(Forget money and fame – Phil was fighting back when the prize was a weird trophy and a semi-attractive Japanese chick. / Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
When we learned that the match between UFC veteran Phil Baroni and 23-year-old pr…
(Forget money and fame – Phil was fighting back when the prize was a weird trophy and a semi-attractive Japanese chick. / Photo courtesy of Sherdog.)
When we learned that the match between UFC veteran Phil Baroni and 23-year-old prospect Brad Tavares would indeed be aired before the UFC 125 pay-per-view broadcast this Saturday, it reminded me of our last chat with the New York Bad Ass on episode 11.1 of the Bum Rush Radio Show. Baroni has reached that point in his career where youngsters are trying to make their names off of him, and he has to beat them if he wants his own name to retain its value. I asked Phil if he felt like the last in a bygone generation of fighters, considering that so many of his rivals are no longer competing. And I thought his response was worth sharing again…
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira interview – Watch more Funny Videos
If the recent reports are accurate, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will take on Tito Ortiz in a light-heavyweight feature at UFC 128 (March 19th, Newark). Lil’ Nog will be looking to boun…
If the recent reports are accurate, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will take on Tito Ortiz in a light-heavyweight feature at UFC 128 (March 19th, Newark). Lil’ Nog will be looking to bounce back after Ryan Bader handed him his first loss in three-and-a-half years at UFC 119. Meanwhile, Ortiz hasn’t tasted victory in over four years. (Seriously. We can’t believe he’s still around either.) Despite the career tailspin of the HBBB, Nogueira isn’t taking him lightly. As he tells our Brazilian correspondent Brian D’Souza:
"I think he’s a very tough guy. He’s an ex-champion, he [was] undefeated for many years. I think he’s a very good wrestler…he has very good Muay Thai. I think he’s dangerous, but I’m gonna do my best for sure. I want to make a better fight from last time. I’ve had two or three fights with wrestling guys, I think I’ve proven my wrestling…I want to do a very good fight with Tito. I can do better."
Nogueira also discusses his new gym in San Diego, and his training partner Anderson Silva’s upcoming bout with Vitor Belfort. It will not surprise you to discover that Lil’ Nog has his money on the Spider.
("I’ve been doing this too long to take things for granted. I’ve seen it happen too often where a guy loses and then comes back and wins." Photo courtesy of UFC.com)
By CagePotato.com contributor Elias Cepeda
There’s a fu…
("I’ve been doing this too long to take things for granted. I’ve seen it happen too often where a guy loses and then comes back and wins." Photo courtesy of UFC.com)
By CagePotato.com contributor Elias Cepeda
There’s a fun game you can play with undefeated UFC lightweight Gray Maynard: Ask him to name, let alone talk about, someone he’s beaten. He can’t do it.
It should be easy for the #1 title contender — he’s had just eleven fights in his four-and-a-half year MMA career, and hasn’t lost a single one. He has many more wins to choose from if you include his entire amateur wrestling career that dates back to his childhood.
Still, as he sits during some downtime between training on the Saturday exactly two weeks before he will face UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar at UFC 125 in Las Vegas, Maynard’s brain freezes when asked about his wins. Gray isn’t difficult to speak with, and his mind is sound. It just works a bit differently than most of ours.
Ask Maynard who he’s lost to and he can rattle ten names off in a row. “People say, ‘oh, you’ve never lost.’ Sure I have. I’ve been in combat sports since I was a kid and have lost lots of times from when I was three all the way through college.”
Gray seems to remember every time he’s come up short on the mats — recalling even grade-school losses with gritted teeth. “They still irk me today,” he says.
Anderson Silva at X-Gym – Watch more Funny Videos I know. At first, you’re like "Whoa, CagePotato scored an interview with Anderson Silva in English? This is historic!" And then you’re like, "oh." CP’s Brazilian correspondent B…
I know. At first, you’re like "Whoa, CagePotato scored an interview with Anderson Silva in English? This is historic!" And then you’re like, "oh." CP’s Brazilian correspondent Brian D’Souza does his best, but it’s hard not to be disappointed when Anderson is fed a question about a potential superfight with Georges St. Pierre, and responds by saying that while GSP is the best welterweight in the world, BJ Penn is the best fighter in the world. (Does that mean he’d rather fight Penn? Aloha, brother.) Also: His training for Vitor Belfort is going well, moving back to light-heavyweight is not his decision, and Team Nogueira is more like Family Nogueira. Now let’s never speak of this again…
Lyoto Machida interview – Watch more Funny Videos
Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida was in attendance at yesterday’s weigh-ins for WFE Platinum, a Brazilian promotion that’s hosting an event tonight at the Fiesta Bahia Hotel…
Former UFC light-heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida was in attendance at yesterday’s weigh-ins for WFE Platinum, a Brazilian promotion that’s hosting an event tonight at the Fiesta Bahia Hotel in Salvador. Lyoto was there to support his brother, Shinzo Machida (1-1), who returns to MMA after a four-year absence. The Dragon spoke with Brian D’Souza about his brother, his controversial fight with Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, and Anderson Silva’s prospects against Vitor Belfort.
Official weights (in kilos) and match-ups for the WFE show are after the jump…
Werdum talks Ubereem – Watch more Funny Videos
After a hard workout at Rafael Cordeiro’s Kings MMA gym in Huntington Beach, Strikeforce heavyweight contender Fabricio Werdum sat down with CagePotato West Coast correspondent Ruben Vera to disc…
After a hard workout at Rafael Cordeiro’s Kings MMA gym in Huntington Beach, Strikeforce heavyweight contender Fabricio Werdum sat down with CagePotato West Coast correspondent Ruben Vera to discuss his health and Strikeforce return. If all goes according to plan, Werdum says he’ll be back in March, fighting Alistair Overeem for the heavyweight title. Werdum and Overeem met once before at Pride Total Elimination Absolute in May 2006, with Werdum winning by second-round kimura. At the time, Werdum says he had zero standup training to speak of. Now, he’s a more complete fighter, and is certain that he’ll finish Overeem in the first round of their rematch. "Overeem is my son, there’s no problem" Werdum says with a laugh.
Other notes: His elbow is in good shape, and he’s currently going through physical therapy following his recent surgery. He doesn’t consider himself the world’s #1 heavyweight after upsetting Fedor Emelianenko in June — he still thinks Fedor is #1, though Cain Velasquez is right up there. As for Saturday’s fights, Werdum predicts that his training partner Babalu Sobral will defeat Dan Henderson in the main event, and tells us to keep an eye on the undercard fighter Fernando Bettega.
