Athletes
Christos Giagos Is Adding More Memories To The List
Veteran Lightweight Christos Giagos Is Taking Everything In Stride Ahead Of UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2
In combat sports, the wins and losses matter. But so does the journey. So when Christos Giagos sits back with his kids and grandkids someday, he won’t necessarily tell them how he beat Ricky Glenn or lost to Charles Oliveira, but how he got to those moments in his fighting life.
“Everything's a story and that's why I'm always open to anything, because why not?” said Giagos. “The more experiences, the better in life “
He’s right. Sometimes, the quest for the end result is so intense that by the time it’s over, it’s over, and you don’t remember any of the journey. Giagos didn’t want that to be his lasting legacy. Win, lose or draw, he was going to take it all in.
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“I think about it every day,” he said. “The way I put it is, I just want to have a nice, fun, good career with a lot of experiences and just be proud of the work I put in. I don't really ever care about the chase for the title. I just want to be entertaining for the fans. I give it everything I got and I want to put on a show. And in doing so, I've had a lot of great opportunities. I fought some of the best in the world, and I'm very happy and I'm still going. So I'm just making more memories to add to the list.”
He’s got some interesting memories from his last fight, a second-round submission loss to Daniel Zellhuber last September. Not necessarily the fight itself, but being the “bad guy” fighting a Mexican at Noche UFC on Mexican Independence Day weekend.
“Either they like me or they don't like me,” said Giagos. “It don't matter. Because if they don't like you, then they're still engaged in the fight. They want you to lose. I like to try to upset them, and I was upsetting them for the most part until I got caught. (Laughs) But I feed off the energy. I've been in enemy territory a lot, fighting in Brazil and Sweden, Australia, and I don't mind it; it's all part of the game, and boos don't affect me at all. It actually pumps me up more to prove them wrong. I'm ‘The Spartan.’ I go to people's land and I take over.”
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Giagos can probably keep his black hat at home in Florida this weekend, as he travels to the APEX in Las Vegas to face Chile’s Ignacio Bahamondes. At 2-2 in the venue and without a packed arena cheering or booing him, Giagos has a level playing field for his attempt to even his UFC record to 7-7. In other words, it’s up to him right now, and he likes that scenario as he begins his 2024 campaign.
“I’m always trying to take every fight that comes and then learn from it and just continue to get better,” he said. “The more I think about New Year's, the older I feel. So I just have one long journey and every day is just another day.”
At 34, Giagos does have more fighting behind him than ahead of him, but that’s not a bad thing, as he showed in his Performance of the Night knockout of Glenn a year ago that he’s got plenty of gas left in the tank. But he’s not looking too far ahead or placing too many lofty goals on his next couple years in the game. He’s keeping it simple.
“I want to hit a little run and crack that Top 15 before anything,” said the lightweight standout. “I feel like anybody in the Top 15, on a good day, can become champion. They're all good and everyone's very talented, so my championship belt would be just breaking the Top 15, in my opinion.”
Sounds like a veteran talking.
“I feel mature, I feel wise, I feel like I've learned so much, and it makes camp a little easier,” Giagos said. “I already know what to expect for everything that goes on in camp, so I just go with the flow and it feels good. It feels good that I've had a long, good career, a lot of great opportunities and, yeah, I like being in this position. It's cool. It's good to know that I would call myself a real vet, so I’ve got to show these young bucks how it's done.”
UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2 took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 6, 2024. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards, and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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