Interviews News - Page 16

“I haven’t personally made a decision one way or the other. Hopefully my brain can heal over time. The shot last fight is something that normally wouldn’t hurt me. I think I need at least some time off from getting hit. I’m going to take time off sparring then. I’ll train still. Still gonna roll. I’ll probably do a little more jiu-jitsu than normal because I like it. It’s fun.” Former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell plans to take a year off to unscramble his brains before making a decision on retirement. “The Iceman” is coming off a technical knockout loss to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 97: “Redemption” from the Bell Center in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, back in April. It marked the fourth loss in his last five fights. Company president Dana White has pressed his good friend and big time money-making machine to hang up the gloves, saying he has made a ton of cash and has nothing left to prove. Liddell — who will be forty years old by the time April 2010 rolls around — clearly needs more time. Sit tight, Maniacs, this one is far from over.

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EDIT: OOPS, One more Talks training and the best fighters Soft ball questions as always, but a fun interview to watch. Talks UFC 100 predictions and retirement

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UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre recently took time to answer some questions for PDG regarding his upcoming bout against Thiago Alves, training and the importance of UFC 100. PDG: How is your training going for UFC 100? GSP: I’m in the best shape of my life and I’m training really hard before my fight. Three weeks I spent in New York doing Muay Thai at the Wat with Phil Nurse and all the guys over there, sparring with Shawn Imes, Brad Imes and all those great training partners that I have for Muay Thai training. I’m learning a lot from Kru Phil. I also train in New York at the Renzo Gracie Academy under supervision of John Danaher – he’s my Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor. I have great training partners there as well. The level of jiu-jitsu in New York at Renzo Gracie is better than it is in Montreal, so that’s one of the main reasons why I have been going there and I spend so much time at that Academy.

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Frank Mir - Accident, UFC, Lesnar & Liddell The Official Radio Partner of PunchDrunkGamer, TakeDown Wrestling Radio recently conducted an interview with interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir. Mir talks with Scott Casber about his training, Brock Lesnar and a variety of issues in mixed martial arts today. AUDIO:

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Although nothing is confirmed, Donald Cerrone expects to take on Ben Henderson at some point in the near future. He also badmouths Jamie Varner with some language that is sure to incite controversy. Check it out!

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8. After watching all of the episodes was there anything of note that didn’t get shown on TV? Richie Whitson – Yes, after me and Jason Pierce got into the argument that you saw on TV. Santino and I were roommates in the house and Pierce decided to put a sign on our door that said “Gingers Only, Queers Only, Please Knock”. So Santino, Frank, Cameron, Demarques, Mark and I sat around thinking of some way to get even with Pierce. We made stick figure drawings with each of the British team members and on each one of the pictures was a picture of Pierce on his knees &^%#$@ &**&. Then we made one more picture with Bisping and the rest of the British coaches doing all kinds of things to defile Pierce. The next morning we got up at like 5 a.m. and put all of the pictures up on the walls of the living room. I went back to sleep and was woke up by the loud laughing of the U.K. team.

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After solidifying his place in the UFC with two knockout wins, over Chuck Liddell and Mark Coleman, Mauricio Shogun is confirmed to face Lyoto Machida. The bout is worth the organization's light heavyweight belt, which could land Shogun back at the top of the world, a post he was used to occupying back in the days of Pride. Portal das Lutas - How did you feel about getting a shot at the title so quickly? Mauricio Shogun - I was really happy about the title challenge. When Dana White told me I was really happy. Lyoto's my friend, we train together. We've been in contact but there's no way to turn down the fight. PDL - Is there anyone you would never face? MS - The only guy I've said I would never face is Wanderlei (Silva). He is my true friend and I have a special affection for him. PDL - After facing three tough guys (Forrest Griffin, Mark Coleman and Chuck Liddell), now you have this shot at the title. Would you rather do a few more fights and better adapt to the event? MS - The one who decides whether the fight is for the belt is Dana White. When I joined the UFC, there already was the perspective of a shot at the belt soon, for what I had shown in Pride. Against Coleman I didn't fight that great, but against Liddell I did well. That's what Dana White had to work with. I'm new in the house, but I have experience and I'm happy for the opportunity. PDL - For the second time in the organization there's an all-Brazilian title challenge, the other being between Anderson Silva and Thales Leites. How important is that? MS - It shows how strong Brazil is in MMA. I believe that, after soccer, MMA is the sport that best represents Brazil abroad. And we are very well represented, because we really sport the jersey. I'm certain the athletes fight for the country. Brazil is still needy of heroes in sport and it's great motivation. We're out there to represent Brazil. PDL - What do you think of Lyoto? MS - Lyoto is a well-rounded fighter, good standing,on the ground and has good wrestling. He's the man to beat, undefeated and has shown his worth. I repect him, but I'm going to train a lot to come home with the win. PDL - Would you like to send a message out to your fans? MS - I can't promise victory, but I guarantee I'll do my all to represent our country, my team and my state. I would like to thank all my fans and tell them they are my greatest motivation in training every day.

