Light heavyweight Keith Berry knows the time to strike has come if he wants to fulfill his dream of competing within the hallowed chain links of the UFC Octagon.
“I know he’s pretty well-rounded,” Berry told Sherdog.com. “I think when I punch him in the face a couple times, he will take it to the ground and it won’t be as easy as he thinks.”
Berry, a veteran of the WEC, King of the Cage and Gladiator Challenge circuits, hopes to parlay a victory over Cooper into bigger and better things. He has had the typical ups and downs someone who has chosen fighting as a career path. After dropping three straight fights from August 2008 to October 2009, he feels he has corrected many of his flaws. Scoring knockouts and submissions along the way, Berry seems ready to sacrifice everything in hopes of becoming a full-time fighter.
“This fight means a lot to me, and when I win this fight, it can open doors to help me become a full-time fighter and fight for the biggest orgs,” he said. “Whether it’s the UFC or Strikeforce or Dream, hopefully I’m only a couple fights away. That’s the dream. I just gotta keep winning and make it a reality.”