LAS VEGAS – Nasrat Haqparast was just 22 when he made his UFC debut a little more than six years ago.
He’s fought consistently and mostly has avoided major layoffs. Still, on paper, to see the Moroccan with more than a dozen fights in the UFC, and he’s not yet 30, it almost seems like an anomaly.
But that experience early in his career is what Haqparast (17-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is counting on when he takes on Esteban Ribovics (14-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) in a lightweight bout on the UFC Fight Night 253 (ESPN+) main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Haqparast thinks he’s hitting his prime, and Ribovics, around a -250 betting favorite, is about to be next on a current four-fight winning streak.
“This is my 14th UFC fight – it’s a lot of experience,” Haqparast said Wednesday at a media day for the event. “I’ve stopped hyping up too much – ‘Oh, I’m going to do this,’ or do that. I’m just going to come Saturday and perform to my best, and I think it’s going to be a great fight.
“… I’m kind of a veteran – 14 UFC fights; this is. my eighth year in the UFC. – I signed when I was very young. But it excites me a lot because stylistically, this matchup is really – it’s very violent. I look forward to Saturday, and I can say the same about Esteban. I like him. He seems like a respectful person, a hard worker, he’s talented – but Saturday, we’re going to throw some bombs.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 253.