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WAR SHOGUN

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The show was incredible. It’s amazing, It’s unbelievable. It’s our first show here and sold out. A lot of people. It was incredible man. This crowd, I don’t know how many people standing … The ground started to shake. It’s unbelievable … Please, I want a rematch. I know it’s the judges opinion, but I’m thinking I won. It was fight of the night. I want a rematch.” UFC 99 headliner Wanderlei Silva sounds off after his thrilling back-and-forth three round war with Rich Franklin at “The Comeback” from the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany on June 13. “The Axe Murderer” came up on the losing end of a razor-thin unanimous decision to “Ace,” who was buckled in the second round by the former PRIDE smashing machine — who once again leaves it all in the cage. The fans were certainly grateful for another gritty performance, but was the losing effort enough to warrant a possible rematch? Opinions, please.

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Cain Velasquez is an undefeated heavyweight who's preparing for the toughest test of his career when he faces Cheick Kongo on Saturday at UFC 99, and he says his goal is to win the UFC heavyweight title. But the 26-year-old Velasquez, who only got into MMA four years ago after his wrestling career at Arizona State ended, says he can be patient. In an interview with FanHouse, Velasquez said that even if he beats Kongo on Saturday, he doesn't expect to get the next shot at the UFC title. He's just looking to add one more win to his fast growing resume. The full interview is below.

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Check out the latest installment in Dana's video blog, as he does a few interviews, details why he is so fan friendly, stops by TUF, and more. Check it out!

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Kevin “The Monster” Randleman – Back in the USA

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PDG: What advantages do you see for yourself going into the fight? Kevin Randleman: I am faster, quicker and I believe that I am stronger than he is. I think I'm a better wrestler and I will be able to use my agility to my advantage. The bottom line is that I am not going into this fight taking him any lighter than any other opponent that I have ever faced. I thought I could beat Fedor Emelianenko, I thought I could beat Mirko Cro Cop, I think I am better than every fighter when I step in the cage and if I didn't think than way why the **** would I be fighting? I have watched a few of Whitehead’s fights and I know that he has been training with Wanderlei Silva but I don't think that his style is going to be that much different than in his previous fights. I think he is going to have a disadvantage though with his weight cut for the fight. He walks around at about 250 pounds and he is going to have to cut down to 205 pounds for this fight.

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“El Diablo” Nick Diaz talks Strikeforce & Scott Smith

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PDG: It is a pretty stacked card coming up on June 6th; are there any other fights on the card that you are looking forward to seeing? Nick Diaz: I think that the fights are going to be very entertaining for the fans and I am sure that a lot of people are looking forward to seeing the Jake Shields and Robbie Lawler fight. But I don't really look forward to seeing any of my friends fighting whether it is my brother or Jake Shields. I am sure that they are going to have great fights but it is not something that I really look forward to watching. I don't look forward to it any more than if I was watching a death match.

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Check out what Frank Trigg has to say as he speaks on a number of topics, including a possible third fight with Hughes, his first opponent, and more.

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“He offended me. I wanted to fight, he wanted to offend. He said that I hit my head on his and opened his face, but what opened his face was the first punch I gave. He has this habit, at the time of the interview he grows, but at the time of the fight he cried, apologized to his coach, then came toward my corner saying I was an idiot, and also apologized. He is proving that he isn’t a person of only one face, he is two-faced. Otherwise everything is alright, I’m not very worried about him. Dude, I already beat him once, was winning this one. For me, if I have to fight, I fight, if I don’t, whatever. The problem is his, he’s already lost once and at the second made this s**t. I don’t know what they’ll do. Honestly, I don’t know, they (FEG) didn’t say anything. I trained three months for this clown to come and do what he did, now I won’t fight in July, not for a while. I’ll take a rest and wait.” Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza provides an update following his middleweight title bout against bitter rival Jason “Mayhem” Miller at DREAM 9 last week. The second outing between the pair was halted early in the first round because of an errant blow from Miller to a downed Souza. The strike carved a deep laceration to Souza’s head, which forced ringside officials to call off the match prematurely because of its severity. The fight was ruled a no contest. Another rematch between the two to determine a more decisive ending seems to be the next logical step; however, it doesn’t appear the “Jacare” is thrilled with the idea at this moment after Mayhem’s latest in-ring shenanigans.

