5 Things You Might Not Know About Enrique Barzola

Enrique Barzola’s signing was an under-the-radar move for Bellator MMA that could prove to be quite fruitful for all parties involved.

The well-versed 32-year-old will attempt to move to 2-0 in the Scott Coker-fronted company when he takes on Nikita Mikhailov in the Bellator 278 co-main event on Friday at the Neil S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu. A model of consistency throughout his career, Barzola has rattled off six wins across his past 10 appearances. He made his promotional debut at Bellator 273, where he dispatched former bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell with punches and elbows in the third round of their Jan. 29 encounter.

As Barzola moves ever closer to his showdown with the once-beaten Mikhailov at 135 pounds, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. He stays in touch with reality.

Barzola won Season 2 of “The Ultimate Fighter Latin America” in 2015, as he took a unanimous decision from Jonathan Ortega, put away Cesar Arzamendia with a punch to the body and laid claim to a unanimous verdict over Horacio Gutierrez to leave his imprint on the series. He compiled a 6-3-1 record across 10 appearances in the Ultimate Fighting Championship before parting ways with the organization.

2. He puts a premium on preparation.

The Peruvian operates out of the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California, where world-class coaches like Javier Mendes and Bob Cook oversee his development and where he has had access to stablemates like Daniel Cormier, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Luke Rockhold and a host of others. Barzola has also spent time at the revered American Top Team camp in Florida.

3. He put some tread on the tires.

Barzola has fought in nine different countries during his 24-fight career: Canada, the United States, Mexico, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, Chile and Singapore. Just connecting the dots between those locales piles up roughly 20,000 miles.

4. No one can question his durability.

All five of Barzola’s losses have resulted from decisions. Movsar Evloev, Kevin Aguilar, Kyle Bochniak, Martin Mollinedo and Fernando Bruno were the perpetrators. “El Fuerte” has gone the distance on 15 different occasions and carries an 8-5-2 record in those bouts, with draws against Rani Yahya and Gonzalo Vallejo.

5. Wrestling remains the axis on which he spins.

Barzola landed 36 takedowns as a member of the UFC featherweight roster and still ranks third on the promotion’s all-time list in the category at 145 pounds. Only Darren Elkins (49) and Dennis Bermudez (46) have been credited with more.