Grizzled veteran Roger Huerta has seen it all in his many years of fighting.
The 41-year-old Huerta, who has competed for a number of major organizations over the years, is returning to the sport after over three years away. “El Matador” will be making his Professional Fighters League debut at PFL Glasgow on Saturday, competing lighter than he ever has in his lengthy career.
The first MMA fighter to ever grace the cover of “Sports Illustrated,” Huerta is well aware that his athletic prime is well behind him. Having lost four in a row—a career-tying losing streak—he introduces himself to PFL with plenty of pressure on him. After dropping four straight under the Bellator MMA banner, Huerta hopes that this shift in organization will give him a new lease on life. The longtime vet sees this newly merged company of Bellator and PFL as a new opportunity not just for himself but for other athletes in the sport. Huerta spoke to media about his newfound interest in MMA tournament structures in MMA, and what is in store for him going forward.
“It’s amazing what PFL is doing,” Huerta gushed. “I’ve always seen this game as compared to the NBA, the NFL, etc. I would like fighters to be respected as such. There is so much that goes into this game, that no other discipline or any other sport does. We have to really multitask, this is a sport, this is the ultimate game. I like to represent that.”
While he is not currently part of a PFL season, be it general or Europe, the Texas native hopes that appearance will not be his last with PFL. Should he win, he has his sights set on a more structured system like a PFL tourney, where he knows when and where he will be fighting next.
“Absolutely, you know that as soon as one fight happens, win or lose, you can get put on the next event. Therefore, you can fully focus on your skill sets,” Huerta discussed in regards to a yearly fight series with a season and playoffs.
Barring something unexpected, Huerta’s return to action will not just be a one-off. His debut with the PFL will commence a multi-fight deal, and he plans on seeing things through to the bitter end.
“For me it’s not just this fight. We signed a four-fight deal and I’m going to go ahead and honor that,” “El Matador” said. “At the same time, I’m grateful that I’m able to get that from them. I guess this is just a road map to where I want to go and I think that I’m championship caliber, and I’d like to put my name in that hat.”
Taking on a well-traveled foe in Robert Whiteford, who is also coming off a long layoff, Huerta paid his respect to his upcoming opponent for the experience he has.
“He’s trained with a good team,” Huerta admitted. “It’s not like he’s a rookie, he’s a veteran, he knows the game, he’s been around good fighters and good athletes. I’m expecting a veteran fight, I’m sure these guys have a gameplan to beat me, but I am MMA. I am it. This time around, I’m really going to go show that. I’ve fully dedicated everything to this. It’s been three years non-stop, not just from when I signed.”
With nearly 40 professional fights to his resume, “El Matador” returns with one simple message for those who may be getting a reminder of him, or new-age fans seeing him for the first time:
“What you see is what you get.”
