Wheelie
18-01-2008, 17:04
Plus a ton of smack talk between Kimbo and Tank during the EliteXC Conference Call (http://combat-hooligans.com/2008/01/17/showtimeelitexc-conference-call-quotes-kimbo-tank-gary-shaw/).
KIMBO: What's up?
SHAW: Tell them whatever you want.
KIMBO: That's it.
SHAW: That's it. I hope you heard that, Tank. He said that's it for you and the reporters. So, Tank, take it away.
TANK: I'll tell you what's up. Kimbo's going to be on his back. This fight is going to last about as long as his interview opening did. `What's up' is about how long it's going to take for him to end up on his back knocked out.
KIMBO: Did you have a 6?pack or 12?pack before you said something?
TANK: I don't drink beer. I can afford vodka.
KIMBO: OK, even better
SHAW: Tank, do you honestly believe you're going to knock Kimbo out?
TANK: I don't see it going any other way. I can do anything I want to him, but what fun is that? I like to knock people out.
SHAW: Do you think it's a short fight or do you think it's going to take a couple of rounds?
TANK: Doesn't matter. I can go 15 minutes holding my breath standing on my head. So it could be the 14th minute or the first minute, whenever he runs into one.
SHAW: How do you feel about fighting in Kimbo's hometown?
TANK: I kind of like that. I don't like beating up people in my hometown. I like to go to their hometown, so they can see what they're all about.
KIMBO: You better wear a pad with that cup, because I'm going to have you (blanking) blood, homie.
TANK: That sounds good. That's what it's all about.
QUESTION: Kimbo, what's it feel like to be fighting in your hometown in a sanctioned fight in front of what figures to be a sellout crowd on a SHOWTIME telecast that begins at 10 p.m.?
KIMBO: It's going to be different for me. I'm cool with it and I'm comfortable with it. I'm comfortable at the crib, so I'm looking forward to it.
QUESTION: Tank, how did you get your nickname?
TANK: When I was stomping around in the streets, they didn't have anything such as an MMA or cage fighting or anything like that. I showed up at the steps of the Ultimate Fighting and said, `Hey, I want to fight.' And they said you have to be a black belt or something like that. I said I just got out of jail for beating somebody up, in fact, a cop's son. Isn't this supposed to be about fighting? And they said, yeah, but you've got to have some kind of a black belt or something. And I said that's not what I'm about. I'm about fighting in the streets. They called me a couple days later and said we came up with this thing called Tank Abbott. It's from the "Every Which Way But Loose'' movie from Clint Eastwood. There is a guy in there, who's a street fighting legend by the name of Tank Murdock, and Clint went and fought him. But that's where the Tank came from. I've been stomping the streets for a long time. I tell you one thing, if Kimbo was back in my era, stomping around Orange County, Calif., he would have been long gone a long time ago.
KIMBO: So you didn't earn your name, your name was given to you out of grace?
TANK: Everybody gets their name given to them. I guess it's earned if you're a street fighting legend and you're a Tank. I guess somebody does give it to you.
QUESTION: Tank, you fought some of the best people in the world in their prime. What level of fighter do you think Kimbo is?
TANK: I will give him his props. Kimbo goes out there, he's tough, he's got (guts) and he's got heart. Those are things you can't teach. But I've been swinging around wrestling rooms for over 30 years and I've been in boxing gyms for over 20, and I've been in the street a lot longer than that. You can never tell. All you can say is that Kimbo is a tough man as far as his heart and his (guts) and his mind, but I don't know how polished he is. So I can't give you an answer on that one.
QUESTION: Kimbo, do you want to comment on that? You're newer to mixed martial arts as an organized sport, even though you have the street fighting background so why do you think you're ready to take on somebody like Tank who has been around and been in with the best for so long?
