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Belfort: Top Fighters Should Be Willing to Fight Anyone

Vitor Belfort (left) | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Vitor Belfort agrees with UFC President Dana White’s belief that the best fighters should be willing to fight their friends, teammates and countrymen.

Belfort will challenge fellow Brazilian and former training partner Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title Saturday at UFC 126. Although Silva has been critical of Belfort’s loyalty in the past, Belfort thinks the fight will be worth it.

“This is a sport,” Belfort said recently on Bruce Buffer’s “It’s Time” show on the Sherdog Radio Network. “After this fight, I really think Anderson is going to look back and say, ‘Man, this fight [made history] in the sport.’ We’re proving this is a sport. … I believe after this fight, many fighters many years from now, they’re going to see how it was important that this fight happened for the sport.”

Belfort expects the matchup to influence future generations of mixed martial artists. The message: take on all comers regardless of affiliation.

“Pretty much people are going to start changing their perspective because this is what people want to see,” he said. “People want to see the best fighters fighting the best fighters. It’s hard. I know a lot of people take it personal, but what’s personal? People don’t recognize that. What’s loyalty? Loyalty is you taking care of your family. You being the guy that you preach that you are. Living the words that you say.”

A former UFC light heavyweight champion, Belfort emphasized that his fight with Silva is not about getting another title or even winning. He said it’s about putting on a show.

“In the past it was all about, ‘I cannot lose.’ Now I don’t care,” Belfort said. “I really don’t care what’s going to be the result as long as I … bring the best out of me. I think that’s what Dana’s expecting. ... Win or lose, I’m going to leave the Octagon wanting people to go back home and say, ‘Man, that was the best fight I’ve seen in my life. It was worth it.’”

Certainly both Belfort and Silva have the firepower to put on a classic. Silva is 12-0 in the UFC and one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world. Belfort hasn’t lost in more than four years. In his September 2009 return to the UFC, “The Phenom” stopped Rich Franklin in 3:02.

“I respect Anderson Silva’s skills a lot, as a person too,” Belfort said. “It’s a competition. It’s going to be a battle. I hope I can leave with a victory. I’m going to fight for that, but I can promise you guys one thing: that I’m not going to back down. I’m going to do my best.”

Listen to the full interview (beginning at :40) with Belfort.

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The Two Fastest Fighters In The World

“I think he’ll find that I can match him in speed or maybe even be faster than he is. We’re both explosive so it’ll be fireworks when we’re in there together.” Demetrious Johnson is beginning to stand out in the UFC bantamweight division and it’s not just because of the uncommon spelling of his first name or his cartoon character alias. The Matt Hume protégé dealt New York’s Nick Pace the first loss of his career, and followed that up by stunning red-hot Damacio Page. At UFC 126 the speedy 24-year-old will try to play spoiler once again when he collides with Japanese sensation Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto (18-3, 1 NC), arguably Asia’s most popular mixed martial artist.

It’s hard to imagine this matchup being anything other than fast-paced and action-packed. MMA fans have waited years for the ultra-explosive Yamamoto to showcase his sizzling skill set in the U.S., particularly inside of the Octagon, home of the world’s premier 135- and 145-pound fighters. While February 5 will be a monumental day for Yamamoto, it will also harbor the greatest opportunity of Johnson’s three-year career.

“He’s one of the biggest stars in Japan. He’s like the Manny Pacquiao of Japan,” Johnson, a.k.a. “Mighty Mouse,” said of his fiery opponent, a knockout artist who has triumphed over the likes of Genki Sudo, Royler Gracie, Rani Yahya, Caol Uno, Jeff Curran and Bibiano Fernandes, among others. “He’s a good striker, very athletic. Everybody sees him as a legend of the sport – which he is – and I want to test myself against him.”

Other than a nine-year age gap (Kid is 33, Johnson is 24), there’s an abundance of similarities between the two fighters. Yamamoto is 5’4”, a mere inch taller than Johnson. Both are relatively undersized bantamweights with impressive wrestling credentials. Yamamoto is the son of an Olympic wrestler, won multiple state titles in high school wrestling and has competed in world-class wrestling competitions. Johnson finished state runner-up in high school. One of the most interesting subplots of their battle involves speed. Yamamoto is super-quick and has used that superior speed to devastate and abuse the opposition, sometimes with punches and kicks, other times with breathtaking slams. Johnson, 12-1, is exceptionally fast himself.
“I’ll probably be the quickest person he’s ever come up against because he usually fights up a weight class at 145 or 155,” Johnson said. “I think he’ll find that I can match him in speed or maybe even be faster than he is. We’re both explosive so it’ll be fireworks when we’re in there together.”

His trainer, Matt Hume, went a step further, billing the bout as a contest between “the two fastest fighters in the world.”

