David Acosta ended his amateur mixed martial arts career successfully defending his flyweight belt against Mike De Leon, in a hard-fought battle at Legacy Amateur Series 14. On Friday June 13th at The Arena Theater, Acosta will be making his professional debut at Legacy 31, against Angel Zamora. The fight card will be headlined by a flyweight fight between Damacio Page and Elias Garcia, who is stepping in on short notice after Henry Cejudo pulled from the bout for personal reasons. I caught up with Acosta to find out about the jump to the pros, and how he sees this fight going.
Mark Carrillo: You had a very successful amateur career, winning the belt and then defending it against De Leon in a very tough fight at the end of last year. Has training for your professional debut changed at all? Will your style of fighting change?
David Acosta: Yes my last amateur fight was tough. Mike was not only a good fighter, but very strong willed. Turning professional has changed my training quite a bit. Instead of maybe a month and a half out, I started training for this fight once I found out about it roughly 12 weeks out. My style I guess is always changing, I’m always learning new thing from my awesome coaches. I like to think my style is willing to adapt for whatever is needed at the time.
MC: You have a lot of talented fighters that you train with. Have they given you any advice on your pro debut?
DA: Yes, all my coaches and fighters I train with always tell me to check YouTube to see what I can learn….just kidding. Everyone I surround myself with is always supportive!
MC: Zamora has about 21 years on you. Do you think that will be an advantage or disadvantage for this fight?
DA: I didn’t realize he was basically double my age until right now, but I don’t think it will play much of a factor. He’ll have that old-man strength that I’m still waiting for.
MC: How do you predict this fight going?
DA: I think this fight will be a great first fight of the night. Who knows how the fight will go? Just hoping for both of us to go home with no serious injuries.
MC: Will you take some time off after this fight or can we expect to see you back soon?
DA: I would like to be back in the cage ASAP! I’m young and hungry and basically always in camp, so I’m open for whatever gets sent my way.
MC: What do you do outside of MMA?
DA: There’s stuff outside of MMA?
MC: Who all would you like to thank for helping you prepare for your professional debut?
DA: So many people to thank! Sam, Richard, Joseph, Macaco, Bobby, my brother Joe, Al Smith, and Shannon Orsak for fixing me when I’m broke. All of my training partners that help me every time I fight, Legacy for allowing me into one of the best organizations in the world. My new family, The Athletic Performance Lab, for helping me get in shape mentally and physically for this fight. And saving my best for last, my wife, for making fights in the cage seem like a piece of cake.
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Follow David on Twitter @David_M_Acosta
Follow Mark on Twitter @MarkilloTX
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