Issue 099

March 2013

You’re now 34 and after 15 years in the sport you say you’ve got a lot of miles on your tyres. What’s next at this stage in your career?

“I’ve told the guys from the UFC, I’ve told Scott Coker, I’ve told everybody: I only want to fight the best guys. Whatever is the fastest way to get me a title shot. Whoever they want me to fight, as long as it’s the fastest way to a title shot.”   

Fighting friends is a taboo subject in MMA, yet you’ve said you’d rather fight someone you are cool with as opposed to someone who gets under your skin. Why is that?

“Grudge matches generally tend to be bad fights. Neither guy wants to lose to the other guy. They don’t really let loose. When guys hate each other they’re just so-so fights. But when you have a mutual respect for each other, like Chris Lytle, he’s friends and has a common respect for everybody. But he always comes out and puts on a show. That’s the style he fights. It’s a lot easier to just come out there knowing at the end of the fight guys are going to be respectful. If you lose to a guy you don’t like, it’s all bad, man.”  

If you could choose one fight from your career that you feel best defines you, which fight would it be and why?

“The fight that made me feel good and comfortable was my fight with Hermes (Franca). I always wondered if I was a real fighter or if I was just good at what I did. When the chips were down I wondered if I would be a coward and just turn over and tap and give in. That was the fight where I got dropped in the third round. I took some big punishment in the third round. I had already won the first two rounds. I wanted to see if I really was a fighter. So in that fight it made me feel like I knew I had what it took to move forward and keep going.”  

If you could fight anyone in any weight class who would you choose to fight and why?

“I want to fight Cain Velasquez. I see him every day in the gym. I have sparred with him a couple times and worked with him a lot. I know he lost to Junior (Dos Santos) first time out, but there’s not a heavyweight in the game that can hang with him. The mentality and work ethic he has is unbelievable. He’s like a little kid in a big body, but I would still like to whoop that ass.“ 

Which fighter do you like to watch compete the most?

“I like watching Jeremy Stephens. He’s game, man. I like watching him fight. I am a fan of all the Canadians. Well, not all the Canadians, but all the guys such as Chris Horodecki, Sam Stout and Mark Hominick. They are three of the nicest guys ever. I am a huge fan of Frankie (Edgar) and a huge fan of Gray (Maynard) also. Those are the guys I kinda look up to. They earned their way to the top.” 

You’ve been all over the map with the UFC, Strikeforce, Pride. What has been the biggest ‘holy s**t’ moment for you as the sport has grown?

“I don’t really have one. I expected the UFC and the sport to do everything it’s done. Honestly, the ‘holy s**t’ moment was when I woke up one day and I’m sitting at breakfast and my brother sends me a text that says, ‘How does it feel to be back in the UFC?’ and I was like, ‘What the heck are you talking about?’ He told me that the UFC bought Strikeforce. I heard it from my brother! Not my manager, not my agent, I hear it from my brother. I was like, ‘Shut the front door!’ That was really the moment for me.”