Inspired by teammate Dennis Buzukja's recent UFC success, CFFC 131's Anthony Dilemme aiming to join him on roster
Undefeated featherweight eyes potential Dana White's Contender Series invite with victory on Friday.
Anthony Dilemme knows that in MMA, it's imperative you never lose focus of the opponent that's up next, but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a good idea of what should come his way with a victory.
After recently watching his fellow Serra Longo Fight team product Dennis Buzukja pick up his first UFC win, Dilemme is anxious to follow suit.
"I was with my teammate Dennis Buzukja in Jersey," Dilemme said. "It was nice. I was actually there, and he got a big win. I got to be around the UFC and stuff like that, and it just feels right."
Buzukja looked fantastic at this past month's UFC on ESPN 54, picking up a "Performance of the Night" bonus for his work. That served as added motivation for Dilemme, who was training alongside Buzukja ahead of the contest.
Dilemme said working with the likes of Buzukja, as well CFFC Hall of Famer and former UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, has given him supreme confidence in his current skills.
"Going with those guys, it kind of solidified that I know I could be at their level," Dilemme said. "It's just a matter of going out there, doing it, and proving it. Especially Aljamain. I went out with him to Vegas for a month when he was preparing for Petr Yan the first time, and we were at Xtreme Couture, and I was going with all these UFC fighters and having success, and I was like, 'These guys are no different than me. There's no reason why I can't be doing this.'
"That was actually when I was still an amateur, so that's when I really decided, 'All right, this is what I'm going to do.' Like, there's no more just talking about it. Time for action."
Dilemme has been perfect since that realization, going undefeated through the first five bouts of his professional run, including a perfect 4-0 mark in CFFC.
At Friday's CFFC 131, which streams live on UFC FIGHT PASS from New Jersey's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, Dilemme (5-0) takes on Brazilian capoeira master Wendel Araujo (7-4), who steps in as a late replacement for Frank Wells, who was forced to withdraw from the card.
The bout was initially expected to be contested for an interim featherweight title, but the change in opponent means the belt is no longer on the line. Still, the stakes are just the same for Dilemme.
"I think a win lines up perfectly for Dana White's Contender Series in the summer," Dilemme said. "I win this, I'm 6-0. With the gym I come from, that lines up to get to the UFC. That's what I'm looking at.
"CFFC is great. It has great opportunities. It's a great platform, but, you know, I'm looking to get to the UFC, and the time to do it is now."
So while a title would have been nice, Dilemme is just as fired up to go out and perform against Araujo. At 27, the Long Island product knows he's entering his athletic prime, and he's ready to test himself at the highest level of the sport.
"The guys that I go with on a daily basis, they're there – some have been there, some have recently got there, and I've seen the whole progression," Dilemme said. "I was with Charalampos Grigoriou when he did his filming for the Contender Series. I've seen Dennis on the Contender Series multiple times now, and in the UFC corner. I've been around, and I know I'm at that level, so I'm going to show it one more time, and then I will be right there."
A dynamic striker who's been working at Florida's famed Kill Cliff FC, Araujo will certainly provide an opponent willing to meet in the middle of the cage. Dilemme knows a highlight-reel moment will bolster his case for a Contenders Series bid but respects the danger his opponent presents, as well.
Whether he can walk away with a belt or not, Dilemme knows he can still secure an even bigger prize with the right result.
"I'm always looking to finish," Dilemme said. "It's never, like, any pressure to do something crazy. I've just got to be myself. I have to put pressure, and when I land my shots, people go out, so that's what I've got to do: Just be me, and everything else will unfold."
