Bellator 170's Georgi Karakhanyan motivated to face 'kid with a lot of heart' in Emmanuel Sanchez

Georgi Karakhanyan may have faced some higher profile names than upcoming opponent Emmanuel Sanchez, but that doesn’t make him any less motivated.

Riding a two-fight, two-finish streak into his Bellator 170 appointment against Sanchez (13-3 MMA, 5-2 BMMA), Karakhanyan (26-6-1 MMA, 5-4 BMMA) believes that a tough curriculum that includes the likes of Joe Warren, Patricio Freire and Pat Curran doesn’t take away from the hard challenge ahead.

“The kid comes from a good camp,” Karakhanyan recently told MMAjunkie Radio. “So the way I look at this is: a big camp that has one win over me. So that’s one good motivation. Looking at the Rick Glenn fight, I’m always motivated.

“If the motivation is not there, it’s time to hang the gloves and not fight anymore. But I’m always motivated, I’m hungry. This is a good matchup. The kid comes to fight – tough Mexican kid with a lot of heart and never been finished, so that’s another motivation.”

Karakhanyan lost his WSOF featherweight title to Glenn in June 2014.

Indeed, finishes don’t seem to be that big of a presence in Sanchez’s most recent record, with his last four results all stemming from split calls – the most recent a setback to Daniel Weichel that snapped a three-fight streak.

Karakhanyan, in turn, has gone to the scorecards twice in his last five efforts – both setbacks, to Daniel Weichel and Curran. His five most recent wins, however, have all been finishes, including a 53-second knockout of Bubba Jenkins in August.

This, Karakhanyan clarifies, is no coincidence.

“Nothing better in this sport than finishes,” Karakhanyan said. “I think as a fighter, if you wanna make your name out there really fast, you’ve got to go out there and deliver.

“Be smart out there, but go for a finish.”

The featherweights meet Saturday on the Spike-broadcast main card of Bellator 170 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The evening’s main event is a light heavyweight clash between Tito Ortiz and Chael Sonnen.

After a weird 2015 that had Karakhanyan dealing with knee surgeries between his only two cage outings, the former WSOF champion managed to get three fights in 2016.

This year, he hopes to stay even more active, fighting three times before the middle of the year.

“I’ve got three more fights under my contract with Bellator,” Karakhanyan said. “So I’m already looking at the Fedor (Emelianenko) card (on Feb. 18 for Bellator 172). I’m so crazy, I’m already looking to see who’s on that card and get this victory and just jump on that card.”

For more on Bellator 170, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.

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