Polish light heavyweight Jan Blachowicz will be part of the main card lineup when the UFC makes its debut in Croatia with UFC Fight Night 86 next month.
Blachowicz will welcome Croatian native Igor Pokrajac back to the UFC after over a year fighting on much smaller stages. But despite his opponent having the home advantage, Jan isn’t feeling any added nerves ahead of his fourth UFC bout.
“No pressure, just fun. I want to win the fight – this is the most important thing for me,” Blachowicz told FO.
Blachowicz is no stranger to fighting in enemy territory, having fought his UFC debut against Ilir Latifi in Latifi’s native Sweden. The Polish fighter won via TKO in under two minutes.
“It doesn’t matter if I’m in Poland or here in Croatia, so only the fight is on my mind; nothing else,” he said. “I focus only on this and what’s going to happen in the cage.”
The last time Pokrajac competed in the UFC he went on a losing run of 4-7 with one no-contest (a decision loss to Joey Beltran was overturned after Beltran tested positive for banned substances).
Although the Croatian has put together three straight wins to earn another shot in the UFC, Blachowicz isn’t expecting anything new out of his 37-year-old opponent.
“I think he’s going to be a fighter like in his last three fights. He’s not young anymore so he throws nothing special in this fight, I think. I know what he’s going to do and I will prepare for him.”
UFC Fight Night 86 takes place on April 10th at the Zagreb Arena in Zagreb, Croatia. The event will be broadcast live on BT Sport in the UK and on Fox Sports 1 in the US (check local listing for more details).