As he spins it forward to this weekend, the middleweight prospect is clear on how to get things moving in the right direction again.
“To be much more free, to be myself,” Abdul-Malik said. “As a man that speaks about being myself and having self-expression, I didn’t do that last fight. I can literally count on one hand the amount of techniques I used… There is a lot of falseness in trying to be perfect and calculated — it freezes you and puts you in a box, and if there were things I did wrong, that is one of the things I did wrong. I completely was not free. I was not myself. I was not fighting. I was a fraction of myself, and it was disgusting to watch. It burns my eyes to go back and watch, but those things happen, man. It’s a learning experience, you grow from it, you move on from it, and you become better.
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“The word that goes through my mind is ‘calloused,’” he added. “When things happen and you get rubbed the wrong way, things are a little rough and tough, but you stay there, you stay in it, allow it to be, you become more calloused. I feel I’m calloused, and I feel really good… I’m grateful and happy for the opportunity to compete and go out there and be myself. As soon as those lights are on me, I’m in that cage and the door is closed, I’m gonna have a smile on my face, take a deep breath — now I am here. Now I can create this art. Now I can use my paint brush on this easel and make something beautiful.”
Although he’s itching to feel the canvas under his feet again, the thoughtful prospect is focused on remaining present, keeping himself balanced, and getting through everything that needs to be completed makes the walk.
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