India’s Anshul
Jubli isn’t shying away from the responsibility that comes with
representing an entire country on the biggest mixed martial arts
platform in the world.
While former Matrix
Fight Night champ Puja Tomar
recently joined Jubli as the only other Indian on the
Ultimate Fighting Championship roster, “King of Lions” is
widely regarded as the face of Indian MMA.
While Jubli acknowledges the gravity of the responsibility of
shouldering an entire country’s expectations, the 29-year-old
welcomes the opportunity. Jubli believes not everyone is blessed
with such a burden and that no one could have shouldered it better
than him.
“Yes, it’s a huge, huge responsibility to represent the entire
country on a platform like the UFC. But I think it’s a good thing,
right?” Jubli told fans during a recent meet and greet. “Such
responsibilities don’t come to everyone like the one I’ve got. I
considered myself blessed to have received this responsibility. No
one can shoulder this responsibility better than me.”
The winner of Road to UFC 1 in the lightweight bracket, Jubli made
his UFC debut against Mike
Breeden at
UFC 294 in October 2023. The then-undefeated prospect was
comfortably beating Breeden on the scorecards through the first two
rounds before “Money” came from behind to score a knockout win in
the third round.
Jubli acknowledged that he made some mistakes in his first loss and
has also realized how a minor slip-up could cost him on a stage
like the UFC. Taking it as a lesson in his stride, Jubli has since
made changes to his camp and vows to secure a win in his next
promotional appearance.
“About the last fight, there had been some mistakes. Obviously, I’m
just starting off in my career and I realized that in a platform of
the UFC’s caliber, the smallest of mistakes can cost you a lot,”
said Jubli. “I have changed my program and rearranged my entire
training pattern. I plan on performing better in the next fight and
coming back with the victory, and then we will celebrate.”
