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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Alexander Gustafsson isn't budging on holding out for a title fight, and he's now saying the UFC has given him the go ahead to do so.
Via Swedish news site Expressen.se, Gustafsson says he's been promised a title fight by UFC owner Lorenzo Fertitta, which could come in his home country of Sweden. For that opportunity, Gustafsson says he would wait three years if needed.
"I have taken to the ranking I am today. I have been promised a chance several times," Gustafsson said. "I would have met him in Las Vegas but was injured, but I'm still totally mentally prepared to go for a title match, it's not something you can just delete."
"That's what motivates me. I earn money by competing, but money is not something that motivates me. It will never motivate me. I would like to be the best in the world and nothing else."
Gustafsson added that he doesn't see a fight with Anthony Johnson as a sensible one, slighting Johnson's wins over a "past his expiration" Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Phil Davis since returning to the UFC.
Penick's Analysis: Jones doesn't think he should go to Sweden to fight Gustafsson, and it's the right stance to take. While the fight could certainly get the fans there extremely excited, Gustafsson's already getting more special treatment than any failed title challenger in recent memory. The longer he waits to return, the less people are going to remember why the first fight stood out, and he's going to lose the attention of the fans.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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