On June 30, Eric Nicksick knew that he would be heading to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas but he didn't realize that Dan Ige would be coming with him.
UFC 303 produced one of the most remarkable stories in the history of the promotion as Ige agreed to step in and face Diego Lopes in the co-main event all within the space of a few hours.
After receiving the call from his fighter, Nicksick (who was already cornering on the card), immediately got to work in order to make this happen.
He picked up his fighter's cup from Xtreme Couture and under Ige's instructions, assembled a corner on short notice.
Nicksick quickly arranged to meet with both Kai Kamaka III and Sean Strickland who he knew were in Vegas, breaking up the former middleweight champion's lunch date with his girlfriend.
All of these details and more recently came out when he gave his side to this incredible story.
Eric Nicksick Says Dan Ige Is Always Looking And Staying Ready For Opportunities Like This
During his appearance on the Jaxxon Podcast, Nicksick detailed what the crazy turnaround of UFC 303 looked like from his perspective.
He also revealed that taking fights on short notice to try and save the card is something that Ige regularly has his eye on in case something exactly like this happens.
With him being in shape and training out of Las Vegas, he was the perfect fighter to step in for Brian Ortega who withdrew due to illness.
Here’s the thing about Dan. Every card, he’ll look at the landscape of the division or the card, for example, and be like, ‘hey this dude at 55, there’s these two fights at 45, whatever. Take a peek at it, let me know if something comes up short notice, I’m always down to take these types of fights, especially if the juice is worth the squeeze’ and in this particular situation, it was and he jumped on it man.
Nicksick also said that though they didn't get the win, he's glad that Ige was able to pull this off because it shows what's possible if you're prepared.
He went from any old Saturday to fighting in the co-main event of International Fight Week all because he was ready to stick his hand up when the UFC called and said they needed a guy.
That’s what makes me the most proud about the situation is that anytime there’s an opportunity like that, our team can pick up the phone and answer the call. Chris Curtis, Sean Strickland, Roman Dolidze, Dan Ige, you know, and I think it sets a precedence amongst the rest of the team to know what is possible if you’re f****** prepared and you’re ready to go and you’re doing all the right things day in and day out, even if you’re outside of camp. Those opportunities come once in a lifetime and are you willing to open the door when that door knocks.”
Read also: MMA Analyst Dismisses Ilia Topuria’s Champ-Champ Aspirations