Lorenz Larkin reacts to rankings snub, says Rafael Carvalho is a one-off at middleweight
UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Lorenz Larkin fully intends on returning to his original home of 170 pounds after Bellator 258.
Larkin (22-7 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) meets former Bellator champion Rafael Carvalho (16-5 MMA, 7-4 BMMA) in a middleweight bout Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The longtime welterweight contender, who was being dubbed as a potential title challenger by Bellator boss Scott Coker not too long ago, has won his past four in a row but was not included in Bellator’s newly minted rankings.
The reason is because Larkin hasn’t competed since defeating Keita Nakamura in December 2019 and didn’t meet the 15-month eligibility rule. That being said, Larkin said he was surprised but is unbothered.
“I don’t want to change it,” Larkin told MMA Junkie on Wednesday. “If you didn’t put me on there, don’t even dare think about my name now, so I don’t even care. This is just a fight that came upon my plate, and it was a fun fight, and it was something that intrigued me because it’s not the elephant in the room. I just like to keep it real.
“Most people aren’t going to take a fight like this because he’s a beast. He’s at ’85, I’m a ’70-pounder, and it’s a last-minute fight against a guy like that, so these are the things that keep me excited about the fight game and keeps my brain real into the fight game.”
Larkin is happy to test himself at 185 pounds in the one-off contest but said he will be moving back down to welterweight after facing Carvalho.
“I ain’t messing with these big guys,” Larkin laughed. “I was just like ‘You know what, let me just test myself and let me see what’s up.’ At the end of the day, I do a lot of things to make me happy, and when I’m done with all this, I can be like I did it how I wanted to do it.”
To see the full interview with Larkin, check out the video above.
Bellator 258’s main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
