According to a Jan. 2 report from MMA Junkie, MMA veteran Nate Marquardt is thankful for a second chance at UFC glory.
"There's a lot of guys at welterweight in the UFC that I want to fight that are going to be good fights – a lot of tough guys," Marquardt said. "That March card is just stacked. Honestly, any one of those guys – I want to fight the winner of those fights."
Marquardt was released from the UFC in 2011 when he wasn't able to gain medical clearance for a fight against Rick Story.
UFC President Dana White apparently is ready to let bygones be bygones, and welcome Marquardt back to the UFC ranks.
Marquardt squares off against Tarec Saffiedine (13-3 MMA, 5-1 SF) on Jan. 12 at the last ever Strikeforce event, and he's expected to head to the UFC after the bout.
Marquardt says he's not looking past his upcoming opponent.
"I've made that mistake before," Marqaurdt told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "Honestly, I assume that I'll be in UFC after this fight. But I'm not concerned about that, so it's not really an issue for me. I just look forward to my fight, and I know I'm fighting a tough guy, so I'm ready for it mentally.
"I've had fights in Japan before where I thought I was just going to walk all over the guy," Marquardt noted. "I probably could have, but when you go in with that mentality and the guy turns out to be tough, it makes the fight long."
Marquardt should be an instant contender in the UFC's 170-pound division, as he's still close to his fighting prime at age 33. Marquardt could fight the winner of Georges St-Pierre vs Nick Diaz, or take on an up-and-coming prospect like Rory MacDonald.
Marquardt is the current Strikeforce welterweight champ.
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