Official MMA News/Discussion Thread

[fallen]

I think matt could have a great future if he can impove his stand up. He leaves his chin wide open and will get ko'ed quick if he is not carefull

 

[JS316]

Anyone really think Matt Hamill has a legitimate shot in the UFC? I know they've rocked the sympathy PR on him big time, but I feel he's an excellent fighter to boot. He wants to improve his standing and submissions to compliment his already well established wrestling; that drive for improvement alone gives him a future in my eyes.

Firstly i believe he has a shot at being a decent draw for the UFC as I'm sure heaps of TUF fans will pay to see him.
But I do not think he will be a major force though. He seems very strong but as you stated he seems a bit sloppy with his stand up. Not sure bout his BJJ.
Just my opinion

 

[CaptainCharisma]

i dont think Matt will make it...honestly besides his wrestling i dont think hes learnt anything new, even with team punishment and being titos new boy toy, he still hasnt really improved his stand-up or subs that much...if he ever fights a real striker aka Michael Bisping, he'll get slaughtered and exposed

 

[CaptainCharisma]

Kurt Pwning Puder on the Bubba the Love Sponge Show...

-Kurt and Bubba started off talking about Daniel Puder, Kurt quickly called Puder a "moron" and a "piece of S*@&". Soon after Bubba played some clips of the Puder interview from Tuesday's show. After playing the clips Bubba, Kurt and the rest of the guys were all laughing and making fun of Puder. Kurt stated that Puder "needs help."

-According to Kurt, Dana White had a private discussion with him regarding a possible Puder fight, Kurt stated that Dana White told him that he knew the fight would only last 40 seconds and that Kurt would knock Puder out in the first round but White still wanted to do it because it would be the biggest buy rate ever. Kurt also said that Dana mentioned how it would be the biggest buy rate ever because of Kurt fighting in the UFC not because of Puder. According to Kurt, Dana White told him that the kid (Puder) is limited and that he doesn't want Kurt to knock him out right away, just toy with him a little.

-Kurt admitted that his neck isn't in great shape and that during the Puder match in WWE Kurt couldn't even do five push ups and he still dominated Puder. Kurt mentioned if he fought Puder now he would probably kill him. Kurt also mentioned that while Puder was in WWE he had a match with Shelton Benjamin, afterwards Shelton came to Angle backstage and said, "your right Kurt, this guy (Puder) really sucks".

-Kurt again talking about Puder said that he is nothing more than a wanna be shoot fighter. Kurt said that Puder should try and fight someone decent and not just go up against bums and crack heads. Kurt mentioned that Puder can't take a strike. Kurt said that even if he beats him, Puder will still get notoriety for fighting Kurt. Kurt also mentioned that he thinks of himself as being on the same level of Tito Ortiz.

-Kurt said that if Dixie Carter would allow it, as a favor to Bubba and to finally shut Puder up he would fight him for free on Bubba's show. Kurt said he has been practicing MMA and that everyone will see how good he is in his upcoming matches in TNA.

-Kurt said after he wins he would pull his shorts and rub his balls in Puder's face. Bubba asked to speak to Kurt's wife Karen. When Bubba asked Karen about a possible Puder fight she said that it will never happen because she doesn't want Puder to get any attention. Kurt came back on and then stated that after he knocks Puder out he would let Karen go in the ring to piss and S*@& on Puder's face.

-Closing up, Bubba spoke to Kurt about TNA for a couple minutes. Kurt mentioned how great the Primetime show will be and that his match against Abyss is great and it will be a match of the year candidate.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

Brandon Vera interview from mmanews.com

very good interview, he says some interesting stuff here, worth the read

Luis Cruz for MMANews.com: Luis Cruz here at MMANews.com, I'm joined with Brandon "The Truth" Vera - who will be facing Frank Mir at UFC 65 next Saturday. We're about a week and a half away, Brandon what's going on man?

Brandon Vera: Not too much, man. Just got done training, laying in the bed right now.

MMANews.com: So what have you been up to since the last time we talked back before your fight with Assuerio Silva?

Brandon Vera: Oh man, went to the Phillipinnes. Hung out there for a while. Traveled a lot. Got back into the gym and started training, getting ready for Frank Mir. Traveled up to L.A. a lot to go train at City Boxing and on the east coast too. I just been traveling a lot and training a lot.

MMANews.com: Besides City Boxing who have you been training with, did you bring in anybody special for Mir's ground game?

Brandon Vera: I went over to the east coast to train with Lloyd Irvin. We went over a whole bunch of things that Frank does - his kimura's, armbar's. We went over all the basic stuff that Frank's been tapping people with and we're working defensive and offensive game plans for it. And I actually roll with him so he's an excellent training partner/coach.

MMANews.com: Now has there been any talks about this [fight with Mir] being a number one contender match, or anything?

Brandon Vera: There's rumors. Nothing confirmed. I haven't heard anything confirmed yet, but I mean [long pause] always possibilities.

MMANews.com: The UFC officials haven't said anything themselves?

Brandon Vera: No, they haven't said anything to me yet.

