Tag: Press Release

Press Release – LOS ANGELES, CA – The following quotes are from tonight’s UFC 160 POSTFIGHT SHOW ON FUEL TV for UFC 160: VELASQUEZ VS. BIGFOOT 2. The show was hosted by Jon Anik, with UFC bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz and light heavyweight Chael Sonnen offering analysis. Ariel Helwani conducted fighter interviews on-site.

UFC 160 POSTFIGHT SHOW ON FUEL TV Analyst Chael Sonnen on Cain Velasquez beating Bigfoot Silva: “I think that anyone who saw this fight, saw it going this way. What was really surprising was that Bigfoot stopped a takedown. It was equally as big a surprise that Velasquez got the shot and knocked him out.”

UFC 160 POSTFIGHT SHOW ON FUEL TV Analyst Dominick Cruz on how Velasquez won the fight: “The takedown threat and the speed were the difference. Cain moves like he’s 100 pounds lighter. He’s just so fast.”

Cain Velasquez on his game plan in the fight: “His game plan was to stay on the feet. Mine was to keep moving, go up with the punches and down with the takedowns.”

Velasquez on if he was thinking about defending his title going into the fight: “I wasn’t thinking about the fight that way. I knew what I had to do – get the win, not defend the belt. I just wanted to get the win.”

Velasquez if he thinks dos Santos earned another shot at the title and where he’d want to fight: “I think he fought a good fight. It makes sense to fight him next. I’d like to see the fight in Texas or maybe Mexico.”

Sonnen on who Velasquez should fight next: “I want to see Josh Barnett fight JDS. I want to see the winner of Werdum versus Nogueira fight Cain for the title.”

Cruz on how Junior dos Santos defeated Mark Hunt: “The jab was biggest tale of this fight. Dos Santos made slight adjustments when Hunt started to duck, that set up the overhand right. It was really Junior dos Santos’ speed and power that were too much for Mark Hunt.”

Sonnen on dos Santos not using his ground game against Hunt: “He went for one takedown and he got it and he dominated. He should have gone after it more. But he made up with it with the kick, which was the knockout of the night, and maybe of the year.”

Cruz on how dos Santos set up his fight against Hunt: “The big difference was the jab. He used the jab to establish the range. Junior did get a takedown and it helped to offset the rhythm. You have to set up with boxing, then add the takedowns. It was beautiful. The timing was amazing. He had 45 seconds left in the fight, so why not throw a haymaker at the end.”

Junior dos Santos on his kick that knocked out Hunt: “I never felt very confident to do that before, but I trained for it in the gym. Today I felt way faster than him, so I tried it and was amazing. It wasn’t very well connected, so when he went down, I enjoyed it.”

Dos Santos on why he didn’t take Hunt down more: “He’s very dangerous in the standup, but I trusted my hands. I came there to knock him out. I believe I can knock out anyone.”

Dos Santos on if he was nervous before the fight: “I was a little more nervous than usual, but I trained so hard. I got prepared and I spent too much money training, so I had to do my best.”

Dos Santos on if he wants to fight Velasquez for the title next: “I feel like I deserve it. I want it so bad. I really believe I can be the champion again and I’m one of the best in the division and I can stay on top of this division for sure.”

UFC President Dana White on Cain Velasquez’s performance: “I think Cain is the best heavyweight in the world.”

White if Velasquez will fight dos Santos next: “It’s a no brainer. I’d love to see the fight in Mexico. We have a lot of options that we’re looking at.”

White on if TJ Grant will fight Benson Henderson for the title next: “Yes, but I don’t know when.”

Glover Teixeira on fighting in front of his idol, Mike Tyson: “I told Mike Tyson I’m his biggest fan. When I was 13 years old I would get up and hide from my dad to watch him fight. Yesterday I told him I watched his highlights before fighting and that’s what motivates me.”

Teixeira on fighting Jon Jones: “I’ll be happy to get back in the Octagon as soon as possible. If they’re having trouble finding an opponent for Jon Jones, I’m here.”

