UFC Welterweights Matt Serra and Frank Trigg Exchange Pleasantries

This story originally appeared on the MMA website, 5thRound.com

Breaking News: Former UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra is involved in a bitter war of words with his opponent.  Ok, so Serra talking trash isn’t groundbreaking info, but the fact he’s in a loser-leaves-town-match against Frank Trigg makes it quite intriguing.

“Frank is a dangerous guy. He’s an exciting fighter,” Serra told Sherdog.com. “I always thought that he would be an interesting guy to fight. On top of that, he just has one of those faces that you want to punch.”

Serra was last seen dropping a unanimous decision to Matt Hughes UFC 98 last May, it was his second consecutive Octagon loss. Prior to that, the 35-year-old was pounded out by reigning king Georges St-Pierre at UFC 83.

“He’s in the twilight of his career,” Trigg said of his UFC 109 opponent. “Unfortunately, when he loses to me, he’s going to realize that his days as a fighter are going to be limited. He’ll be able to go ahead and continue fighting in smaller, lesser-known organizations if he wants.

“Hopefully, he does so at 155. He’s small to begin with, but he’s definitely too small for this weight class and too small for me in this fight, as well.”

Speaking of MMA careers that are winding down, Trigg will turn 38 this May and was thoroughly trounced by a younger/hungrier/better Josh Koscheck at UFC 103. Following the 1stRound knockout loss, it was believed the UFC was parting ways with the veteran.

However, at the 11th-hour UFC brass opted to give Trigg one final shot to make a run inside the Octagon. Although he’s grateful for the opportunity, the journeyman is fully aware his scrap inside the Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas Nevada is a must-win.

“This is a do-or-die fight for me. If I lose this one, I’ll definitely be out of the UFC, but that’s not going to be the case,” Trigg said. “This fight will go where I want it to go. I know Matt is good on the ground, but if I want to put him there, I will. He’s going to have a lot of trouble trying to take me down. He might have more knockout power, but I have better punching power. Matt is a tough guy, but I’ll have no problem finishing him off.

“This one won’t be left in the judge’s hands.”

That’s just fine with Serra because he doesn’t want to work overtime on February 6th either, especially for someone that prances around with funky tattoos on his back.

“Look, when my career is over and done with, I’m the one who can look back and say that I was the champ,” Serra said. “He got there twice and choked both times — literally. I refuse to lose to a guy that has a [expletive] tramp stamp. You’ve seen his back, right? C’mon. No way am I losing to a guy that walks around with that.”

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