Tuco Tokkos, a familiar face often seen cornering friends and training with elite fighters, is stepping into the Octagon this weekend. He will face Ivan Erslan in Las Vegas.
Tokkos might be harder to recognise, having grown out his hair.
“I messed up my career having a buzz,” he said. “I should have grown the hair out years ago; it’s changed my life… Yesterday at check-ins, everyone on the staff was like, ‘You might be the best-looking dude on the roster,’ and I said, ‘Yeah, me and Paulo Costa need to have a chat.’ They don’t even let me in the PI because they’re like, ‘Is that you?’”
Tokkos Enters Clash Off Victory
Tokkos enters this weekend’s clash with Erslan off a victory, a first in his UFC tenure.
The 35-year-old lost his first two outings to Oumar Sy and Navajo Stirling. Last summer in Nashville, he dominated his matchup with Junior Tafa, taking him to the ground and submitting him in the second round.
Dealing with Imposter Syndrome
Tokkos admitted to experiencing imposter syndrome.
“It was a great feeling,” he said, speaking of his victory. “It was a big relief because you always have a bit of imposter syndrome when you get to the UFC, so it’s like you can get rid of it after you get that first ‘dub.’ Some guys get it in their debut, but I only fought tough guys, so I kept that in mind… When I got the Junior Tafa matchup, I said, ‘Okay, this is a great matchup. I’m gonna go out there and win with confidence.’ Even coming from those two losses, they were tough opponents, so I kept that awareness about it, and it was easier to go into that one with confidence.”
Tokkos has found that being in the gym and on the mats with some of the best helps him address it.