Sonnen on Teixeira: “You’re ranked in the top ten, you have not only not beat a top ten, you’ve never even fought a top-ten guy. You are very good, and you’re very over-ranked.”

Cruz on Teixeira potentially fighting Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis: “Mr. Wonderful could test out that black belt. I’m not going to lie. He mixes his submissions in with his wrestling, his striking is getting better. He creates a real problem for Teixeira.”

TJ Grant on his game plan against Gray Maynard: “He doesn’t move his feet a lot and that’s really something you can expose on a guy like that. He’s a warrior. I expected a hell of a fight. He hit me with some good shots.”

Grant on going for the title fight: “Hey, let’s do it in Canada. There’s a show in Toronto. But it’s up to UFC, and I’m doing what they tell me.”

Sonnen on Forrest Griffin announcing retirement: “Forrest Griffin is now Forrest Quittin’ and Dana White’s giving him a job, so now I guess he’s Forrest Gifted. But the bottom line is this, Forrest thank you. Thank you for getting us on the map, thank you for that awesome fight, 50 percent of it was Stephon Bonner, but thank you for winning the world championship, all of the memories, always being funny and always being a personable, fan-friendly guy. Congrats.”

For a complete listing of FUEL TV shows, go to: http://www.fuel.tv/schedule. For more information, go to www.fuel.tv/ufc and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/fueltv. Follow @FUELTV on Twitter for all things #UFC160.

Follow the talent on Twitter at: @Jon_Anik; @thedomin8r; @sonnench; @arielhelwani

To get FUEL TV, go to www.fuel.tv/getfueltv, or call 877-4 FUEL-TV.

Press Release – LOS ANGELES, CA – On this week’s UFC TONIGHT, Kenny Florian and Chael Sonnen preview the upcoming UFC 160: VELASQUEZ VS. BIGFOOT 2. Plus, UFC President Dana White talks about his most embarrassing song in his iPod and more. Plus, Insider Ariel Helwani reveals changes in UFC 161 and more.

UFC TONIGHT’s Kenny Florian on the UFC 160 heavyweight title fight between Cain Velasquez vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva: “There’s a lot of pressure on Cain Velasquez. The last time he was defending the belt was against Junior dos Santos and he failed. But, when you’re a fighter and you lose by a cut like Bigfoot did, you think that it shouldn’t have gone that way. Cain was very dominant in the last fight, but I think Bigfoot Silva, as an underdog, performs extremely well.”

Florian on what Silva has to do differently in this fight: “He’s going to have to make sure that he keeps Cain Velasquez on the outside. The main thing is his level change. He has to make sure he’s lower, he has to stay eye level with Cain Velasquez and that’s going to prevent Cain from getting on the legs as easy as he did. Don’t throw a leg kick. Cain Velasquez will take advantage of that and take him down.”

UFC TONIGHT’s Chael Sonnen chooses Velasquez to win: “In this fight, the biggest thing Bigfoot needs to do is make things difficult. If he gets taken down, he can’t just fall down – he’s got to make it really hard. Ultimately, it’s going to be a closer fight than it was the first time but Cain leaves with the strap.”

Florian chooses Velasquez to win: “I think Cain Velasquez gets it done. He’s just too aggressive and fast. His wrestling skill will be the big difference.”

Florian on Junior dos Santos vs. Mark Hunt: “Mark Hunt can knock anybody out. His leaping left hook is as deadly of a technique as we’ve seen in the UFC. We may very well see Junior dos Santos revert to an offensive ground game. If I’m Junior dos Santos’ coach, I’d say take Mark Hunt down, and don’t trade with him, that’s going to be too dangerous.”

Sonnen chooses Junior dos Santos to win: “I think Junior Dos Santos is going to win, but his grappling isn’t going to do it. He’s actually going to out-point and out-strike Mark Hunt on their feet.”

Florian chooses Junior dos Santos to win: “I think we’re finally going to see Junior dos Santos use some offensive grappling skills. He’s going to take Mark Hunt down. I think he gets it done early.”

