HAMMOND, Ind. -- Bellator featherweight champ Joe Warren admits he does not take losses well, but he was forced to deal with it after getting knocked out by Alexis Vila in the Bellator bantamweight tournament.
Luckily, he doesn't have to relive memories of that 1:04 fight. He doesn't have any memories of the fight at all.
"After that last fight, I don't remember it. I hate to say it. I'd never been knocked out or submitted in practice to the point where I went out," Warren told Cagewriter.
He admits that he was emotional in the loss because fighting means so much to him.
"You put everything you have in one basket, when it doesn't work, it's emotional. When I lose it takes a piece of my heart away. I don't take losses well."
The last memory MMA fans have of Warren is of him laid out from Vila's punch, but he's ready to stop that losing streak in his title bout against Pat Curran on Friday night.
"The reason I'm a champion is that when I'm down, I push back up. What's done is done. I can't go back and change it. Now I have to focus on the task at hand, and that's to pummel the [expletive] out of Pat Curran," Warren said.
"The only thing I'm worried about for me is to impress myself. I've worked as hard as I can in the room. I'm still a young fighter. I haven't really had a fight yet where I've impressed myself."
Though fans may wants a spectacular knockout or submission, getting the win is most important for Warren, even if that means grinding out a decision.
"Keep my hands up, my chin down, and winning a five-round war. I'm here to win. I know you guys want knockouts and submissions. I need a win to keep my belt and take care of my family."
After Friday night, Warren will get ready for the U.S. Olympic Trials, where he will try to make his first Olympic team. Warren won a world championship as a Greco-Roman wrestler but was suspended for the Beijing Olympics. He also wants to return to Bellator's bantamweight tournament because it's a better weight class for him.
Even with all that on his plate, he isn't worried about focus.
"I'm constantly focused. I believe in myself, I believe in my training. I have a great support system, so all I have to worry about is taking a deep breath and pressing myself and putting on a show."
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