Phumi Nkuta is one of the top fighters in the world not currently signed to the UFC, and the highly-skilled flyweight wants to not only compete inside the octagon, but also the WWE ring as well.
Nkuta’s next test takes place this Friday at LFA 211 when he faces former promotional champ Cody Davis in the co-main event in Salamanca, N.Y. “Turbo” is 9-0, and has had titles for the likes of CFFC, and has also began a journey in the pro wrestling world. In fact, Nkuta had his first match against former WWE superstar and UFC fighter Matt Riddle, and delivered an impressive performance.
With Nkuta having aspirations to compete for both the UFC and WWE, the 29-year-old was asked if he had to choose one or the other, which would he go with?
“I would look my manager in the eye, and I would tell him, ‘My friend, they’re both under one company, you got to let me run up both,’” Nkuta told MMA Fighting. I mean, obviously, I’ve been training my whole life for mixed martial arts. I’m a UFC head since I was a kid. I’ve always wanted to be in the UFC, I’ve been training my whole life to be in the UFC. That’s what I would want first. If I had to, I would take that option first, but at the end of the day, man, I don’t think there’s a single other athlete on the planet who’s doing what I’m doing, you know what I mean?
“And there’s no disrespect to anybody. It’s not being cocky, it’s not being arrogant, but name me another professional athlete in the world who’s been trained by Ray Longo, Matt Serra, and then been trained by one of the greatest professional wrestlers in history in Amazing Red. Name me another guy who’s held a bunch of titles in the sport of mixed martial arts and they said, ‘You know what, I’m gonna take on this stud here from the WWE and I’m gonna look good doing it, too.’ And then I’m gonna get on the microphone and make it look even better. I haven’t gotten the opportunity to prove what I can do, but thank God, man, I got fans who support me, and I truly think I’m a special athlete. I think I’m one of one. …
“TKO is one big company with WWE and UFC. Why not have one athlete who could be a star in both at the same time?”
Nkuta hopes his performance against a heralded and dangerous opponent can finally get him that elusive call for a UFC opportunity, a short notice fight, or even a spot on the upcoming season of Dana White’s Contender Series.
The longtime training partner of UFC champ Merab Dvalishvili, and former champ Aljamain Sterling has been ready for that call for quite some time, but admits that building experience towards that goal can only help.
Once he gets that call, however, Nkuta plans to stay incredibly busy, and hopes he can shine in the premier MMA and pro wrestling organizations in the future.
“[My goal is] I’m at Raw on Monday, and then I’ll be at the PLE on that Saturday and then I’ll take a short notice fight and fight the next week again for the UFC at the APEX or something, it don’t even matter to me, man,” Nkuta said. “I’m just hungry, I’m training hard, I’m In Las Vegas now, so I’m in the perfect atmosphere if you want to be a fighter, so I’m only getting better.
“So yeah, rack them up, give me something in the WWE, give me something in the UFC and I don’t think there’s anybody who’s ever held a belt in both at the same time. Why not me? …
“TKO is kind of really showing itself to be the true home of like, not just the UFC, and not just the WWE, but just combat sports in general. They got their hands in jiu-jitsu, they got their hands in MMA, boxing, wrestling. It’d be cool if they did Muay Thai too, man. That’d be pretty dope. Maybe four-ounce gloved Muay Thai.
“But as far as I’m concerned, man, yeah, I want to be that Bo Jackson, I want to be that Deion Sanders. I’m trying to score a touchdown and [hit] a home run in one night, man, you know what I’m saying?”
