Grant Dawson continued to rise up the UFC rankings with arguably his most impressive win to date following a unanimous decision victory over Damir Ismagulov.
However, despite a huge win in which Dawson maintained his unbeaten record inside the Octagon, the American is unaware of how he can propel himself to a title shot.
After being asked about his path to the belt, Dawson simply replied, “I don’t know”.
“I think everyone has a different path. Islam (Makhachev) had a weird path where he fought really good guys and then not-so-good guys, and then some really good guys, and then not-so-good guys, and then he looked great against the champion. Everyone’s path is different.”
Perhaps the uncertainty arises from Dawson’s reluctance to fight any of his teammates at American Top Team who are currently ranked amongst the top 15 fighters in the lightweight division.
Mateusz Gamrot (7) and Renato Moicano (13) are both on Dawson’s team and could potentially offer him a new and improved hurdle in his surge through the division. However, Dawson is not interested in scrapping with his mates.
“I train with these guys. I’ve seen these guys before. I’m not fighting Moicano. He’s a close friend of mine. That’s not happening. I really like Gamrot a lot – he’s a close friend of mine. I really enjoy training with him. I’m not really interested in fighting him.”
If Dana White comes knocking with a mammoth fight offer against the aforementioned fighters, Dawson may need to relinquish his allegiances and temporarily see his friends as foes for the betterment of his career and journey through the UFC rankings.
Dawson did however hint at a clash with Arman Tsarukyan (8) but said that the circumstances need to be right to make it happen.
