Mickey Gall: Ready to claim his prize

Mickey Gall hit the MMA lottery when he got the opportunity to fight CM Punk and he is ready to claim his prize.

Fighting out of New Jersey, Mickey Gall is a blue-collar guy just working to achieve his goals. Gall, like any normal person, wants to be the best he can be, however in his profession it is not easy traveling down that road.

Gall is currently 2-0 in his professional mixed martial arts career, and both fights have significance to his life.

His professional debut started out like any other, but when he learned Dana White would be there it changed everything.

White’s show, Lookin’ For a Fight, had Gall’s scrap, but more importantly, it featured his post-fight interview. Gall understood that with White in attendance, he could leave a lasting impression. So, with that in mind, he decided to call out CM Punk. It was a shot in the dark, but the lights turned on quickly when White said, “I’m interested.”

That post-fight press conference led to the opportunity for Gall to take on Punk. The only problem was that Punk was struggling to stay healthy, so White and the UFC came up with a plan to keep Gall occupied as he waited. That plan was a “win and you get to fight CM Punk” situation. Gall was scheduled to take on Mike Jackson at UFC Fight Night 82 and if he won, he was guaranteed to fight Punk.

“It put me in a great opportunity,” Gall told FanSided MMA as he talked about the show. “It has allowed me to get to the UFC now. I just got in there fast. I expected to beat up five or six more guys on the regional circuit, but I got the call because of my call out. I love the show. I guess you could call that my favorite show, especially for what it has done for me.”

At UFC Fight Night 82, all eyes were on Gall because fans wanted to see if he would be the one to fight Punk. He came out of the gate fast and aggressive, dropping Jackson with a strong punch and then locking in a rear-naked choke when he jumped on top. His UFC debut and second professional fight of his career went perfect, as he was only hit three times and made a statement with a 45 second victory.

“The fight with Jackson, you know, I felt great,” said Gall. “I started talking to a sports psychologist a couple weeks before it and it was the best I have ever felt in a fight. Him and I just talk and he is helping me work on staying present. That is what I did in my fight against Jackson. I was just breathing the air and walking with my feet. I am just relying on my senses. I felt amazing against Jackson and I am bringing that confidence into this fight. I know that if I do my thing, there is no way this guy can hang with me.”

After the win over Jackson, CM Punk, who was sitting cage-side, met Gall in the ring.

“It was nice to see him and it was cool,” said Gall. “I have never been super familiar with him, so it was nice to see him and size him up. That was the last time I have seen him, but I am sure I will see him a bunch during fight week. I can’t wait. I am very bloodthirsty.”

After his hard work and determination, Gall had won the MMA lottery. He will be fighting CM Punk at UFC 203 in Cleveland, Ohio.

For Gall, this fight will hopefully propel his name in the sport. Punk may be making his MMA debut, but Gall will always be remembered as the first one who fought the former WWE-champion-turned-mixed-martial-artist.

“I am very fortunate,” explained Gall. “They call him the golden ticket. I didn’t want to wait the past six months to fight, but it was worth it. It is a lottery fight. I am going to be known. I am going to get a lot of exposure from this fight. Ordinarily, it would take me around five UFC fights to get the exposure I am going to get in my second fight.”

Gall had to wait six months to fight because Punk suffered a back injury. Punk had surgery less than a week after Gall took out Jackson, which delayed the fight. However, Gall used that time to improve his game instead of lingering on the fact he had to wait for the biggest fight of his career.

“I am proud of what I did in the past six months,” said Gall. “I made the most of that time. I am a completely better version of myself. I was a kid in my last fight and I have matured a lot. My game has also gotten a lot better. I am ready to go and handle the best in the world. After I get through this guy, I am ready to handle the real killers of the UFC. I have been preparing for my future. My skills have gotten better.”

Fans are eager to see if Punk can win his first MMA fight and if he has the chops to compete with the best in the sport. Gall doesn’t think it’s going to be the welcoming party to the UFC Punk expects

“I am going to implement my game plan and no matter what he throws at me I will be able to take him out, ” Gall said. “I think he is going to be tough and reasonably strong. He isn’t as fast as I am. He moves clunky. He doesn’t move like me. He moves like a dude that hasn’t played many sports growing up, or he wasn’t good at them if he did. I do not move like him, I move different. You know, he has a two-year-old vocabulary; he has been doing this for two years with injuries sprinkled in there. I have been doing this for eight, so you know, he is a little tongue tied.”

“I will probably take him out in the first round. If it goes two, it will be even easier. It will give me more cage time, which is a good thing. My conditioning, you know, I put a pace on people. The longer the fight goes, every second it ticks more in my advantage. My fights have been quick because I come out aggressively, but the pace I put on someone, you know, they start drowning because the water gets deeper and deeper and deeper.”

He has the opportunity of a lifetime at UFC 203 and if he defeats Punk, like he says he will, Gall has his next strategic move planned.

“I will have a name I call out,” explained Gall. “I know who it is and I am not going to say it now. I like that, calling people out because it has got me to where I am today. It has got me to the dance so I am going to keep dancing with it. I want the killers, man. I want war. I don’t want to be protected. People talk about Sage [Northcutt] and Ronda [Rousey] getting protected. I don’t want protection, I want war and I want the killers. I want the top of the line guys.”

Gall is looking to start building a legacy at UFC 203 and establish himself as one of the new young stars in the UFC.

“After I claim my prize, my goal is to become the UFC champion,” Gall said with excitement. “I am not here to, you know, just play along and have a knock around career. I want the belt. After this fight I want to climb and keep climbing to the top.”