Brandon Thatch's name may be relatively new to the UFC stage, but that doesn't mean there is anything untested about him.
The Colorado-based smashing machine hovered in obscurity for the past few years as one of the best fighters fans had yet to hear of, but that's a status he's changing one violent finish at a time.
The welterweight knockout artist put a thunderous stamp on his Octagon debut by dusting Justin Edwards at Fight Night 27 and then crumpled seasoned veteran Paulo Thiago with vicious knees three months later in the Brazilian's native country.
Both were first-round finishes and brought Thatch's running total to 11 victories without seeing the second round. Simply put: Thatch doesn't show up to mess around. He's there to put his opponent away and get on to the next. He doesn't need much room to capitalize when opportunities are presented, and his aggressive style immediately resonated with a fanbase that is drawn to the ruckus.
While there may be a slight difference in the spelling (Rukus), Thatch's connection with the fighting faithful makes a suitable nickname for the promising 170-pound talent. He couldn't be happier to be competing on the biggest platform in MMA where he can put his versatile striking arsenal on display.
The Denver native will get his biggest showcase to date at Fight Night 60 when he faces former lightweight- champion-turned-welterweight Benson Henderson.
"I feel very honored that I have such hype behind me and such an amazing following," Thatch told Bleacher Report. "The fans have been great, and I just want to continue to live up to what is expected out of me.
"This is a great opportunity for me. Benson is a great athlete, and the better my opponent is, the more things I'm going to have to pull out and the better I'm going to have to fight. It's going to bring out the best in me."
The card in Broomfield, Colorado, was originally slated to be headlined with a bout between Matt Brown and Tarec Saffiedine, but the former Strikeforce champion suffered an injury in training and was forced to withdraw. Next, The Immortal was pulled from the card entirely when the UFC scheduled him to face former champion Johny Hendricks at UFC 185 in Dallas on March 14.
This shift bumped the Denver native's bout with Stephen Thompson up to the main event slot, until Wonderboy also suffered an injury in training and was put on the sidelines just a few weeks out from the event. In a sudden turn, the promotion tapped former 155-pound champion to move up a weight class and face Thatch and suddenly a new main event was formed.
While it was certainly a strange chain of events, Thatch was simply happy he was still going to get to fight.
"Oh, I'm into it," Thatch said of his new opponent. "I didn't care who I fought at that point. I could have fought my mother in the backyard. Hopefully I would have won, but I think she would whoop my ass. I was very excited to still have a fight. I was worried my fight was going to get scrapped and was just very grateful Benson stepped up to the plate like he did."
With his new opponent in place, Thatch could keep his focus on returning from an extended layoff that kept him out of action since defeating Thiago in November 2013. He had notched back-to-back impressive stoppages that put him on the map with the UFC's fanbase, but an injury kept him on the shelf for all of last year.
Thatch admits it was a difficult thing to endure and a period he's happy to see come to an end.
It was terrible," Thatch explained. "I sat on my couch, and I was depressed. Anytime you are not training or doing what you love, it's going to be hard on you mentally. It was a sickening feeling to be laid-up like that, and I felt like a Border Collie that was stuck in a cage all day."
Nevertheless, his time on the sidelines will officially come to an end at Fight Night 60 on Feb. 14 against an opponent Thatch is excited to mix it up with. He appreciates the talent Henderson will bring to the Octagon in Colorado, but believes the physical aspects of the matchup—in addition to Denver's mile-high elevation—will be too much for Smooth to handle.
"Benson is a great athlete," Thatch said. "I just think my size and length are going to be very difficult for him.
"If he's not used to it, then absolutely," he added in regard to elevation being a factor. "It's a real thing, and those lungs are going to be burning."
Duane Finley is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes are obtained firsthand unless noted otherwise.
