After his victory in the first round against the American fighter Willis, the Frenchman looked back on the last two months at a press conference and on his ambitions for the next fights.
A packed Bercy, committed to the cause of Cédric Doumbé. In two months, the excitement around the fighter has gone completely. From boos to outpourings of joy, there is only one step. Yet Cédric Doumbé still retains criticism around his last fight across the throat.
« After my last fight, I was angry, I was upset. Not against the public because I expect to be roomedpointed out the fighter at a press conference. I said to myself, with everything I do for MMA in France, this is how I am thanked? So, I sulked. I didn’t communicate. The enthusiasm was therefore different. Cédric Doumbé still has his hype, we saw it this evening. »
Read alsoMMA: after his splinter hiccup, Doumbé picks himself up with a smile and self-deprecation
Doumbé-Willis
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
“I wasn’t hit.”
In front of an audience committed to his cause, Doumbé only, according to him, followed the strategic plan he had in mind. “ As I said, I wanted to knock him out. I knew if I touched him once, he was dead. He came with a plan, I respect that. But I’m The Best”, smiles the Franco-Cameroonian.
Even if, during the fight, Jaleel Willis seemed to find the opening on Cédric Doumbé, the latter falling to the ground. “ No, I wasn’t hit. I slippedhe wants to correct. I fell but slipped. We’ll look at the VAR, I didn’t take any blows. If I’m touched, I say so. »
Doumbé-Willis
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
However, Cédric Doumbé concedes a slight disillusionment this evening. “ I’m a little disappointedhowever, Doumbé concedes. I told myself I could have done better, made him sleep completely. I would also have liked to go a little more to the ground. At one point, I could have finalized him on the ground by attempting a submission but he got up. »
A next fight in France?
Directly after the fight, former UFC fighter Anthony Pettis climbed into the Accor Arena cage to express his wish to face Cédric Doumbé in Bercy. “ Being the best, it’s the others who come to get mesmiled Doumbé at a press conference. Anthony Pettis asked for this to happen in France. We are going to push to export. » A wish also expressed by PFL programmer Dan Hardy at a press conference. “ I want to see Doumbé outside of his comfort zone, outside of Paris. »
Doumbé-Willis
FRANCK FIFE / AFP
Because since signing with the PFL, Cédric Doumbé has fought three times on French territory and twice against French fighters. “ When we signed with the PFL, we wanted to go to the United States to conquer a new audiencepoints out Doumbé waiting for his opportunity to meet a new audience. Basically, the fight was scheduled for September (in an event outside France). He saw the potato from Cameroon he said December. If it happens in Paris, it’s even better. » Cédric Doumbé has no choice. To carry out his plan, he must beat Anthony Pettis regardless of location.
