No trading card, no mercy: Steve Garcia vows revenge on Diego Lopes after Topps snub

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Steve Garcia has spoken out ahead of his UFC Freedom 250 bout against Diego Lopes, saying he feels disrespected by both the fans and the promotion.

The event is set for Sunday at the White House’s South Lawn, following months of build-up and anticipation.

Opening up the seven-fight card is a featherweight matchup between former title challenger Diego Lopes and ninth-ranked Steve Garcia.

Garcia, despite riding a seven-fight winning streak, feels overlooked as he heads into what could be the most important fight of his career so far.

Steve Garcia explains why he feels overlooked ahead of UFC Freedom 250

A win over the Brazilian would put Garcia in the mix for a featherweight title shot, especially since he would be a fresh name at the top of the division.

And with so much riding on this fight, the 34-year-old admitted that he feels like people are doubting him, and wants to show them they’re wrong.

“I do still feel disrespected, I do still feel like people don’t take me seriously, but I finally get a platform where I can go out there and continue to prove otherwise,” Garcia said on the recent Ariel Helwani Show.

But one of Garcia’s reasons for feeling overlooked is unusual — he doesn’t have a UFC Topps trading card yet.

“Bro, I literally have eight fights in the UFC, seven knockouts in the UFC… I’ve knocked out several guys and I don’t even have a Topps card. Like how crazy is that? Everyone on the White House card pretty much has a Topps card, everyone I’ve knocked out has a Topps card and I don’t get no love.

“Let’s just put it this way, I’ve got a big ship on my shoulder for everyone doubting me, I’ll tell you that much. Honestly, it’s kind of irritating because I’ve put so much time and effort to go out there and perform in front of everyone.”

Garcia also won’t be included in an upcoming premium UFC Freedom 250 Topps set releasing Friday.

The collection will only include 30 of MMA’s biggest names from throughout history using American design elements.