“To be honest I didn’t think I’d be getting ready to make my
UFC debut at 22-years old.” - Alex Caceres
UFC debut at 22-years old.” - Alex Caceres
A year ago today Miami’s Alex Caceres was still
celebrating an impressive victory over Jahmal McLennan. For the then 21-year
old it was his fourth win in six professional fights. He figured it was a
starting point for big things to come. He can work his way up in another MMA
organization, and eventually get picked up by the UFC in four to five years.
That’s what he envisioned in his head. Part of the vision was correct, but it
was off by a few years.
This Saturday Caceres makes his UFC debut against
his fellow Miami native Mackens Semerzier in a lightweight bout at UFC Fight
Night in Seattle, Washington. This comes following a highly successful showing
in The Ultimate Fighter, making it all the way to the quarterfinals, where he
lost to Michael Johnson by decision.
Caceres’ brother heard about the TUF
opportunity, told Alex and they took a road trip to North Carolina for the
show’s audition. At worst they’d say no and he’d continue working hard to make
it at some other point, but at best he’d make the cast and get his name in the
world of MMA. Either way he never expected to be in the position he’s at
today.
“To be honest I didn’t think I’d be getting ready to make my UFC
debut at 22-years old,” Caceres said. “I thought maybe at 25-26 I’d get to
fight in the UFC, but I took matters into my own hands. I went to the tryout,
made it, threw myself into the fire, and here I am. This is an amazing
feeling. I’m gonna have butterflies on Saturday.”
During his stint on
The Ultimate Fighter, Caceres said he learned a lot, and grew as a person and as
a fighter. He was one of the most fan-attractive cast members because of his
smile during fights, his adventurous stories, and his swagger. Now that he’s
made the big stage, as he calls it, he truly believes that his character and
charisma will take him long, long way.
“I do believe that the combination
of how I express myself in and out of the cage, and the way that I fight will
shoot me to super stardom very quickly,” Caceres said. “They think I’m wild and
crazy, and they’ll get wild and crazy each and every time.”
The
ambitious Caceres doesn’t stop there. Yes he has the goal of winning a title in
the UFC, and becoming a star within the sport, but when he says that he will
shoot to super stardom very quickly, that statement goes way beyond the world of
mixed martial arts.
“I envision my success in the sport leading me to
doing other stuff like TV shows, and movies,” Caceres said. “This can all blow
up really quickly. I really think I will accomplish all of this because of the
kind of person I am. I take it one step at a time, but you better believe I put
all my energy into whatever’s in front of me.”
If he does become a TV, or
movie, star Caceres already comes armed with a Hollywood style nickname. People
started calling him “Bruce Leroy” after the lead character in the cult classic
1980s film The Last Dragon. Caceres said people thought he looked like the lead
character, a teenager who wanted to be like his idol, Bruce Lee. Caceres says
he doesn’t relate much to Leroy Green except for one important aspect.
“I
do idolize Bruce Lee,” Caceres said. “I have a whole bunch of different outfits
I wear every time I enter the cage that you do see in The Last Dragon, but I
don’t wear them because of that. I wear them because before that movie ever
existed, Bruce Lee wore them, and I always try to pay homage to
him.”
With his UFC debut a couple of days away, and visions of bigger
things to come on his mind, Caceres also takes time to reflect on the struggles
he faced to get here, and the people who helped him along the way.
“I had
a good upbringing, but my family didn’t have much money, so I had to take jobs
to pay gyms in order to train,” Caceres recalls. “I wanted to chase a dream,
and had to apply all I had in order to achieve it. When things seemed at their
darkest, doors opened up for me.”
One of the doors that opened up was at
the Young Tigers Gym in Miami. Eric “El Tigre” Castaño, a former kickboxing
champion, started the Young Tigers Foundation to help underprivileged youth to
get off the streets, and into the gym without spending a dime.
“He
helped me out a lot,” Caceres says. “Every other gym wanted me to pay, and I
didn’t have the money at the time. We weren’t rich, and “El Tigre” let me train
there for free while I was up and coming. He guided me, and I really benefited
from his help. I’m happy I was able to meet him early on in
life.”
Castaño, who also worked in similar fashion with lightweight Jorge
Masvidal, knew there was something special about Caceres the very first time he
stepped into his gym.
“I always saw the potential in Caceres,” Castaño
said. “He is very explosive, and one of the most creative fighters I’ve ever
seen. I knew he’d get to this point and beyond in whatever fighting discipline
he’d choose, whether it’d be MMA, boxing, or anything else. It gives me so much
satisfaction, and makes me so proud to see him make it to the UFC. He’s a very
special person.”
Now Caceres will finally go toe-to-toe with Semerzier on
Saturday. He will bring his that creativity and explosiveness to the Octagon.
Caceres didn’t predict a spectacular win, but did promise that if the fight
turns out to be boring he won’t be the man to blame.
