Valeri Atanasov will step into the SENSHI ring for the second time against a Brazilian opponent. He is preparing for the 28th edition of SENSHI, which will take place in just a few days—on September 13 in the seaside capital Varna, Bulgaria.

“I’m already in the final stage of preparation. Over the last month, I’ve been training twice a day in the gym. For the first time, I will fight on the beach of St. St. Constantine and Helena. The home crowd will give me extra energy,” Atanasov told Bulgaria ON AIR.

He describes his opponent as an aggressive fighter who enjoys trading punches and aims to finish the match early. The Brazilian Miguel Porto has victories against several strong competitors.

“We’ve watched him. We have a plan for the fight, and we hope it will work. My biggest weapon will be my stand-up game. I’m going in with the mindset for a full fight,” Atanasov added on the morning show Bulgaria Sutrin.

“The most important thing is to listen to what’s being said from my corner, but sometimes I also hear advice from the crowd. The tips are that he’s a dangerous fighter and that I should wait for the counter, draw him toward me. I plan to enter the fight smoothly,” the fighter commented.

Fans are eagerly awaiting the performance of the Varna-born MMA fighter, and tickets for the combat show are still available through the network of Eventim.bg.

He shared that from an early age, he was passionate about combat sports and knew it was something inside him. Valeri Atanasov believes that sometimes a loss can teach you much more than a victory. “That way, the motivation becomes even greater,” he noted in the interview.

Watch the full conversation with the MMA fighter in the video published on the website of the national television channel Bulgaria ON AIR.