Author: By Thomas Gerbasi

Brad Pickett, professional mixed martial artist, sees the fight game the same way we see him fight. There’s no nonsense, just a desire to get down to business as soon as possible. So the response you get when you ask him about his UFC 138 co-main event against Renan Barao and what a win would do for his career is no shocker.

“Winning is always gonna put you in a better position,” he said. “Losing is gonna put you in a worse position. So all I need to do is keep winning, and I’m gonna be there.”

Can’t make it any clearer than that, and that ability to whittle away all the extraneous stuff and get right down to the heart of the matter has served the 33-year old well throughout his nearly seven year pro career, one that began in his native London in 2004 and that continues this weekend in Birmingham.

And in between his 17 second TKO win over Stuart Grant and his upcoming clash with the 28-1, 1 NC Barao, Pickett hasn’t had anything handed to him; in fact, as a lighter weight fighter, he fought through the same obstacles that United States fighters in those same divisions did in the days before the Zuffa-era WEC brought them onto the world stage.

“When I was fighting in the UK, I was only fighting at featherweight,” said the current bantamweight contender. “But it was still the same thing. And people get the small man’s syndrome when you see a lot of heavyweights getting a lot more attention and money and stuff like that, and you’re thinking man, if anything, I’m more skilled than these guys, because we have to rely a lot on technique rather than just strength, so yeah, it does get a bit disheartening and annoying at times, but it’s just how it is, and hopefully that will change. In boxing, it’s starting to change where people are a lot more interested in people like Manny Pacquiao and (Floyd) Mayweather than they are in (Wladimir and Vitali) Klitschko. So hopefully, that will start to change, and with the UFC giving us the platform to show our skills, eventually in time that could be the case as well.”

With the merge of the UFC and WEC in late 2010, bantamweights like Pickett, Barao, Dominick Cruz, Urijah Faber, Brian Bowles, Scott Jorgensen, Joseph Benavidez, Demetrious Johnson, and Miguel Angel Torres now have that platform.

The only problem for Pickett is that the other eight members of the aforementioned group have already displayed their skills on the UFC level. Pickett, 3-1 in the WEC, has yet to make it to the Octagon. Instead, a back injury has kept him on the shelf since his win over Ivan Menjivar last December, forcing him to scrap a UFC 130 bout with Torres. Stepping in for Pickett was Johnson, who went on to win the fight and move on to a title fight against Cruz. Pickett, who scored a WEC win over Johnson, doesn’t play the What If game though.

“Any guy you beat, you want them to go on and do well because it makes your win look better,” said Pickett. “If you beat a guy who’s 5-0 and he loses 20 fights in a row, it doesn’t look like a good win. So obviously you want your guys to win and go on a tear, and the guys I’ve been beating have been doing that. And I’m not bitter.  A lot of people say to me, ‘you should be there and not Demetrious Johnson,’ and I say ‘hey, I got injured.’ If I would have fought Miguel Torres and beat him, I could have been in that position, but I’m not, and I’m glad that Demetrious Johnson got the shot. I can’t complain about things that are out of my hands; I can’t control that.”

What he can control is his own destiny, which means getting back in action and beating Barao on Saturday. But even with the bout drawing nearer, Pickett (21-5) appears to be the superstitious type, not wishing to speculate about the fight until the fight happens.

“I don’t want to tempt fate,” he laughed when interviewed on October 25th. “I still have a week of training left, and you never know what can happen, so I still could be the last (WEC fighter to fight in the UFC) if something stupid happens, but hopefully not.”

Well, he’s made it to Birmingham and survived the jokes of friends and family that told him to cover himself in bubble wrap to avoid any late mishaps, but has his recent injury forced him to adjust his all-out style of fighting and training?

“You can’t do that,” said Pickett, a member of Coconut Creek, Florida’s American Top Team. “I think the type of fighting style I have will never let that happen. It’s just how I am – I have to go all out. But I’m listening to my body as well. If I was aching a little bit, I had to step back, and it made me a lot more wiser. It’s very cliché to say this, but I do feel like I’m in the best shape of my life, just because I’ve had to start looking after my body a lot more than I had to. I had to realize that I’m 33, not 23, and I had to start looking after my body, eat the right sort of foods, take supplements, and rest, as well as train hard.”

