UFC Hall of Famer Frankie Edgar wasn’t exactly itching to return to fighting, but when he received an offer he couldn’t refuse from BKFC, he went back into training camp so he could throw down with Jimmie Rivera in a home state bare-knuckle brawl in New Jersey.
But after weeks of preparation, Edgar received late word from BKFC that he was being removed from the card due to concerns over his medicals. While Edgar suffered several knockout losses in his final few appearances in the UFC, he was nearly three years removed from his last fight, and he had the same exact history and résumé when BKFC signed him months earlier.
The whole experience left Edgar feeling jaded and he genuinely believed he was done competing because he never wanted to go through anything like that again.
“Honestly, I almost closed the door on wrestling. Just competing in general,” Edgar told MMA Fighting. “Clay [Guida] actually hit me up after that and was trying to get me to wrestle [in RAF] and I was kind of on the fence.
“Because I was hurt, I guess you could say. I was ready to go. I was pissed off. It left a bad taste in my mouth.”
As time passed, Edgar moved beyond what happened with BKFC. That’s when RAF came calling again with an opportunity to return to his roots in wrestling where he was a four-time NCAA qualifier at Clarion University.
While it’s highly unlikely Edgar would ever answer a message from BKFC again, he had a much different reaction when RAF asked him about a freestyle wrestling match.
“There’s talks about it for a while,” Edgar said. “They were mentioning they were going to come to Jersey, wrestle at Rutgers, I was like yeah, I’m definitely interested. That kind of fell through and then I was at the U.S. Open with my son competing out in Vegas and I got with [my manager] Ali [Abdelaziz], told him I was interested. I actually ran into Izzy [Martinez] at the U.S. Open and the next thing I know Ali is calling me saying ‘Merab [Dvalishvili] in five weeks.’ I said all right, let’s go.
“Months down the road [from the whole BKFC experience], the fact that it’s just wrestling. I’m excited. I’m glad I’m doing this.”
Edgar faces fellow former UFC champion Merab Dvalishvili on Saturday in one of the more intriguing matchups on the entire card.
On paper, Edgar has a huge advantage from his wrestling background while Dvalishvili actually grew up training judo, although he has adapted into one of the best takedown artists in UFC history. That’s what drew Edgar into this matchup because while Dvalishvili may not have comparable credentials, there’s no denying what he’s been able to do with his wrestling in the UFC.
“I’m a wrestler through and through,” Edgar said. “I coached at the high school level, I coached at Rutgers for three years. Still heavily involved because my sons compete and wrestle. I’ve never left the sport of wrestling. I just added jiu-jitsu to it, I guess you could say but I’m still wrestling all the time.
“It’s such a big part of fighting as well. Look at Merab. He has the most takedowns I think in UFC history. Wrestling is such a big part of MMA. I was forced to stick with it. The fact that my sons took such an interest to it, too, has kept me involved.”
While freestyle wrestling and wrestling in MMA are vastly different, Edgar recognizes that Dvalishvili is still a serious threat on the mats. Originally, Dvalishvili was going to tangle with Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo in a wrestling match so clearly he’s not afraid to challenge himself.
Edgar expects Dvalishvili to come gunning for him when they meet on Saturday, although he’s confident he’ll be able to answer the challenge.
“It’s a different sport. Absolutely,” Edgar said comparing freestyle wrestling to MMA wrestling. “But a lot of the attributes, they come across the board. Merab’s a hammer. He’s going to be in shape obviously. That guy’s got a motor like no other. I know he’s going to bring it. I know he’s going to be aggressive. Those things can also work against you.
“So I feel like I’ve got about a dime on him but I’ve got the experience in wrestling so it makes for an interesting matchup.”
Getting ready for the upcoming wrestling match has been a lot of fun and Edgar definitely isn’t opposed to doing this all over again if the opportunity is presented to him.
After nearly shutting down any hopes he would ever compete again following the BKFC disaster, Edgar is open for business at least where RAF is concerned.
“I could definitely see myself doing this [more],” Edgar said. “Once I got this signed, something woke up in me. I love preparing for competition. It’s a lot safer on your head so I don’t worry about that. But as long as my body holds up, I’ll do this as long as I can if all works well on May 30.”
As far as fighting goes, Edgar is happy not taking or throwing punches any longer, which is why going back to wrestling was a much better choice — and admittedly one his family has embraced much more than seeing him compete in bare-knuckle.
“I’m not getting any younger,” Edgar said. “Fighting is definitely a young man’s sport. Would I be able to beat Merab in a fight right now the way my body is and a 15 or 25 minute fight? I don’t know. In a six-minute wrestling match, I like my chances. So that’s how I’m playing it.”
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