PFL’s Chris Wade Won’t Be Distracted by Bubba Jenkins’ Words: ‘It Changes Nothing’

Professional Fighters League veteran Chris Wade has learned not to get distracted by trashtalking ahead of a fight.

Wade (22-8, 10-5 PFL) is one of the PFL “original gangsters” who were part of the roster when the promotion launched its format in 2018. Four seasons and five years later, “The Long Island Killer” is still chasing his dream to win the much-coveted $1 million prize. Last year, Wade went as far as the playoffs, where he lost a hard-fought battle with Brendan Loughnane via unanimous decision. On that occasion, Wade confessed that he paid too much attention to some extra-cage stuff that interfered with his performance. This year, Wade is scheduled to take on long-time rival Bubba Jenkins once more after defeating the “Bad Man” via decision in 2021. Jenkins has already started his mind games to throw off his adversary, but Wade won’t be distracted by anything this time.

“At the end of the day, me and him, we're still going to fight. They're going to lock the cage so it doesn't pay to get all wound up beforehand. Whether he likes me or he doesn't like me or I like him or I don't like him, personally, it changes nothing. And that's something that I feel I added to my mentality this year is… I don't need to have a fight with him for three weeks beforehand in order to perform my best. What I need to do is focus on what his abilities are in there so that then when they lock the cage, I'm my best self instead of worrying about nonsense, like, ‘He says he could take you down,’ or whatever the case may be. I'll just leave it at the fact that I have a lot of respect for what he's accomplished, especially in his wrestling career.”

Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro
(00:26) Being one of the PFL veterans
(01:54) Commenting on his move to featherweight
(03:35) Making videos online
(04:52) Polishing his skills
(06:05) His rivalry with Loughnane
(08:11) His relationship with Jenkins
(10:48) What he expects from Jenkins this time
(12:33) Foreseeing the same outcome
(13:24) Outro