Free from worry of title shots, Alexander Gustafsson plans to put a beating on Anthony Smith

Alexander Gustafsson still dreams of being a UFC champion one day, but he’s aware that’s not on the immediate horizon and says there’s actually something quite freeing about his current position.

“When I started this career, I just came in like a wrecking machine,” Gustafsson told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. “I didn’t care about anything else. I didn’t care about the title. I didn’t care about whoever was in front of me. I didn’t care about where I was fighting, how many fights I had a year. I just went all in, and that’s what I’m getting back to, starting with Anthony Smith at the Globe.”

Gustafsson (18-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) and Smith (31-14 MMA, 7-4 UFC) meet in the main event of Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 11 , which streams live on ESPN+ from Ericsson Globe in Stockholm.

Both men are looking to rebound from failed title bids against current champ Jon Jones. Gustafsson’s shot – his second against “Bones” – came at December’s UFC 232, where lost via second-round TKO.

The fight card was infamous for being switched from Las Vegas to Los Angeles the week of the event, a move necessitated by Jones’ “atypical” pre-fight drug testing results. It was a bit of a circus in the days before the fight, but Gustafsson refuses to use the circumstances as an excuse.

“We put so much work in it, and we ended up short for the second time,” Gustafsson said. “It was hard, but it’s all good. No excuses. I just ended up short this time. It is what it is.”

Five months later, Gustafsson knows a third fight with Jones isn’t in the cards anytime soon. But the show carries on, and Gustafsson is now back in action in his native Sweden and said he’s looking forward to the experience of the fourth UFC main event he’s been granted in Stockholm.

“I love it,” Gustafsson said. “I think it’s a highlight every time the UFC comes here to Stockholm, to Sweden. It’s always a highlight in my career, for sure. It’s just an amazing feeling to step in there and have fun basically. I feel calm. I don’t feel nervous at all. I feel really calm and ready for the task.”

Despite his current comfort, Gustafsson said he’s working just as hard as he would for a title fight. “The Mauler” believes Smith is a deserving opponent and one not to be taken lightly.

“He’s got a lot of experience in the cage,” Gustafsson said. “He knows what he’s doing. There’s no stressing at all. I’ve seen him in really bad positions in fights, and it looks like he doesn’t care. He just doesn’t stress. That’s a really good quality to have because he saves himself. You think you’re close to finishing the guy, and you go all in, and he’s still there.”

Gustafsson has the ability to finish a fight at any point, but in this particular matchup he believes his best opportunities will come late in the five-round affair. Gustafsson believes Smith’s technique suffers a bit as time goes on and thinks that’s when the time will be right to strike.

“He’s a tough guy to finish, but I see him get tired in the fight,” Gustafsson said. “He gets sloppy, and I’ve got my weapons ready for him, loaded and ready to fire.”

What will a win bring? Gustafsson insists it doesn’t matter. It will simply bring him another fight and another opportunity to do what he does best. Title shots, rankings, rematches, revenge – Gustafsson isn’t interested.

“I’m not even thinking about Jon or the title or any of that anymore,” Gustafsson said. “It’s been too much and too long in my head. I just don’t really care anymore. I just take one fight at a time and just get back to it.

“I want to stack up my wins again. I want to beat the best guys. Of course I want to beat the top guys, too. I tried. I just have to go back to where I started and take one fight at a time, try to be a better fighter, be a better competitor and take one fight at a time, and win every fight, and stack them up, and let’s see what the future brings. My motivation right now is to support my family and have fun doing what I love to do.”

And, perhaps most importantly to fans, Gustafsson believes the newfound approach to his career will have tangible results on Saturday night.

“I feel super calm,” Gustafsson said. “I’ve got a great flow going now in my training. My conditioning is on top. I’m just feeling so relaxed. I’m ready for it. This is my reward. I don’t care about anything else. It’s just to be able to be in the octagon, fighting the guy in front of me, that is a reward for me – and just having fun doing it with a smile on my face.

“I’m just going to make sure I win every (expletive) round there is, just put a beating on him.”

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