KIMBO: I'll take on anybody. Everybody says I'm the new kid on the block or whatever. But it's the era. Being street certified mixed with MMA, Tae Kwon Do, Jiu-Jitsu, kickboxing and wrestling. You combine that and you're going to have a type of fighter like myself. I'm not one?dimensional. Whatever anybody wants to do, I'm down to do. You want to take it to the ground, let's take it to the ground. You want to stand up, let's stand up. I'm down for that. That's my thing, that's what I'm about. That's how I live. That's my life. I don't even see Tank. I'm seeing through him.
TANK: See, that's the kind of thing I'm talking about. Those are the kind of things you can't learn. That's not technique, that's why I can't wait to step in the ring with him.
QUESTION: Tank, do you expect this fight to go out of the first round?
TANK: I don't have any expectations; I don't know about Kimbo.
QUESTION: Kimbo, any expectations in how long you think this is going to go?
KIMBO: No, I don't have any either.
QUESTION: Is there any possibility, has it entered your mind, that Abbott has simply too much experience for you?
KIMBO: I kind of look at it like a chick that does porn. Just because she did 100 porn scenes, that doesn't mean I'm going to be afraid to [be with] her. I'm going to still get that [girl]. That's how I look at it.
QUESTION: Tank, you fought twice in 2007, once in 2006 and twice in 2005: When you're not fighting, what do you do?
TANK: My hobby is drinking. I like to have as much fun as I can. When I'm training, I train. But I like to have fun also. I like to hang out at the bars and write the book that I'm doing.
QUESTION: You're doing a book right now?
TANK: I've already got it written. It's about 676 pages. I'm pecking away on it, putting it on a computer. It's got some good stuff in it. It's about my days when I was stomping in the streets about 12, 13, 14 years ago when the whole MMA scene came about.
QUESTION: Tank, was your era on the streets so much tougher than Kimbo's?
TANK: Because there was no referee and there were no people walking around watching it. When you entered into a fight you assumed the risk to die. You didn't have to worry about somebody as a referee stepping in and saving it. Like I said, I've got well over 200 street fights under my belt.
QUESTION: Your response to that, Kimbo?
KIMBO: I was smelling chicken and looking at the food. I wasn't paying Tank any attention.
QUESTION: Gary, Gina Carano was originally supposed to be on the card. She dropped off. Can you tell us what happened as far as her participation in this show?
SHAW: Sure, we wanted her to be on the show. She was training for American Gladiators, and at this point she wasn't ready to compete on this date.
QUESTION: Is there any concern on your end as far as her other activities interfering with her fight career? Is that something you've talked to her about?
SHAW: No, we have a long-term contract with Gina. It was a great opportunity for her to be on "American Gladiators'' and be "Crush,'' and I think it will help her career. As soon as they're done with all the meetings they have to do, all the PR appearances -- she was just on "The Today Show" two days ago -- she'll be ready to fight. She wasn't ready in February. Hopefully, she'll be ready for our big March 29 card in San Jose.
QUESTION: Gary, a question (regarding) the back and forth you've had with Dana White, the conversation you had and then he had with Yahoo Sports. Have you had a chance to read that commentary from Dana, and do you have any other reaction to him?
SHAW: Look, no, truthfully I haven't read it. Though a lot of people have called me (about it). All I'm saying is, and I've said it all along, there is a differentiator. If you fight for the UFC, you can't be bigger than Dana White and the UFC. If you fight for EliteXC, as a fighter, you're bigger than Gary Shaw. It's about the fighter. It's not about me. Whether it's Kimbo, who was signed to us, or any other fighter, I believe we represent some of the greatest fighters in the world. I believe that Antonio "Big Foot" Silva could knock out any heavyweight in the UFC. Now, I'm not disparaging the UFC. They have some great fighters and great fights. They have a good brand. They do a good job marketing their brand, but they don't own MMA. They don't own the space. They have a brand. You know what, if you hold up the belt there, all you are is the club champion. Until Dana White is willing to fight his fighters against other brands, all they are club champions. I extend the challenge and always have - it's like Kimbo, you want to fight him? Call us up, you can come in the cage and fight him. You want to fight Jake Shields, fight Jake Shields. We're proud of the people we represent. Robbie Lawler, I could go down the whole roster. But for Dana White to try to convince the fans that he owns all of the best fighters in the world? To say that this is just a starting point for fighters and then they're going to go to UFC? He is full of (poop). Let him fight our fighters. I'll tell you what, let's do some fights winner-take-all. Let's put up a million dollars purse. Let's pick a weight. Let's really get it on for the fans. When he's ready to do that, then give me a call.
