Joe Kropschot spoke with the media on Saturday following his victory against Nick Klein at UFC Fight Night 292 in Las Vegas.
A Successful UFC Debut
Making his promotional debut, Kropschot (10-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) secured a submission victory over Klein (6-4 MMA, 0-3 UFC) during the preliminary card at the Meta APEX. The newcomer finished the bout with an armbar early in the second round.
Kropschot came close to finishing Klein at the conclusion of the opening round before returning for the second frame. He dominated his opponent on the canvas to claim his ninth submission victory out of 10 professional wins.
Post-Fight Reflections and Future Goals
Reflecting on his milestone win, Kropschot stated to sports.yangoo.com, “I don’t even know if I’ve processed all the emotions yet, but I’m trying to soak it up. I feel happy to get the win and get a finish. I’ve been dreaming about this since I was 16. … The dude was way stronger than I was expecting. He was crazy strong, but we knew it was only going to last for like three minutes of the first round, just judging it off his first couple fights. I would have liked to defend the takedown better, but I knew he was going to get tired grappling me. So overall, I’m happy with the performance. I’d say like 6 out of 10, though. I’m a lot better than that.”
Looking ahead, Kropschot outlined an ambitious timeline for his career progress. He noted, “This last year, I wanted three fights. I got the LFA title in February, got Contender Series, and then got my first UFC win. I want three or four more next year, and I would like to see myself ranked in middleweight at the end of next year. Keep giving me unranked guys while I’m on this first contract. I want to make the money, get bumped up and then I’ll start fighting ranked guys. But I think by the end of next year, I could get it done.”
Kropschot concluded by addressing fans regarding what to expect from his future appearances inside the Octagon. He stated, “My message would be just tune in to my fights. They’re always exciting. I feel like there’s always crazy moments in my fights. My Contender Series fight, I didn’t get to finish, but I broke the dude’s arm, beat a 10-0 guy. (Klein) got a nasty submission (attempt), calf kicked him to the ground. You’re going to see exciting fights with me every time, and I’m going to leave my soul out there every time.”
