It wasn't exactly a memorable UFC debut for Mark Godbeer Nov. 19, but with UFC Fight Night Belfast now in the past, the British fighter has big things ahead.

It's not often fighters can say they've lost a fight and then taken a step up the ladder, but the opportunity in front of Godbeer (11-3) March 4 is exactly that. In under a month, the man from Somerset, England, will head across the pond to the fight capital of world, Las Vegas, where he will take on UFC veteran Todd Duffee (9-3) at UFC 209.

Dealing with defeat on his debut

The stage and setting couldn't be much bigger for Godbeer next month, but part of the process of getting ready is coming to terms with what went down in Belfast during his debut. Having had time now to reflect on the loss, Godbeer isn't making any excuses, and he knows that he is the one that must hold his hands up and shoulder the responsibility of defeat.

"I don't want to make excuses, and I don't want to sound a sore loser or anything like that," Godbeer said exclusively on FloCombat's SkinnyG podcast. "First of all, I'll take nothing away from Justin [Ledet], I got caught with a slick submission early on. Personally, though, I feel it just wasn't me. Going into the fight, I just wasn't myself.

"I just let the whole UFC aspect get a hold of me, you know, being on the big stage. I let nerves get the better of me, but it's been and gone now. I can always sit back and say, 'I wish I did this' and 'I wish I did that,' but the fact of the matter is it's MMA, you know? I just got caught...No one ever has a clean record in MMA."

The mind over the body

Having gone through that experience, Godbeer now says he realizes the importance of being both physically and mentally ready for a fight. He explained why being in the best condition of your life doesn't necessarily always lead to the best performances.

"The thing is, with the fight game, you can be 100 percent physically ready, but if you're [just] 80 percent mentally ready, you're aren't ready," Godbeer said. "A big aspect in this game is being mentally ready as well as physically, and I just think I wasn't quite prepared for the occasion. Every time I've had [a loss], I've got a few on my record, but every time I've had a loss I've come back stronger. I've obviously learned from that loss and bounced back.

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"I'm not looking at the loss in a negative way--I'm looking at it in a positive way, I think. It's maybe something that needed to happen to kick me back into gear again, you know? Stepping up a level to the UFC, there's no slacking now--everything's got be 100 percent physically and mentally, so it's kicked me in to touch."

Ledet violation--no excuses

Over the last week, the man Godbeer faced in his debut, Justin Ledet, was flagged by USADA (h/t MMAFighting.com) for a potential program violation stemming from a recent test. With his former opponent now under investigation, Godbeer had a ready-made excuse to latch onto to explain his defeat. The British heavyweight insisted he wasn't taking the easy road, though, saying there was only one reason for his defeat in November--himself.

"I did see that, yeah," Godbeer said, confirming he was aware of Ledet's potential violation. "My reaction to it [is], I don't know what he's been flagged for, that's not been released, so I can't go throwing accusations.

"This USADA thing, it could be anything. There is so much on the banned substance list--like painkillers--so I can't just go throwing accusations about. Either way, let's say he's popped for performance-enhancing drugs or something like that, me personally, the only [thing] that let me down in my last fight was my own self. You've seen me fight many times in the past, I'm not going to use that as an excuse--I got beaten because I wasn't mentally prepared."

Working with the Scottish Hit Squad

Having now accepted the loss was down to himself and only himself, Godbeer has moved on from defeat and changed up his preparations ahead of the biggest fight of his life. The man from Somerset has taken his training up north to the Scottish Hit Squad in Scotland, and he is now training alongside fellow UFC fighter Paul Craig and the rest of the team in Coatbridge.

Under the guidance of head coach Brian Gallacher, Godbeer now feels like he's getting the best training of his life ahead of his big night under the bright lights in Las Vegas.

"It's absolutely been a good decision for me," Godbeer said. "Just getting away from everything and focusing. Paul Craig fights at light heavyweight, but he's walking around plus 100 [kg, 220 pounds] so he's walking around a heavyweight. He's been my training partner, and he's the perfect training partner for me. We're both bringing each other on, and his strong points are kind of my weak points, and my strong points aren't so much his weak points, but are the areas he could do with working on as well. We're bouncing off each other constantly.

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"It's not just Paul Craig, you know?" Godbeer said. "There are other guys in the gym, and I'm rolling constantly with black belts now--BJJ black belts. I'm wrestling with good wrestlers, and I'm sparring with top boxers. I've got the whole package under one roof up there. The guys have welcomed me like one of their own and it just feels right--it was the right thing for me to do at the time."

Opportunity knocks

With less a month away now until his showdown with Duffee, all that Godbeer is focused on is making a big impact at UFC 209. The former BAMMA heavyweight champion says Duffee is the perfect stylistic opponent for him to go out there and make a big statement against, on the biggest stage.

"When I got the news, I just thought, 'Perfect,' especially with the opponent," Godbeer said. "I think this is a real chance to pull back some credit with everyone and really show everyone what I'm capable of.

"I've dusted off the UFC nerves, and now is the time to just go in there on a big show and show everyone what I'm capable of. I was more than happy to take the fight as they offered me. Obviously, Todd Duffee, I was like, 'That's the perfect opponent.' It's perfect to put me right back in the mix. This guy, everyone knows him, and he's known for being a destructive striker, so a win over this guy will put me right back in the mix."


​Listen to Godbeer's full interview with "Skinny" Jim Edwards here: