Even before he received the call, Ali Bagautinov had a feeling he would be challenging Demetrious Johnson for the flyweight championship. Since debuting in the UFC last year, the Dagestan native has made waves in the 125-pound division. After finishing Marcos Vinicius with punches in front of a hostile Brazilian crowd in September, Bagautinov earned consecutive decision victories over Tim Elliott and John Lineker. Immediately following his win over Lineker at UFC 169 four months ago, Bagautinov checked the UFCs official rankings and discovered hed broken into the top five. Since each fighter ranked above him had suffered recent losses to Johnson, Bagautinov knew he was next in line. "I dont know, but for some reason I had this feeling I would be given a chance at a title shot," Bagautinov told UFC.ca through a translator. "I watch all the fights in my (weight class). So I try to keep abreast of everything thats going on." Bagautinov gets his opportunity to dethrone Johnson in the headliner of UFC 174 in Vancouver, B.C. June 14. The co-main event features a pivotal welterweight bout between Rory MacDonald and Tyron Woodley. Also, former heavyweight champ Andrei Arlovski returns against Brendan Schaub. Not only would a win over Johnson be the culmination of all his hard work in both mixed martial arts and Combat Sambo, it would earn Bagautinov the distinction of being the first Russian titleholder in UFC history. The heavy-handed striker also recently became a father, welcoming his first-born son. It goes without saying that a victory would allow him to further support his family. Bagautinov admitted a lot is riding on his fight with Johnson. "First of all, its very important to me that I will go into the history books as the first UFC champion from Russia," Bagautinov said. "It is very important to me, and without a doubt, it will help me provide better for my family. "I think that you will see more and more fighters from Russia (in the UFC). We have a lot of very successful and very promising fighters. I believe that they might be champions and titleholders in different categories, in the future." Though Bagautinov is on the cusp of making a better life for himself and his loved ones, his road to a title shot has been bumpy. A recent report from MMABoxing.ru claimed the fighter failed a 2012 drug test and was retroactively suspended for two years by the International Sambo Federation. According to the article, Bagautinov was flagged for methylhexanemine, a dietary supplement and stimulant commonly found in nasal sprays that is prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Bagautinov has since called the report bogus, stating that had he been suspended, he wouldnt have been allowed to compete in Sambo bouts in Russia. He also said the incident hasnt interfere with his training camp. "I never even thought about it," Bagautinov said bluntly. "It did not affect my training. I would say that I did experience some indignation as to why this nonsense suddenly came up. But it didnt damage me or hurt me in any way because I am focused on my training and my preparations." With the drug accusation behind him at least for now, Bagautinov has to get the job done against Johnson, who has proven to be a difficult puzzle to solve. Since capturing the inaugural flyweight championship in 2012, Mighty Mouse has been as impressive as any champion on the UFC roster. Johnsons toughness was on display in his first title defence in early 2013, as he rallied to win a unanimous decision over John Dodson. He then put on a dominant display against John Moraga last July before sealing the deal with a fifth-round armbar submission. In December, he became the first fighter to finish Joseph Benavidez by uncorking a vicious right hook for the stunning knockout win. Though Johnsons speed, footwork and timing have given other contenders fits, Bagautinov said hes figured out the flyweight champions style. "In my understanding, his style is to actually crock up his opponent and then to win during the fourth or fifth round," Bagautinov said. "I think hes trying to play it safe by not risking too much. Hes running around the cage and looking for the ninth corner. The cage has eight corners, so its as if hes looking for the ninth corner, then (he tries to deliver) the decisive strike, with a decisive result." Though Johnsons speed and slick striking are often considered among his best tools, Bagautinov feels his power and grappling will get the job done. "As Ive said before, God willing, if I get the title it will be the result of everything that I have been doing for all these years," Bagautinov said. "You can expect a beautiful and good quality fight." 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Earnshaw began his career with Cardiff Citys youth program and turned professional in 1998.Colorado Avalanche 3, Winnipeg Jets 2 - The Winnipeg Jets are now 2-2-1 on the road this season with each game being decided by one goal. On the season, the Jets are 5-6-2 and on the four-game road trip, are 1-1-1. The loss marked the first time this season the Jets lost when leading after two, and was also the first time this season the Colorado Avalanche trailed after two periods. It was a frustrating game from a Winnipeg standpoint and that was very evident in the post-game comments from the players, as well as coach Claude Noel. Frustrating because of missed chances that could have got them something out of this game, frustrated because the power play went zero for five and has now gone eight games without scoring, and frustrating because of defensive zone breakdowns. Colorado created some chances early as they tried to jump on a Jets team that had played the night before. Matt Duchene with his ninth of the year opened the scoring but for the most part, the Jets weathered the storm and just under three minutes after Duchenes goal, Bryan Little with his sixth of the year tied it and the first period ended 1-1. The Jets scored the only goal of the second period, with Blake Wheeler taking a drop pass from Little and blasting it through Semyon Varlamov for the go-ahead goal. Second period shots favoured the Jets 11-9. For parts of the period, the teams traded chances with both Varlamov and Al Montoya coming up with big saves. It was Montoyas second start of the season. Jan Hejda evened the game at 7:13 of the third; a goal that put the Jets on their heels forcing Montoya to come up with some big stops. With over seven minutes left, the Jets went on the power play with the opportunity to regain the lead but could not get any sustained pressure. That penalty kill again injected a little more life into the Avs with Paul Stastny scoring what proved to be the winner at 14:32. The Jets pressed in the final 90 seconds looking for the equalizeer but right now not much puck luck going the Jets way.dddddddddddd. The Avs did force turnovers in the third, outshooting the Jets 17-6. From Evander Kane to Devin Setoguchi, the players felt the one goal lead after two periods should have turned into a win and that the Jets were their own worst enemy identifying giveaways and the struggling power play as areas that need to be fixed. Coach Noel agreed. "We could have won. We made poor decisions especially in the third. Mistakes cost us the last two goals, things we havent done lately." Coach Noel did talk about changing the personnel on the power play referencing last years power play struggles that are again costing them points. Andrew Ladd led the way with six shots on goal, Little five. Add missed shots as another concern as the Jets missed the net 20 times and had another 19 blocked. Great chances went for not because of it. But the positive side of that is the chances were there. The Jets created enough offensively to win this game and to beat the top team in the Central Division. Prior to the game, it was learned that Paul Postma is out for an extended period of time with a blood clot in his leg. That news brought Adam Pardy into the game. Chris Thorburn returned to the lineup after missing 10 with Anthony Peluso coming out. The Jets are now 0-2 in the second game of back-to-backs, with eight more on the schedule. The road trip concludes in St. Louis Tuesday (TSN Jets, TSN 1290) with the Jets then returning home to face two Original Six teams, Chicago Saturday afternoon and Detroit Monday. Tuesday will be the second meeting of the season with the Blues, the Jets winning a seven round shootout at MTS centre the first meeting. A win and the Jets return home with five of a possible eight points, but again, a solid 60 minutes will be needed, and a solid 60 is something that has eluded the Jets on a number of occasions in the early going this season. ' ' '