Florian on Teixeira vs. Te Huna: “I was really impressed with Te Huna’s last fight and how he came back. But Glover Teixeira is a guy who’s ranked number four and he’s on an unbelievable win streak right now. He’s taking guys out left and right, and I’ve been really impressed with his wrestling. We’re going to find out if he’s the real deal against Te Huna.”

Sonnen on Teixeira vs. Te Huna: “Glover is outstanding, but in no universe should he be ranked number four in the world. He’s only been in the UFC a few times and none of those guys were ranked in the top 10.”

Sonnen chooses Teixeira to win: “I think this is a very close fight. I think their skills almost mirror each other and it’s a very competitive match. It’s going to come down to who wants it more, and maybe sprinkle in a little bit of luck, and I’m going to give it to Teixeira in a close battle.”

Florian chooses Teixeira to win: “Teixeira is going to take this in the third round.”

Sonnen on Gray Maynard vs. TJ Grant: “What I love about Maynard is his heart and his desire to win, and for the first time in a long time, I believe that’s going to be met.”

Florian on Gray Maynard vs. TJ Grant: “Gray Maynard knows how to win. When I fought him, I’ve never fought a lightweight who was that strong. Sometimes he doesn’t choose the best strategy. But he’s been training with AKA and says he feels great. TJ Grant has been fighting with such a high skill level. He wants to go out there and smash guys. He just wants to beat them and this is a huge opportunity for him. If he beats a guy like Gray Maynard, he may be next in line for a title fight.”

Sonnen on if he’ll fight Wanderlei Silva: “I gave Wanderlei a timeline and he didn’t meet it. In his defense, I can’t expect him to understand time. He’s going to have to wait outside a third grade classroom, wait until it clears out, sit with the teacher, have her get out a book and show him the clock with the left hand. Once he gets a grasp on time, I’m going to teach him about space, which is exactly where I’m going to send him with the same spinning wheel kick I taught Luke Rockhold out at Stone Cold’s ranch three weeks ago. I can’t expect Wanderlei to know the word ultimatum when he doesn’t even know the word sandwich.”

Helwani on how Eddie Wineland responded to not fighting for the title at UFC 161: “He said it’s crushing to him. He said it’s like dangling a piece of cake in front of fat kid for months, and then not letting him eat it. He wants to wait for Barao if it doesn’t take too long for him to recover from the injury. But, I talked to current champ Dominick Cruz and his recovery is going well. He’s hoping to come back before the end of the year. Then he’d get fight Barao, instead of Wineland.”

Helwani on if Roy Nelson will fight at UFC 161: “I’ve heard the UFC is asking Roy Nelson if he will step in [to fight at UFC 161]. Nothing’s confirmed and we’re not sure who he’d fight.”

Helwani on who Chad Mendes will fight next: “Chad Mendes was going to fight Clay Guida at UFC ON FOX 7, but Clay got injured. I’ve heard the UFC still wants to put this fight together and is targeting UFC 164 in Milwaukie.”

UFC President Dana White’s favorite sport other than MMA: “It’d be boxing and then if you talk traditional sports, it’d be football.”

White on the best advice he’s ever gotten: “I got it from Frank Fertitta. When we got in this business, and we started the reality show and all these things, he said: ‘I love who you are and the way you do things, always be yourself and don’t worry about what everyone else thinks.’”

UFC TONIGHT
UFC TONIGHT is the official weekly news and information show of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. The show is co-hosted by veteran UFC fighter and multiple title contender Kenny Florian and UFC light heavyweight contender Chael Sonnen. Leeann Tweeden contributes, while three-time World MMA Awards Journalist of the Year Ariel Helwani adds insider news.

Follow FUEL TV and the talent on Twitter at: @FUELTV; @UFCTonight; @kennyflorian; @arielhelwani; @LeeannTweeden; @sonnench;

For a complete listing of FUEL TV shows, go to: http://www.fuel.tv/schedule. For more information, go to www.fuel.tv, www.fuel.tv/ufc and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/fueltv

To get FUEL TV on your television, go to www.fuel.tv/getfueltv, or call 877-4 FUEL-TV.