight, 'Little Rock' is not underestimating his former foe heading into ONE NextGen III on November 26 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
The last time these competitors met was at ONE Championship's eighth event back in April 2013. Silva got the most out of that fight by submitting Catalan with a knee bar in the first round.
Both fighters have developed a good friendship since then. They are now seeking the same thing which is to get back into the ONE Championship strawweight top five rankings.
Silva has monitored Catalan's development and vice versa. He sees in this fight that anything can happen. The 39-year-old fighter is aiming to be prepared for whatever 'The Challenger' dishes out inside the cage:
"I think first that I’m very realistic. I would like to expect the best but be prepared for the worst," said Silva in an interview with ONE Championship. "In my mind, I have all the scenarios of the fight. But most of the time I see the good thing and ask ‘what if this happens? How am I going to keep fighting? How about this? What about if he cuts? If he does this, if he does that?’ I try to see this fight in my mind and alI of the aspects."
Silva goes into this fight owning a professional MMA record of 10-6. Eight of his victories came from submissions and he is coming from a bounce back victory against Li Tao Miao at ONE Championship Battleground 2 back in August.
Grappling with Catalan in ONE Championship rematch
At this point in his career, Silva already knows his edge over his opponents and that is to get them to the ground and earn a submission victory. He is looking to do the same against Catalan in their upcoming bout.
"I’m very confident in my skills and my grappling skills. Like I said, back to when we fought for the first time, I couldn’t strike well. I couldn’t even strike, I’m just like 100 percent pure grappling. Now I feel that I can stay more on the feet if I have to and use my grappling," said Silva.
His opponent will arrive at ONE: NextGen III coming off back-to-back losses and hoping to avoid a losing streak at 42 years old. Catalan now has a professional record of 6-4 and his six-fight winning streak is sandwiched by losses.
