SEREPISOS UNFAZED BY LION FIGHT TITLE SHOT VERSUS LEGEND LERDSILA
The opportunity to compete for the Lion Fight world lightweight title is the golden opportunity Alexi Serepisos has been longing for.
It will be a daunting task, however, as he tries to claim the crown when standing opposite him will be one of the legendary competitors in the division, Thai sensation Lerdsila – a man whose career boasts an astonishing 100-fight winning streak and is within shooting range of 200 career wins. But Serepisos isn’t the least bit intimidated by his opponent or the situation. He has worked as diligently as any fighter in the world for this chance so now he has to seize the opportunity he’s been given at Lion Fight 40 and make the most of it.
“I’m coming up to 24 years old and am married with two children aged five and seven,” explained Serepisos.
“Since I was 15 years old I’ve been working over 60 hours every week between my full-time job and my training to fight, so all my time spent away from work and training is spent with my family. I don’t think you’ll find another fighter that works as hard in life, not just training, as I do.”
Serepisos and Lerdsila will tangle for the world lightweight belt in the co-main event of Lion Fight 40 taking place at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut, on Saturday, February 3rd.
Born and raised in Wellington, New Zealand, Serepisos has made quite a name for himself during his eight years as a pro, having already claimed a WMC title in a four-man tournament held in Hong Kong with victories over Ncedo Gomba and then-champion Ali Yaakub. Now living in Hamilton, New Zealand, Serepisos took some time out from his hectic regimen to do a Q&A session with LionFight.com:
Q: For those people that haven’t seen you fight before, what are your best attributes as a fighter and what areas are you working on improving?
A: I think my best attributes as a fighter would have to be my heart and my will to win and my work ethic. I always train hard, fight hard and push to win. I thrive on grueling training sessions and hard, physical fights. I’m my own biggest critic, however, so I’m always working to improve every aspect of myself as a fighter.
Q: What are your thoughts on getting this opportunity to fight for the Lion Fight world lightweight title and especially fighting an accomplished guy like Lerdsila?
A: This fight is essentially what I’ve been working towards since I became a professional fighter. I’ve been a fan of Lion Fight since I saw Yodsanklai Fairtex fight Chike Lindsay, so the opportunity to fight for the Lion Fight world title is huge to me. Just as big as opportunity to fight in Lion Fight and for the world title is the opportunity to compete against Lerdsila which I’m most excited for. I’ve been lobbying for years, saying that I deserve to fight the best guys in the world and that’s certainly the case with Lerdsila.
Q: Lerdsila was very complimentary towards you in a new article on LionFight.com, saying you were a harder fight than an opponent originally presented to him. Does that boost your confidence at all or do you think it’s maybe a bit of a trap by a veteran?
A: Honestly, I’m appreciative of the kudos from him. But at the end of the day a fight is a fight and while we’re both respectful guys outside of the ring, we’ll both be trying to win when we fight. So as much as I appreciate a respectful build-up to the fight, I’m not paying too much attention to it.
Q: What do you need to do to beat Lerdsila? Is there any secret recipe to stopping him?
A: Lerdsila is a really good fighter. He’s very tricky so he’s almost always able to pull the win out of the bag. I don’t have any secret recipe or game plan to win. I never do. I’m simply going to go in and fight my fight. I think one advantage that I’m taking in to the fight over many of his latest opponents is that his resume and experience doesn’t scare or intimidate me in the slightest.
The Serepisos-Lerdsila title fight joins another world title bout on the marquee for Lion Fight 40. In the night’s main event, reigning Lion Fight world cruiserweight champion Chip “The Surgeon” Moraza-Pollard puts his belt on the line against Slava “Scarface” Alexeichik.
Lion Fight 40 also features the first-ever North American title bout in the organization’s history with Brett Hlavacek taking on Elijah Clarke for the light heavyweight belt. The lineup also features numerous fan favorites including powerful super cruiserweight Steve “Put Em To Sleep” Walker, lightweight thriller “The Don” Julio Pena, and top prospects Mike Triana, Cris Mims, and Brian Bogue.
Tickets for Lion Fight 40 are available at www.foxwoods.com/Lion-Fight.
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