Damon Jackson says he’s been “wrestling heavy” for Chepe Mariscal fight: “I’m going to get it to the ground”

Damon Jackson isn’t shying away from his game plan at UFC Vegas 95 on Saturday.

Jackson is set to take on Chepe Mariscal on Saturday night. He had originally agreed to fight Mariscal on July 20, but the fight was moved to August 10 due to undisclosed reasons.

“I don’t really know, I don’t know if he asked for more time because of the opponent change, or if it was like UFC’s issue. I don’t know, but I was ready to go then, I’m ready to go now. No matter what, it was not a good move for him to move the fight. I’ve just zoned in and I feel great,” Jackson said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com.

With the fight getting postponed a few weeks, it gave Jackson even more time to study Mariscal. He knows Mariscal is a tough opponent and someone who is in there to throw down and fight.

“I know he is a tough dude, fought some tough guys. He’s a banger, he is there to fight and that is what I saw watching his fights. I didn’t realize we fought on the same card in his debut, definitely a tough dude for sure,” Jackson said.

Entering the fight against Chepe Mariscal, Damon Jackson says his game plan is simple. He’s going to wrestle early and often as he believes he has a massive grappling advantage against Mariscal.

“I like the matchup a lot on the ground and I’m not going to lie, I’ve been wrestling heavy. My grappling is back on point and that is something he will have to worry about for sure. He does have some grappling but it ain’t nothing I can handle. I’m going to get it to the ground at some point,” Jackson said.

If Jackson does get his hand raised, he hopes it will get him a shot at a ranked opponent next.

“We will see how it goes. I’m always down to fight, ranked or not. But, I would love to get a top-15 guy next,” Jackson concluded.