MMANews.com: Now, before we really get into your fight with Mir, the last time I talked to you, you said you wanted to really elevate your game before a title shot. You said you just didn't want to win the title, you wanted to hold on to it for a while. Do you still feel the same, or do you think after a win here you'll be ready for that?

Brandon Vera: I still feel the exact same, I mean I'm not comfortable holding the title yet, I mean I still got a couple things, I still get caught in practice with a couple things that I need to work on so I definitely want to be able to hold that title for a while. Like a ten-time champion or something, not just a flash in the pan, in-and-out reign. I still got things to work on, a title shot or not I do want to fight the best guys in the world. So I guess I'll just have to take it as it comes.

MMANews.com: Yeah, if they offer it to you after this, you'll accept it.

Brandon Vera: [laughs] Exactly.

MMANews.com: Alright, speaking of the champion - what are your thoughts on his upcoming fight with [Jeff] Monson.

Brandon Vera: Sylvia and Monson? If it stays on the feet, I see Tim winning. If it goes to the ground, I got Jeff winning. That's just how it's gonna be [laughs]. There's nobody better in the UFC to take Tim down than Jeff Monson.

MMANews.com: That's what I was gonna say next, if you thought that Monson was going to be able to get inside that long reach since there's going to be a distinct size advantage here.

Brandon Vera: Oh yeah. But it's also a disadvantage for Tim because once Jeff's inside there's no way Tim's gonna get Jeff off him. It's good at one point but bad at another point.

MMANews.com: He was able to keep Assuerio Silva away.

Brandon Vera: Assuerio wasn't moving though, he only shot twice and when he did shoot he almost took Tim down, but Tim grabbed the fence.

MMANews.com: Oh yeah, I remember that. So what's your prediction?

Brandon Vera: I don't know, I really don't know. I wanna say it's 50/50, but the only reason I'm saying that is because it's a matter of who implements their game first. If Tim keeps it on the feet, he's gonna win. Jeff gets it to the ground, game over.

MMANews.com: That was my thoughts, I just don't think Monson's gonna be able to get inside Sylvia's long reach. That long jab he throws out there, but I agree if he gets him down it's gonna be ugly.

Brandon Vera: Game over, yeah. [laughs]

MMANews.com: [laughs] Now, either guy wins - what would be your strategy for each guy if you end up fighting them next?

Brandon Vera: The same. Both of them I'd have advantages and disadvantages fighting either one of those guys. I would stick to the same game plan I'm using against Mir. I'm going to be ready for five hard rounds, or three hard rounds with Mir, and expect a tough fight. Look to counter, look to advance, look to not impose my will but put on a good show while I'm out there fighting. With Tim I would strike a little bit more on the outside, with Jeff I would strike on the inside more. I know it seems opposite, because of the style but Tim's slower and Jeff's faster so I'd like to be inside banging with Jeff and outside banging with Tim. If that makes any sense.

MMANews.com: That actually sounds like the opposite of what I thought you'd say.

Brandon Vera: Exactly. It'd be the opposite of what they'd expect to happen too [laughs].

MMANews.com: Do you have a preference between the two about fighting?

Brandon Vera: No, not really. I mean I like Jeff a lot, Jeff's a really cool cat. I'd like to fight Tim, but when I say I'd like to fight Tim it sounds like I want Jeff to lose and I don't. I really hope Jeff wins. Jeff deserves the title man he's been in the game for a long time, he's paid his dues and I just really hope he pulls this off.

MMANews.com: The reason I asked you that because obviously the last time we talked you had some choice words for Sylvia. Now that of course dates back to when you first came into the company and you said he was talking bad about you. Now, you said you wanted to break his leg.

Brandon Vera: Oh yeah, that's still gonna happen. That's still one of my goals if me and Tim can get a fight, I'm gonna chop one of his legs off. I mean it's calmed down a lot, he was talking a lot of smack about me, now he kinda left me alone.

MMANews.com: So you haven't heard anything new?

Brandon Vera: Well, no. Well, last interview he did I heard him say something like well Brandon Vera, he thinks is the biggest threat in the division. Or Brandon Vera is up and coming, something like that. So he's changed his tone a little.

MMANews.com: Alright [laughs] so you guys will be okay in the same building?

Brandon Vera: Oh yeah, this is just business to me I'm not the type to try and pick a fight in a club or something like that.

MMANews.com: Yeah.

Brandon Vera: If I want to do something like that to people, I'll have someone shoot them.

MMANews.com: [laughs] Oh damn [laughs more]

Brandon Vera: I mean business. I don't mess around. Bitch, I make money!

MMANews.com: [laughs] Let's get back to Frank Mir. Your game plan in this fight I assume is to keep it standing and avoid the takedown, is that correct?

Brandon Vera: Yes and no. I'm going to keep it standing, for as long as I can. But the game plan we have for him on the ground I like too. I'd rather be on the ground with Mir second round as opposed to the first. If we get on the ground in the second round it's going to be fun, now the first round I'll have to be nervous and be real cautious about what Frank is doing and worry about getting caught in anything. Frank's retarded strong, for the first four minutes he's a beast he can beat anybody in the first four minutes. I'll try to keep it standing in the first round, second and third round I don't care where it ends up, I'm game either way.

MMANews.com: Now, let's say he does get you down in that first four minutes, how do you feel your Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is compared to his?

