Kiwi MMA fighter Mark Hunt may be bracing for a marquee rematch with Alistair Overeem at UFC 209 on Sunday [NZ time], but that doesn't mean he's easing up on the defiant stand he's taken against drug cheats.
Speaking at a pre-fight press conference in Las Vegas, Hunt continued his aggressive stance on what he perceives to be a lack of justice being served against opponents he'd previously fought who have later proved to have been under the influence of performance-enhancing drugs.
To say he wasn't enthusiastic about his upcoming bout would be an understatement.
"I was forced to be here," Hunt told reporters.
"I was told, 'If you don’t take this fight it’s against your contract.' Why should my family suffer and miss out on my hard work? They deserve to have the better things in life because I’ve gotten beaten up to get here, so why should they miss out?
"I haven’t done nothing wrong here, so why should I be the outsider here? The other guy is the guy that cheated. All these other guys that cheat should be put on a pedestal like, ‘That guy’s a cheat. He shouldn’t be here.'"
The 'Super Samoan' is currently embroiled in a legal battle against the UFC, claiming they knowingly allowed WWE superstar Brock Lesnar to fight him back at UFC 200 despite having tested positive for banned substances in his system.
"I didn’t want to be in this position, they gave me no choice.
"What am I supposed to do? Keep coming to work and fighting steroid cheaters. How would you feel going to work losing to guys?
"This is supposed to be the best fighters in the world, not the best cheaters in the world or the best guys that can hide it with doctors."
His opponent for this fight, Dutchman Alistair Overeem, also carries with him a storied history of drug suspension, the most recent a nine-month ban back in 2012.
Again, Hunt is far from pleased at the situation, but feels he was given no choice but to front up.
"Even seeing Alistair outside it really irritates me up my skin that I have to share the octagon with guys that have cheated to get here.
"I feel it’s the UFC’s job to back the guys that have done nothing wrong. We’ve done nothing wrong. The UFC needs to go and do this.
"It takes the legitimacy out of it. There’s no legitimacy here. 60 percent of the roster is cheating. They’re using steroids."
Newshub.