Koch ready for first UFC matchup

By Kerry Howley, Community Contributor

Cedar Rapids native Erik Koch will face fellow featherweight Raphael Assuncao in Newark, N.J., Saturday night during a UFC 128 card.

 In what has become something of a pattern for Koch, the matchup with Assuncao came together at the last minute. Cub Swanson, Erik's original opponent and the fighter he was slated to face on March 3 in Louisville, Ky., pulled out of that fight with an undisclosed injury. Koch found out via a fan on Twitter. Days later, the UFC found a spot for Koch on Saturday's pay-per-view card.

 Koch, 22, has a 3-1 record in the WEC, but he has not fought on an official UFC card since the two organizations officially merged last year. He's upbeat about the change.

 “I had peaked, and I was getting ready to rest, and then I had to get right back into hard training," he said. "It has been the longest camp ever. But Assuncao is a better opponent, and beating him gets me more recognition.”

 Koch, who trains in Milwaukee with coach Duke Roufus, said he didn't change his workouts to adjust for the new opponent.

 “I always train everything,” he said. “I'm ready to go anywhere.”

 Assuncao is a 28-year-old Brazilian who fights out of Atlanta. A blackbelt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he has a 3-2 record with the WEC.

 “He looks for chokes and he swings hard,” Koch said, “but I don't think he'll be able to get in on me. I'm a more complete fighter.”

Koch's fight is not scheduled to be broadcast, but if it proves as exciting as his last fight, the UFC likely will find time for it. Koch fought in November against Francisco Rivera, another last-minute matchup after his original opponent was called up to replace an injured fighter in a high-profile fight. Koch defeated Rivera by TKO in 1:36.