“At the end of the day I think people are going to decide that the fastest fighter in the world is Demetrious Johnson and Kid Yamamoto is the second fastest,” Hume said. “It’s going to be different for Kid in that he doesn’t have the speed (advantage) to exploit in this fight.”

When he upended highly-ranked Damacio Page last month, Johnson’s wrestling proved the difference. Adding to the feat, the Washington state fighter had accepted the fight on only three weeks’ notice.

“It was a great victory for me.”

This time around, Johnson will have the benefit of a full training camp. There is much to be gained, but Hume is advising his fighter to keep it all in perspective.

“This fight is huge and just another day at the same time,” Hume said. “It’s like the old adage in football: You’ve been in the end zone before, so when you score a touchdown act like you’ve been there before. We expect Demetrious to win the fight and keep moving forward in the UFC. But it would be an incredible accomplishment because Kid was at one point considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world by a lot of people. He is definitely the most popular fighter in Japan, maybe the most popular fighter in Asia. So it would be a huge win for D.J., but at the same time we just expect to go take care of business.”

Johnson declined to offer a prediction, and said he wants victory for its own sake, not for the money and notoriety it might bring.

“I’ll just go out there and do my best,” he said. “I love to fight. When I fight I don’t go in there for a paycheck, I go in there to have fun and just do my thing. I’m still just Joe Schmoe out on the streets just like everybody else and I like it like that.”

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Fighters' Secret Superpowers

Brock Lensar as "The Incredible Hulk", Urijah Faber as "Iron Man", or Junior Dos Santos as "The Silver Surfer" Brought to you by The Green Hornet - In Theaters January 14, 2011

We love watching fighters because their physical abilities seem above and beyond what normal humans can do. Here are some top athletes and the fictional characters they think they could very well be related to. Take a look and leave a comment with your own suggestions.

Brock Lesnar - The Incredible Hulk
When Bruce Banner gets angry he becomes the Incredible Hulk. When the Incredible Hulk gets angry he becomes Brock Lesnar. Both are big, agile and strong – real strong. The Hulk’s strength is near limitless, and the same can be said for Lesnar -- just ask Frank Mir, Heath Herring and Randy Couture.

Urijah Faber - Iron Man
Out of his metal suit, Tony Stark is a CEO millionaire playboy with a trademark smile. Out of the steel cage, Faber is one of the most recognizable MMA stars with commercials, big sponsors, gyms, protégés and a trademark smile, plus a cleft chin. But when they’re at work, both superheros are strong, fast and durable with a cache of the newest weaponry available in their respective fields.

Randy Couture - Ra’s Al Ghul
Ra’s Al Ghul uses the Lazarus Pits to heal himself of all wounds and keep himself in the prime of his life. No one is really sure how Couture still stays so competitive as the years wear on, but nevertheless, Couture and Ra’s Al Ghul are both master strategists and experienced warriors from centuries’ worth of fighting.

Joseph Benavidez - Daredevil
Matt Murdock’s alter ego, a club-carrying blind guy who knows karate and charges head first into fight swith anyone, is dubbed “The Man Without Fear.” Joseph Benavidez may be 5’4” (with shoes), but he attacks his opponents first and often without a moment of hesitation, even if that opponent is MMA legend Miguel Angel Torres. Also, they both look good in red.

George St-Pierre - Captain America
Two supreme athletic specimens, these two possess amazing physical prowess. St-Pierre started as a dynamic striker with a submission game and over has evolved into one of the best wrestlers as well. If the Canadian could learn how to throw a shield, he could be “Captain North America”.  

Lyoto Machida - The Flash
Using their fast feet to dodge attacks and land lightning-quick counterstrikes, The Dragon and The Flash terrorize using insane speed. Opponents see only a blur of light and then the floor. The only major difference? Machida knows Shotokan Karate.

Jose Aldo - Blade
Blade’s mother was bitten by a vampire while pregnant; this resulted in Blade being born human with vampiric powers, terrorizing those between the two worlds. Aldo is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt who has savagely knocked out everyone he has fought in the US. Aldo is scarily-talented on the feet and on the ground. Aldo and Blade are simply the best of both worlds.

Wanderlei Silva - Ghost Rider
No, Wanderlei Silva didn’t sell his soul to the Devil to harvest souls while riding a motorcycle. No, both he and Ghost Rider are famous for their staredowns. Ghost Rider’s “penance stare” makes its victim experience all the pain they have ever inflicted on others. Silva’s pre-fight stare down makes his opponent tremble imagining all the pain they’re about to have inflicted on them by the man they call “The Axe Murderer.”

Jon Jones - Green Lantern
Artists in combat, these figures facilitate the destruction of their opponents through imagination and creativity. Jones uses brutal takedowns, spinning back elbows and high kicks; the Green Lantern’s power ring can do virtually anything. But with no jewelry allowed in the Octagon, point Jones.