Brandon Vera: I think it's better. I really think I'm better than Frank on the ground.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

more

MMANews.com: I was going to say, I don't think a lot of people know how accomplished you are.

Brandon Vera: No, they don't so I get to showcase it. But then again you have to think, in MMA like the tendancy is to want to strike on the ground but if you're rolling with someone really good on the ground you have to be cautious how you strike, well, unless you're Fedor [Emelianenko], then you can just punch people in the face all day long no matter what [laughs]. But I mean I'll have to be careful if we get to the ground because he might slow the pace down and I don't want to slow the pace down. I want this fight going the whole time. I want to make him work.

MMANews.com: Now my next question is what do you feel his weaknesses and strengths are. Now obviously one of the weaknesses you're hinting at is his cardio which obviously has been a problem for him. Now, are you counting on him to tire quickly?

Brandon Vera: Yeah, I count on any of my opponents to tire quick if I'm able to push the pace that we train at. There's no way I don't think anybody can hang with me, at heavyweight. I think I keep it at a Tito [Ortiz] pace, Tito is the only guy that will try to push the pace the whole time simply because he knows he's in shape. I'm trying to keep a pace like that, while having the clean technique and picking my shots. So yeah, I think that's his [Frank Mir's] weakness, and I think that's everybody's weakness. As long as I set the tone, set the pace. His strength? Oh man, he's strong. His jiu-jitsu game is obviously in his strength category. Frank's always been a strong ass dude, I remember watching him compete in a tournament that I did too, and he lost the match like 18-2 or 18-1, but he was throwing that rat-bastard all over the place. He still lost real bad but jesus christ he was throwing the kid all over the mat. I was like damn, that's not cool.

MMANews.com: Now, what tournament was that?

Brandon Vera: Grapplers Quest, it was a super fight. It was him and Roy Nelson and he was going against Big Country. Big Country smoked him but still the first three-four minutes, he was tossing Big Country around.

MMANews.com: Now since his motorcycle accident, since he's been back, do you think that's had a big effect on him? Obviously to me he doesn't look the same, physically. Do you think his game dropped a little bit since he's been back?

Brandon Vera: Yes, I do. And it's sad to say. He was the man before it, he was who I wanted to be. I wanted to be Frank Mir before. I wanted to be on the cover of Men's Health [magazine], I wanted to get paid 80 and 80 [$80,000 to show, $80,000 to win - per fight] I wanted to be that guy. His game has dropped. But, he's said in a couple of interviews he's bringing it back and that he's really focused to do it, so that's what I'm preparing for. The Frank Mir of old, at his peak - not the Frank Mir that fought last time and the time before that.

MMANews.com: Yeah, that's why you definitely gotta train because you never know who's showing up. He made the same comments before his return, saying he was so amped to be back and then Pe De Pano [Marcio Cruz] kind of gave him a beating.

Brandon Vera: I know, that was rough though because he actually fought a guy on the ground in Pe De Pano, and everyone I talk to says Pe De Pano is the heaviest guy on top, like you won't move if he's on top of you. So I was like man, f*** that [laughs].

MMANews.com: He also almost got, I think he got an armbar maybe? He got caught by something by Dan Christison and almost got submitted.

Brandon Vera: Christison, yeah.

MMANews.com: I think it was an armbar, but he escaped. But he showed some vulnrability there.

Brandon Vera: Yeah, he did. A lot of people don't know though, Dan Christison I've seen him fight three or four times now. He's beat people with armbars, that's his move. From his back, he's like seven foot tall he throws that leg over your head and yanks on your arm. That's his thing, but I can't use that against Frank. He did get out and that's somebody else's number one move so I'm not going to fly underneath him and do an armbar.

MMANews.com: Before that people looked at him as being invincible on the ground.

Brandon Vera: Exactly.

MMANews.com: He got exposed a little bit there.

Brandon Vera: Yeah, he did [laughs].

MMANews.com: Now, shifting gears a little bit here. There's a lot of people criticising the UFC's heavyweight division. They call it probably one of the weakest divisions. What is your take on that, do you agree or disagree?

Brandon Vera: I disagree. I disagree. I have a goal, either 2008 or 2009 is to be able to beat Fedor. I know I'm not on his level yet, but that is my goal. For next year I need to work on myself, but 2008 or 2009 my goal is to beat Fedor and let everyone know the UFC heavyweight division is what it is. I mean, granted everyone keeps hyping up these certain guys, like Cheick Kongo, because he's a good kickboxer, then he gets smashed by a wrestler. I just don't think we have enough well rounded fighters yet, but we're getting there. And the UFC is starting to improve more and more for that purpose. I would love to fight [Antonio Rodrigo] Nogueira, Shogun [Mauricio Rua], man Vanderlei [Silva] any of those PRIDE guys. I'm not scared of those guys, the only guy I'm nervous about fighting is Fedor because I have not found a hole in his game yet. I watch all his fights over and over again, there's nothing, he doesn't make a mistake. He hasn't made a mistake yet.

MMANews.com: We talked about him last time and obviously you have a great deal of respect for him.

Brandon Vera: Yeah.

MMANews.com: Do you think he'll still be undefeated in 2009 [laughs]?

Brandon Vera: Honestly, 2008 I think he'll still be undefeated. Nobody will beat him next year. The only guy I think could beat him in that time is Mark Hunt and then even then Fedor knows if he's fighting Mark Hunt he's going to go to the ground with him.

MMANews.com: I think it'd look a lot like Josh Barnett and Hunt.

Brandon Vera: Yeah, man that pissed me off. I was hoping they was going to bang. Josh is one of my favorite fighters, to see him and Hunt bang? Shit, I'd love to watch them do that for three rounds - could you imagine?

MMANews.com: Did you catch the first PRIDE show in America?

Brandon Vera: Yeah.

MMANews.com: What did you think?

Brandon Vera: No comment [laughs].

MMANews.com: [laughs]

Brandon Vera: No comment, man [still laughing].

MMANews.com: How about "it was okay", anything?

Brandon Vera: It was, I don't know what to say. The production, the live production - for the fans who was there at the event was awesome I guess.

MMANews.com: Yeah it was, I was there. It was actually pretty awesome.

Brandon Vera: The production for the fans at the event was off the chain. But man they trying to build a pay-per view, they're definitely not doing it correctly [laughs].

MMANews.com: I think people can read between those lines.

Brandon Vera: Yeah.

MMANews.com: Now, let's go into the future a little bit. If you win this fight, you go on to be champion. How long do you wait to go about getting that goal to win both titles [the other being the 205 lb. UFC title]?

Brandon Vera: Right away man, I'm not playing around. If I get one of them, I'll ask them, I'll say "I want to fight such and such or such and such or I'm not fighting again for a while." Yeah, I'm getting gangster with it. I got one belt, give me the other one right now. But yeah, with training and everything why wait? Why am I gonna wait for, I mean I'd love to fight whoever holds the belt at 205.

MMANews.com: Who do you think is a good match up for you at 205, besides Chuck Liddell? How do you think you'd fare against people like Rashad [Evans], Forrest [Griffin], Tito [Ortiz], [Renato] Babalu, people like that?

Brandon Vera: I think it would be a good match. Those guys, all guys you just named are excellent in all aspects, I mean they are, they do what they do and they do it well, but so am I and I think I'm more well-rounded than any of those guys you just mentioned. So I'd go with my coaching, my coaches and I to come up with a game plan and then I'd implement it to beat those guys. I wouldn't be too worried about them, I wouldn't be too worried about any of them at all. I mean, honestly I would be worried about them but the fight to me would just be a good fight. I wouldn't be like "aww man this might be my first loss," or anything.

MMANews.com: You'd go in confident?

Brandon Vera: Yeah, I'd go in confident knowing that if I trained and I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing, and I do what our coaches run over - then we should just be fine in the ring.

MMANews.com: Now, let's say that you accomplish that and you get both titles - which one would you give back?

Brandon Vera: I don't know, probably the 205 one so I don't have to keep cutting weight.

MMANews.com: Aren't you kind of small heavyweight?

Brandon Vera: Yeah, but I don't like cutting weight.

MMANews.com: Oh, you don't like cutting weight at all?

Brandon Vera: Hell no, I like to eat man. I like to eat good, I eat a lot.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

yet more

MMANews.com: So how much would you have to cut?

Brandon Vera: 17 pounds? 20 pounds?

MMANews.com: Alright, so not too bad.

Brandon Vera: Nah man, not too bad at all. That's what everyone else is doing. I just wouldn't want to be doing it unless they paid me real well.

MMANews.com: Now give me your thoughts, we talked about it a little already, but give me your thoughts on the PRIDE heavyweight division. Guys like Mirko [CroCop], Fedor obviously, Nogueira, Barnett.

Brandon Vera: Barnett is probably the most well rounded heavyweight that PRIDE has. Yeah, he's probably the best well rounded fighter.

MMANews.com: Aside from Fedor?

Brandon Vera: No, I don't think Fedor is as well rounded as Barnett he's just too dominant, too good at punching people in the face. The way he punches people man he's trying to kill people, with both hands. He's in a whole different class by himself.

MMANews.com: [Pawel] Nastula actually tagged him a few times when they were standing.

Brandon Vera: Who did?

MMANews.com: Nastula, the guy he fought in the PRIDE U.S. debut.

Brandon Vera: I don't remember that fight. I remember [Kazuyuki[ Fujita caught him with a good one. Fujita's looked like a tank.

MMANews.com: That guy hits hard. But yeah Barnett got tagged quite a few times.

Brandon Vera: Yeah it was a good fight.

MMANews.com: There's a whole story behind it, the guy [Nastula] got tested for something like four steroids.

Luis Cruz for MMANews.com: What do you think about Mirko?

Brandon Vera: Mirko kicks that ass. The K-1 kickboxing world came over to MMA. Not the other way around.

Luis Cruz: That's right, he came from K-1 to MMA.

Brandon Vera: K-1 yeah, I mean f*** he's a bad ass. His only weakness is the ground, because no matter how hard he trains on the ground right now he's still going to be a little bit behind everyone else who's already been training the ground from a long time ago.

Luis Cruz: He's actually picked it up quite a bit, he pretty much nulled Fedor's ground and pound when they fought. He did pretty well, he just kind of gassed.

Brandon Vera: Yeah, think about it though if he went in and fought on the ground with Nogueira again I would put my money on a sure bet that Nogueira makes him tap out again.

Luis Cruz: I agree.

Brandon Vera: Oh yeah.

Luis Cruz: Have you seen his [CroCop's] knockout of Vanderlei Silva?

Brandon Vera: Holy shit, did I. Yeah. I want to knock somebody out like that. I want to kick someone's head off and split it all open and make 'em slump back. Jesus christ. Man that shot itself should be worth a million bucks.

Luis Cruz: [laughing] Yeah, that was certainly a dominating performance [laughing]

Brandon Vera: Yeah, that was f***ed it up [laughs]. Man that was crazy. I did not see the fight going like that, I thought it was gonna be a lot closer than that [laughing].

Luis Cruz: Yeah, everybody did.

Brandon Vera: Holy shit [still laughing].

Luis Cruz: What about their [PRIDE] light heavyweight division as compared to UFC's with Silva, Shogun, Arona, the other Nogueira, etc?

Brandon Vera: They have well rounded fighters too, I think that division is even. It's even stevens I think, I mean Arona has been over, Silva's been beat by Tito granted that was younger in his game but Tito's gotten better as well. I think it's even, straight up. I think it'd be a good show to put on light heavyweight's versus light heavyweight's, PRIDE versus UFC. It'd be such an awesome show.

Luis Cruz: Now let me ask you this, do you think there's anybody in the UFC light heavyweight division that can beat Shogun?

Brandon Vera: Umm [very long pause]

Luis Cruz: [laughing] That's a long time to be thinking..

Brandon Vera: I know.

Luis Cruz: [laughs] To me, he's number one overall.

Brandon Vera: Yeah, Chuck could beat him and honestly I think Forrest Griffin could beat Shogun. His style is different. Like Forrest is a gamer, you know what I'm saying? He's always game and his style, I think, matches up well with Shogun.

Luis Cruz: I'd probably throw in Rashad before Forrest against Shogun.

Brandon Vera: Oh Rashad, yes he would be a good one too.

Luis Cruz: I don't know, I think Shogun would beat them all with Chuck Liddell having the best chance. Because Chuck always has that one shot and he can put anybody's lights out.

Brandon Vera: Dude, I'd love to fight Shogun. That'd be a bad ass fight. Me and him would match up well. Me and my coach were talking about me fighting him back at the house when watching the PRIDE show. Shogun was fighting and I was like "yeah man, that would be a good fight." My coach started smiling, he was like "yep."

Luis Cruz: By the time that comes around, when PRIDE and UFC start to come around on the fighter sharing issue.

Brandon Vera: Nah, I'd already be retired dude [laughs].

Luis Cruz: [laughs]

Brandon Vera: By the time that happens, I'd probably be retired.

Luis Cruz: Well you never know. He could come over at some point.

Brandon Vera: Yeah but UFC and PRIDE hate each other right now.

Luis Cruz: Yeah I know, I was saying he [Shogun] could come over himself and sign say a three-fight contract or something. Anything could happen, but I mean who knows. You guys could both be champs and maybe then they could come up with something.

Brandon Vera: That would be good. I mean that would be a ...jesus christ, I think me and Shogun fighting would be insane almost. He does a lot of flying stuff coming out of Chute Boxe and has a Chute Boxe-feel to his game. I mean, that would be a bad ass fight.

Luis Cruz: Now real quick let me ask you this. How does a fight with Sylvia and Fedor go?

Brandon Vera: Sylvia and Fedor?

Luis Cruz: Yeah.

Brandon Vera: For the first round I think it's boring. Tim would just be jabbing him around. Jabbing, jabbing, jabbing and moving around. And then second round I think Fedor would just figure it out and start scoring to the body heavy [starts laughing] and then just start swinging to the head after that. I don't see Tim, I just don't see Tim beating Fedor. He's not, I don't wanna say he quits, because he's structurally sound. But Tim's game plan, the way he fights - I don't think it'd work against Fedor.

Luis Cruz: Nah I don't think so either. I don't think his jab would be enough to keep him away for long [laughs].

Brandon Vera: Yeah, exactly [laughs]. That's Tim's fight. Jabs. Until you make a mistake and then he'll punch you good and then just keeps jabbing again.

Luis Cruz: I think Fedor's speed is extremely, I don't know how to tell you...

Brandon Vera: ...Yeah, I tell you [about Tim's jabbing] Fedor would get fed up with it and just f***ing punch Tim in his elbow while he's throwing a jab, and break his arm again.

Luis Cruz: I just think looking at him [Fedor], you can't tell how fast he really is.

Brandon Vera: Exactly, because he's a fat little pudgey dude. It's a bad stereotype.

Luis Cruz: That's what Tim said about him [laughing]

Brandon Vera: Yeah, I mean that's what he's like until he punches you in the stomach and busts your spleen open.

Luis Cruz: [laughing] Alright, and real quick what about Chuck and Vanderlei?

Brandon Vera: Chuck and Vanderlei? That's a toss up. Man, I was really excited about seeing that fight. The thing is, Vanderlei wins when he's going forward, Chuck wins when he's going backwards [laughs]. So I wanted to, oh man, I was so looking forward to seeing that fight. I was pissed off when I found out it wasn't going to happen.

Luis Cruz: Yeah, so was everyone else [laughing]

Brandon Vera: Everybody. Yeah, I don't know I mean...

Luis Cruz: ...It's a guaranteed stand-up war.

Brandon Vera: Oh yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. For sure. I don't think either one of them would want to go to the ground just to prove what's going on. If I fought either one of them and we happened to end up on the ground, I'm keeping it on the ground. I wouldn't let either one of them back up [laughs]. I wouldn't stand up with them forever.

Luis Cruz: Yeah, especially with Chuck that'd probably be the smart thing to do.

Brandon Vera: Yeah.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

last bit

Luis Cruz: Now, alright let's shift back to you. People are holding you in a high regard. I mean, you have a lot of hype surrounding you. Well, not hype I mean you're a huge prospect. Does that effect you in any way? Does it make you more nervous?

Brandon Vera: Nah, I don't care about that stuff. I don't care about my record. I don't care about the hype. I'm just Brandon Vera, the truth, and I just, man I'm trying to get paid. I just want to get paid, travel and train. That's it. I don't care about none of that other stuff. I don't care about being famous. I don't care about walking down the street and people recognize me or have people say, "oh my god you're the best!" I don't care about that stuff. I know who I am and I know what I do and I know why I do what I do. So. That's all I really need and if I have the fans behind me, my family, my friends.

Luis Cruz: That's got to be nice.

Brandon Vera: Huh?

Luis Cruz: That's got to be nice. I mean first of all to be undefeated, and second of all it's got to be nice to walk down the street and people recognize you. That's got to be some joy to that [laughs]

Brandon Vera: It's cool. Yeah, it's ok. But the undefeated part? I realized a long time ago how unimportant that was because I was undefeated wrestling in high school in my junior or senior year. I started to get real big I had to sit back and decide which division I was gonna fight a kid from.... You see because there was a division II school and I was in a division III school, the biggest school so it was like the ghetto school [the kid's school I would be fighting]. And I thought I was gonna just whoop his ass because I was the undefeated who-hah, whatever I thought I was. Then I got, not smashed, but dude he beat me soundly. I walked off that mat and I never ever forgot that lesson, man. Never ever in my life will I ever forget that lesson. So for me, it's not about the record anymore. I mean, you're going to win some, you're going to lose some, it doesn't matter who you are. And it's just, that's just how it is for the record. To me it doesn't bother me at all, I don't even think about my record. People will ask me what my record is, and I'll be like "uhh...6-0? maybe 8-0? 7-0 or something like that?" And they'll ask me, "you've never lost" and I'll be like "yeah, I lost in kickboxing." So I always have to explain to people that I have lost. I've lost in kickboxing before. I lost to the world champion WK in a split decision. So I mean, I tell people that I've lost. You know what I mean? It's not a big deal to me, I don't care about the record.

Luis Cruz: Now I've talked to you quite a bit in the past. And that's one thing I tell people about you is that you're very down to earth. You're one of those guys who don't forget where you came from. You don't forget about your friends that you grew up with. That's what I get from talking to you.

Brandon Vera: For sure, Luis. That's how I am. When I go home I still look to kick it with my friends. I don't kick it with the new people who you know what I'm saying, people from back in the day. I still keep it real. I'm still ghetto when I need to be [laughs].

Luis Cruz: Alright, I got three questions for you - we've done this before on the radio show [CFZ Radio - http://radio.mmanews.com] in the Get2Know feature for Brandon Vera. It's three questions outside of MMA.

Brandon Vera: Uht oh [laughs]

Luis Cruz: The first one I don't even know. I don't know what you know about George Bush. Do you follow politics?

Brandon Vera: A little bit.

Luis Cruz: Have you been following the election?

Brandon Vera: No, no I haven't.

Luis Cruz: Alright, well eh.

Brandon Vera: What? Fill me in man, fill me in.

Luis Cruz: I looked right before I called you up and it was down to Virginia to decide who's going to have control of the Senate. They still wasn't decided, it was so close I think they had to do a re-count. But I'm assuming you're pulling for the Democrats a little bit. Bush's decisions can get overwrote by them.

Brandon Vera: Yes and no. The last time the Democrats controlled the Senate it was bad for big businesses. They passed a lot of..., they taxed heavy to people who were actually working hard to make money. They're more for the blue collar than I guess the white collar. And I'm in the middle of blue and white, I guess you could say [laughs].

Luis Cruz: Yeah, yeah.

Brandon Vera: I don't wanna be paying heavy on taxes. There's pro's and con's. Whatever can stop George Bush from doing whatever the hell he's doing, I'm for it. For right now. So, just short term? Yeah [laughs].

Luis Cruz: [laughing] We got two more years.

Brandon Vera: I know, that guy's an idiot man. He can't even talk. It doesn't matter whoever they put as President next, he's f***ed! Doesn't matter if it's Democrat, Republican, Independant or even an alien. He f***ed it, no one's gonna be able to clean up this mess in four years. Whoever gets to be President next, he's still going to look like an asshole, because he's not going to be able to do anything.

Luis Cruz: He's going to spend his entire term trying to fix George Bush's mistakes [laughing]

Brandon Vera: [laughing] Yeah. And then when that's all said and done, he's still going to be an asshole too.

Luis Cruz: We'll keep that in mind for the next one.

Brandon Vera: And the one after that.

Luis Cruz: Well that might be a woman.

Brandon Vera: Oh, if it's a woman. She might be able to clean up some shit.

Luis Cruz: Ole' Hillary Clinton. Alright, my next question is outside of MMA - what are your short term goals in life. I know we talked off-air about you wanting to meet the president of the Philippines, Gloria Arroyo is it?

Brandon Vera: Arroyo, yeah. Short term goals?

Luis Cruz: Yeah, and long term.

Brandon Vera: Short term goals is to keep my health, go to the Philippines. Start concentrating on my businesses, I have a couple different businesses that I'm doing. After this fight I'm going to go ahead and reinvest and start actually do things with what I've been supposed to be doing. Instead of floating along.

Luis Cruz: Now, can I be a little nosey and ask you what those businesses are?

Brandon Vera: Not yet.

Luis Cruz: Alright [laughs]

Brandon Vera: Not yet, Luis [laughing]. Umm, what else? They're all legit though, it'll all be legal [laughing]. I guess long term is just to start setting up a fund and put it away for my family. And start planning for a family, I guess. I want to start becoming more mature and I want to have all of that together I guess within the next four or five years.

Luis Cruz: Now, when do you see kids in your future?

Brandon Vera: I don't know, maybe three or four years? Three or four more years.

Luis Cruz: You just got married if people don't know, so I figured I'd ask. I figured kids is next!

Brandon Vera: Hell naw. I like traveling still.

Luis Cruz: I hear you.

Brandon Vera: I like doing what I'm doing, so. And I can't train the way I want to train if I have children. I won't. I won't be able to.

Luis Cruz: Alright, I could understand that it's a handful, take it from me.

Brandon Vera: Unless the UFC is paying thirty million a fight. Then I could afford a nanny. Buy me a babysitter with it.

Luis Cruz: The last question I got for you is if you could just tell the fans something they might not guess or know about you.

Brandon Vera: [long pause] Umm. Yeah, even though I fight in the UFC - I'm still broke.

Luis Cruz: You're still broke?

Brandon Vera: Yeah [laughing].

Luis Cruz: You just bought a house, how are you broke! Or are you broke because of the house?

Brandon Vera: I think that's what it is [laughing].

Luis Cruz: [laughing] Alright Brandon, before I let you go is there anything you want to say to your fans directly? Or any sponsors you want to mention?

Brandon Vera: I just want to thank everybody for supporting me. I want to thank everybody for helping me over at BrandonVeraTraining.com. For the support that they've showed me. Because some of the training days man, if I didn't have my blog and the input I got from my fans directly it'd be long days. Longer days than it usually is. So to those people I just want to say thanks.

Luis Cruz: Alright, thanks again for joining me Brandon. Hopefully next time we talk we have the radio show back up and we can get you back on there. We'd like to wish you luck in your upcoming fight with Mir, and we just look forward to big things from you actually. I'm expecting one of those title reigns next year. We'll definitely have you on the show again when it's back.

Brandon Vera: Thanks man, I appreciate that.

Luis Cruz: I'll send you a shout out when you win.

Brandon Vera: [laughs] Good stuff.

Luis Cruz: Alright Brandon, that's all for this time - look forward to talking to you again in the future.

Brandon Vera: You too Luis, thanks for the time.

 

[JS316]

Kurt Pwning Puder on the Bubba the Love Sponge Show...

Dana's just telling Kurt what he wants to hear!!
How can he be that confident that kurt would knock him out? Where has he seen Kurt Box?
Puder probably did suck in the WWE ring... but they've got to atleast give him a fighters chance in the cage?!?! Saying he wouldn't last 40 seconds? Thats a bizare statement... what do u rekon CC and onebigeric?

 

[CaptainCharisma]

I'm biased on the Angle/Puder issue just cause i am too much of an Angle fan. But you can't really disregard everything he's saying (the 40 second thing is sorta dumb) but Puder has been fighting cans, and he thinks wayyy to highly of himself. Angle's got alot of drive and alot of heart, but we'll never know what he can do unless he shows something to us regarding his mma abilities. But who knows, if Randy Couture can come back from the HW division when everyone said he was done and conquer the LHW division, whos to say Angle cant beat the shit out of Puder.

 

[onebigeric]

I concur. Puder seems to be shooting his mouth off, filled with the confidence that Kurt will never take him up on his empty words. The fact that he clearly had Angle in a keylock notwithstanding, I believe Kurt's a more complete athlete; note I didn't say fighter. Although Angle's claims of seeing his MMA training in TNA made me laugh though; see said skills in a scripted male soap opera, where your opponent has to sell all of your moves? Okay.....

That being said, I believe Dana was laying some serious lips to butt in order to try and have Kurt lock a deal in. Angle comparing himself to Ortiz is ridiculous Rulon Gardner made a foray into Pride, and he barely made a ripple. He's as much of an accomplished Olympic Athlete as Kurt, if not more so; so why Angle thinks so highly of himself in a sport he's never touched in any way, shape, or form is a little perplexing to me.

I think they're both a little out there concerning this whole situation. Puder is an mouthy little kid, and Kurt's having delusions of grandeur. Angle would own Daniel in wrestling, but as has been the case with Matt Hamil, excellent wrestling by itself is not enough. Puder's striking and submissions would likely be sharper than Kurt's, but again, he'd have a lot of weaknesses going in. I think it's empty posturing on the part of both of them. When their names are on their respective dotted lines, then I'll take this in a more serious light.

 

[JS316]

Great post obe..well said!
New topic time
Just wanted to get your opinions on Melvin Manhoef. Fights in Heroes but I believe he has potential to beat the best Pride and UFC have.. he lost his last fight by armbar but I believe this is just what he needed to improve his weakness. He fights in Middleweight and Lightheavy... thoughts

 

[CaptainCharisma]

just thought id share this from Sherdog.com

There have been rumblings from the Miletich camp for several months that UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes (Pictures) was considering winding down his extraordinary career.

Hughes recently confirmed to Sherdog.com that he indeed plans on fighting out his current UFC contract, which will have one bout left following his title defense against Georges St. Pierre (Pictures) on Nov. 18, before retiring from active participation in the sport of mixed martial arts.

The question was first broached when Hughes was asked where he saw himself a year from now. “Hopefully retired with my family back home,” the UFC welterweight champion responded.

“In a perfect world” Hughes declared that he would “fight a couple more times, retire, [and] go back home.”

Hughes cited the strain of being away from family, including a newborn daughter, as motivation for hanging up his four-ounce gloves.

The two time UFC champ, who stands at 40-4-0, made it clear he has come to a point where the benefits of fighting are far outweighed by the negatives that come along with it.

Hughes, 33, did leave open the possibility, should he get past a very tough St. Pierre, of moving up in weight to face UFC 185-pound champion Anderson Silva in hopes of becoming the first fighter to concurrently hold UFC titles in multiple weight classes.

 

[onebigeric]

I'm really not overly aware of Manhoef; something I'll have to fix JS. Opinion will be forthcoming.

Cool to hear about Hughes' likely plans there CC. If he did just that, it'd be a stamp on an amazing career. Although I think he'd still fight; that and sponsors are his trade/income, and I can't see him totally leaving that behind.

UFN TONIGHT!!!!


No Shonie, but Jeremy"All my problems come from Women"Jackson? That moron will be there, but no Mr. International? I hope there's a good reason for that. I'd run official predictions, but I have to run. Maybe later tonight.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

with the loss of the Michael Bisping match, i really dont wanna watch this card that much...besides the finals matches which i can watch later...my picks are Serra and Lutter, those will be your winners

as for Hughes, i personally dont think he'll get past GSP, but in either case he should fight BJ one last time before he hangs it up...that's just too much of a dream match to let go of...finally a rubber match in reccent history that i actually wanna see

 

[onebigeric]

Bad bad stoppage for Rivera over Dewees Lucky break for Jorge in a big way....

Rich Clementi just got destroyed by Din Tomas. Brutal standup on Din's part paired with a rear naked; Rich just gave it up.

 

[onebigeric]

Sweet Merciful Crap!!! Scott Smith and Pete Sell gets a serious vote for fight of the year for me. High fiving and clapping for each other throughout the first as well as the second; it was an all-out standing war between two very obvious friends. Scott controled most of the fight, but Sell landed an amazing bodyshot with a little over a minute to go in the second. Smith was hurt badly and went to a knee(cracked/broken rib likely), but as Drago shot in with his hands down, Smith knocked him out with a beautiful right hook. He immidiately rolled away after the stoppage and was in serious pain, but it goes down as one of the most amazing ends in my thirteen years as a fan of MMA.

Edit-Said his ribs are fine in the post fight, but it was the worst bodyshot he said he'd ever received. Hugs after the fight and he actually ignored Rogan for a minute to talk more to Drago. Cool to see real friends like that lock up.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

yay, my picks won

lutter did exactly what i thought he would, as for serra/lytle...close one to call, but i think lytle shouldve taken it...politics lol

 

[onebigeric]

Lytle had that, dead to rights. It's sad to see, but at least it wasn't worse than Kendall Grove taking a unanimous over Ed Herman. Actually, it nearly was. Serra looked horrible; Lytle took him down more than vice versa, and he owned the standing as well. I stopped counting Matt's missed/botched superman punches at something like five, seriously. I honestly don't see how the judges could've screwed that one up so badly without political interference.

Lutter schooled Cote badly, but no real surprise there. All in all, I think the UFC needs to hang onto(aside from Serra and Lutter) Lytle, Din, Smith, and Sell as far as the undercard/fighters go. Cote....maybe. We'll just have to see.

Best fight by far, and once again a serious canidate for fight of the year, was Sam Smith and Pete Sell.

 

[CaptainCharisma]

True Eric, that punch Smith landed on Drago at the end....all i can say is DAMN