Stann Breaking New Ground as Co-Headliner

Brian Stann | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Brian Stann already has a lengthy list of accomplishments on his lifetime resume: Naval Academy graduate, decorated U.S. Marine and WEC light heavyweight champion, to name a few.

He added author to that list earlier this year when his book, “Heart for the Fight” was released nationally. The autobiographical account details Stann’s time at Navy, his service in Iraq and his mixed martial arts career in both the WEC and the UFC. The writing process proved to be cathartic for the Silver Star recipient.

“I chose to do the project because I wanted something out there that was very honest and wasn’t inflated -- that my Marines could read and give to their families and say, ‘Hey, I don’t talk about this much, but here’s at least an idea of some of the things we’ve done’ -- and a book that talks a little bit about the fighting experience, the leadership experience, etcetera, because I’ve had a lot of lessons learned in my life,” Stann said. “But when you’re recounting some of those stories, it’s very emotional. There were times I would leave to go work on the book -- and be in one room -- and come back to be with my family, and I was in a completely different mood.

“It took almost two years to write the book, so it’s not easy,” he added. “I’m glad it’s over and it’s done with.”

Brian Stann will take on KO artist
Chris Leben (pictured) at UFC 124.The Pennsylvania native will break new ground again when he co-headlines a pay-per-view event for the first time in his career. He will meet Chris Leben at UFC 125 on Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Leben has long been one of MMA’s most polarizing figures. His stint on the debut season of “The Ultimate Fighter” created a love-him-or-hate-him persona among fans. In the summer, the middleweight known as “The Crippler” elevated his status with victories over Aaron Simpson and Yoshihiro Akiyama in consecutive weeks, a turnaround that is almost unheard of at the sport’s highest levels.

Stann, who trains at Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts, is well aware of the ramifications of his showdown with Leben. When the WEC eliminated its heavier weight classes in 2008, Stann lost his main card privileges. In the Octagon, he has toiled on the undercards. His last bout, a victory over Mike Massenzio at UFC Live 2, garnered “Submission of the Night” honors but failed to make the televised broadcast.

“There’s no doubt this is the highest-profile fight [of my career],” Stann said. “I’ve fought in main events, and I’ve fought for titles in the WEC, but none of that equals the stage of a UFC pay-per-view. The fact that this fight got upgraded to co-main event is really due to Chris Leben and his accomplishments.”

The Stann-Leben bout took the place of a scheduled tussle between featherweight king Jose Aldo and Josh Grispi, after the Brazilian was forced to withdraw from the fight due to a cervical spine injury.

Before toppling Massenzio as a middleweight, Stann had 11 fights under his belt at 205 pounds. He feels stronger now at 185 than he did for the initial weight cut.

“The weight’s come off a lot easier. I’m a pretty disciplined guy, so in between fights, I wouldn’t allow myself to get heavier than 210 pounds,” Stann said.

I’ve overcome way
worse adversity in
this lifetime than
fighting guys that
are better than me.

“The first weight [cut] coming down from 220 was difficult, and it took five months to do that. I don’t have five months every fight. I have to maintain a disciplined lifestyle. I feel better; I’m stronger this time. The weight cut is not going to deplete nearly as much energy. It’s going to be a really exciting fight for me.”

With 13 victories via knockout or technical knockout, Leben has become known for his willingness to engage in slugfests. Even so, Stann believes he can trade punches with the heavy-handed Oregon native.

“I think I’m a better striker than him,” he said, before correcting himself. “I know I’m a better striker than him. I’m more technical than he is.”

Leben might enter the match as a prohibitive favorite, but Stann has a wealth of experience to draw upon when the Octagon doors close.

“I’ve overcome way worse adversity in this lifetime than fighting guys that are better than me,” he said. “I got demoted to the undercards and won some fights that people didn’t know about, and I won a couple fights where I was certainly not the favorite.”

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Pros Pick: Christmas Lists

Ring girls at Pride 18 | Jeff Sherwood/Sherdog.com

As Christmas approaches, kids usually write some sort of wish list filled with their desires for material objects. With time, those lists become smaller and smaller until, eventually, as adults, their motivations change from “I want this for Christmas” to “What do you want for Christmas?”

All about the giving spirit, Sherdog.com asked a number of professional fighters and trainers from across mixed martial arts to reveal something -- anything -- from their 2010 Christmas wish list.

