August 26, 2011 – With the UFC’s return to Brazil only a few weeks away, four of the top fighters on the card participated in a media conference call today. Read on and see what UFC Middleweight Champ Anderson Silva and his opponent Yushin Okami has to say about their main event. UFC 205’s Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Forrest Griffin also chime in along with UFC President Dana White.
UFC 134 takes place Saturday, August 27th from the HSBC Arena in Rio, Brazil.
UFC 134 – Conference Call Highlights
Anderson Silva
“I’m happy. My Team is happy. It’s a great opportunity for MMA in Brazil.”
“I train for the best guys in the world. I’m ready for this fight. Okami is a good fighter but a fight is a fight. I win, maybe. Okami wins, maybe. But I promise I’ll be ready for the fight. I have experience, I have technique, I have conditioning.”
“It’s very emotional to think about fighting back here in my home. I’ve fought all over the world and I feel like all the hard work I’ve ever done has led up to this moment. It feels like I’ll be recognized for all the work I’ve done so I’m very motivated to fight here in Brazil.” (on fighting in front of cheering / home country fans)
“Okami is a good fighter. He’s an opportunity for me to show my fight in Brazil. I don’t have pressure for this. I’m training for a long time. I’ve been fighting the best guys in the world. I don’t have pressure.”
“It’s Dana’s decision. I go back for training then I fight all the guys.” (on rematch with Sonnen or Vitor if he wins this one)
Yushin Okami
“I thought it was an accident and I’m not focusing on that too much. I’m just focusing on this next fight.” (On first fight DQ win)
“Yeah he fought Anderson last and he’ll know about what kind of fighter Anderson is. I’ve learned many things from talking to him about his experience.” (on training with Chael Sonnen for this fight)
Forrest Griffin
“No pressure, not really. I watched the first fight and it looked good to me.” (on pressure to win again in the rematch)
“It’s below winning TUF, which is the biggest thing I’ve ever done, and below winning the belt which is the 2nd biggest thing but it’s up there.” (Forrest on beating Shogun the first time around)
“The stakes are a lot higher now and I was fighting at heavyweight in front of 3 or 4 thousand people so it was a little different. It’s tougher now. (on fighting in Brazil a few times before he made it into the UFC)
“People at their core are the same but that his first fight in the UFC, his first fight without kicks on the ground. He looks different. It’s a different fight.” (on Shogun now versus the first time they fought.)
Mauricio Rua
“I’m very happy to be happy in Brazil, close to my friends and family, and where I was born. I look forward to giving back to the fans.”
“I’ve always been connected to sports since I was a kid. I always loved vale tudo and watched action movies like Van Damme and Rambo and always watched MMA ever since the UFC started. Unfortunately there was a lot of prejudice against fighting when I was younger also. To see us reach mainstream and for the UFC to come to Brazil means a lot.”
Dana White
“We’re excited for our first time back in Brazil in thirteen years. It was a fast sell-out, sold out in little over an hour.”
“We’re working right now on taking the UFC all around the different cities in Brazil.”
“In my opinion, Yushin Okami is the best fighter to ever come out of Japan. He didn’t come up fighting cans or build this mythological record. If we wins this fight, not only will he get the respect that he reserves, but he’ll have beaten the best in the world.”
“This event is big for Latin America. We keep talking about coming to Mexico and all these places down there. Brazil is our first big step.”
“Absolutely.” (Dana on the possibility of the winner of Rua/Griffin being in line for a title shot.)
“Anderson Silva is fighting for his legacy; Yushin Okami is fighting for his respect. The Shogun/Forrest fight is going to be a war.”
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