Cultivating through increasing my stats in America Chapter 303 - 195 UFC Debut2

Li Ang also nodded, realizing why he felt his odds of winning were highest when facing a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist—it turned out he was part of the hidden machinations.

"The second one is called Jose de Rosette. His skills are comprehensive, but none stand out particularly, and he has so popularity, but it’s not too high. Overall, you should have about a 60% chance of winning, so he’s a fairly moderate choice..."

"This third candidate, personally selected by the president for you, is called Manolo Dreke. Although he too has only been signed for less than two years and has a fighting style similar to yours with weaker ground techniques, his strength is absolutely the strongest among the newcors of these two years. In terms of popularity, he’s significantly higher than the first two combined. Your chances of winning against him should not exceed 40%..."

The assistant paused briefly, then continued:

"Actually, I think he’s not quite suitable as your debut opponent. Although debuts chase popularity, securing a winning start is also very crucial. Choosing him might instead turn your debut into his show."

"Ultimately, it’s still up to your own choice."

"I choose Manolo Dreke."

Without much hesitation, Li Ang directly chose Manolo Dreke, the most popular and also the strongest contender.

His strength had been improving almost daily, and what he had previously shown was not his full effort.

So, no matter the opponent, he was confident of victory; under these circumstances, of course, he would choose the most popular contender.

"See, what did I tell you; I knew he would definitely choose Manolo Dreke; now this dinner is on you," White Danna suddenly burst into laughter, speaking smugly to his assistant.

The assistant was sowhat surprised; after all, the winning odds he just ntioned were not made up but were indeed based on Li Ang’s previous performances.

This sufficiently demonstrated that this man’s strength was truly formidable.

While the assistant was concerned about ensuring Li Ang’s victory, White Danna saw things more broadly. He casually lay back in his chair and said to Li Ang:

"The reason I added this option is because I really want to see you two fight. As for winning or losing, it matters, but it’s not that crucial. Sotis, it’s not always the winner who is rembered by the audience. I believe you two can definitely deliver a quite spectacular fight."

After Li Ang chose his opponent, the UFC also spent a lot of resources on publicity and promotion, almost matching the push given to already famous fighters making their debut in the UFC.

A guy wearing gaming headphones was listening to electronic music while browsing the UFC’s official push.

"Hey, Bob, co take a look, a new fighter has appeared, and it’s even a Chinese one."

His roommate, a big guy who looked to weigh at least 200 pounds, quickly appeared in front of his computer.

Though both were solid nerds, they loved watching mixed martial arts matches.

"Wow, he looks in good shape. Is he a lightweight fighter? (145 pounds-155 pounds) Or maybe featherweight? (135 pounds-145 pounds)"

"I guess so," the blonde continued, while scrolling down the enlarged poster of Li Ang, "wait, am I seeing this right?"

"What the heck! Are they sure they didn’t make a mistake? A light heavyweight fighter? (185 pounds-205 pounds)"

"No exaggeration, Bob, I think you could match up to two of him."

The blonde joked around.

"All jokes aside, maybe it’s the angle of the photo or sothing, but in terms of weight, I don’t think the official would make such a basic mistake. Let’s keep looking."

The blonde continued scrolling down.

"What the heck? This fighter cos from a traditional martial arts background? Even honored as the president of the Chinese Martial Arts Association? Are you kidding ?"

No wonder they were so astonished, but as regular watchers of professional fighting competitions, they still couldn’t associate traditional Chinese kung fu with mixed martial arts.

After all, among the many active fighters, none were known to co from a martial arts background—plenty of self-proclaid kung fu masters trying to challenge UFC fighters, though.

Almost imdiately, both of them categorized Li Ang as one of those types.

"Maybe it’s just to attract viewers, since the fight needs its hype. But it’s pretty outrageous that he could actually sign up. Isn’t UFC worried about losing their credibility?"

The chubby guy shook his head, sowhat helplessly, and continued to scroll.

"Alright, alright, skip those details. Let see who his opponent is."

"Wow, ’Roar’ Manolo Drake—this guy’s debut pits him against him? I guess that’ll make his debut his retirent too."

The blonde guy said with a teasing tone.

Usually, anyone who’s earned a nickna in the ring is fairly skilled, and Manolo Drake is known as ’Roar’ because he likes to shout and scream after winning a match.

Having the chance to shout and scream already indirectly reflects his strength. Although he’s a newcor, his winning rate is incredibly high. Most people predict it won’t take a year for him to reach the top ten in the middleweight division.

The chubby guy suddenly nodded repeatedly and said:

"I think I roughly understand the official’s intention now. This match, touted as this Chinese contestant’s debut, I believe, is actually a showcase for ’Roar’ Manolo Drake. As one of the most promising newcors these past two years, the officials willing to invest resources in him to build hype does make sense."

The blonde guy also nodded, "Makes sense, given that this Chinese guy probably can’t beat anyone, and he cos with so many buffs, making him a perfect ’experience package’ indeed."

...

This kind of discussion was happening all around the world, even within China, where a minority of UFC fans noticed this newcor’s debut especially when they learned that there was another Chinese contestant.

However, most people thought similarly—purely based on his traditional martial arts background, Li Ang was already synonymous with weakness in battle.

There might be so traditional martial arts enthusiasts in China, but those people absolutely do not overlap with professional fighting fans.

Because anyone with so knowledge about fighting knows well that the traditional martial arts training will absolutely not produce a real combat expert.

However, although most people in China analyzed it thoroughly and still didn’t have high hopes for Li Ang’s debut, deep down, they still hoped to see more Chinese contestants showcasing the virtues of Asians on this stage.

As a contestant, Li Ang naturally had a number of complintary tickets, several of which ended up in Charles’s hands.

When Charles heard the news, he was a bit taken aback; he knew Li Ang was good at martial arts, but he had never expected him to go and fight in UFC.

But as Li Ang’s close friend, he started promoting him in his class right away.

His classmates’ reactions were even more exaggerated than his, as at least he had seen Li Ang fight several tis, but their only impression of him was winning a school-level boxing championship once.

Even so, the two were not comparable at all; it felt just like a low-profile classmate suddenly making a big splash, getting first place in a joint exam among several schools.

The news now was like that sa classmate suddenly getting a recomndation for Peking or Tsinghua University.

Moreover, UFC rookies are even rarer than recomnded students at Peking and Tsinghua.

"Does anyone want to go watch?"

The mont Charles spoke up, the classroom, which had been buzzing with discussion, suddenly fell silent.

If the fight had been happening nearby, quite a few might have wanted to go just for the excitent.

But this match was in another state, requiring them to take leave from school and adding the costs of tickets and travel. Just the motive of joining in on the excitent wasn’t enough to drive them.

"I’ve got free tickets!"

Charles continued.

But still no one responded; even though the tickets were free, the travel costs were a significant expense, not to ntion they’d also have to take leave.

"Can I go?"

A small girl with freckles sitting next to Li Ang’s empty desk timidly asked.