Shamar Bailey: For Christmas, I would love for my little brother, who has been locked up since 2003, to be able to watch me fight for the first time ever, to get back on his feet and to train MMA with me -- all in 2011. That would make my year. He is due to get out in late spring.

Charlie Brenneman: All I want for Christmas is for my family and friends to be happy and healthy -- and an autographed Frankie Edgar picture.

Yves Edwards: All I want for Christmas is a Happy Kwanzaa.

Roy Arriola: I would like for Santa to rid the MMA universe of all the negative MMA media wannabe copy-and-paste Web sites. They are a negative virus and diseased-filled source that only looks to hurt the sport. Sorry for rambling on. I was having a moment. OK, aside from saving the world from the virus-filled MMA Web sites that have no original content, I would like Santa to bring those hard-working fighters lots of fights, title shots and health, peace, happiness. I wish all MMA promoters a great 2011 year. Merry Christmas, everyone.

Keith Berry: I have all the material things I need, so I gotta say I just want a ton of fights in 2011, so promoters hit me up. I guarantee no boring fights. P.S.: a purple belt in jits would be nice, too.

Robin Black: For Christmas, I want to work with Bas Rutten on a broadcast somewhere. That dude is the coolest. And I want to win my fight Jan. 28. And I want to grow a bit taller ASAP. And I want $14 million dollars. Oh, and world peace and s--t.

Travis Lutter: Well, if Santa is feeling generous this year, he could bring me a BMW 1000rr.

Ray Elbe: I want California’s Proposition 19 to become law worldwide. That way I can finally find suitable treatment for my suspected glaucoma.

Roli Delgado: I just want to get a good training session in since I am fighting Jan. 14. I’ve been blessed with plenty of material things, so family time and good training is all I want.

Nam Phan: I have a very supportive and loving family, good students and a livelihood that I am very passionate about. Christmas has come early for me this year.

Miguel Torres: All I want for Christmas is an empty hand to smack me in the face to remind me of what I don’t have and that life ain’t fair. Then I would have learned the most valuable lesson of all; there is such a thing as luck, but we have to make it ourselves. Nothing is free in this world. Merry Christmas.

Erik Paulson: I want this vibrational shift to get over soon. It’s making me very feisty and edgy. I’m getting ready for the 2012 change of heaven on earth. Sounds weird, but we’ll see.

Scott Lighty: I would like a UFC contract; also, an official Red Ryder carbine action 200 shot range model air rifle. Please?

Brian Warren: As far as Christmas goes, I got everything I need: healthy family, bills are getting paid, etc. One thing I always wanted was to fight in the UFC. Santa, please tell [UFC President] Dana White I need to hurry up and get in there. Merry Christmas, people, and God bless.

Seth Petruzelli: All I want for Christmas is for the people on Sherdog to stop making fun of me. It hurts my soul.

Duke Roufus: My wife and I are trying to start a family, so I hope we are blessed with a baby. I hope Alan Belcher makes a full recovery. I also want Anthony Pettis to become the UFC champion and to have another fighter fighting for a UFC championship by the end of 2011. Dana Claus, please bring the UFC to Milwaukee. As well, I want to keep growing Roufusport Academy in Milwaukee and the Roufus Kickboxing Affiliations worldwide teaching our training methods. I am so blessed to have great people around me. Happy holidays.

Gary Shaw: I want to find my dog, Perro.

Martin Kampmann: I want a Copenhagen-Las Vegas [air travel] route for Christmas. I’m tired of layovers whenever I go home.

Cub Swanson: All I want for Christmas is a brand new brush and the world’s finest shampoos. [This way], I can be Clay Guida’s official hair coach.

Pete Sell: For Christmas, I would like an MMA winning streak.

Rory Markham: I am thankful for a successful mindset. For Christmas, I just want and look forward to more opportunities to work and act and fight hard in 2011.

Javier Vazquez: I have what I want for Christmas: a healthy wife and family. I’m living the dream, fighting and teaching jiu-jitsu and MMA. I truly feel like one of the luckiest people in the world.

Greg Jackson: I would like a Flux Capacitor to travel through time, see all the amazing events in history and ride on a triceratops.

Dan Hardy: All I want for Christmas is for 2011 to be better than 2010, which shouldn’t be too difficult.

Jeff Monson: Peace.

Michael Guymon: This X-mas I want a manicure and pedicure, as well as a massage. So it’s a little gay, but so is asking for rollerblades.

Scott Epstein: This Christmas I wanna be Christian because [we] Jews already got our presents for Jew Christmas, and I want more gifts for non-Jew Christmas.

Doug Marshall: You know what “The Rhino” wants? My two front teeth (laughs).

Jason Von Flue: What do I want for Christmas? What every other former UFC veteran wants: a long win streak that will land me back in the UFC by late next year. Oh, and world peace.

Matt Hamilton: Luckily, there is very little that I want. I certainly want another year of health for my family. And I guess if I had to pick one material thing I’d pick Alonzo’s car from “Training Day.”

Matt Pena: For Christmas, I would like to see increased revenue sharing with the fighters. I have so much respect for what the Fertittas, Lorenzo and Frank, and [UFC President] Dana [White] have done. They deserve many spoils for their foresight and hard work that made the UFC the fastest-growing sport in the world. However, nobody is working harder to make the UFC a success than the fighters. Now that the UFC is a major brand in sports, it has the worst revenue sharing by far than any other brand in major sports. If details about company revenue came out along with what fighters are actually averaging per fight, it would probably be kind of embarrassing. I hope this doesn’t cause too much of a stink, but increased revenue sharing would be something that would be good for both sides.

You can also contact Mike Sloan at www.facebook.com/mikesloan19. Features editor Brian Knapp contributed to this story.

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Report: Hardy-Johnson Planned for March UFC Event

Dan Hardy (center): Dave Mandel | Sherdog.com

Dan Hardy and Anthony Johnson have reportedly agreed to meet at a March UFC event.

Exactly which event will host the welterweight showdown is unknown at this time; however, a report from MMAFighting.com suggests the bout could be included on the Spike TV-broadcast UFC Fight Night 24 show, expected to take place on March 26 in Seattle.

Hardy defeated four straight opponents upon entering the Zuffa LLC ranks in 2008, including the likes of Mike Swick and Akihiro Gono, but his career met turbulence in 2010. After losing a lopsided five-round title bout to champion Georges St. Pierre in March, the 28-year-old Englishman was knocked out in the first round of his match with Carlos Condit at UFC 120 in October. Despite this, “The Outlaw” remains ranked among the world’s top 170-pounders.

Johnson will see his first action since November 2009, when he was choked out by Josh Koscheck in a short-notice match at UFC 106. He was forced to withdraw from a scheduled March fight with John Howard after suffering a knee injury in training which required surgery. Considered one of the UFC’s brightest welterweight prospects, “Rumble” is 5-3 inside the Octagon, with all five wins coming by way of knockout.

While little is known about UFC Fight Night 24 -- including the proposed venue -- it is likely to be headlined by a light heavyweight contest between former champion Tito Ortiz and ex-Pride Fighting Championships star Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

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Kim’s Pride Dream Deferred

Dong Hyun Kim is a star in his native South Korea. | J. Evans/Sherdog.com

BUSAN, South Korea -- It was a rainy Saturday in Seoul. The gym was nothing extraordinary: mats, heavy bags, a ring and clutter near the coach’s office. It smelled of the sweaty, worn interior of boxing gloves, mildew and urinals that did not quite flush enough. It was empty, save two fighters training diligently.

Perhaps all that stood out from your average gym fare was the music on the stereo: the epic, unmistakable thump of the Pride Fighting Championships fighter parade theme. The playlist shuffled through appropriate follow-ups: “Sandstorm” by Darude, “Wild Boys” by Duran Duran, “Age Age Every Knight” by DJ Ozma -- the entrance tracks of Wanderlei Silva, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and Akihiro Gono. Though unmistakably cheesy, the music did something to raise the level of the workout.

The date was Oct. 7, 2007. Today, Pride is but a vivid memory. However, more than three years later, that lanky welterweight on the mat, Dong Hyun Kim, has turned out to be one of the UFC’s most promising up-and-coming 170-pounders.

That day, Kim -- not yet known as the “Stun Gun” -- was preparing to fly to Japan and rematch then Deep welterweight champion Hidehiko Hasegawa for the title. Kim had knocked out Hasegawa two months earlier in a non-title affair, removing him from consciousness with a brutal slam with just seconds to go in the fight. Three days later, Kim returned home, winless and beltless. He and Hasegawa battled to a controversial majority draw in a fight most felt Kim won. After everyone took their cut, Kim took home just $300 for his effort.

Dong Hyun Kim will take on
Nate Diaz (above) at UFC 125.

