King of The Cage returns to Albuquerque tonight for the first time in five years. Headlining the event is heavy weight Cody East (6-1). East will be facing off against Nick “Leatherface” Rossborough (22-16) for the heavyweight title. It’ll be interesting to see what techniques East decides to employ in tonight’s fight as he’s still relatively new on the scene and isn’t known for pacing himself. In fact, all his victories have come from submissions in the first round.
Despite his self described urge to completely annihilate his opponent because he “don’t want a long ass fight” East does have greater ambitions, and has been focusing on cardio workouts so as to not gas out early. “My cardio’s good, I’ve learned to pace myself so I don’t burn out.”
“I don’t see it going more than two rounds, the quicker I knock him out the sooner I get to go home.” When I mentioned that Rossborough is also coming off a recent win East merely replied, “The guy he fought wasn’t much, he was a lot smaller, but good for him. I also don’t think those steroids are doing him any good. He must be taking the wrong ones.”
In addition to working on his cardio, East has also focused on his hand speed and striking power. Whereas before his striking was said to be sloppy, his trainer Al vouched for his dedication, stating “I’ve seen him go from a non striker to someone who can strike with the best. I mean I’ve worked mitts with the likes of Tapia and this guy is strong. He’s got the heart, determination and ability to win.”
Expect a fast, aggressive East to come out early in the first round, and if he doesn’t get careless, history might just repeat itself.