Buys to feed off home crowd support

Carnival City’s Big Top Arena has been a happy hunting ground in the Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC) for the former EFC interim flyweight champion who has never been beaten in Brakpan.

Buys became the youngest EFC title holder when he defeated Baldwin Mdlalose in the EFC hexagon at Sun City in October 2016 to win the interim flyweight belt, but he has not had an EFC bout since then after trying his luck in the USA, in August last year.

The 21-year-old fighter relinquished his interim EFC flyweight title to compete in Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) president Dana White’s “Tuesday Night Contender Series” in a flyweight bout against UFC fighter Joby Sanchez at the Ultimate Fighter Gym in Las Vegas, in the USA.

Sanchez defeated Buys via technical knockout (TKO), two minutes and 28 seconds into the second bout.

Now, the former Sherwood Gardens resident is returning to the organisation where he first debuted as a professional.

He has been thrust right back into the EFC limelight, having been granted a title shot again in the EFC hexagon at EFC 69 on April 28.

This time Buys will fight in the heavier and incredibly competitive bantamweight division to fill the void left by former champion Demarte Pena who relinquished his belt to take a rest.

French fighter Philipe Rouch, however, lies in waiting for the hometown hero, but Buys is ready for anything on his return to his favourite venue, Carnival City.

“I’m looking forward to performing in front of my people.

“It’s been something like 18 months that I haven’t been fighting in front of my home crowd.

“I have missed the hexagon, but most of all I’ve missed my people and my fans.”

“The title will be a gift to my team (Fight Fit Militia) and my family for all the time and effort they have put into me.

“I’ve had a title before and I’ve been at the top.

“It’s nice to have a belt, but at the end of the day a belt doesn’t make you a champion – your performance, personality and work ethic is what makes you a champion.”

Also read: Buys to contend for vacant EFC title

Asked what he knows about his opponent, Buys replied: “My opponent is from France and I know that the fight scene there isn’t big at all.

“He comes with a good record but all his wins were achieved in the same style.

“I feel that I can nullify his style and then he doesn’t have a chance of beating me.

“He is an annoying fighter and is very flexible.

“I also know that he won’t just give up, he’ll keep going until I put him away for good.”

Asked how he has changed as a fighter since his last EFC appearance, he said: “It has been 18 months since I stepped into the EFC hexagon, but I’ve been training full time.

“I had a fight in the UFC octagon and I’ve changed a lot over the past few months.

“I’ve learned a lot about my weight cutting and diet.

“Now I’ve moved up a division to take on the bigger dogs.

“I’ve definitely evolved as a fighter.”

Regarding his undefeated record at Carnival City, Buys said: “I haven’t lost a fight at Carnival and I’m also not planning on losing a fight again.

“I’ve had a good run there and I feel that with so many of my fans and home crowd at the event I will feed off their energy.

“They just push me to a new level during the fight and as soon as I hear the crowd cheering my name it’s like I level up.”

Also read: EFC 67 is an historic affair

In preparation for the bout, Buys has been putting in the hard yards in training.

“I have been working on all my personal strong points as well as on my weaknesses.

“For this fight, I’ve been working a lot on Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) with a flexible mate of mine who comes all the way from Limpopo to help me.

“He has a very similar style to my opponent.

“I’ve also been visualising how the fight is going to play out.

“A big part of my training camps involves strengthening my mind as well as my body and skillset.

“I’m excited to be home and I’m looking forward to putting on a show in front of my crowd against the tourist.

“Make sure you all get tickets and come support your local champ against the French invasion.”

For more information visit www.efcworldwide.com