“I don’t think I’d be fighting,” Knockout artist Josh Emmet credits legendary bantamweight fighter for MMA career and success

Josh Emmett revived his career with a breathtaking knockout at UFC 296. He hoped to make one last run at the title with this spectacular win. As such, he reflected on his career retrospectively and shared stories of picking up MMA as his career. On that note, he credited much of his success to bantamweight legend Urijah Faber and Team Alpha Male.

Recently, Josh Emmett appeared on the JAXXON Podcast, where he discussed various things. It included his win at UFC 296 to Max Holloway’s callout. As such, he talked about how he started on MMA. He said he wouldn’t have pursued fighting if not for Urijah Faber’s Gym, Team Alpha Male. Here is what he said:

I'm lucky that Urijah built one of the best gyms in the world for the lighter weights. I don't think I would be fighting if he didn't build that gym in Sacramento. I had no money to go travel and pursue this crazy dream of mine. So, I went in there and started taking classes.

Josh Emmett via Jaxxson Podcast

Urijah Faber is among the greatest UFC fighters who never won the UFC gold. As such, while still pursuing fighting, he opened the gym ‘Team Alpha Male’ in Sacramento in 2004. With this gym, he formed a team of formidable fighters. Josh Emmett joined the team after Faber’s eye caught the talent he possessed. As such, Emmett credits a lot of his success to Faber.

Josh Emmett recently fought Bryce Mitchell in a featherweight clash in UFC 296. He put him out cold on the canvas with a thunderous right hand. This win earned him a lot of eyes from the MMA world, and as such, Emmett used this opportunity to call out for a #1 contender’s fight. So, he expressed his interest in fighting Max Holloway.

The friendship between Josh Emmett and Urijah Faber

Josh Emmett and Urijah Faber shared close ties for over a decade. Their first interaction was when Faber opened his gym ‘Team Alpha Male’ in Sacramento, California.

Emmett was in college with a question of what’s next after college. Like a limelight, Faber came out and handed out a flier about Team Alpha Male to Emmett. So, Emmett, with a wrestling background in college and a passion for MMA, gave it a try. He joined Faber’s gym and started picking up his MMA career.

After a few months at Team Alpha Male, Urijah Faber noticed Josh Emmett’s potential and invited him to pro practices. At that time, Emmett expressed his interest to Faber and later joined his team of professional athletes. As such, Faber mostly acted as a mentor for Josh Emmett throughout his career, who guided him with his valuable experience. Once, Emmett was treated badly during UFC 276, and Faber stood up for his friend and voiced out about the incident.

Team Alpha Male has produced incredible fighters over the years, from Uriah Faber himself to Cody Garbrandt. Josh Emmett is also on the list and hopes to make it big in the UFC. As such, he called out Max Holloway next for a #1 contenders fight. He earlier fought Yair Rodriguez in an interim championship but lost the bout via submission. After another loss to Ilia Topuria, he resurrected his career with an impressive knockout over Bryce Mitchell.

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