Back door or not, Joey Beltran ready for 'new tricks' in return at UFC on FUEL TV 4

[BluenoseGreig]

Joey Beltran might not be sure who would play him, but he definitely feels like he's in a movie all of a sudden.

And now, he says, "I've just got to go out and get that storybook ending."

Beltran (14-7 MMA, 3-4 UFC) was cut by the UFC after a January loss to Lavar Johnson. But after just one fight away, he's back – and with the kind of changes he hopes will rejuvenate his career.

After a 1-4 run at heavyweight that included losses to Matt Mitrione, Pat Barry, Stipe Miocic and Johnson, who handed him the first knockout loss of his career, Beltran decided to make the drop to light heavyweight – and the move paid instant dividends, not just physically, but in the quick return to the UFC.

"I love it. I feel way better, just in my day-to-day life. Less pain in the joints, I'm way more nimble, I move a lot better, I move a lot faster. I'm excited," Beltran recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio). "My come-forward warrior spirit is always going to be there. That's never going to change. But I'm definitely going to be able to pull out a couple of new tricks on July 11."

In April, Beltran picked up a win in his light heavyweight debut, outpointing Anton Talamante for C3 Fights. And that earned him a quick return call from the UFC, who wanted him to replace Brandon Vera against James Te Huna (14-5 MMA, 3-1 UFC) at UFC on FUEL TV 4.

And even crazier, Beltran said, he'll return to the UFC in the co-main event of a free TV card. His fight against Johnson at UFC on FOX 2 was near curtain-jerker status – the second fight on Facebook, and not even in a guaranteed TV spot.

"Joey Beltran snuck in the back door and is the co-main event – that's the most hilarious part of this story to me," Beltran said. "So we're going to go out there (and) we're going to put on a show. There's definitely going to be fireworks. It's made for the movies right now."

The "put on a show" part, Beltran is certain about. "The Mexecutioner" said Te Huna is the kind of fighter he'd be a fan of – if he wasn't fighting him.

Te Huna, a New Zealander who lives in Australia, has back-to-back first-round knockouts of Ricardo Romero and Aaron Rosa, the latter of which took place in Sydney this past March. He's been on Beltran's radar, but he'll put any possible fandom to the side next week.

"He's actually got a pretty fan-friendly style, so I would imagine it's going to be a pretty crazy fight," Beltran said. "If I wasn't fighting him, I would watch him fight. If he was on a pay-per-view, I would want to watch him fight. That's the plan – (to have a Te Huna fan beat up Te Huna)."

UFC on FUEL TV 4 takes place July 11 at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. The card is headlined by a middleweight contenders bout between Mark Munoz and Chris Weidman. Beltran-Te Huna serves as the co-main event. Main-card bouts air live on FUEL TV, while prelims are expected for a Facebook stream.

http://mmajunkie.com/news/29478/back...-fuel-tv-4.mma

[Dirty Daley]

I cant see any new trick's. The guy has mad heart but he looked horrible in his last bout , i knew he was going to lose , bookmakers had him and lavar the same odd's basically?? i snapped a bet on lavar and i knew i won my bet after 2 minutes of the fight. Im sorry to say but it was the truth. Im happy he has a chance to earn some big money again and maybe he will stick around a while because i like his style.

[Drock]

James Te Huna is way to fast and sharp for Joey Beltran.

[Dirty Daley]

Not to mention more well rounded. Beltran does have his power to finish this fight also. Beltran has lost alot of weight and i think he still has enough size not to be outpower by te huna. I see fast hands by beltran and te huna getting hurt and taking this to the floor. Beltran would like abit of dirty boxing aswell. It is a tricky fight , i wouldnt know how this would go.