All that’s left is the fight, and it’s finally all systems go for Pickett, who could see this whole layoff as a blessing in disguise since he is returning in a co-main event in his home country. Yet “could” is the operative word.

“Good things come to those who wait, I guess, and I’m happy to be able to fight in England and being in the co-main event is massive to me,” he said. “But I don’t want to get too carried away because it hasn’t happened yet. Until the cage door shuts and I turn around and look at my gloves and they say “UFC” on them, I haven’t yet made my debut.”

To make it to the UFC in just eight pro fights, you’re probably a pretty good fighter. To get a former world title challenger like Thiago Alves in that first Octagon bout, you had better be a pretty good fighter.

Papy Abedi is that guy, and not surprisingly, the unbeaten welterweight isn’t shaking in his boots about squaring off against the “Pitbull” in a UFC 138 main card bout on Saturday, though he was surprised when the call first came in.

“I was really surprised when my manager called me and said that my first fight would be against ‘Pitbull,’” said Sweden’s Abedi through his manager / translator Manos Terzitane. “At first I thought he meant that I was supposed to fight against my teammate, who is called ‘Pitbull’ as well, but then I realized it was Thiago and I was really happy about it.”

You know you’re dealing with a real fighter when he says that he’s happy to be facing one of the best strikers in the 170-pound weight class in his first UFC match and actually means it, but with a perfect 8-0 record that includes seven finishes, the 33-year old isn’t used to backing down to anyone, not even Alves, who though five years his junior, has 30 pro MMA fights under his belt, half of them taking place in the UFC. So if you ask him about dealing with the experience advantage the Brazilian has over him, Abedi scoffs at such a notion.

“He (Alves) is a very good fighter but I don’t see him having any advantage on me,” said Abedi. “I am better than him in all areas of the game. I also have everything to lose in this fight so I am the one to have all the pressure. I am undefeated and I don’t want to make any changes to my record. Only the W counts for me. I have trained very, very hard for this fight and I am in the best shape of my life. It is the first time in my career that I have trained like a professional. All my other fights I have worked eight hours a day and trained after work. This time I have trained four times a day, six days a week. I have never felt this strong and in such a great shape ever before.”

A former electrician, Abedi was born in Kinshasa, where he says that judo is the discipline of choice when it comes to combat sports. And though he now makes his home in Stockholm, he still talks to family members over there daily, and notes that MMA is even starting to make inroads in the land of his birth.

“Judo is very big in Congo and they have started to train MMA now also,” he said. “My dream is to one day open a MMA school in Congo and help all the kids there.”

Achieving such a dream will be a lot easier should he be successful in the UFC, and if you go by his own description of his fighting style, fans who don’t know him now may grow to love him if he delivers on Saturday night.

“My style is kickboxing with a background in Judo and I like to slam and KO my opponents,” said Abedi, who will find a kindred spirit in Alves, whose Muay Thai background and desire to knock his opponents out meshes nicely with the style of “Makambo,” who, despite his confidence, has plenty of respect for his foe.
 
“Thiago is one of the best fighters in the UFC,” said Abedi. “He has a good ground game, good takedowns, good submission defense, good ground and pound, and good standup. He is basically good at everything and one of the best fighters out there. I respect him a lot as a fighter and I know a lot of fans respect him as well as a fighter. This is really good for me because after I win no one can argue how good I am.”

He’s right. Because regardless of how many foes he’s dispatched on the local European circuit, nothing would top upsetting Alves this weekend. It’s an enticing prospect for Abedi, one so appealing that he decided to drop from middleweight to welterweight to take it.

“It was a natural move for me to change weight classes because of my height,” said the 5-11 Abedi. “I was always shorter than my opponents and I think that welterweight is better for me because of my height and also because I can train like a professional now and I have the time to drop weight.”

Yet what getting Thiago Alves as a first opponent shows is that there are no warm-up fights at 170 pounds in the UFC. Every fight’s a dogfight against a top level opponent, and that’s something Abedi will find out immediately on Saturday. But with his talent and confidence, he’ll have tools to deal with such a rude awakening. And in addition, he also has the mental edge of knowing that no one has forced him to deal with defeat yet, an intangible that can do wonders on fight night.

