If you found yesterday’s pre-fight press conference to be a bit of a bore – and let’s face it, I wouldn’t blame you if you did – today’s activities should at least get you more hyped up for Saturday’s fights.
Jonathan and I are heading over to Georgia State University, where we’re attending today’s open workouts. Open workouts, typically held on Wednesday or Thursday, are a way for us media folk get some footage of the guys training and then conduct one on one interviews. I’ve attended countless open workouts and they’re all pretty much the same, but they still fascinate me each and every time.
Today’s open workouts features the following fighters: Jon Jones, Rashad Evans, Rory MacDonald, Che Mills, Miguel Torres, Michael McDonald, Matt Brown and Stephan Thompson. Brown and Thompson are preliminary card fighters this time around, but they’re being featured because they’ve got a nasty feud that’s getting plenty of play in southern states.
You never know what you’re going to get when it comes to the actual workouts. Some fighters use it as a legitimate training session and go full bore for their allotted thirty minutes. Some half-heartedly punch a few mitts or shadowbox for 3 minutes. And some skip the workout entirely and go straight to the interviews.
Stay tuned to Bleacher Report throughout the rest of the day for updates on this diary and our video interviews.