Tim Boetsch’s passion for the great outdoors doesn’t necessarily mesh with the concrete jungle known as New York City.
“It’s pretty interesting though,” the 35-year-old mixed martial arts fighter and Lincolnville native said this week from a Manhattan hotel room, where he is making final preparations to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first promotion at historic Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.
“I know why I haven’t spent a lot of time here in the past: Not a lot of hunting, not a lot of landscaping, not a lot of outdoor activities that I enjoy,” Boetsch said.
Boetsch is fighting on the preliminary card of UFC 205 as the world’s top MMA company stages its first show in New York since the state legalized professional MMA earlier this year — becoming the final state to do so after years of political wrangling.
“It’s a big deal to be fighting in Madison Square Garden,” Boetsch said. “I’m grateful and honored to be here.”
Boetsch, coming off a second-round TKO of Josh Samman on July 13 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, didn’t expect to be part of the UFC 205 extravaganza headlined by a lightweight title fight between champion Eddie Alvarez and featherweight kingpin Conor McGregor, as well as two other championship bouts.
“I didn’t have it on my radar at all and honestly wasn’t thinking it was even within the realm of possibility that I would fight here,” Boetsch said. “When I got the call I was surprised, but it was a pleasant surprise. I was in pretty good shape and ready to fight, so it’s perfect timing.”
Boetsch’s three-round middleweight clash with Brazilian veteran Rafael Natal also will be historic in a personal sense as it is his 20th career UFC bout.
“It’s very rare to get that many fights in the UFC so it’s definitely a big deal in my book, at least,” Boetsch, who is 19-10 overall and 10-9 in the UFC, said.
The former four-time Class B wrestling state champion from Camden-Rockport High School who enjoyed a successful career at Division I Lock Haven University in Pennsylvania credits his longevity to the success he has had — once rising to a top-five ranking among UFC middleweights — and his fighting style.
“For the most part the UFC knows exactly what they’re going to get,” Boetsch, a longtime Pennsylvania resident, said. “They know I show up ready to fight every time and put my best effort forward to finish my opponents and that’s what they’re interested in seeing.
“A lot of guys with winning records but who aren’t exciting to watch are sent by the wayside. Guys who go in there with the intent of finishing fights are what they appreciate and tend to keep around. Luckily I’m l one of them,” he said.
The Boetsch-Natal fight on Wednesday was moved up from live streaming availability on the UFC’s Fight Pass service to the nationally televised Fox Sports 1 prelims that lead into the pay-per-view UFC 205 main card after a middleweight fight between Rashad Evans and Tim Kennedy was postponed.
Boetsch and Natal are expected to enter the octagon at approximately 8:30 p.m.
The 33-year-old Natal is 21-7-1 overall, including a 9-5-1 mark in 15 previous UFC bouts. The 14th-ranked UFC middleweight is coming off a unanimous-decision loss to seventh-ranked Robert Whittaker at UFC 197 in April that ended a four-fight winning streak.
“Natal is very awkward in his striking, which can be difficult to prepare for but I’ve been getting training partners to mimic his style,” said Boetsch, who trained in North Carolina with former Bangor resident Marcus Davis, who also was once a UFC contender. “One thing that stands out is he’s really durable. I’ve seen him take some pretty good shots from people and keep coming, and I think he relies on his ability to wade through that punishment.
“He’s going to be in for a surprise with me because I don’t think he’s fought anyone who hits as hard as I do. That’s been a focus of this camp, making sure I’m accurate with my strikes and putting them where they need to be to finish him off. I feel pretty confident in my ability to get a knockout in this fight.”
Boetsch hopes a victory will return him to the middleweight rankings.
“I’d like to take him out in dominant fashion and then call out somebody in the top 10 and move quickly back up the ladder where I feel I belong,” Boetsch said. “I know I can beat a lot of those guys ranked above me, starting with Natal. He might be 14th, but that’s just a rung in the ladder I’m climbing.”
