EDMONTON — Ali Charkie likes to compete as often as he can, so he’s counting down the seconds to his fight against Cal Kostiniuk at Unified 52 on Sept. 8 at BMO Centre in his hometown of Calgary, LIVE on UFC Fight Pass.

Charkie most recently fought in December – more than 10 months ago – when he was defeated by Fay Bursell at Unified 47. The 28-year-old Calgary fighter has had a few bouts fizzle out since his loss to Bursell, but he hasn’t stopped training.

While Charkie hasn’t been able to showcase his skills under the bright lights on fight night, he’s taken the better part of the last year to hit the road for his training – namely at Niagara Top Team and a month spent with elite strikers in Thailand.

“I’ve been wanting to get in there, but at the same time I’ve had to accept what the universe has put out for me,” he says. “For whatever reason, it wasn’t meant for me to be fighting recently, so I’ve just been doing everything I can to get better.

“As frustrating as it was, I’m still very blessed that I could be in the gym and travel around the world to train with elite athletes and level up my game overall,” he adds. “Being on the sideline wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.”

That being said, now that fight night is finally around the corner, Charkie is extremely excited to showcase the improvements he’s made in his game as he enters the cage for the sixth time as a professional.

“I cannot wait for Sept. 8,” he says with a laugh.

“It’s been a long time. When Sept. 8 comes, all hell will break loose. I’m going to go in there and give it my all.”

ABOUT UNIFIED MMA

Unified MMA is Canada’s leading mixed martial arts promotion, showcasing the country’s top-ranked fighters, LIVE on UFC Fight Pass. The organization has successfully promoted 51 events across Canada since it was founded in 2009, and has propelled several athletes to the UFC’s Octagon.