QUESTION: Kimbo, your last fight out you finished it so quickly we didn't get to see a whole lot. Are you looking forward to showing everybody your ground skills and what you've been working on?
KIMBO: Yes, I'm dying for that. I'm dying to get the opportunity to show off a little stuff. I've got a lot of tools in my arsenal now. I'm not afraid to use them. I'm getting to the point where it's second nature. I'm just excited to be where I am, to get to bang-up Tank and make a good future and a good name for myself.
QUESTION: Kimbo, what does it mean to have your second fight in EliteXC take place in your backyard where the fans are going to be going crazy for you?
KIMBO: It's exciting. But I'm not letting it get to me because I've got a bigger fish to fry.
QUESTION: Kimbo, how has the transition been going from street fighting to MMA, coupled with your rising popularity, gone for you?
KIMBO: It's really hard. It's more skilled fighters and better fighters. I'm proving myself now, because people feel like the guys that I fought were pretty much nobody's. But you never know what another guy has. You never know what type of skill the next man has. If a guy's willing to fight you, that says a lot. He's sure about himself. You can't take that from anybody. Like every fight, the best man's going to win. Whoever trains the hardest and wants it more is going to win. That's what it's about for me.
QUESTION: Kimbo, where did you get your nickname?
KIMBO: Kimbo has been my name since I was a kid. That's my child given name. Slice was an internet given name from my very first fight. And Slice was a given name I earned from the streets.
TANK: So they gave that to you?
KIMBO: It was earned.
KIMBO: What's up?
SHAW: Tell them whatever you want.
KIMBO: That's it.
SHAW: That's it. I hope you heard that, Tank. He said that's it for you and the reporters. So, Tank, take it away.
TANK: I'll tell you what's up. Kimbo's going to be on his back. This fight is going to last about as long as his interview opening did. `What's up' is about how long it's going to take for him to end up on his back knocked out.
KIMBO: Did you have a 6?pack or 12?pack before you said something?
TANK: I don't drink beer. I can afford vodka.
KIMBO: OK, even better
SHAW: Tank, do you honestly believe you're going to knock Kimbo out?
TANK: I don't see it going any other way. I can do anything I want to him, but what fun is that? I like to knock people out.
SHAW: Do you think it's a short fight or do you think it's going to take a couple of rounds?
TANK: Doesn't matter. I can go 15 minutes holding my breath standing on my head. So it could be the 14th minute or the first minute, whenever he runs into one.
SHAW: How do you feel about fighting in Kimbo's hometown?
TANK: I kind of like that. I don't like beating up people in my hometown. I like to go to their hometown, so they can see what they're all about.
KIMBO: You better wear a pad with that cup, because I'm going to have you (blanking) blood, homie.
TANK: That sounds good. That's what it's all about.
QUESTION: Kimbo, what's it feel like to be fighting in your hometown in a sanctioned fight in front of what figures to be a sellout crowd on a SHOWTIME telecast that begins at 10 p.m.?
KIMBO: It's going to be different for me. I'm cool with it and I'm comfortable with it. I'm comfortable at the crib, so I'm looking forward to it.
QUESTION: Tank, how did you get your nickname?
