Ronald Humphrey didn’t just win the Dana White’s Contender Series fight last night. He exited the Meta APEX covered in his opponent’s blood, nonchalantly talked about eating it, and seemed to have convinced UFC CEO Dana White that he belongs in the UFC.
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‘The Career Ender’ improved his professional record to 5-0 with a devastating first-round submission of Alexis Miranda in their welterweight bout at Week 3 of DWCS. The 25-year-old showcased his wrestling, striking, and finishing skills before forcing the tap at 4:03 of the opening round. In fact, the violence was enough for UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping to immediately label Humphrey a serious prospect.
“He’s the real deal,” Bisping said after the fight. “He’s nasty.”
But it was his backstage interview with Laura Sanko that really caught the attention of fight fans. Ronald Humphrey, still covered in Miranda’s blood from opening him up with an elbow, was completely unfazed about being covered in his opponent’s blood.
“Yeah, bro, I threw an elbow,” he said. “I didn’t think that sh-t was gonna land like that, but it did. It did, it did.
“Man, that s— was nice. But that was a lot of blood. Yo, weirdly enough, this s— is just like chicken blood, bro. Like, whatever, bro, I’m eating, bro.”
After the interview, back at the broadcast table, Sanko recounted to Michael Bisping just how strange the interaction was.
“Ronald Humphrey, backstage. I didn’t have a chance to say this earlier,” Sanko told Bisping. “He was talking to me before we went on camera about how he kills his own chickens, and he said, ‘I love’… he was like, ‘I love having this blood all over me. It reminds me of killing chickens.”
“And he was dead serious about loving it. And then, I’m telling you, they offered to wipe him off, and he was like, ‘No, no.'”
To this, the former UFC middleweight champion remarked, “The guy’s a psycho.”
Dana White appears to have agreed with at least one part of the assessment: Ronald Humphrey is UFC-bound. The head honcho said in the presser that he had already spoken with the 25-year-old backstage and told him he wanted to get him into the promotion.
“I literally just bumped into him in the hallway, and I said, ‘Listen, I want to turn you around, as sure as you want to get turned around,'” White said. “He says, Tell Sean (Shelby) to call me.”
This means Humphrey will not have to wait long to find out what happens next. After going undefeated and finishing all five of his opponents, the hard-hitting welterweight prospect is now headed to fight in the UFC.
And well, it’s no surprise that he is so good at what he does. After all, Ronald Humphrey comes from a family with quite a history in combat sports. He often credits his father, Ron ‘Abongo’ Humphrey, with introducing him to the sport.
For those unaware, his father was a veteran heavyweight who competed in prominent promotions like Strikeforce, where he shared the ring with legendary fighters such as Mike Kyle and Brett Rogers.
That background lends credence to Humphrey’s rise as one of DWCS’ most fascinating new prospects. ‘The Career Ender’ is not just creating a reputation for violence; he’s carrying forward a combat sports legacy that began with his father.
In fact, he is already thinking much bigger than simply making his UFC debut.
Ronald Humphrey sends a warning to the UFC welterweight division
The 25-year-old revealed his title aspirations immediately following his win, stating clearly that his arrival at 170 pounds should concern everyone standing between him and the throne.
“My f—– existence is a declaration to warn any and everybody who’s gonna try to stop my title run,” Ronald Humphrey said in his post-fight interview. “Get in my way. It’s up.
“Each and every one of you all are finished; you’re burned. Whoever is at 170 pounds, you’re burned. Remember my name.”
Ronald Humphrey’s confidence isn’t surprising given that he’s defeated all five of his professional opponents and has only gone beyond the first round once. Now, ‘The Career Ender’ can put that confidence to the test against the world’s finest welterweights.