The disappointment was compounded. As he tore through Deep, racking up a 7-0-1 mark in just 16 months, Kim had been in talks to fight in Pride over the previous few months. In spite of Zuffa LLC’s purchase of Pride in March 2007, he remained hopeful he would get the chance the chance to fight for what was then the biggest promotion in the world.

“Growing up, it was my dream to fight in Pride,” Kim says. “In those days, Pride was much bigger than the UFC, and when I found out that Pride wanted me to fight for them, I was so happy I shouted. Then, I waited and waited for a fight, and the delay went on and on. I was depressed and wasted my time just training and waiting.”

Though Kim has told the story countless times, it still clearly bothers him.

“It wasn’t like I just got a phone call and found out that Pride was gone,” he recalls with genuine sorrow. “What I remember is the waiting.”

There was a time when you could not turn on Korean television without seeing a clip of Fedor Emelianenko cresting mid-suplex in Kevin Randleman’s arms; Quinton “Rampage” Jackson napping in the ropes, blood spewing from his forehead courtesy of Wanderlei Silva; or Kazushi Sakuraba battling through some intermediate stage of snuff movie-type disrepair. That quickly ended with the death of Pride. Gone were the live events, replays and two-hour “best of” specials. The golden era of Japanese MMA, the ramp, the pyrotechnics, the cavernous venues, choreographed entrances and orchestra-laden opening ceremonies seem like ages ago.

Gone, too, was Kim’s contract. The biggest stars of a uniquely Asian brand of MMA were about to begin their slow drift west. Kim would be instrumental in changing the perception in Korea of the UFC as little more than a late-night MMA infomercial.

Today, “Stun Gun” is a star in his native South Korea, where he has almost single-handedly created a market for UFC programming. He is the focus of television specials. He is featured in magazines. He does Korean-language commentary for UFC events and television commercials for Reebok. Though “household name” might be a stretch, Kim is just a tier or two below.

Growing up, it
was my dream to
fight in Pride.

As Kim shuffles down a sidewalk in his home of Busan, a group of rowdy high school boys spot him from the second floor of their sports academy. The youths suspend their workouts and wedge their heads into the space below the windows to yell encouragement. He gets but a few steps further before some younger girls ask Kim to sign his autograph in their notebooks, giggling all the while. A middle-aged man waits on the periphery of the girls. The most self-conscious of the bunch, he waits patiently, until the girls have dispersed, to ask for a picture with Kim. The whole scenario plays out in just a five-minute span.

Yet, despite his undefeated record, Kim remains a fringe main card fighter on UFC pay-per-view telecasts. Casual North American fans know very little about him.

“Some people call me Asian or Japanese, or Chinese. Korea is a very developed nation that has produced many great athletes. I am Korean. Ko-re-an,” he says, enunciating the syllables.

“We’re always in the top 10 in the medal count at the Olympics,” Kim says. He then smiles before he pauses and clarifies his statement, deadpanning: “That’s South Korean, not North Korean.”

Page Two: Lacking Highlights

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Tavares Answers His Call of Duty

“You don’t want to be that guy who’s quitting or that boring guy. You’re gonna try and get in there and win fights and do it in exciting fashion." With less than ten pro fights, none against a world-class opponent, you would have understood if middleweight prospect Brad Tavares was a little bit hesitant to accept a January 1st fight with seasoned veteran Phil Baroni at UFC 125. Yet when presented with the bout, the 23-year old worried not about his opponent, only logistics.

“I was excited when they first gave me the fight,” said Tavares. “The only thing that was running through my mind was that I ran into Phil at Couture’s prior to us getting the fight and I know that he’s trained there. I train there half of the week as well and that was the only problem I saw at the time. But I took the fight and said if that means we’ve got to steer clear of each other, that’s fine. I’ll get my training in regardless, but then I found out that he’s at AKA (American Kickboxing Academy) and that worked out fine for me. I’ve got my camp going how it normally does and everything worked out.”

That’s Hawaiian Fighting 101. You don’t pick your fights and you don’t steer clear of them. If you’ve got to work your life around it, so be it, but you don’t back down – you just scrap. And in taking the Baroni fight without hesitation, Tavares, just 5-1 as a pro, passed his first test in joining the circle inhabited by the likes of BJ Penn, Kendall Grove, Troy Mandaloniz, and Cabbage Correira.

