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Chas Skelly Continuing to Establish Himself as a Top UFC Featherweight
After suffering the only loss of his career in 2014 to Mirsad Bektic in his UFC debut, featherweight Chas “Scrapper” Skelly has rebounded with three straight wins.
For Skelly, getting back on track wasn’t a matter of making wholesale changes to his game after the loss to Bektic, but rather staying the course, knowing that what he does works and there was no need panic.
“I think the thing that’s been working for me is just going out and being me,” Skelly told MMAWeekly.com. “I feel like I’m comfortable wherever the fight goes, and that’s when I’m pushing forward and controlling the pace, controlling where the fight takes place and when the exchanges happen.”
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It also helps that Skelly has been in the UFC for a year and a half, and now has the process down to the point where he can just focus on fighting and not worry about anything else.
“I feel like I’m really comfortable where I’m at,” he said. “I’ve definitely hit my stride for sure. I always felt I belonged in the UFC, and now that I’m here and five fights in, there’s definitely a level of comfort. Hopefully I can carry this streak on and keep getting some wins.”
Skelly (14-1) returns to the UFC on Saturday in Sao Paulo, Brazil, to face another fighter currently on a three-fight winning streak in Kevin Souza (16-3). The two will meet in a 145-pound preliminary bout, while the card is headlined by the third fight between Vitor Belfort and Dan Henderson.
“He’s a boxer and is rangy, so he likes to come in and pot shot people,” said Skelly of Souza. “He throws combinations after people are hurt, but he really likes to throw those straight right hands and left hooks.
“For me, I’ve got to go out and control the pace of the fight, the distance and where the fight takes place. If I want the fight on the ground, I’ve got to take it there, or if I feel comfortable standing, I’ve got to control the distance and when the exchanges take place.”
Though he’s in a very stacked division, Skelly doesn’t feel the need to force something spectacular to happen to stand out. Instead he feels as long as he focuses on his game, that things will come naturally.
“I feel I’m a talented enough fighter that if I go out and perform my best, I can beat anybody on any given day,” he said. “I think (the UFC will) see that and they do see that.
“The goal is always to be dominant and make it a very impressive fight. Sometimes that doesn’t always happen, so I’m just focused on getting the win, finishes will come, but getting the win is first and foremost what’s important.”