“I have never experienced a loss in my career because a loss is not okay for me,” he said. “The mental advantage for me is that I know that Thiago can lose, as he has done it before, while I have never experienced a loss and don’t plan on doing it. I want to end my career undefeated.”

Tough talk from a tough guy who will find out just how tough he is on Saturday night in Birmingham, England. And with Abedi showing such confidence, is there any doubt that fight fans will be tuning in to see if he can back things up? But the fighter isn’t going to be spoiling things with predictions. He’ll keep some things to himself.

“I don’t want to tell too much,” he smiled when asked what fans should expect from him against Alves. “It is better for the fans to tune in and watch UFC 138. If I tell them what to expect or how it will end, it will be like spoiling the end of a great movie.”

 

Thiago Alves’ first trip to England for a UFC fight in 2008 may or may not earn a place on his personal highlight reel, depending on which part of the journey we’re talking about.

If we’re talking about the lead up to the fight against Matt Hughes, which included an injured ankle and an agonizing weight cut that Alves knew wasn’t going to be successful, he admits to “feeling desperate, thinking I was not gonna be able to fight.”

Yet despite coming in at 174 pounds for the welterweight bout, Alves got to fight when Hughes agreed to carry on with the UFC 85 main event, and that part of the trip, well, Alves was pretty cool with it.

“Fight day, I had a great time,” he laughs, which is not surprising, considering that he knocked the UFC Hall of Famer out in the second round. It was an impressive showing, not just because of the opposition, but because he was able to take the turmoil of the previous week, put it in the back of his mind, and perform when he needed to.

“It was just my mindset, and I was very blessed that day also,” he said. “I had a goal in front of me, I put a lot of work into it and I wanted a reward, and I went there and got it. That’s exactly the mentality I have right now too. I know it’s not gonna be handed to me, so I’m gonna go out there and take it.”

Right now, Alves is in England again, Birmingham to be exact, preparing for a big fight on Saturday against unbeaten, but relatively unknown, Papy Abedi. It’s big because it’s a chance for the “Pitbull” to right his ship after losing three of his last four bouts. So he knows what’s on the line this weekend.

“I’m to the point in my life right now that I don’t want to lose any fights anymore and it’s up to me,” he said. “I control my destiny, and I took control of all my actions and everything that happens in my life. This is it. I’m gonna take charge of my present and my future, and I’m not losing any fights anymore. I put in the work, and now I just have to go out there and perform at my best, and I know once I’m at my best, nobody can stop me.”

The win over Hughes took place in the midst of a seven fight winning streak that took Alves from talented underachiever to the legit number one contender in the welterweight division. But losses to champion Georges St-Pierre and Jon Fitch (in their rematch), and a scare when an irregularity on his CT scan stemming from a pre-existing condition forced a surgery before the second Fitch fight to separate an artery from a vein in his brain, set him back considerably. And though he pounded out a win over John Howard at UFC 124, a decision loss to Rick Story at UFC 130 in May was another disappointment despite Alves’ belief that he did enough to win the fight.

“The last fight, I really learned a lot,” he said. “Just because I worked so hard in my training camp, I thought the fight was gonna be easy. But when I wanted to fight, it was too late, and when I put in the work in the last round when I turned it up, it was too late. The first round I definitely lost, but I still think I got the second round by a small margin, and the third round I really took over. So I don’t really believe it, but I learned not to leave anything to anybody to decide. I’m gonna take control.”

And if anyone sounds more pleasant than Alves heading into a pivotal bout like this, I haven’t found him, and it appears to be a bunch of factors at work here. First, he’s confident that he’s sewed up the holes in his game for this bout. Two, he’s in his third camp with diet and conditioning guru Mike Dolce and he feels like he’s finally hit his stride. And finally, he’s not going to be fighting a wrestler (like GSP, Fitch, or Story) this Saturday.