“You grow up with that pride,” said Tavares, a native of Kailua. “You’re proud of where you come from, and we stand alone. We’re out in the Pacific Ocean, far away from the rest of the continental US, and we’re proud of our heritage and everything that comes with it. It was embedded in us from when we were young. Just be proud of who you are, where you came from, your family, and it’s like that all over Hawaii. So when you see the other Hawaiian fighters coming over here and fighting in the big shows, they rep that Hawaii pride really hard.”

It’s a pride that translates into their fighting style as well. Win or lose, a Hawaiian fighter will fight, and you won’t see them trying to squeak out a decision or grind their way to victory. Sometimes that translates into feast or famine, but when it’s all over, they can hold their head high.

“You don’t want to be that guy who’s quitting or that boring guy,” said Tavares. “You’re gonna try and get in there and win fights and do it in exciting fashion. And it’s not gonna go your way every time; you might not be able to beat the guy you’re fighting, and that’s just how it goes, but when you have the chance, you fight your heart out and you never quit, and I think a lot of people in Hawaii are brought up with that big heart to never stop, never give up, and just keep going.”

In a lot of ways, that attitude is shared by Tavares’ New Year’s Day opponent, Baroni. Win or lose, Baroni has never been accused of playing it safe. It’s cost him plenty of times over the years, but then again, his fighting style has probably made him the only fighter with a 13-12 record competing in the UFC today. And in the lead-up to the bout, there has been none of Baroni’s usual bluster, mainly because “The New York Bad Ass” respects the up and comer he’s about to throw hands with.

“I’m glad that he respects me as a man and as a fighter, but I’m not too worried about what he thinks of me,” said Tavares, “I’m just worried about how I see the fight and how I gotta take the fight. I see him as a veteran and a very dangerous person, regardless of his past couple fights and regardless of what the critics might say about him gassing and stuff. It’s a totally different fight when your life is on the line, so to speak, and everybody knows that for him, this could be a cut for him, and it’s not likely that he’ll get back in the UFC after this fight if he loses it, so a lot’s at stake for him and I know that I’m probably going to be going up against the most dangerous Phil Baroni that there ever was.”

When Baroni’s on, he is dangerous, especially now that he’s back at middleweight after a 3-2 stint at 170 pounds. But where Tavares sees danger isn’t in the New Yorker’s heavy hands and aggressive assault; it’s in an underutilized part of his game, one that he suspects Baroni may pull out in order to keep his latest UFC run going.

“He has a good wrestling background, and even though he likes to stand and bang and slug, it (the wrestling) is there,” said Tavares. “So it’s not to say that he can’t take somebody down, put them down, and hold them down. He’s a big guy and a strong guy, so if he wanted to do that, he could probably throw that into his gameplan and it would be something that a lot of people don’t expect. He’s definitely going to be dangerous and I’m getting ready to expect the unexpected. Everybody sees Phil Baroni as this guy that comes out like a robot and just starts swinging, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he tries to shoot in on me or change it up a bit. I’m expecting everything.”

He’s training for everything everywhere as well, and with work at Xtreme Couture, the TapouT Training Center, and with Robert Drysdale jiu-jitsu black belt Sonny Nohara, Tavares has gotten himself acquainted with Vegas pretty fast after relocating from Hawaii earlier this year. It’s been a smooth adjustment as well.

“A lot of people when they go from Hawaii to a place that’s a higher altitude with thinner air they have some troubles, but I adjusted pretty well,” he said. “I got lucky I guess, and as far as the people, I like the people in Vegas, and I have good, high-level training partners that I get to train with on a regular basis. And as far as life outside of training, it’s great. There’s a lot of local influence around here. I live with a bunch of my close friends from back home, and that’s another thing that made it easier on me. So as far as transitioning over, the only things I really miss are the rest of my family and my other friends that aren’t here, and maybe the beach. Anything else you can pretty much get it here in Vegas.”

A 23-year old can also get himself in trouble in Vegas, but Tavares keeps it on the straight and narrow thanks to his training schedule and the fighters’ form of crack – the videogame Call of Duty: Black Ops.

“I keep real busy with training and Call of Duty,” he laughs. “That’s literally all I do. Occasionally we’ll go up to the desert and shoot guns, but I’m not too much of a partier. There’s a time for that, but right now its work time and that’s where my mind is set. I’m driven.”

