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UFC is heading to Belfast, Northern Ireland in its return to Europe for UFC Fight Night 99 on November 19.



The show is headlined by Ireland's adopted son, Gunnar Nelson, taking on the South Korea's Dong Hyun Kim in a welterweight bout at the SSE Arena. Nelson was last in action in May at UFC Fight Night Rotterdam when he defeated Albert Tumenov via submission in the second round.



Kim the right man at the right time

With his sights on Kim in November, Nelson believes now is the right time for him to create an impact on the top 10.



"I was just offered this fight, and I think it's a fight at makes sense right now," Nelson said. "He's ranked in the top 10. So yeah, I think it really make sense for me -- he's the right guy for me now.



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"I've seen most of his fights, so I know what he is about. He's got good judo, and he's pretty well-rounded. We will see what he's got when we get in there on November 19."



From Iceland to Ireland

Nelson spends most his time training at Mjölnir in Reykjavík, Iceland and usually finishes his camps at SBG in Dublin, Ireland. Training for Nelson is something that he believes should continuously evolve. While he likes to keep some aspects consistent, he's willing to adapt it when required.



"We are running with a new program now," Nelson said. "It's a new fitness program and it goes well with all my martial arts training. We aren't training all that differently on the martial arts side than we used to, but the conditioning program is different. We've just been training small positions that could happen in the fight and just trying to improve in general.



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"When I can I try to stay back home and train because my family is there and so is my son. I also liked going abroad though and having camps because it's a nice change."



John Kavanagh the messiah

At SBG, Nelson trains under the instruction of John Kavanagh, who also corners him during his fights. Kavanagh is a man that Nelson has a lot of respect for and his admiration stems from his experience.



"Obviously, he has been around for a long time, and he's seen the sport evolve," Nelson said. "He's involved with it, and he's just someone who has a real eye for the sport, the techniques, and the evolution. He's very good with individuals and understands that different things work for different people. He has many different students.



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"He used to fight himself, so he knows what it's like. I just think that with me, it fits really well. The team and him as a coach, we always got along really well, and he always has some tricks in his pocket that he can bring out. He just loves it so much, that's one of the main reasons why he's always improving.



"He's obsessed with it, consumes himself with it all day and he just had the eye for it."



One step at a time to greatness

A win for Nelson on November 19 will likely send him into the top 10 of the division and in the mix for fights with the higher-end stars in the division. While others might get distracted at the possibilities that lie ahead, Nelson is a man to take everything one step at a time.



"I always think you take on the task ahead of you a lot better if you just stay focused on that," Nelson said. "Of course, every now and then you dream and you look a bit ahead and think I could be there, or there, or there, but then you just go right back to focusing on this. There are many, many different paths. Which one I'll take, I don't know, but I'm sure I'll embrace it."