“That too,” he laughs. “But that’s the thing. I’m looking for a wrestler after this just to see what I’m capable of doing. That’s the whole MMA game, and you’ve got to adjust to every situation. It’s flattering that they don’t want to stand and trade with me, but it shows that I need to improve in other areas. I’ve done it before, and it’s just a matter of time before I do it again. Everything in my life now, I think it’s just a matter of time. I’m gonna get everything that I want to get; it’s just timing and I’ve got to be patient and act when I need to act.”

As for the weight, the albatross that he has carried for years, the 28-year old sounds like he’s got everything under control, and he even claimed a week ago (when this interview was conducted) that he could have made weight by last Friday, something he wouldn’t dare to say previously.

“It’s a blessing,” said Alves. “And this is the first time that I’m actually comfortable with it. This time I see the results on my body and the change in my body and I see the change on the scale as well, so it’s pretty awesome not having to worry about the weight, and the weight is no longer an issue, so it’s one less worry in my head, and I’m very excited to get in there and perform.”

But what about the wildcard in all this, Sweden’s Abedi, who comes into the UFC with a stellar reputation and everything to gain from toppling a respected contender like Alves? Was the Brazilian surprised that he was given a newcomer for his bout on this UFC 138 card, and not a more high-profile foe?

“A little bit,” he admits. “But like I said, I’m at the point in my career where I can’t afford any losses anymore, so I’m taking this fight as a high profile fight like a title shot or something that’s gonna decide my life forever, especially because I have so much expectations on me. If it’s somebody that nobody knows, people expect more from me, but I don’t really think about what people expect. I think about what I expect from myself, so I’m very prepared wherever the fight goes. I’ve seen all his best fights and he’s a tough guy, but he’s never fought on the UFC level before, and it’s gonna be a big change for him. So it’s an opportunity for him, but it’s an opportunity for me too.”

That opportunity is to put on a spectacular Pitbull-esque performance and end 2011 in impressive fashion before looking toward 2012. Papy Abedi is thinking the same thing though, and Thiago Alves knows it…and likes it.

“If you look at this (fighting in the UFC) as an opportunity to do what you love to do and go out there and make all your dreams come true, then that’s a dangerous man, and that’s the way I think he (Abedi) is thinking right now,” said Alves. “Because that’s exactly what I’m thinking and exactly what I want.”

 
 

You could excuse Anthony Perosh if he’s not too fond of picking up the phone for some news on fight week, especially since the last time he did it, he was brought in on just a couple days notice to face Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 110 last year.

But this time around, the news was a lot different for the Australian light heavyweight, who was notified Tuesday that his UFC 138 bout against Cyrille Diabate had been bumped up to the televised main card after an injury to Paul Taylor scrapped his bout with Anthony Njokuani.

“This one’s a lot better,” said Perosh. “I had a full ten week preparation and I’m coming off a win in February as well, and it’s like a bonus already moving up to the main card, opening up the show, and I’m excited.”

It’s been that kind of year for the affable 39-year old, who had his UFC struggles in the past, losing bouts to Jeff Monson and Christian Wellisch in 2006 before running off wins in four of six fights outside the organization that put him in position to receive that late week call to step in for Ben Rothwell against Cro Cop in February of 2010.

It was far from an ideal situation, but having the opportunity to fight in the first UFC show in Australia, a country where he helped (along with longtime friend and training partner Elvis Sinosic) build the MMA scene, was too tempting an offer to pass up.

He would get stopped after two rounds when the Octagonside physician decided that he had seen enough, but his willingness to step up and put up a gallant fight earned him another shot in the Octagon, and in February of this year, his bout in Sydney against Tom Blackledge went in a completely different direction. This time, he was back at light heavyweight and looking sharp technically, and at 2:45 of the first round, he had his hand raised after sinking in a rear naked choke. Suddenly, Perosh had a UFC career to look forward to. Not bad for a guy turning 40 next October.

“I’m 39 years old, but if someone asks when’s it time to retire, I always tell them, and myself as well, I’ll give it away if three things happen,” he said. “One, if my body just can’t keep up. Two, I lose more than I win. And three, I just don’t want to do it anymore. But at the moment, I’m winning more than I lose, I really want to fight and train, and believe it or not, I’m fitter than I’ve ever been, so I’m pumped and ready to go.”