Add Tavares’ drive with Baroni’s will to stay alive in the UFC, and it’s a recipe for a fight to remember, one that has been lighting up fight fans’ Twitter accounts over the last few weeks. Tavares promises that no one will be disappointed.

“I think the matchup between Phil Baroni and myself is a great one,” he said. “Styles make fights, and I’m not gonna say that I’m gonna stand in there and go blow for blow with this guy and it’s 50-50 who gets knocked out, but it’s definitely not gonna be a boring fight. He’s not gonna be laying on me, and I’m definitely not gonna just be laying and praying on him. You’re gonna see some fireworks for the New Year.”

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The Belfort-Tyson Connection

Vitor Belfort (left) and Mike Tyson: M. Alonso | Sherdog.com

Vitor Belfort finds inspiration outside of mixed martial arts, even has he prepares to meet Anderson Silva for the middleweight title at UFC 126 on Feb. 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson has had a heavy influence on “The Phenom.”

“I was at his house and met his family,” Belfort told Radio Portal do Vale Tudo in Brazil. “I met his daught and wife, who is pregnant. It’s always nice to be in touch with people like him.”

Tyson, now 44, made history in 1986, when he won the WBC heavyweight championship at the age of 20, defeating the late Trevor Berbick by second-round technical knockout. He won his first 37 professional fights.

“Mike Tyson is a big idol, and he crossed the boundaries of sport,” Belfort said. “He was a great inspiration to many athletes and in my career since I was a child. We have much in common and had fame too soon. We always have good conversations.”

Belfort, who was 19 years old when he debuted in the UFC in 1997, believes Tyson’s expertise should be valued more and even invited the Brooklyn, N.Y., native to join his camp.

“I told him that he’s used badly, because he has great views of fighting,” Belfort said. “He knows a lot of martial arts, but they aren’t given the proper value. He said he wanted to be part of my camp, and it was a pleasure to be part of my training. I told him to come in and give me some tips. He’s an important person in the sport and was a great motivator for many successful fighters. I think it’s important to have a recovery.”

Belfort will carry a five-fight winning streak into his match with Silva. He praised the longtime champion and vowed to put forth his best effort when they meet. Should Belfort unseat Silva, he would become only the third man in history -- Randy Couture and B.J. Penn are the others -- to hold UFC championships in two different weight classes. The 33-year-old won the light heavyweight crown at UFC 46 in January 2004. Belfort remains committed on diversifying his training.

“It’s hard to expect anything from Anderson because he’s very thorough,” he said. “I’m seeking the fullness of everything, but I focused on jiu-jitsu and boxing; that’s my lethal weapon. I will also training karate, with Jayme Sandall coming in. I’m training muay Thai to practice the combination of blows. I’ll try to use wisdom, and if people think I only have a chance to win in the first round, I’ll show them they were wrong. I focus on things that need improving, and I’m working hard on that.”

Belfort also addressed the infamous face-to-face staredown between himself and Silva prior to UFC 112 in the United Arab Emirates. The two Brazilians were originally scheduled to meet there, but Belfort was forced to withdraw due to injury. He believes Silva has received the challenge in the wrong spirit.

“I think Anderson has the attitude of taking it personally,” Belfort said. “Afterward, I went to try to talk to him, and he said he wouldn’t talk to me. I think he was upset that I wanted to fight him, because he thought it was personal. It’s not personal; it’s a job. I thank God I was a guy who broke barriers and showed that people can grow. Some people who once criticized me now see me differently.”

Silva has won 13 consecutive fights since his disqualification loss to Yushin Okami in January 2006. He has held the UFC’s middleweight championship for more than four years.

“There’s a lot of pride involved, and people think I’m afraid,” Belfort said. “Afraid of what? Why would I be afraid of a man? If I have to win, I’ll win, and if I have to lose, I’ll lose. I don’t have reasons to be afraid.”

To that end, Belfort plans to resolve his differences with Silva in the ring. He wants to leave the pre-fight rhetoric to others.

“I was never a guy that wants to brag,” he said. “I taste things with my attitudes. There are people who say they will knock you out but end up with their butts on the floor. We’ve seen it enough. I’d rather be a normal person, and I understand the sport otherwise. I don’t need to do an evil face for people to think I’m a good fighter.

“I have to do my job. My job is to fight, and I try to do my best,” Belfort added. “There are many people who talk but don’t remember to do what they said they were going to do when the time comes. I’ve never been a talker. I’m more about doing.”

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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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