Houston Astros, UFC

Astros’ Carlos Correa ‘would love’ to crossover to the UFC

Many athletes have attempted to make the jump from their sport to MMA  and Houston Astros star Carlos Correa believes he could do the same.

Mixed martial arts have welcomed a wide range of athletes into the fold. Even those from outside the realm of combat sports have joined as examples such as Phil “CM Punk” Brooks or the Green Power Ranger, Jason David Frank, have stepped into the cage. Houston Astros star player, Carlos Correa, has gone on record with his belief that he is the best person suited in Major League Baseball to appear in the Octagon.

While speaking with Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie, Correa pitched the idea that he has the tools needed to be successful in competitive cage fighting.

“I would love to cross over into the UFC. I grew up boxing and I loved it, but I realized, ‘Man, in baseball, you don’t get hit as much,’” Correa said. “In boxing I’m going to have to be constantly getting hit in the face and stomach in the ribs and that hurts. I stuck to baseball and it worked out well for me. But definitely I would love to try.”

Correa is not just another athlete speaking jokingly about MMA. In fact, he follows the sport very closely. His podcast The Walkout covers the sport and is already garnering a bit of a following. Before UFC 249 he even predicted that Justin Gaethje would defeat Tony Ferguson for the interim lightweight championship.

At 25-years old, Correa is quite the athlete. In 2012 he was the first-overall draft pick by the Houston Astros. Since then he has earned accolades such as the 2015 American League Rookie of the Year and he was a vital part of the Astros 2017 World Series title run. He was also voted to the All-Star team that same year.

When asked about the weight class of choice, he pitched the idea of dropping down to light heavyweight. “I weigh about 215. 220. I could make 205 easily. So, Jon Jones would kick my ass.”

Correa’s situation in MLB is much different than that in MMA so it would be hard to see him ever make that jump. But like other big-name athletes from other sports, the idea has at list piqued his interest.

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