TANK: When I was stomping around in the streets, they didn't have anything such as an MMA or cage fighting or anything like that. I showed up at the steps of the Ultimate Fighting and said, `Hey, I want to fight.' And they said you have to be a black belt or something like that. I said I just got out of jail for beating somebody up, in fact, a cop's son. Isn't this supposed to be about fighting? And they said, yeah, but you've got to have some kind of a black belt or something. And I said that's not what I'm about. I'm about fighting in the streets. They called me a couple days later and said we came up with this thing called Tank Abbott. It's from the "Every Which Way But Loose'' movie from Clint Eastwood. There is a guy in there, who's a street fighting legend by the name of Tank Murdock, and Clint went and fought him. But that's where the Tank came from. I've been stomping the streets for a long time. I tell you one thing, if Kimbo was back in my era, stomping around Orange County, Calif., he would have been long gone a long time ago.
KIMBO: So you didn't earn your name, your name was given to you out of grace?
TANK: Everybody gets their name given to them. I guess it's earned if you're a street fighting legend and you're a Tank. I guess somebody does give it to you.
QUESTION: Tank, you fought some of the best people in the world in their prime. What level of fighter do you think Kimbo is?
TANK: I will give him his props. Kimbo goes out there, he's tough, he's got (guts) and he's got heart. Those are things you can't teach. But I've been swinging around wrestling rooms for over 30 years and I've been in boxing gyms for over 20, and I've been in the street a lot longer than that. You can never tell. All you can say is that Kimbo is a tough man as far as his heart and his (guts) and his mind, but I don't know how polished he is. So I can't give you an answer on that one.
QUESTION: Kimbo, do you want to comment on that? You're newer to mixed martial arts as an organized sport, even though you have the street fighting background so why do you think you're ready to take on somebody like Tank who has been around and been in with the best for so long?
KIMBO: I'll take on anybody. Everybody says I'm the new kid on the block or whatever. But it's the era. Being street certified mixed with MMA, Tae Kwon Do, Jiu-Jitsu, kickboxing and wrestling. You combine that and you're going to have a type of fighter like myself. I'm not one?dimensional. Whatever anybody wants to do, I'm down to do. You want to take it to the ground, let's take it to the ground. You want to stand up, let's stand up. I'm down for that. That's my thing, that's what I'm about. That's how I live. That's my life. I don't even see Tank. I'm seeing through him.
TANK: See, that's the kind of thing I'm talking about. Those are the kind of things you can't learn. That's not technique, that's why I can't wait to step in the ring with him.
QUESTION: Tank, do you expect this fight to go out of the first round?
TANK: I don't have any expectations; I don't know about Kimbo.
QUESTION: Kimbo, any expectations in how long you think this is going to go?
KIMBO: No, I don't have any either.
QUESTION: Is there any possibility, has it entered your mind, that Abbott has simply too much experience for you?
KIMBO: I kind of look at it like a chick that does porn. Just because she did 100 porn scenes, that doesn't mean I'm going to be afraid to [be with] her. I'm going to still get that [girl]. That's how I look at it.
QUESTION: Tank, you fought twice in 2007, once in 2006 and twice in 2005: When you're not fighting, what do you do?
TANK: My hobby is drinking. I like to have as much fun as I can. When I'm training, I train. But I like to have fun also. I like to hang out at the bars and write the book that I'm doing.
QUESTION: You're doing a book right now?
TANK: I've already got it written. It's about 676 pages. I'm pecking away on it, putting it on a computer. It's got some good stuff in it. It's about my days when I was stomping in the streets about 12, 13, 14 years ago when the whole MMA scene came about.
QUESTION: Tank, was your era on the streets so much tougher than Kimbo's?
TANK: Because there was no referee and there were no people walking around watching it. When you entered into a fight you assumed the risk to die. You didn't have to worry about somebody as a referee stepping in and saving it. Like I said, I've got well over 200 street fights under my belt.
QUESTION: Your response to that, Kimbo?
KIMBO: I was smelling chicken and looking at the food. I wasn't paying Tank any attention.