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“I went back and watched the Rashad fight again, and I think it comes down to bad coaching. In the prefight press conference, I heard Rashad say that he didn’t bring anybody in who would resemble Machida’s style. When I heard that, I knew that there might be some problems. That is probably a big reason why Rashad didn’t do very well in the striking area. I also think Rashad should have been coached on using his wrestling talent. He didn’t shoot one takedown that I can remember and he just made it a sparring match. If I was to coach Rashad against Machida, I would have told him to make it a fight, use his wrestling and groundwork to really dictate the match. Not just go out and spar with him. I think Rashad could have done a lot better in that fight. I’m not saying he should have won, but he’s a lot better than he showed on Saturday.” – Matt Hughes shares his thoughts via his personal blog about the main event fight between Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida at UFC 98 on May 23. “The Dragon” looked phenomenal, taking out “Sugar” in the second round with a lethal explosion of strikes that separated the champion from consciousness for the first time ever in his previously unbeaten career. Hughes chalks the loss up to bad coaching and a poor strategy going into the fight. And he’s not the only one — Shawn Tompkins, the head trainer at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, told CageWriter.com that Machida is “far from unbeatable” and Rashad “gave Lyoto everything he needed to make himself look invincible” by failing to close the distance and use his strong wrestling skills. So is Machida really as good as he looked last weekend or does Evans’ head trainer, Greg Jackson, deserve some of the credit?

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PDG: Are there any fights on the card that you are looking forward to seeing? Brett Rogers: Definitely the Kevin Randleman fight and Scott Smith versus Nick Diaz fight. I like both Smith and Diaz but I am very interested to see how Smith is going to handle Diaz’s striking. Diaz always changes things up and both of them love to stand and bang but Scott usually is the counter-puncher so it is going to be interesting to see how both fighters approach the fight. Then you have Randleman who goes full bore all the time and doesn't care where the fight ends up; he may just end up pumping me up for my fight. I can't wait to see his fight.

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“I consider Josh as one of the truly best in MMA, I think he is really in his prime right now. Just like when I fought Cro Cop, he was in his prime as well. At that time it was one of the most anticipated fights in MMA history (and) my fight with Josh can be that as well…. Every opponent is a danger for me and Barnett has a great ground game. He is capable of adjusting his gameplan any minute in the fight.” The last man to hold the Pride FC heavyweight title and current WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko (29-1) hypes his long-awaited fight against “The Babyface Assassin” at Affliction’s third venture, which is set to go down from the Honda Center in Los Angeles, Calif., on Aug. 1, 2009. There has been a lot of talk over the years that both Emelianenko and Barnett were avoiding meeting in the center of the ring because of the friendship they forged during their years under the Pride FC banner. It appears, however, that the showdown was inevitable — they are the last two men standing under the Affliction banner atop their respective division.

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Check out Dana's latest entry in the infamous video blog as we see the new UFC title belts, some press conference footage, Matt Hughes bullying people, among other things. Check it out!

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“Well, to start it off, I think Machida will win by what Joe Rogan calls, ‘elusiveness!’ or in my words ‘hit and run.’ This will be a great test for Evans to find the range to get the takedown. Machida is the favorite in my experience with both fighters. Never mind there’s only one of the fighters that are undefeated truthfully. That mark one on Rashad’s record isn’t a draw. It’s nice to see that one guy I almost submitted will be the champ and the other that I beat is the champ. I’m still a force to be reckon with.” – Former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz tells PunchDrunkGamer.com that he’s still got game because he’s given the UFC 98: “Evans vs. Machida” main event participants all they could handle. “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” battled current 205-pound champ, “Sugar” Rashad” to a draw at UFC 73: “Stacked” back in July 2007, but more than likely would have won the bout if he didn’t get docked a point for grabbing the fence in the second round. He then had Machida in big trouble courtesy of a triangle/armbar submission attempt late in the third round of their bout at UFC 84: “Ill Will” in May 2008. He eventually dropped the contest to “The Dragon” via clear-cut unanimous decision. So what say you … is Tito Ortiz still a major player at 205 pounds or can he still compete (and beat) the best in the world?

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