East Windsor, N.J.: Who, in your opinion, has been your toughest opponent? For which of your fights are you most proud of your performance?
Chuck Liddell: I think beating Randy, the first time I beat him. He was one of the guys who could actually take me down without me making a mistake.
I watched that fight again last night. Randy utterly demolished him. The Natural looked virtually unscathed at the end of that fight. When I watched the fight the first time what struck me the most was Randy's awesome takedowns. Ditto that on Couture's fight with Ortiz. But the second time around it was Randy's mount in the third round. It was a nice high mount, deep inside Chuck's armpits. Chuck could do nothing but absorb punishment. If Rampage can get to the mount at some point in this fight, I honestly wonder if he'll be able to do the exact same thing.
So, the last time you fought Chuck was in 2003. That was Chuck’s last loss, so what have you done differently this time to improve to brace yourself for a much improved Chuck in 2007?
To be honest, I don’t think Chuck improved much. I've been watching his fights. I’ve been training and staying where I did last time...I don’t think Chuck improved that much, those same punches. His cardio don’t look good, he looks old, he still got a beer belly, I see a few stretch marks, I don’t see no improvement.
There are two ways to look at this statement.
The first is to say Rampage is making the same mistake as Jeremy Horn prior to their rematch. Horn claimed that the Chuck he was about to fight was the same Chuck Liddell as before but with slightly more polished skills. I believe his statement was that Chuck was simply a better version of himself whereas Horn was a completely different fighters. Horn's assessment may be right. Chuck does seem to just be a slightly better version of himself. But that may be just enough for Chuck to dominate. Say what you will about Chuck's improvement or ability, but the fact of the matter is he gets the job done and does it with an exclamation point.
The other way to look it is to take a look at Rampage's attitude. People forget that Rampage was counted out a lot in his career in PRIDE. No one expected him to do well against Sakuraba, Arona was supposed to finish him easily, and everyone thought Vovchanchyn at 205lbs. was going to be unstoppable. Rampage knew he was being set up and didn't care. He didn't care who his opponent was. His concern was showing up, executing his gameplan, and making opponents fight his fight. So here we are again with Rampage being counted out, albeit on slightly more reasonable grounds. But the point is that Rampage's dismissal of Chuck's much-hyped improvement reminds me of his attitude going into those fights he was supposed to lose. He has the same "veil of ignorance" confidence: it doesn't matter who his opponent is because, regardless, they are going to be fighting Rampage's fight.
"(My trainer) Juanito (Ibarra) is the best thing to ever happen to my fighting career," Jackson said. "He is not just out for a paycheck. He isn't out trying to promote his gym, or his fighting style. He genuinely cares for me, and he is like a father figure for me, and I really appreciate that. This is the best shape I have been in my life, and I am going to give Juanito 159.33 percent of what I got for this fight. ... Yeah, I said 159.33 percent." -- Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, emanating confidence before his rematch with Chuck Liddell
I was thinking last night about which fighters I'd like to see train together. There are a host of excellent fighters in excellent camps, but its interesting to think about how their skills would develop were they to train with others.
For my money, I'd like to see the following people train together:
GSP and Karo Karo and BJ Penn BJ Penn and Matt Hughes Arlovski and CroCop Rampage and Chuck Yamamoto and Sherk Vera and Arlovski Nogueira and Vera Sylvia and Brazilian Top Team Alistair Overeem and Matt Lindland
Chuck Liddell (-260) vs Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (+200)
Karo Parisyan (-350) vs Josh Burkman (+250)
Desert Dog says "Jackson is a good deal from here on up." Ditto for Burkman at anything plus 200. I think Burkman needs to top +300 before I lay any money on him.
Chuck Liddell on MTV's "Punk'd". I'm glad to see Chuck getting some attention, but I wish he could've appeared before the show became horribly played-out.
If the rumor mill at MMA Weekly is reliable, it appears the previously scheduled fight between Rampage Jackson and Chuck Liddell at UFC 71 in late May is off. Good. Short of death there's no way these two won't fight. Both the storyline and the actual need for a contender in the 205lbs division makes this fight a certainty in 2007.
But the UFC is trying to rush the rematch. In fact, the UFC is trying to rush a lot of rematches of former champions seeking to regain their belts. Both Franklin and Hughes have expressed a desire to get an immediate rematch and I'm guessing the UFC isn't too hesitant about setting those fights up. The problem is that this strategy is flawed.
First, I am in no position to tell any former UFC champion when he is and isn't ready to fight. That's something they have to decide for themselves. But will successful and hyper-competitive athletes drive themselves to challenges they may not be ready for? Absolutely. Be it money, a desire to prove a point about their loss or status, or even because they're overestimating their own ability, fighters of this type of caliber have such a strong potential to lead themselves astray. That can lead them into troubled water very quickly.
Hughes has claimed he's ready for GSP, but I saw nothing in his last fight that leads me to believe he has what it takes to overcome the red hot French Canadian. And there are serious consequences if he losses, thereby making the need for a well-timed rematch all the more imperative. If he takes the fight and losses again, he makes it virtually impossible to ever get the belt back. Hughes has expressed a desire to jump to 185lbs, but if he jumps post a GSP-loss, he'll look like he's changing weight classes because he can no longer compete. And if Franklin gets his title back, I seriously doubt Hughes will ever challenge him for the gold. He'll be locked in non-championship limbo in a weight class he really doesn't belong in.
