Jamie Mullarkey, a UFC Lightweight fighter, believes that he has reached the peak of his career and is eager to embark on his journey towards becoming the champion of the Lightweight division in his home country of Australia at UFC 284.
Only seven fighters can say that they made their Octagon debut at the biggest event in UFC history.
One of those fighters is Australia’s Jamie Mullarkey who earned Fight of the Night at UFC 243 for his battle with Brad Riddell.
That night in Melbourne was the beginning of an up and down UFC journey for Mullarkey, who is 3-3 in the UFC so far. His exciting style has made him must-see TV, and he fits in perfectly with the shark tank of high-quality fighters in the lightweight division.
And although his career didn’t start off the way he expected, he’s confident that he has found the recipe to put together his best year in the Octagon yet.
“Coming into my first fight I always thought I was going to steal the show and take out everything and it was going to be wins,” Mullarkey told UFC.com. “But when I got to the UFC, I had a loss and then a controversial loss, so it wasn’t what I expected to be for the start of my UFC career. The learning of that was to make sure I’m in control of what’s going to happen.
“We’ve come leaps and bounds since then.”
Jamie Mullarkey of Australia poses on the scale during the UFC 243 weigh-in at Marvel Stadium on October 05, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
Although the results have been mixed, it’s evident that Mullarkey is a tough matchup for just about anyone in the lightweight division, and if he can put a few things together, he could make a real run in the rankings.
That run began with a hard-fought Fight of the Night bout with respected veteran Michael Johnson last year. An injury put Mullarkey out of business for the rest of 2022, but he used that time to really hit his stride mentally and be as prepared as possible for a massive 2023.
That campaign begins this weekend, as he faces UFC newcomer Francisco Prado at UFC 284: Makhachev vs Volkanovski.
Originally, Mullarkey was slated to face Nasrat Haqparast, who was forced to withdraw from the bout. The change of opponent didn’t faze Mullarkey, though, as he just can’t wait to get in there and extend his win streak to two.
“Francisco is strong. He looks like a good young up and coming fighter. It’s going to be a good fight, for sure; he’s game and he’s tough. I just think I’m going to show that he’s not quite at this level yet,” Mullarkey said. “I’m a well-rounded fighter so I’m looking forward to showing that wherever the fight takes place, I’m better.”
Mullarkey will enter the fray in front of a home crowd for the first time since his debut that night in 2019, and he expects the vibe around the RAC Arena in Perth to be even crazier than UFC 243.
“It’s going to be huge. The energy inside the building is going to be electric and I’m looking forward to it,” Mullarkey said. “It’s been a long time since fighting at home and it’ll be a real good night for the Aussies.”
Jamie Mullarkey of Australia kicks Michael Johnson in their lightweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on July 09, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
With a win over UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, Mullarkey’s teammate Alexander Volkanovski can become the fifth simultaneous two-weight world champion in history.
And to do it on Australian soil – that would be a movie.
“This weekend is going to be bigger,” Mullarkey said. “Since UFC 243 we’ve had a lot more success with Australian MMA, especially in the UFC. With Alex going for ‘Champ Champ’ it’s literally history.”
