Blake Smith promising fireworks in quick turnaround at CFFC 135: 'Everyone is in for a show'
After being forced to the sidelines for more than a year, former champ Smith looking to build momentum once again.
After a frustrating 15-month layoff due in large part to a broken ankle, Blake Smith (8-4) will be juxtaposing that lengthy time away with a quick turnaround at Saturday's CFFC 135, where he will take on Donald Bush (9-4) in a featured lightweight bout.
Heading into July's CFFC 133, Smith was coming off a loss under the Bellator MMA banner and had been forced to the sidelines to recover from surgery. Once he stepped back in the cage, he electrified the crowd in his return with an action-packed unanimous decision victory over Keith Speed.
Smith admits his emotions were high coming into the matchup due to his deep desire to rejoin the sport's top tier of fighters, having been a CFFC titleholder before his Bellator trip. The victory was no surprise, he said, but he believes it also served as a reminder to everyone of what he is capable of achieving in the cage.
"It was euphoric, for sure," Smith said. "After the win, I felt happy. To get to that point, it took a lot. I broke my ankle. There's plates and screws in there now. That said, coming into the fight, I was the most confident I had ever been."
Despite his early career success, prior to his last fight, Smith felt the need to make a change in his preparation, joining the "Billy Q Army" and training under the Gracie Tampa South/Gracie PAC MMA alliance.
Smith considered this move to be much needed, and with that, his training regiment significantly changed in his time with the two schools. Smith feels as though he is getting much more attention from the coaches at his new gyms, as well as consistently training with high-level athletes daily.
"There's a big difference," Smith said. "I'm grappling with Division I wrestlers who are trying to make the switch over to MMA. When I was at my old gym, I would have to go to Kill Cliff to get those kind of looks. It was killing me. I'd be on the road before 5 in the morning to get there to sparring at 9:30. I'd stay the night and wrestle the next day.
"It just took a toll on me. Now that I'm here at Gracie South with coaches that give me intimate looks, it's just different."
On the night of his CFFC 133 win, Smith took to the mic and credited the bond that he had formed with his new team to be a big part of his success in the cage. With guys like Billy Quarantillo, Matt Arroyo, Matt Allison and Will Rentz training with him day in and day out, the one word that he used to describe the relationship with his team was "camaraderie."
"It was the feeling of a brotherhood," Smith said. "Everyone on the team wants to be great. To be around like-minded individuals just felt refreshing, and it was rejuvenating. Now my teammates and I, we all study each other's opponents, so if you need a certain look? We can do that.
"Will is one of my best training partners. His grappling that he showed in his last fight, I see that in the gym a thousand times. I was there. When working with Will and 'Matty Ice,' we feed off each other."
Smith hopes to use the new guidance at his disposal to make a return to the upper echelon of the division. He also acknowledges that with the new changes in his training and given the confidence in his coaches and teammates to help him become a better fighter, that he'd be ready for a call from the UFC to fight on Dana White's Contender Series.
To get there, however, Smith will need to deliver on a promise of a spectacular performance against Bush at CFFC 135, which takes place Saturday at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa and streams live on UFC FIGHT PASS.
Smith recognizes that his opponent will not go down easy but thinks things are just working too well for him to be stopped at this time and feels his opponent will prove no match for him as the fight draws on..
"When I get the call, I will be ready," Smith said. "Everything's just falling into place for me. Donnie's game. I know he's going to come to fight, but I'm going to try and put his lights out. Everyone is in for a show. I think he may be a head case for him to block me on social media.
"I'm going to break him at some point in the fight. I'm going to punish the body early. I'm going to try to feint his shoes off."