Second, let's talk about Franklin. He seemed much more ready and rejuvenated on Saturday than Hughes. He overcame his jitters and a very game MacDonald to place himself firmly in the Middle Weight hunt. Keyword: hunt. The other problem with immediate rematches is it robs other contenders of their rightful title shot. If Marquardt gets another win, there's absolutely no reason why Franklin should fight before him. In fact, those two should fight. When divisions are handled appropriately, there should at least be some semblance of a hierarchy for fighters in line for a title shot. When a champ losses he needs to earn his way back up. Some will do it quicker than others, but its very unfair to let contenders fight one another - thereby damaging their records and marketability - while champs and former champs rematch ad infinitum. There is a waiting list for the title and status as a former champ is not a get out of jail free card.
Third, the stated reasons by the UFC are just bogus. Dana White claims Rampage has fought the best fighters in the world and that while his performance against Eastman was not his best (but certainly very good), Rampage has a tendency to fight to the level of his competition. Those are both true statements, however, they have nothing to do with this situation. The 205lbs division doesn't have any clear challenger to Liddell. You could throw Rashad Evans in there, but if the UFC waits and gives him a few fights, the match will be more competitive and won't ruin any future title hopes of a very promising contender. You could offer Chuck Jardine, but that's not a fight a lot of people want to see and there's a disparity in talent level. Babalu and Tito are out of the question. I doubt Randy wants to jump back down after winning heavyweight gold. Lambert needs more wins. And worse, Chuck's 37, so he's not exactly a spring chicken anymore. So who do you give him? Rampage! It would sell PPVs by the butt load and since Jackson has a win over the Iceman, the rematch status to decide who's number 1 gives the fight real gravity in terms of matchmaking.
But Rampage has always seemed hesitant about a rush to rematch since signing with the UFC. He knows Liddell's on a high and he's still on a comeback of sorts, particularly as it relates to regaining edge. Rampage suffered some devastating KO losses to the Chute Boxe boys and any good sports psychologist will tell you it takes good timing, smart matchmaking, and exercises (physical and mental) to re-establish the self-confidence required to perform optimally in a sport. The Lindland fight helped and the Eastman rematch was a good first bout in the UFC. But he needs someone else before fighting Chuck. Any of the names I've listed above would be good, particularly Jardine or Evans. But rushing a fight to make money or get mainstream exposure at the expense of Rampage's title hopes and really, future in fighting is dubious at best.
I can't believe we are even talking about this, but we are: the Nevada State Athletic Commission tests fighters for marijuana use and Nick Diaz - coming off the greatest win of his career - has tested positive for the controlled substance:
Nick Diaz has failed the drug test that he took following his win over TakanoriGomi at Pride 33: The Second Coming. Diaz tested positive for marijuana, according to the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Diaz will have an opportunity to defend himself at a Nevada State Athletic Commission hearing in the future.
The typical punishment for MMA fighters or boxers who test positive for marijuana in the state of Nevada has been a six-month suspension, most recently with professional boxer Mikhail Lyubarsky, who was suspended for six months at his NSAC disciplinary hearing just this morning.
That's not a terrible suspension and since he has a broken orbital bone, he may already get "time served" after his injury heals, so to speak. But that's hardly the point.
It's both impossible and tiresome to defend the use of marijuana on this blog right now. Over time I'll make the case piece by piece and if readers are interested in a dialogue on the matter, always feel free to contact me. But really, I'm just fatigued. I've spent the better part of my academic, professional, and personal studies delving into this issue. I know why the drug is illegal. I know the origins of how it came to be banned. I know what the effects and side effects of both short and long term use are. I know what the previous and current battery of medical studies say and don't say about the drug and it's use. I know why users find the drug appealing. I know the social, economic and legal consequences of drug use - admitted or otherwise. I am very familiar with this issue.
And testing Diaz - or any fighter - for marijuana is believable, sadly. That we still wish control and penalize personal pleasure or hold onto exploded myths is something I have no trouble accepting. Of course I am angered, frustrated and annoyed by the fact, but am I surprised that our society can act so anachronistically on issues of personal liberty or pleasure? No, not in the least.
While Diaz's career won't be severely affected, there is certainly no shortage of lives that have been damaged or irreparably destroyed by the prosecution of activities related to this plant. It's all ridiculous, woefully unnecessary, and in this case, humiliating/embarrassing for the fighter. But hey, the law's the law, right?
Does it matter that Nick's cardio was better than Gomi's? Does it matter that marijuana isn't a performance enhancing drug and so therefore gave Diaz no medical advantage in the fight? Does it matter that Nick's career-defining fight will be tarnished because a substance with real medical pain alleviating benefits is unnecessarily banned? Does it matter that Nick's ability to fight in Vegas will be obstructed not just for the next 6 months, but for as long as he fights in Nevada since he now has an offense on his record?
So to the NSAC: STOP. STOP TESTING FIGHTERS FOR MARIJUANA. STOP RIGHT NOW.
And hell, even if you find drug use reprehensible, there's always the attitude Chuck Liddell takes:
