THIRD TIME’S A CHARM
“I believe this is my last fight.” – Randy Couture, bringing his retirement count in line with his number of failed marriages. (ESPN)
“I know the UFC is probably going to have other ideas, especially with acquiring Strikeforce and all that. They’re probably going to try to draw me into another fight but I don’t think that’s going to happen.” – Couture
“I want to go out when I think it’s time to go out and not because I lost this fight or lost that fight or because I had an injury that precludes me from training the way I want to train.” – Couture. It’s worth noting that this announcement came after Mauricio Rua dropped the title to Jon Jones.
“So why not take control and do it on my terms? When I want to do it and not because I’ve been knocked out the last three times and nobody wants to see me get beat up again? I never want to have that conversation with anybody.” – Couture. Conversation I never want to have with anybody? “Hey, Mike, listen. I met someone else. His name is Randy.” (ESPN UK)
FOLSOM PRISON BLUES
“Bisping is an a****** who disrespects the sport and his opponent. … He always gets to fight in Britain and other places, but it’d be good to see him come down to Louisiana.” – Belcher“ – Alan Belcher, joining a long line of middleweights calling out Michael Bisping. (Sherdog)
“I suppose he thinks he can get back in the mix by calling me out. But if he wants an easy fight he should sue his tattooist for that abomination on his arm.” – Michael Bisping, on the tattoo on Belcher’s left arm. Belcher’s tattoo looks like Johnny Cash mated with a pig and the skin color of dried mozzarella. (Fighters Only)
“I know Belcher has vision problems right now but we still have to look at that mess. He’s got a lot of nerve calling me an a****** when he walks round with that on him. Although lets be fair, the real a****** is the tattooist who drew that.” – Bisping, with some of the best trash talk in MMA history.
WHEN I COME AROUND
“I really have no interest in getting revenge against Yushin Okami. We already fought. He lost. He got knocked out. Let’s move on.” – Anderson Silva, referring to his first fight with Okami in January of 2006. Silva lost the fight by DQ for an illegal upkick, his last lost in 15 fights. (MMA Junkie)
“Georges St-Pierre is one of the best. … I do believe it’s a superfight, and it’s a fight that must happen someday.” – Silva, with as definitive a statement on a fight with GSP as ever.
“In my opinion, what ended Roy Jones’ career-winning streak was when he went up in weight and tried to go back down. It’s not the fact that he went up; it’s when he tried to go back down that messed him up.” – Georges St. Pierre, dumping ice water down my pants again. (ESPN UK)
THAT SOUNDS LIKE THE RIGHT ATTITUDE
“I don’t know if you ever get used to taking punches, but that’s not the problem. The problem is all my other assets have been farther ahead of the game and this is one we’re going to have to keep lagging along and not get frustrated and understand I got to get better.” – Brock Lesnar. So…the problem isn’t that you don’t like taking punches. The problem is that your other skills are so far ahead of your inability to take a punch in the face? (ESPN UK)
“This is my third opponent now with heavy hands. Shane Carwin, Cain Velasquez, now Junior Dos Santos. One of these times I got to get it right.” – Lesnar, adding, “I mean, look at Randy. He’s finally happy with his third wife.”
COKER FACE
“[W]e’re expecting Nick to fight back in the cage before the end of the year. … We’re going to keep him on a busy schedule.” – Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker. Against who, Scott? Tyron Woodley? Snicker. (Sherdog)
“I think Nick fighting ‘T-Wood’ is probably his best wrestling test to date.” – Coker
“We have a great roster, we have a great television contract, we have our own contracts to fulfill with the athletes, and we’re going to go do that.” – Coker, insisting that Gilbert Melendez’s next fight will come from the Strikeforce’s roster. (MMA Weekly)
“K.J. Noons … or maybe after a couple more fights a guy like Justin Wilcox … or even Jorge Masvidal. There’s three guys that I think after a couple more fights could get there.” – Coker. OK, so who’s he going to fight NOW? That rubber match with Josh Thomson that no one is clamoring for?
PARTING SHOTS
“I’m going to have to get the labrum worked on.” – Jon Fitch. That’s what she said. (MMA Torch)
“I don’t believe in luck. The more you train the more luck you have, but certainly that was a hit that he will land once out of one thousand attempts.” – Vitor Belfort. I like to call it the Foot of God. (ESPN UK)
“I feel like I’m in the ‘Matrix’ out there right now.” – Gilbert Melendez. Does that mean Jake Shields will feel like he’s in Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey? (Sherdog)
“My goal is to reach a level of comfort in the Octagon where you don’t even process your thoughts. You just move as your body thinks it.” – Jon Jones, thinking he’s in the Matrix Revolutions. (ESPN)
“I was like, ‘I don’t know. You’re the champion there. I want to be a champion.’ He told me not to worry about it, that if that’s what is best for me I have to do it.” – Nate Marquardt, on GSP suggesting he move down to welterweight. Hey Nate, just ask Roberto Luongo what it’s like to never win the big one. (ESPN)