Austin Russell talks Gio Platon fight at BFL 70

Austin Russell tests skills against Gio Platon at BFL 70. This bantamweight bout transpires on December 3rd from BMO Theatre Centre in Vancouver, British Columbia.

I spoke with Russell ahead of this fight and we touched on several subjects such as: -The relatively quick turnaround between fights and if there are benefits in that

-A certain sense of wanting to capitalize on what's available right now with prior pandemic cancellations

-Previously returning to action from a dormant period of close to two years between fights

-Adopting the martial arts as a lifestyle kind of ethos

-Previous efforts training with guys like Justin Gaethje and Urijah Faber

-How Russell's coaching endeavors have informed his overall technique as a martial artist

-Honing skills at places like Champions Creed MMA and the Western Canada scene

-What Russell's day job is

-Previous Muay Thai action and how competition in singular disciplines informs the overall MMA game

-The overall assessment of his winning performance at BFL 69

-If being on UFC Fight Pass is a consequential thing for Austin Russell at all

-If this BFL 70 co-main event is serving as a title eliminator for the main event bantamweight title fight

-Thoughts on the main stylistic proclivities of upcoming opponent Gio Platon

-First seeing Russell compete at XFFC 17 in March 2018

-The music that Austin Russell trains to