Chasing after his legacy

Casey Kenney had his heart set on the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Inking a UFC contract remains his goal. But until that day comes, he just wants to keep fighting.

Kenney, a 2009 Jay County High School graduate, will do that Friday night when he steps into the cage against Roman Salazar in the co-main event for LFA 44 at Comerica Theatre in Phoenix.

It marks his second time in a co-main event, following his victory to win the Tachi Palace Fights flyweight title early last year. (The other half of the main event pits Matthew Frincu against Christian Aguilera in a welterweight bout.)

“It feels great,” he said. “The match-up, it’s kind of the old school versus the new school. Roman Salazar, he’s been around.”

Kenney, who has been fighting professionally since December 2014, said he remembers seeing Salazar fight for World Fighting Federation championship shortly after moving to Arizona.

“I’ve been watching him fight a long time,” he added. “It’s kind of cool. It’s a big fight in Arizona MMA. A lot of people are talking about it, excited about it.”

The fight may be another chance for Kenney to turn some MMA heads.

In addition to having held both the WFF featherweight and bantamweight championships, Salazar has been to the big show. He fought three times for UFC in 2015 and ’16, with two losses coming by submission and the third fight ending because of an injury.

Since then, Salazar has won a pair of fights by technical knockout to run his record to 12-6.

Kenney said Salazar is a tough fighter, but the Jay County native also feels that speed will be a major factor. The contest is being fought in the bantamweight division (135 pounds) rather than Kenney’s usual flyweight (125).

“I think he’s just going to be a little bit too slow,” said Kenney. “He’s too one dimensional.

“I think he’s got a lot of holes in his game. He’s kind of like a boxer, wrestler. He’s going to try to hold me against the cage, make it boring. … That’s not really my style.”

That’s where Kenney, a two-time state finalist as a wrestler in high school, expects his martial arts experience will come in handy. He was a junior national champion in judo and also has extensive experience with jujitsu, among other disciplines.

His goal is to make an impression.

After finishing five of his first six professional fights — all wins — early by way of knockout or submission, the last four in a row have gone the distance.

The judges’ decisions have brought mixed results with two wins, one draw and a controversial loss that seemed to have even UFC president Dana White baffled. 

“Any time you can take it out of the hands of the judges, that’s definitely something you should do. I’ve learned the hard way,” said Kenney. “You never know what the judges are watching.

“As a fighter, you have the power to take it out of the hands of the judges any time. That’s definitely what I’m looking to do.”

Friday’s entire LFA 44 card will be broadcast live on AXS TV beginning at 9 p.m. Kenney’s fight is second-to-last of the 10 scheduled for the evening.

It will be the second fight for the 28-year-old since competing twice last summer in Dana White’s Contender Series, in which he won over Cee Jay Hamilton by a unanimous decision in July and then lost in a controversial split decision to Adam Antolin in late August. Despite the loss to Antolin, he thought he had a good chance at receiving a UFC contract. Instead, he was part of LFA 31 in January when he topped Kendrick Latchman by unanimous decision and now will fight for the promotion again as he takes on Salazar.

“Last summer, with the Contender Series and being so close, having Dana White tell me that I had a contract with my name on it, kind of got me in an ‘I don’t want to fight anywhere but the UFC’ mentality,” Kenney said. “These last six, seven months, the longer I’ve sat back, I’ve realized that I like to do this. I love to do it. So, if they don’t sign me after this one, so be it. Line the next guy up. I’ll just keep knocking ’em down until they beg for me.”