m.g
21-10-2005, 16:11
http://www.insidefighting.com/images/ROUNDS/Baroni_leben.jpg
Fans rarely get to take a peak at what goes on behind the scenes when Zuffa puts together fight cards.
UFC Matchmaker Joe Silva works feverishly to put together interesting, crowd-pleasing matchups, while also making sure to get guys under multi-fight deals the prerequisite number of fights in the allotted time - not always an easy balancing act. Of course, Zuffa President Dana White adds his influence to the card by adding matchups that he deems interesting or exciting for the fans.
During that process, Silva and White propose an untold number of tremendous matchups. Some of the proposed bouts get signed. Others fall apart for whatever reason – money squabbles, injuries, training issues, management rejecting an opponent, etc.
One such proposed fight for UFC 56 that fell apart less than 48 hours ago was Phil Baroni versus Chris Leben, according to the "New York Bad Ass."
"A fight with Leben was in the works for UFC 56. No contracts were signed, but the fight was in the works," Baroni told InsideFighting. "I notified Pride, and they were waiting to hear from Dana White to finalize things. Before that could happen, Leben turned down the fight because he need more time to train, which is completely understandable because it was less than five weeks until fight time."
Chris Leben was unavailable on Wednesday night to comment on the subject, but other sources close to the negotiation also confirmed that Zuffa was considering the fight before the Team Quest standout reportedly declined due to the short notice – again, a very understandable reason.
Baroni, on the other hand, sees things a bit differently.
"I definitely wasn’t in top shape, either," Baroni admitted. “I had to drop about 40 pounds after taking a couple of weeks off (after his last fight) and then going to Holland for a week and doing what people do in Holland. But I’ll take any fight. I’ll fight anybody, anytime, and in any organization or country. If that means I’ve got to become a road warrior and fight all over the world, that’s what I’ll do."
De rest staat hier (http://www.insidefighting.com/betweenRoundsDisp.aspx?uid=2398).
Fans rarely get to take a peak at what goes on behind the scenes when Zuffa puts together fight cards.
UFC Matchmaker Joe Silva works feverishly to put together interesting, crowd-pleasing matchups, while also making sure to get guys under multi-fight deals the prerequisite number of fights in the allotted time - not always an easy balancing act. Of course, Zuffa President Dana White adds his influence to the card by adding matchups that he deems interesting or exciting for the fans.
During that process, Silva and White propose an untold number of tremendous matchups. Some of the proposed bouts get signed. Others fall apart for whatever reason – money squabbles, injuries, training issues, management rejecting an opponent, etc.
One such proposed fight for UFC 56 that fell apart less than 48 hours ago was Phil Baroni versus Chris Leben, according to the "New York Bad Ass."
"A fight with Leben was in the works for UFC 56. No contracts were signed, but the fight was in the works," Baroni told InsideFighting. "I notified Pride, and they were waiting to hear from Dana White to finalize things. Before that could happen, Leben turned down the fight because he need more time to train, which is completely understandable because it was less than five weeks until fight time."
Chris Leben was unavailable on Wednesday night to comment on the subject, but other sources close to the negotiation also confirmed that Zuffa was considering the fight before the Team Quest standout reportedly declined due to the short notice – again, a very understandable reason.
Baroni, on the other hand, sees things a bit differently.
"I definitely wasn’t in top shape, either," Baroni admitted. “I had to drop about 40 pounds after taking a couple of weeks off (after his last fight) and then going to Holland for a week and doing what people do in Holland. But I’ll take any fight. I’ll fight anybody, anytime, and in any organization or country. If that means I’ve got to become a road warrior and fight all over the world, that’s what I’ll do."
De rest staat hier (http://www.insidefighting.com/betweenRoundsDisp.aspx?uid=2398).