Adrian Yanez wants to “starch” and “hurt” Tony Kelley at UFC Austin after his “bigotry” comments: “It makes it a lot easier for me to punch him in the face”

Adrian Yanez knows there will be a ton of people rooting for him on Saturday at UFC Austin.

Yanez is set to face Tony Kelley, who previously made some bigotry comments while in the corner of Andrea Lee, which ultimately had provided Adrian with a lot of support. Although that adds intrigue to the fight, for Yanez the most exciting aspect is the fact he’s fighting back home in Texas.

“Man, to me it’s still amazing. I’m not complaining one bit, as I would’ve killed to get on that Dallas card, too,” Yanez said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “Fighting at home in Texas has been a dream of mine, to fight on the biggest stage in Texas. Vegas is cool and fun, especially after a win, but being able to fight in Texas and not being far from home is so great to me.”

Even though Yanez is excited to fight back at home in Texas, he is surprised by the opponent as he thought he was ahead of Kelley in the ranks. However, he’s been asking for a fight for quite some time so he had to accept this one.

“There was a lot going on as I’ve been asking for a fight for a while. Everyone knew I was taking three months off as my baby was born in December and then March came around and I put myself in a camp,” Yanez said. “I’ve been asking for a while and I don’t know what was going on. There were some names being thrown around… To me, the Nate Maness fight would’ve been a no-brainer but the Tony Kelley fight is what was available… Looking at it to me, it doesn’t make sense, I’m trying to take steps forward as it is a step back. But, I’m not looking at it like that, this is going to be a tough fight, this guy’s gritty, it’s going to be a fun fight.”

Ever since Tony Kelley made those comments, Adrian Yanez says he has gotten a ton of support from fans and other Brazilian fighters. That includes Gilbert Burns who has told him if he knocks out Kelley he will give him some money.

Although Yanez is trying not to think about it, he admits it makes it easier to punch and hurt Kelley at UFC Austin. Ultimately, Yanez is confident he will do just that and eventually find the KO punch.

“It makes it a lot easier for me to punch him in the face. You can’t really call it racist but it is bigotry and there is no room for bigotry in my heart,” Yanez explained. “I want to starch this guy, I want to hurt him but I know he’s a tough fight. In my head, I starch him and after I do that I say this is for Brazil. The guy said something really something stupid and even Gilbert Burns said if I knock this dude out he will throw me some extra cash. Raulian Paiva was telling me to knock this f****r out, like that’s all cool and all but he’s still in my division. Again, the guy said something stupid and he has to get what he has coming to him.”

If Yanez gets the knockout he isn’t sure what will be next but says he could make a quick turnaround to be on UFC 277 in Dallas.

“Honestly, it really depends as I want to enjoy the fourth of July but at the same time, if the right opponent and everything feels right I’ll go on (that Dallas card),” Yanez concluded.

Do you think Adrian Yanez will KO Tony Kelley at UFC Austin?