Gamrot On Changing His Style For UFC Politics

Mateusz Gamrot has altered his approach inside the cage to fit what he sees as the UFC's entertainment-first priorities.

The eighth-ranked lightweight told MMA Mania this week that he understands the promotion's business model and has prepared to increase his volume ahead of Saturday's UFC Vegas 120 main event against Australian prospect Quillan Salkilld. "The UFC is entertainment, and I understand the politics and the fights should be real wars," Gamrot said during media day at the Meta Apex in Las Vegas. "I changed my style a little bit. I prepared something new. I prepared more volume in the cage."

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Why Gamrot Feels Pressured To Evolve His Wrestling Base

The Polish veteran's wrestling background has carried him through 31 professional fights and into the lightweight elite, but he acknowledges that grappling-heavy performances do not generate the hype that leads to title shots. Gamrot has headlined four prior UFC events and spent years in the rankings, yet remains outside the title picture despite being one of the division's toughest outs. Three of his last four opponents were ranked below him or unranked entirely, a pattern that has pushed him into the role of gatekeeper for rising contenders.

Gamrot's most recent chance to crack the top five ended in a second-round submission loss to Charles Oliveira. Since then, the matchmakers have kept him busy against dangerous prospects looking to climb over him. He could decline those fights and wait for a bigger name, but that runs counter to his approach. "I love to be active and fight with everybody," he said, per MMA Mania. "I fought two guys without rankings, and I showed them the difference between me and those guys."

🎟️ Get tickets: Buy tickets to UFC Fight Night: Gamrot vs Salkilld on Ticketmaster →

The 25-year wrestling veteran insists he will never abandon the style that made him elite, even as he layers in more offensive output to satisfy the UFC's entertainment mandate. Salkilld will be the latest prospect trying to take Gamrot's spot when the two meet at UFC Vegas 120 on August 8.

Reported via:

• MMA Mania — UFC Vegas 120’s Mateusz Gamrot ‘changed his style’ because ‘the politics’ – ‘UFC is entertainment’