Rakim Cleveland: Let's see if Jamelle Jones is 'brave enough to stay on the feet with me'
Rakim Cleveland knows he's not the heavyweight getting the most hype heading into CFFC 96, but he's not so sure he won't be the one getting the most love after Friday's event.
Cleveland (21-13-1) takes on CFFC heavyweight champ Jamelle Jones (10-6) in the headlining bout, which streams live on UFC FiIGHT PASS from Philadelphia's 2300 Arena, and "The Boogeyman" plans on delivering fireworks in his promotional debut.
"I think it's a good matchup," Cleveland said of the contest. "It is a classic striker vs. grappler type matchup, if you look at it on paper. But he is coming off of two big knockout wins, so I'm kind of excited. I'm kind of excited to see how it plays out, and I want to see if he's brave enough to stay on the feet with me."
Jones has enjoyed quite the run as of late, scoring back-to-back knockout wins en route to claiming the CFFC title, and he now looks to defend his belt for the first time. But Cleveland is a true veteran of the game, facing the likes of Houston Alexander, Tanner Boser, Bubba Bush, Maxim Grishin, Derrick Lewis, Vinny Magalhaes, Viktor Nemkov and Mike Rhodes, among others, in more than 10 years as a professional.
"I definitely took the old school route, training with some of the guys I came up underneath, like a Josh Neer and all those guys like that," Cleveland said. "I pride myself on fighting the who's who. I don't want to fight a bunch of tomato cans and then get to a big show and just get demolished and overwhelmed because their skill level is so much higher. So I took the long road; I took the rough road.
"You know, throughout the years, I've learned a lot about myself. I've proven that I can stand in there with the big guys, and I can take those blows, and I've earned everything I got."
After sitting idle for all of 2020, Cleveland heads into Friday's event with impressive momentum, already notching a pair of stoppage victories in 2021. At 32, Cleveland feels like he's paid his dues and now is looking to make a push to the sport's biggest stage.
"UFC, Bellator, ONE Championship, PFL – any of 'em," Cleveland said. "Like my boy 'King Mo' says: 'Moneyweight.' I don't have a particular spot that I want to be in. I just want to be wherever and whoever wants me and whoever wants to give me an opportunity, and that's what it is. I'm going to do my best. I'm going to fight hard, and I'm going to look to compete.
"If the big show wasn't my goal, I wouldn't be doing it. I told my family that if I felt like I didn't have a future in doing this deal, I'd hang it up, so I'm making my push. I'm trying to get to the next level, and we're going to see what happens. It's not going to be easy, but this is the next step."
Claiming the CFFC heavyweight title would sure be a step in the right direction, especially over a respected prospect like Jones. The veteran heavyweight knows what's on the line and said he's prepared for all scenarios – and if Jones fancies himself a knockout artist, Cleveland says to bring it on.
"I think short-term, I think he'll try to strike with me off the top," Cleveland said. "But just like any other fight I've had, you know, once I touch him a few times, he's going to turn back into his normal roots and go wrestle, but we'll see.
"He's riding high. He's confident. He has two big knockouts in his last couple of fights, and he's a strong guy. He's an athletic guy, so I mean, I'm interested to see how his gameplan will be, but I'm prepared to go anywhere. If he wants to wrestle, we can wrestle. If he wants to grapple, we can grapple. If he wants to box, definitely a big mistake for him."
