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Training camps can often last weeks, if not months, so the idea of taking a fight with five days notice seems ill-advised. That is unless you have a fitness routine like Paul Felder. The 'Irish Dragon' stepped up to save UFC Vegas 14 by replacing the injured Islam Makhachev for a main event clash with Rafael dos Anjos, despite having less than a week to prepare for the bout.
The reason Felder felt confident enough to take the fight at such short notice was because he happened to be training for a triathlon in the build-up to the event.
Speaking to journalists on Thursday at a virtual press conference ahead of the UFC event, the 35-year-old elaborated on what his routine involves.
It's not 100 percent ideal [to take the fight at short notice] but I'm looking at the positives, right. Because, this close to the fight, I can't sit and and nag myself about what I didn't have. I can think about 'what do you have coming into this fight?' And what I do have is [that] I was in really good shape and I was training really hard. I had a triathlon race that I'm still scheduled [to participate in] for in March. I hired a coach for it and everything. My man, David, my guy, Lionel Sanders, who is a pro triathlete. These guys were setting out whole game plans, training peaks. I mean, I had a website, apps, a month swift racing on there and doing all this kind of stuff. So I mean, I'm biking you know 25 to 50 miles a day. I'm swimming over a mile a day. I'm doing you know anywhere from six to 10 mile runs two to three times a week. I was eating very, very good.
You know, I was able to still have my cheat meals and get a lot of calories in me without depleting myself. My body has not taken damage. I have not had any concussion since since fighting Dan Hooker. I've not really taking any big damage. So I feel fresh, I feel fast, I feel loose. I feel like it's kind of like, you know, let's go for it and see what happens kind of thing; because if it goes well, then I know, okay, I can adjust some things in my train camp moving forward so that I can be a little bit healthier coming into these fights.
Paul Felder was scheduled to do commentary at UFC Vegas 14 before RDA booking
Away from the octagon, Paul Felder has forged a post-fight career path with his skills on the microphone. A likeable color commentator, Felder was booked in by the UFC for their Vegas 14 event until he took the fight with Rafael dos Anjos.
Although it was believed that Felder's time as a fighter was coming to an end, his recent interviews have suggested that a win against RDA could change his mind. While he wants to go out on a high, a win may actually see Felder move further away from hanging up his gloves if it means an opportunity to fight for a belt.