QUESTION: Gary, Gina Carano was originally supposed to be on the card. She dropped off. Can you tell us what happened as far as her participation in this show?
SHAW: Sure, we wanted her to be on the show. She was training for American Gladiators, and at this point she wasn't ready to compete on this date.
QUESTION: Is there any concern on your end as far as her other activities interfering with her fight career? Is that something you've talked to her about?
SHAW: No, we have a long-term contract with Gina. It was a great opportunity for her to be on "American Gladiators'' and be "Crush,'' and I think it will help her career. As soon as they're done with all the meetings they have to do, all the PR appearances -- she was just on "The Today Show" two days ago -- she'll be ready to fight. She wasn't ready in February. Hopefully, she'll be ready for our big March 29 card in San Jose.
QUESTION: Gary, a question (regarding) the back and forth you've had with Dana White, the conversation you had and then he had with Yahoo Sports. Have you had a chance to read that commentary from Dana, and do you have any other reaction to him?
SHAW: Look, no, truthfully I haven't read it. Though a lot of people have called me (about it). All I'm saying is, and I've said it all along, there is a differentiator. If you fight for the UFC, you can't be bigger than Dana White and the UFC. If you fight for EliteXC, as a fighter, you're bigger than Gary Shaw. It's about the fighter. It's not about me. Whether it's Kimbo, who was signed to us, or any other fighter, I believe we represent some of the greatest fighters in the world. I believe that Antonio "Big Foot" Silva could knock out any heavyweight in the UFC. Now, I'm not disparaging the UFC. They have some great fighters and great fights. They have a good brand. They do a good job marketing their brand, but they don't own MMA. They don't own the space. They have a brand. You know what, if you hold up the belt there, all you are is the club champion. Until Dana White is willing to fight his fighters against other brands, all they are club champions. I extend the challenge and always have - it's like Kimbo, you want to fight him? Call us up, you can come in the cage and fight him. You want to fight Jake Shields, fight Jake Shields. We're proud of the people we represent. Robbie Lawler, I could go down the whole roster. But for Dana White to try to convince the fans that he owns all of the best fighters in the world? To say that this is just a starting point for fighters and then they're going to go to UFC? He is full of (poop). Let him fight our fighters. I'll tell you what, let's do some fights winner-take-all. Let's put up a million dollars purse. Let's pick a weight. Let's really get it on for the fans. When he's ready to do that, then give me a call.
QUESTION: Kimbo, your last fight out you finished it so quickly we didn't get to see a whole lot. Are you looking forward to showing everybody your ground skills and what you've been working on?
KIMBO: Yes, I'm dying for that. I'm dying to get the opportunity to show off a little stuff. I've got a lot of tools in my arsenal now. I'm not afraid to use them. I'm getting to the point where it's second nature. I'm just excited to be where I am, to get to bang-up Tank and make a good future and a good name for myself.
QUESTION: Kimbo, what does it mean to have your second fight in EliteXC take place in your backyard where the fans are going to be going crazy for you?
KIMBO: It's exciting. But I'm not letting it get to me because I've got a bigger fish to fry.
QUESTION: Kimbo, how has the transition been going from street fighting to MMA, coupled with your rising popularity, gone for you?
KIMBO: It's really hard. It's more skilled fighters and better fighters. I'm proving myself now, because people feel like the guys that I fought were pretty much nobody's. But you never know what another guy has. You never know what type of skill the next man has. If a guy's willing to fight you, that says a lot. He's sure about himself. You can't take that from anybody. Like every fight, the best man's going to win. Whoever trains the hardest and wants it more is going to win. That's what it's about for me.
QUESTION: Kimbo, where did you get your nickname?
KIMBO: Kimbo has been my name since I was a kid. That's my child given name. Slice was an internet given name from my very first fight. And Slice was a given name I earned from the streets.
TANK: So they gave that to you?
KIMBO: It was earned.