“The fans are
definitely going to see a whole lot of excitement,” Caceres predicts. “There
will be no lowlights unless Semerzier wants to hug me for three rounds. On my
part I promise there will be a whole lot of action.”
celebrating an impressive victory over Jahmal McLennan. For the then 21-year
old it was his fourth win in six professional fights. He figured it was a
starting point for big things to come. He can work his way up in another MMA
organization, and eventually get picked up by the UFC in four to five years.
That’s what he envisioned in his head. Part of the vision was correct, but it
was off by a few years.
This Saturday Caceres makes his UFC debut against
his fellow Miami native Mackens Semerzier in a lightweight bout at UFC Fight
Night in Seattle, Washington. This comes following a highly successful showing
in The Ultimate Fighter, making it all the way to the quarterfinals, where he
lost to Michael Johnson by decision.
Caceres’ brother heard about the TUF
opportunity, told Alex and they took a road trip to North Carolina for the
show’s audition. At worst they’d say no and he’d continue working hard to make
it at some other point, but at best he’d make the cast and get his name in the
world of MMA. Either way he never expected to be in the position he’s at
today.
“To be honest I didn’t think I’d be getting ready to make my UFC
debut at 22-years old,” Caceres said. “I thought maybe at 25-26 I’d get to
fight in the UFC, but I took matters into my own hands. I went to the tryout,
made it, threw myself into the fire, and here I am. This is an amazing
feeling. I’m gonna have butterflies on Saturday.”
During his stint on
The Ultimate Fighter, Caceres said he learned a lot, and grew as a person and as
a fighter. He was one of the most fan-attractive cast members because of his
smile during fights, his adventurous stories, and his swagger. Now that he’s
made the big stage, as he calls it, he truly believes that his character and
charisma will take him long, long way.
“I do believe that the combination
of how I express myself in and out of the cage, and the way that I fight will
shoot me to super stardom very quickly,” Caceres said. “They think I’m wild and
crazy, and they’ll get wild and crazy each and every time.”
The
ambitious Caceres doesn’t stop there. Yes he has the goal of winning a title in
the UFC, and becoming a star within the sport, but when he says that he will
shoot to super stardom very quickly, that statement goes way beyond the world of
mixed martial arts.
“I envision my success in the sport leading me to
doing other stuff like TV shows, and movies,” Caceres said. “This can all blow
up really quickly. I really think I will accomplish all of this because of the
kind of person I am. I take it one step at a time, but you better believe I put
all my energy into whatever’s in front of me.”
If he does become a TV, or
movie, star Caceres already comes armed with a Hollywood style nickname. People
started calling him “Bruce Leroy” after the lead character in the cult classic
1980s film The Last Dragon. Caceres said people thought he looked like the lead
character, a teenager who wanted to be like his idol, Bruce Lee. Caceres says
he doesn’t relate much to Leroy Green except for one important aspect.
“I
do idolize Bruce Lee,” Caceres said. “I have a whole bunch of different outfits
I wear every time I enter the cage that you do see in The Last Dragon, but I
don’t wear them because of that. I wear them because before that movie ever
existed, Bruce Lee wore them, and I always try to pay homage to
him.”
With his UFC debut a couple of days away, and visions of bigger
things to come on his mind, Caceres also takes time to reflect on the struggles
he faced to get here, and the people who helped him along the way.
“I had
a good upbringing, but my family didn’t have much money, so I had to take jobs
to pay gyms in order to train,” Caceres recalls. “I wanted to chase a dream,
and had to apply all I had in order to achieve it. When things seemed at their
darkest, doors opened up for me.”
One of the doors that opened up was at
the Young Tigers Gym in Miami. Eric “El Tigre” Castaño, a former kickboxing
champion, started the Young Tigers Foundation to help underprivileged youth to
get off the streets, and into the gym without spending a dime.
“He
helped me out a lot,” Caceres says. “Every other gym wanted me to pay, and I
didn’t have the money at the time. We weren’t rich, and “El Tigre” let me train
there for free while I was up and coming. He guided me, and I really benefited
from his help. I’m happy I was able to meet him early on in
life.”
Castaño, who also worked in similar fashion with lightweight Jorge
Masvidal, knew there was something special about Caceres the very first time he
stepped into his gym.
“I always saw the potential in Caceres,” Castaño
said. “He is very explosive, and one of the most creative fighters I’ve ever
seen. I knew he’d get to this point and beyond in whatever fighting discipline
he’d choose, whether it’d be MMA, boxing, or anything else. It gives me so much
satisfaction, and makes me so proud to see him make it to the UFC. He’s a very
special person.”
Now Caceres will finally go toe-to-toe with Semerzier on
Saturday. He will bring his that creativity and explosiveness to the Octagon.
Caceres didn’t predict a spectacular win, but did promise that if the fight
turns out to be boring he won’t be the man to blame.
“The fans are
definitely going to see a whole lot of excitement,” Caceres predicts. “There
will be no lowlights unless Semerzier wants to hug me for three rounds. On my
part I promise there will be a whole lot of action.”
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