Lerone Murphy explains why he asked to fight Josh Emmett at UFC Vegas 105

Lerone Murphy asked to fight Josh Emmett, and he got his wish at UFC Vegas 105.

Murphy wanted to fight someone ahead of him in the rankings and asked the UFC about Emmett, as he thought the matchup was good for him. Oddsmakers seem to agree, as Murphy is a sizeable -340 favorite, while the American is a +250 underdog on FanDuel.

Murphy also says he knows Emmett is a warrior and will bring the best out of him, which is something he wants.

“It’s a massive challenge. Biggest challenge of my career so far, but I’m ready for that and I’ve trained hard for this. So the outcome will be the outcome. That’s it. Simple as that. I didn’t ask for this fight for no reason,” Murphy said at UFC Vegas 105 media day. “I asked for the fight because I know Josh Emmett’s a warrior, I know how good he is and I know that’ll bring the best out of me.”

Murphy is coming off a decision win over Dan Ige after a decision win over Edson Barboza in his first Fight Night main event. Although he is 7-0-1 in the UFC, Murphy believes Emmett will be the one who will really test himself and bring the best out of himself.

Lerone Murphy thinks he could get a title shot with a win over Josh Emmett

Murphy is ranked 10th, while Emmett is ranked 8th, so the winner of this fight at UFC Vegas 105 will be in a good spot at featherweight.

Although Movsar Evloev and the winner of Yair Rodriguez-Patricio Pitbull would be in line for a title shot, Murphy thinks he could get one with a statement win over Emmett.

“Ilia Topuria went on to fight for the title after Josh Emmett, so for me, this is a No. 1 contender fight,” Murphy said. “I feel like behind Lopes and Volkanovski, who are fighting the week after, I think this is the best fight in the division. For me, this is the No. 1 contender fight. I’m looking forward to it.”

Murphy has notable wins over Ricardo Ramos and Makwan Amirkhani in the UFC.