Photo via UFC.com
For UFC lightweight champion Frankie ‘The Answer’ Edgar (14-1-1), most of 2011 was spent focusing on opponent Gray Maynard with the two fighting twice with one rescheduled fight date.
With one meeting behind them already in Maynard’s favor, both men would square off in a very memorable “Fight of the Year” battle at UFC 125 on January 1st, ending in a split draw. The fight would then be re-scheduled for May 9th at UFC 130 but would be rescheduled due to injuries to both fighters. Then things would finally culminate with a definitive ending at UFC 136 this past October as Edgar would finally avenge the only loss of his career by beating Maynard by fourth round knockout.
Speaking about the past year, and his upcoming title defense against Ben Henderson, UFC champ Edgar talked to Sherdog.com about moving forward with his life after a tumultuous year.
“Right now I’ve got the fight scheduled with Ben Henderson, and that’s the only guy on my mind,” Edgar stated. “The fights were great with Gray. They brought a lot out of me and matured me as a fighter and as a competitor. I’ve just got to move forward.”
“The biggest concern is always losing,” Edgar stated. “You just have to make sure you make the right decisions come game time. I know I’m going to prepare. I always prepare for every fight. I have a great team behind me and they’re going to get me 100 percent ready for what I need to do. But it’s about applying it and making sure I make the decisions at the right time. You don’t always have to be the best fighter, but you have to be the best fighter for 25 minutes.”
“I don’t know if I could top what I did (in 2011),” Edgar said. “I know that I could put on better performances for myself. For the fans that’s pretty exciting to get beat up and come back. I like to make it exciting for the fans but I like to spare my body a little bit more. I just want to improve and become a better fighter every day. If I do that I’ll be happy.”