In the 38-year old Diabate, he will be facing an opponent who is similar in age, and similar in career stage. The French striker has been around, paid his dues, and now it’s time to win and move forward. And while the easy way to break the match down is as a typical striker vs. grappler bout, both fighters are fond of going home early, with Diabate finishing 72% of his MMA wins (87% of his kickboxing bouts), and Perosh ending all of his 11 victories before the final bell. So this one has the potential to produce some interesting action while it lasts, but Perosh will take the win any way it comes.

“Every fighter wants to finish a fight as soon as possible, and from Day One, especially with my ground game, when I get you down and get on top, my goal is to keep you down and stay on top and work for that submission, and it’s worked well for me in the past,” he said. “But if on the weekend I get the win in the first, second, or third round, or even by decision, I’ll be happy.”

And since he’s on the main card now, if this is your first look at the Aussie veteran, he’s eager to put on a show for you.

“I’m really hoping they (the fans) see a complete MMA fighter, an aggressive fighter, and not just a BJJ grappler,” said Perosh. “That’s the main thing I want people to take away, and that I’ve given my all.”

Heading into his April 2010 bout with Rafael dos Anjos, Liverpool lightweight Terry Etim was on the verge of stardom. 19 months later, he’s looking to reintroduce himself to the world.

That’s the nature of the fight game, especially in the fast-paced world of the UFC, which has put on 37 events since Etim last set foot in the Octagon. That’s enough time to see the heavyweight and light heavyweight titles change hands, for the WEC to import their lightweights, featherweights, and bantamweights into the UFC, and for legends such as Randy Couture, Mirko Cro Cop, and BJ Penn to announce their retirements.

That’s a long time.

“Obviously, fighting is my life, so having such a long time off has been very hard for me,” said Etim. “I’m just really glad to be back and I’m really excited for it.”

Etim returns to active duty this Saturday in Birmingham with a main card bout against Hawaii’s Edward Faaloloto. It’s his first bout since seeing a four fight winning streak snapped at UFC 112 by Rafael dos Anjos, and then being sidelined with various injuries since then. Losing to the Brazilian via second round submission and then seeing his career get put on hold following the bout was a momentum killer of epic proportions, but the 25-year old is looking at the positive side of things leading up to his comeback fight.

“Even though I’ve been away, as soon as my injuries healed themselves up, I’ve been training, and hopefully I’m gonna come back with a bang and let everyone know that even though I’ve been out for a little bit of time, I’ve been working hard on my game and I’m gonna get back up there,” said Etim, who looked to be ready to step into the rarefied air occupied by British stars Michael Bisping, Dan Hardy, and Ross Pearson before his layoff. And having to sit on a loss for that long made it even worse.

“I think that was one of the hardest things as well,” he said. “Before the dos Anjos fight, I was coming off four wins, so if I would have gotten injured then, it wouldn’t have been so bad because obviously you’re coming off wins.”

He pauses, referring back to the dos Anjos fight, which accounted for only his third loss in 17 pro fights, and first since a May 2008 decision loss to Rich Clementi.

“I think I’m the worst loser in the world,” said Etim. “I hate losing more than anything else. I hate it. Obviously after that loss, the only thing I wanted to do was redeem myself and get back in winning ways and show all the fans what I’m about, so being injured and not being able to do it was so frustrating.”

So what happened that night against dos Anjos in Abu Dhabi, where Etim didn’t look anything like the lanky force of nature that impressively defeated Sam Stout, Brian Cobb, Justin Buchholz, and Shannon Gugerty in succession?

“You know what, to be honest, I’m not gonna take anything away from dos Anjos, and I’m not gonna make any excuses,” said Etim. “I think you get some fighters and they say this or that wasn’t right and why things didn’t happen, and I just say it was dos Anjos’ night. I take nothing away from him.”

Scheduled to return four months later for an intriguing UFC 118 bout against Joe Lauzon, Etim withdrew due to injury, and there has been little light for the Liverpudlian until he was given the green light to train and fight again. Now he gets Faaloloto, and he gets him in his home country no less, an added bonus.

