UFC 102: PSYCHONOG, AIR MAIA, AND SEVEN SECONDS
“For sure, that fight was one of the most important fight(s) of my life. It wasn’t a title shot, but it was a fight against one of my heroes, a legend in the sport.” – Former UFC and Pride heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira, showing all the class he’s known for following his convincing decision victory over Randy Couture at UFC 102. (Sherdog)
“I’m pretty rational about the performance. I clearly thought he’d won all three rounds.” – Former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Randy Couture. Couture felt Nogueira’s boxing was the difference, specifically the Brazilian’s lead jab. (Sherdog)
“I hurt my ankle a couple of weeks ago and I was working with my buddy Dwayne and I asked him ‘How do I counter this if I can’t do my normal stuff?’ He told me ‘Just step in and throw an overhand right as he kicks.’” – Former King of Pancrase Nate Marquardt, explaining the technique he used to KO Demian Maia. Reports surfacing from Portland report that Maia has yet to land. (MMA Mania)
“It was crazy how it worked so easily. This was a highlight reel finish and I’m very excited.” – Marquardt.
“Those guys are history. What I did, it’s just a statistic, and it will be broken.” – Todd Duffee, referencing the main event. Duffee set a new official UFC record by knocking out Tim Hague in a swift seven seconds. That’s three seconds longer than I last. (MMA Junkie)
FILE UNDER: SPOKE TOO SOON
“I’m expecting a full war.” – Greg Jackson, before Keith Jardine‘s fight with Thiago Silva. (Las Vegas Sun)
“Because that’s Thiago’s style, and Keith is never afraid to mix it up. I think it’s gonna be bang, bang, bang.” – Jackson. Shockingly, Jardine came out on the wrong side of a quick scrap.
“I think it’s about five right now, but I’m working hard.” – Demian Maia, when asked to rank his striking between one and ten. That’s a pretty generous five. (MMA Mania)
“I’m kind of like the blue-collar UFC fighter. I’m working my way in through the back door.” – Jardine. Uh… (Las Vegas Sun)
“I could do a grappling match right now and beat him.” – Marquardt. OK, we won’t really find out until ADCC, but c’mon! (Cage Writer)
HOW DO YOU SAY MURRRRR IN PORTUGUESE?
“I look at it as a huge honor.” – Former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir, on the possiblity of fighting middleweight champ and pound-for-pound dictator Anderson Silva. (Sherdog)
“Which heavyweight is less likely to take him down? I probably have one of the weaker shots in the heavyweight division.” – Mir. One of?
“But why would I want to take him down right off the bat?” – Mir. I’ll give you a good reason. Your standup still sucks.
“[If it hit the ground] I’d rip his shoulder out of his socket.” – Mir, upon which Anderson beats you with his good arm.
DUDE, AT LEAST ROGER HUERTA IS HOT
“It’s just, you know, like I said, I think that last fight just took a lot out of me.” – Heath Herring, discussing his slow return to the Octagon. (MMA Fanhouse)
“Now with acting, and things kind of taking off, it just left a bad taste in my mouth” – Herring, acting? Acting?
“And it’s like, Wow, I was the only one who was able to go the full time with that guy.” – Herring. Yeah, it should be a real feather in your cap to “only” get your face turned into hamburger meet over the course of fifteen minutes with Brock Lesnar.
SOUNDS LIKE THEY SHOULD HAVE THROWN A DART AT A MAP INSTEAD
“Here’s the deal: [The event] didn’t just move from L.A.. It went from the Staples Center to the L.A. Convention Center. From the L.A. convention center to the Hilton in Las Vegas. From the Hilton in Las Vegas to an Indian casino on the Oklahoma-Texas border. From the Indian casino on the Oklahoma-Texas border to an Indian casino up in Tulsa, which is North Oklahoma. And from there up to Kansas City, Mo.” – Don Frye, explaining disorganization of M-1 Global which resulted in him pulling out of his fight with “King” Mo Lawal. (MMA Junkie)
WHITE NOISE
“Trust me, nobody understands more than I do, these hard economic times.” – UFC President Dana White. Yeah, I’ve seen the mansion you live in. Looks like you’re really pinching those pennies. (Cage Writer)
“I’ve got this thing priced, ticket-wise, for the same price I’ve got L.A. priced for. [Expletive] stupid. We messed up here. I’m a little bummed out about that.” – White, sounds like you don’t understand these economics like you think you do. (MMA Junkie)
“I’m not anti-Strikeforce; I don’t dislike those guys. I dislike Showtime. I don’t like their attitude.” – White. Begs the question: why the “Strikefarce” jab? (MMA Weekly)
“I think he’s too big for Georges.” – White, cooling talks of an Anderson Silva-Georges St. Pierre superfight. (Winnipeg Free Press)
“I hope Michael Vick wins the Super Bowl, makes $3 billion and is the greatest comeback story in the history of sports, man.” – White, hates dogs. Just kidding. (Yahoo)
“There is always going to be huge discrepancy in the pay between WEC and UFC.” – White, at least he’s honest. Sorry Mike, Urijah, Brian, and Miguel! (MMA Mania)
PARTING SHOTS
“Striking is like chess, where I put all my technique. Sometimes I make the guy walk for where I want, I make him attack me like I want to counter attack. Sometimes I leave my leg open for him to kick and then I pull his leg and kick him.” – UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. If this is how he thinks in the cage, I feel sorry for a lot of guys at 205. SCARY. (Tatame)
“I was disgusting and I’m embarrassed with how bad I was.” – Mark Kerr, who was later defeated by “King” Mo Lawal in under thirty seconds. (HDNetFights.com)
“Just a phenomenal cook. I told him if he opens a steakhouse in Miami, I’ll invest in it.” – TUF heavyweight participant Brendan Schaub, complimenting the cooking talents of one Kimbo Slice.