With time ticking off the clock in the opening round and the raucous crowd at Accor Arena in full throat, Modestas Bukauskas still heard his father loud and clear, the familiar voice cutting through the steady rumble of noise, directing his son on how to do away with Paul Craig.
“His voice rings louder than anyone else’s voice in that arena, and that’s always what leads to a finish for me is my dad shouting at me,” Bukauskas said with a laugh, ahead of his fight with Nikita Krylov at UFC 324 on January 24. “I landed one right hand, and I heard him gasp.