Fernie Garcia says his “back is against the wall” against Brady Hiestand after “dissapointing” UFC debut: “I see a war”

Fernie Garcia believes the pressure is on him to prove to everyone just how good he is.

Garcia lost his UFC debut by decision to Journey Newson back at UFC 274 in May. It was a disappointing performance for Garcia who was frustrated that he didn’t fight like himself.

“There is not much I can take away from it because it was very uncharacteristic of me,” Garcia said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “I’m a high-volume guy that will throw 50-60 punches a round. So, the fact that I went out there in my UFC debut and performed like that was disappointing for me and I felt like I let a lot of people down. I’m just prepared not to make that mistake again.”

Once Garcia was ready to return, he was booked to fight Brady Hiestand at UFC Vegas 65 which did surprise him. He expected to face another veteran and is surprised the UFC is going to make one of them 0-2 to start their UFC career.

“I was a little surprised, I know he is a huge prospect and is super young,” Garcia said. “Even though I lost my last fight I do think I can go on a three, four-fight win streak here and make some noise in that division and so can he. Definitely a little surprised we are fighting and one of us will have to go on a two-fight losing streak. But, it’s definitely not going to be me.”

Entering this fight, Fernie Garcia believes there is pressure on him to prove he belongs in the UFC. He also thinks this fight could be do-or-die for his UFC career.

“There is always pressure because my back is against the wall,” Garcia said. “If I lose I could be facing a release from the UFC, but this is also an opportunity for me to show everyone who I am.”

Although Garcia is adding pressure on himself, he expects that will bring the best out of him.

Along with that, Garcia likes the matchup against Hiestand as he expects to be able to keep this fight standing. On the feet, he believes he is the much better striker and will be able to pick apart Hiestand to get the win.

“I see a war, Brady is super tough,” Garcia said. “He went into the house with a knee injury and he nearly won it all. I know he will be wanting to shoot a lot and take it to the cage. But, that is easy to defend. Hopefully, we can skip all that and get to the boxing, but I think I can neutralize his wrestling and make it a kickboxing fight anyway.”

If Garcia gets his hand raised at UFC Vegas 65, he isn’t sure what is next for him. Instead, the plan is to just be active in 2023 and string together some wins.

“I don’t see anything after this fight. After my last fight against Journey, I had everything planned out. So, after I lost I realized I shouldn’t be planning ahead. But, I do want to fight four or five times next year,” Garcia said.

Do you think Fernie Garcia will beat Brady Hiestand at UFC Vegas 65?