Paulo Thiago - The Punisher
It is not always the prettiest victory, but both men always get the job done. These two steely-eyed killers are prepared to go whereever the fight takes them. The Punisher use his fists, knives, guns, bombs; Thiago uses his arms and legs to rack up submission and knockout–of-the-night bonuses.

Nate Diaz - Juggernaut
Physically, they are polar opposites; Juggernaut is a dump truck of muscles and Diaz is skinny as a rail. They are both little brothers (of Professor X and Nick Diaz); mentally they are blood brothers; they have an unflinching resolve to attack their opponent head-on. Both are supremely confident in their abilities and are impervious to mental games. But one look at the scene from X-Men III where Juggernaut yells “I’m the Juggernaut, b#*ch,” and the true similarity is instantly clear.

Junior Dos Santos - The Silver Surfer
The Silver Surfer’s sleek bald head used to be an omen that an evil God-like villain, Galactus, was about to eat your planet. Nowadays, it’s Cigano’s sleek bald head it’s that signifies imminent vicious punching power that will destroy your world. Hyperbole is disproven by his UFC record: four knockouts in the first round and one man-handling of Mirko “Cro Cop” is not hyperbolic.  

Shane Carwin - Thing from the Fantastic 4
Fill in the Thing’s cracks with silly putty and it is Shane Carwin. They’re both huge and freakishly powerful individuals who club opponents with their ginormous stone hands. Carwin has won all of his UFC fights by demolishing KO in the first round. When Shane Carwin steps into the Octagon it certainly is “clobberin’ time”.

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WEC 53 Bonuses: 4 Fighters Pocket $10K

Former bantamweight champion Eddie Wineland turned Ken Stone into a projectile and walked away with a $10,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus.

Wineland knocked out Stone with a powerful first-round slam in their preliminary matchup at WEC 53 “Henderson vs. Pettis” on Thursday at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz. The violent end came 2:11 into round one, as Wineland won for the fourth time in as many appearances. Stone, who later regained consciousness, left the cage on a stretcher. The American Top Team representative had never before been finished.

Meanwhile, Shane Roller pocketed a $10,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus after he finished former lightweight champion Jamie Varner with a rear-naked choke. A three-time collegiate All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University, Roller, 31, cinched the choke and solicited the tapout 3:55 into the first round.

Finally, headliners Benson Henderson and Anthony Pettis banked matching $10,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses after their unforgettable five-round duel ended in a unanimous decision for the latter. All three cage-side judges sided with Pettis, who dethroned Henderson and became the final lightweight champion in WEC history. Scores were 48-47, 48-7 and 49-46.

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UFC 122 Bonuses: Four Fighters Take $60K

Dennis Siver file photo: Dave Mandel | Sherdog.com

London Shootfighters product Karlos Vemola turned less than four minutes of Octagon combat into a handsome payday.

Vemola earned a $60,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus after he throttled Seth Petruzelli with punches and elbows en route to a first-round technical knockout at UFC 122 “Marquardt vs. Okami” on Saturday at the Konig Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, Germany. Battered and bloodied, Petruzelli met his end 3:46 into round one.

A former heavyweight, Vemola made the most of his debut at 205 pounds. The 25-year-old Czech twice scored with slams, avoided triangle choke and armbar attempts from Petruzelli, took a dominant position on the ground and unleashed his considerable firepower against “The Silverback.” Petruzelli, a candidate to be pruned from the UFC roster, remains winless in four Octagon appearances.

Meanwhile, promotional newcomers Pascal Krauss and Mark Scanlon pocketed matching $60,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses in wake of their spirited three-round preliminary matchup. The unbeaten Krauss earned a unanimous nod from the judges in his UFC debut: 30-27 on all three scorecards.

Finally, Dennis Siver banked a $60,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus after he took out “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 9 finalist Andre Winner with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their lightweight scrap. Having been dropped by a left hand, Winner surrendered his back and succumbed to the choke 3:37 into round one.

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SRC 15: All Fighters Except Cobb on Weight

Sengoku 15 group shot: Taro Irei | Sherdog.com

TOKYO – All fighters except for visiting American lightweight Brian Cobb came in on weight for Saturday's Sengoku Raiden Championship 15, going down at the promotion's now-usual venue, Ryogoku Kokugikan.

According to World Victory Road officials, Cobb initially weighed in at 73.3 kilograms (161.6 pounds), and was thus allowed to skip the pre-fight press conference to shed the excess 3 kilograms (6.6 lbs) to make the 70.3 kilogram (155 lbs) limit.

WVR brass later reported that Cobb was cleared to fight as of 9:30 PM Japan time, when he weighed in at 71.3 kilograms. Despite still being one kilogram over the lightweight limit in Sengoku, WVR officials asserted that a one kilogram difference was permissible per their rules. Cobb's final weight also reportedly met the approval of his opponent, Kazunori Yokota, who at the press conference brushed aside the American's weight issues for what Yokota claimed were more pressing personal concerns.

