Solomon Maldonado (4-1-1) from American Top Team of Longwood will be fighting Sean Baker (7-4) from Pete White’s Boxing and MMA at Rise of a Warrior 8 on September 8th. Maldonado lost his last fight against Raymond Camp from American Top Team of the Treasure Coast, which was a rematch due to a draw at Rise of a Warrior 7. Now that he’s coming down to 155 Ibs and coming off a defeat, Maldonado wants to erase the memory and get a victory.
KT: What do you know about your opponent?
SM: I don’t know much about him, I saw him fight at Rise of a Warrior 4 and I know he’s good at striking; that’s about it.
KT: How are you going to react to his striking?
SM: I’ve been working on my striking a lot and I’ve been improving. I might just keep it standing with him.
KT: Now, your last fight was against Raymond Camp, which was a rematch due to a draw at Rise of a Warrior 7. Looking back on it, what did you learn going through that process?
SM: Those were some really good fights, probably one of the toughest fights I’ve ever had. He brought out the best in me and now I’m training a lot harder. Now that I’m going down to 155 Ibs, I feel a lot better and I think I’m going to be pretty good at this weight class; just training hard and keep improving on my game and striking and jiu-jitsu.
KT: Do you think going to 155 Ibs will help you move around and make you faster?
SM: I think it will make me a lot better, and now that I’m losing more weight I feel a lot healthier and my cardio has been a lot better.
KT: How do you think this fight will go with both of you standing and showcasing your striking?
SM: I think it’s going to be the most exciting fight of the night and I want to put on a great show for the audience. I’m going to keep it standing and just fight him.
Maldonado didn’t take his lose against Camp well and it motivated him to remain in the gym and train hard. He believes the main event with Frederico Moncaio and Wesley Barnes will be impressive.
