Luke Trainer said he thought a PFL title shot was in his future. Instead, he’s fighting “some random geezer.”
Trainer (10-1) on Saturday fights Roland Dunlap (7-0) in a light heavyweight bout on the main card at PFL Tampa (ESPN/ESPN+) at Benchmark International Arena in Florida. Dunlap fought in the PFL’s Challenger Series more than three years ago and most recently has held the middleweight title for Anthony Pettis’ APFC promotion.
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But still, that’s not the title shot or ranked 205er England’s Trainer thought he was getting.
“I was virtually promised a (shot at the) belt after my last fight, taking out a former (PFL season winner in Rob Wilkinson),” Trainer told MMA Junkie Radio. “… Basically, they said ‘Get ready for September – the belt’s yours,’ and now I’m fighting a guy who’s had one fight in PFL before.
“I don’t really know what their plan is for me. They tell me where to go, and I’ll fight. It is what it is.”
The 30-year-old Trainer said he didn’t exactly have a good taste in his mouth after the PFL pivoted from what he presumed would be a big opportunity to a relative unknown in the 33-year-old Dunlap.
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Trainer spends much of his time outside the fight game helping fund and build foster homes for vulnerable children in the area around his native Stevenage in England. A title fight could have been a game-changer for that cause.
“Yeah, (I felt misled). I was furious,” Trainer said. “I think it’s very clear now that I don’t fight so I can buy Range Rovers and Rolexes. I fight so I can build children’s homes – I’ve got a higher purpose in this. This isn’t my forever (job). I’ve worn the same pair of Vans for the last year and a half. My money goes toward something super near and dear to my heart, and I rely on these checks to fund the other stuff I want to be doing in life.
“So when I think, ‘Sick – I get a title fight, that’s ‘X’ amount of money, and this plan can move forward by then,’ and suddenly it’s, ‘Oh, we’re not going to give you a title fight now. We’re going to get you to fight some random geezer who’s a very, very tricky puzzle, and you’re going to have to figure out how to fight him with very little footage. Good luck.’ All right. Cool. It is what it is. But I can’t be the happiest about it.”
Trainer is the third biggest betting favorite on the card with odds at more than 4-1 for him.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Why ‘misled’ Luke Trainer was ‘furious’ over PFL Tampa booking
