Since turning pro in June of 2018, it had been a pretty hectic first few months of welterweight Kyle Crutchmer’s career.

Following his most recent win this past February, a unanimous decision over Josh Weston at XFN 356, Crutchmer had fought four times since his pro debut, with three finishes in his first four fights.

“It’s been an experience,” Crutchmer told MMAWeekly.com. “I’ve transitioned from wrestling right into MMA. Obviously I use a lot of my wrestling to win those fights.

“I’ve gotten a lot of experience and learned a lot of things about myself that I truly didn’t know. I’ve enjoyed this whole process. I’m ready to get things going at the next level, and continue this road to becoming a world champion.”

Since his win in February, Crutchmer has had some time off, and now with over a year’s experience under his belt he feels like he can accurately gauge where he’s at with his game.

“For me at first it was after the fight (I saw growth), but now that I’ve grown and learned a lot more things in this sport, I can see the progress in training,” said Crutchmer. “I’ve been in a 12-week training camp for this (upcoming) fight with guys that are really high-level and I’ve held my own, so now I know where I stand, and I have a lot more confidence in what I’m able to do.”

On Friday in Thackerville, Okla., Crutchmer (4-0) will look to close out his 2019 undefeated when he takes on Antonio Jones (7-3) in a Bellator 233 welterweight preliminary bout.

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“He’s a big guy,” Crutchmer said of Jones. “He has some experience. I don’t want to share what we’re going to do or anything to do or anything like that, but I think I have enough (advantage) in one category of the fight and I’m going to exploit it and use it to my advantage.

“I’m going to do whatever it takes to win then get back to work.”

When it comes to 2020, Crutchmer is going to approach it as he has his career up to this point and let his team lead the way while he focuses on making sure he is ready for whatever fight comes his way.

“There’s no roadmap, just fight by fight,” said Crutchmer. “I let Bob Cook kind of manage all of that. He tells me when and where, and I get ready for it. I just listen to what my coaches and my management team tells me to do and that’s what we do.”