“It’s perfect,” said Etim of fighting on British shores. “It’s always great to fight in front of your hometown, so after being out for so long and then getting to fight in front of them, it’s gonna be great. The support’s always there and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Rightfully the favorite against the hard-hitting Faaloloto, who lost his lone UFC fight thus far via TKO to Michael Johnson in June, Etim is returning to a division whose landscape has changed considerably since his last bout. Frankie Edgar, who won the 155-pound title on the same card where Etim lost to dos Anjos, is still the king, but WEC imports Donald Cerrone, Ben Henderson, and Anthony Pettis are now making plenty of noise in the division, while veterans Clay Guida, Gray Maynard, and Jim Miller also hold places in the lightweight pecking order. But instead of wondering what he just stepped back into, Etim is pleased with the developments of the last 19 months.

“I actually think it’s good,” he said. “It’s made the division a lot deeper, and I think there’s a few exciting guys that have crossed over from the WEC, so I think it’s gonna make for a lot more interesting matchups. Everyone’s fighting to get to the top and fighting for their place in the UFC, and it’s absolutely stacked.”

And Etim is under no illusions about his status in the division. He knows that he is basically starting from scratch again. But then again, given his talent and attitude, a few wins and he may be knocking on the same door he was in April of 2010.

“Hopefully I’m gonna come back with a bang and I want to get back up there as soon as possible,” he said. “I don’t mind who the UFC puts in front of me, I just want to fight the best guys up there and get back to where I was before the dos Anjos loss. I think I was building a bit of momentum, winning four in a row, so I don’t think it’s gonna be a problem getting back up there.”

It all starts again on Saturday night.

“On the night, I want people who are watching the card to remember my fight,” said Etim. “It’s gonna finish in a spectacular way, and whether it be a head kick knockout, a jumping knee knockout, or a nice submission, I want to give the fans something to remember. November 5th, it’s gonna be fireworks.”

LAS VEGAS – If you thought that the reality of Nick Diaz being back in the UFC meant that his career would soon settle into some form of normalcy after his UFC 137 fight of the night win over BJ Penn, think again, as UFC President Dana White announced that Diaz will now face the man he was originally supposed to meet in his return to the Octagon – UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre – in a Super Bowl weekend bout in February of 2012.

“This is what I wanted since the beginning,” said St-Pierre. “Let’s do what was supposed to be done originally. I’ve always wanted this fight – now I want it even more. I can’t wait for Super Bowl weekend.”

The bizarre set of circumstances surrounding St-Pierre vs. Diaz began when Diaz missed two fight announcement press conferences in Toronto and Las Vegas, prompting the UFC to pull Diaz from the bout and insert Carlos Condit into the UFC 137 main event. Penn, who was originally scheduled to face Condit, was without an opponent, so Diaz was then inserted into the co-main event slot. When St-Pierre injured his knee, the GSP-Condit bout was pulled, and Diaz and Penn put on a main event to remember Saturday night, with Diaz rebounding from a slow start to pound out an impressive three round unanimous decision win. Well, impressive to everyone except Diaz.

“I thought I put on a poor performance and I didn’t fight a smart fight,” said the Stockton native. “I’m not happy with my performance at all.”

St-Pierre wasn’t too pleased either when it came to Diaz’ post-fight comment that “I don’t think Georges is hurt, I think he’s scared.”

White spoke to the champion, who was in Vegas cornering victorious middleweight Francis Carmont.

“I’ve known Georges St-Pierre since 2004, and he’s one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met, and he’s exactly the same no matter what the situation is or who he’s fighting. Since 2004, I’ve never seen him like he was tonight. Georges St-Pierre flipped out tonight after Nick Diaz was in the ring. Nick needs motivation – he’s got it. He’s gonna fight Georges St-Pierre. ‘He’s the most disrespectful human being I’ve ever met, and I’m gonna put the worst beating you’ve ever seen on him in the UFC,’ that’s what Georges St-Pierre said.”

Condit will step aside, allowing GSP vs. Diaz to take place, and the Albuquerque contender will likely fight on the same card and get the winner of the title fight should he emerge victorious.

“You gotta come off like that just to get a fight,” said Diaz. “I gotta be the bad guy. You point your finger and make me the bad guy. I’m the bad guy now, and now I get a fight.”

It’s going to be a long wait ‘til February.