UFC 124: Sean McCorkle Orders Up a Tall One In Montreal

As fans await the much-anticipated Welterweight Championship this weekend at UFC 124, Sean McCorkle has only one thing on his mind, beating Stefan Struve.

McCorkle, who is relatively unknown in the UFC circuit, has been raising the eyebrows of fight fans and the heavyweight division alike with an impressive 10-0 (1-0 UFC) record.

In an attempt to generate some buzz for this fight, McCorkle is doing his best to have his name known going into Saturday night’s co-main event. McCorkle has been lurking message boards and blazing his Twitter account with all sights set on Stefan Struve.

Struve, who seems unbothered by the 34-year-old Indiana native, had this to say:

"He's like 34, I'm like 22. You would think it was the other way around of you looked at his comments," Struve added. "Come on, grow up."

While trash-talking might be a popular approach to generate fight buzz, it certainly doesn’t win fights, which McCorkle seems to be fully aware of.

“(Training has) been going perfect. Zero injuries, no personal issues, so I won’t have any excuses for not having a great performance come fight-time—unless I lose (laughing).”

“I've been training mostly in Indianapolis. I travel about an hour or so each time I go train with Tom Erikson or Tim Sylvia. Matt Mitrione has also been helping me prepare.”

In one of the most turbulent divisions in the industry, these two power houses not only have knockout power, they both have established the ability to finish opponents on the ground.

In McCorkle’s UFC debut against K1 and Pride vet Mark Hunt, the self proclaimed “Big Sexy” showcased his abilities with a 63-second victory by way of armbar.

Struve, who has impressively made a name for himself in the UFC, has nine wins out of his last 11 fights with his only two losses coming from top shelf contenders like Junior Dos Santos and Roy Nelson. The 6’11” Dutch “Skyscraper”  who has submitted 14 of his 20 opponents, sends the very clear message to McCorkle that mistakes will hold a heavy consequence.