“Despite my opponent not being physically at his best at the moment, my physical state on the other hand is good. However, since I've been promising at press conferences and public workouts that I'd be saying something interesting on the mic after the fight, the pressure has gotten to the point that I couldn't sleep yesterday. I'm going to give it my best shot on the mic after the fight tomorrow, but even if I fail at it, please just smile or laugh,” pleaded Yokota in mock seriousness.

Yokota has developed a reputation in Sengoku for pleasing the local crowd with his post-fight antics on the microphone, most notably in SRC 11, when he bemoaned the status of his receding hairline rather than talking about his winning performance over Eiji Mitsuoka.

WVR president Toru Mukai apologized for the absence of both former featherweight champion Masanori Kanehara and lightweight Nova Uniao product Leonardo Santos from the SRC 15 bill. Originally slated to face Doo Ho Choi, Mukai claimed that Kanehara's opponent was forced off the card with a recurring injury, which ADCombat.com reported as a spinal issue. Similarly, a C-spine injury sees Maximo Blanco's original opponent in Santos replaced by Japanese MMA veteran, Kiuma Kunioku.

“I'm very well prepared, so I can fight against anyone,” said a confident Blanco, unperturbed by the late change.

When asked how he saw his bout against the dynamic Blanco turning out, Kunioku tentatively responded, “I have a very vague idea [of tomorrow's fight], but it's really difficult and unrealistic to talk about it now.”

Blanco was more assertive in his assessment of the coming bout, claiming, “The way I see it, sooner or later, I'll win by knockout.”

Elsewhere, SRC welterweight tournament opponents Yasubey Enomoto and Taisuke Okuno traded respectful comments, particularly after Enomoto invoked the notion of “samurai spirit” inherent in Okuno's scintillating third round knockout of Nick Thompson in August's SRC 14. On the other half of the welterweight tournament semifinal bracket however, UFC and Dream veteran Keita Nakamura had uncharacteristically strong words for his opponent Takuya Wada, claiming that he hated his opponent and looked forward to hurting him on Saturday.

When probed as to why he harbored an intense dislike of his opponent, Nakamura joked, “He said he was a stylish, good looking guy, but I don't think that's true.”

Hiroshi Izumi (92.3 kilograms / 203.5 pounds) vs James Zikic (91.8 / 202.4)
Kazunori Yokota (70.2 / 154.8) vs Brian Cobb (73.3 / 161.6)
Maximo Blanco (70.3 / 155) vs Kiuma Kunioku (69.5 / 153.2)
Yoshiaki Takahashi (92.4 / 203.7) vs Chang Seob Lee (93 / 205)

SRC Welterweight Grand Prix 2010 Semifinals
Keita Nakamura (77 / 169.8) vs Takuya Wada (77 / 169.8)
Taisuke Okuno (77 / 169.8) vs Yasubey Enomoto (77 / 169.8)

SRC Asia Bantamweight Tournament 2010 Quarterfinals
Taiyo Nakahara (61.1 / 134.7) vs Shintaro Ishiwatari (61.1 / 134.7)
Akitoshi Tamura (61.2 / 134.9) vs Shoko Sato (61 / 134.5)
Shunichi Shimizu (61.2 / 134.9) vs Wataru Takahashi (61.1 / 134.7)
Manabu Inoue (61.1 / 134.7) vs Jae Hyun So (61.1 / 134.7)

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Renegade Mindset For Fighters

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UFC 121 Bonuses: Four Fighters Pocket $70K

The afterglow of a career-defining performance included a handsome payday for newly crowned UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.

Velasquez earned a $70,000 “Knockout of the Night” bonus after he demolished Brock Lesnar in the UFC 121 headliner on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The 28-year-old American Kickboxing Academy ace stopped Lesnar on strikes 4:12 into round one before a raucous crowd of 14,856.

Meanwhile, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 1 winner Diego Sanchez and the world-ranked Paulo Thiago banked matching $70,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses after their spirited three-round encounter ended in a unanimous decision for Sanchez. The Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts-based welterweight stopped a two-fight skid with the victory.

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Finally, Daniel Roberts pocketed a $70,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus, as he coaxed a tapout from former King of the Cage champion Michael Guymon with an opening-round anaconda choke in their preliminary welterweight matchup. Guymon met his demise 73 seconds into round one.

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Renegade Mindset For Fighters

75% Payouts! Alternative Combat Sport Psychology for Mma, Martial Arts, Boxing Wrestling etc. Hot market with no competition. Affiliate Tools and Help here: http://www.renegademindsetforfighters.com/affiliat e-tools.asp

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