Pepe the Ice-Murderer
30-06-2008, 18:00
Monday, June 30, 2008 - by Ken Pishna - MMAWeekly.com
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Four years ago, Forrest Griffin nearly walked away from mixed martial arts. Despite a 9-2 professional record at the time, he had pretty much decided it was time to forego the low pay, long hours in the gym, and battle scars.
Just then, he got the call to join the cast of the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter… and the rest is history. He and Stephan Bonnar made it to the light heavyweight final that season on put on an epic battle that helped to change the course of the entire sport.
That was April 9, 2005. Now, three years and change later, Griffin readies himself to step into the Octagon at UFC 86 at Mandalay Bay (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/rumors.asp?articleid=5822&zoneid=14) to face the greatest challenge of his career. He will attempt to wrest the UFC light heavyweight championship away from fellow Ultimate Fighter Season 7 coach and No. 1 ranked 205-pounder in the world (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/topten.asp?articleid=15&zoneid=15), Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
He’s not the first Ultimate Fighter alum to get a shot at a title, but that’s not anything that worries the laid back Xtreme Couture fighter. “I was very fortunate with The Ultimate Fighter. A lot of guys have done it now, but I’m glad it took as long as it did,” said Griffin in an exclusive interview with MMAWeekly.com.
Of his transformation from competitor to coach on the television series that helped to launch the current rise in success that mixed martial arts has received, Griffin delivered in his brutally honest style that always makes you wonder if he is dead serious or dripping with sarcasm.
“It’s easier to tell people what to do than do it. But actually I’m a selfish bastard. I care about me primarily. So I’d rather be getting trained than training people,” he said.
“I don’t lead nothing man. If we were all on a deserted island, lost, I would not be Jack.”
In Jackson, Griffin faces a man that is riding an impressive six-fight winning streak, including a title-crowning win over Chuck Liddell and a subsequent five-round defense against former Pride light heavyweight and middleweight champ Dan Henderson.
But Jackson is also a man whose last defeat was a knockout at the hands of former Pride 205-Pound Grand Prix champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua… the same fighter that Griffin defeated last September by submission near the end of the third round. Shogun was widely regarded as the No. 1 light heavyweight in the world at the time.
The win propelled Griffin into the championship challenge of Jackson and landed both the stint as coaches on season seven of The Ultimate Fighter.
Now, it’s crunch time. Yet, despite training non-stop for this chance of a lifetime, Griffin offers little by way of predictions, not even how he sees the fight unfolding. “I don’t care where it goes as long as I win,” he said. Adding, “I’ll tell you one thing, the price of gas will continue to rise.”
According to many insiders, Wanderlei Silva – who also trains at Xtreme Couture and holds two crushing victories over Quinton Jackson while both were fighting for Pride – has been in Griffin’s ear and in his face for the Ultimate Fighter alum’s training camp for this bout. It’s something that Griffin readily confirms and has reaped tremendous confidence from.
“Wanderlei is just an animal… He’s not normal. You work out with him, see him in here; he’s on his own world man. You really got to be a specific guy with a specific skill set and specific cardio to fight like Wanderlei. I can’t emulate his style,” admitted Griffin, not giving any impression that he intends to fight Wanderlei’s fight against the champion.
He does appreciate the opportunity to train with the former Pride champion though. “I love him as a training partner. It’s that unchecked aggression,” said Griffin with a smile on his face.
He has acquired some fight advice from Wanderlei though. “The one thing he said was immediately grab the head and throw the knee instead of trying to set it up and make the perfect… bam! Grab and go, start throwing, don’t sit there and let him think about it.”
That aggressive, in your face style, patented by Wanderlei and Shogun’s former team, Chute Boxe, has been quite successful against Jackson. Over the past several years, Jackson has racked up wins over Liddell, Henderson, Ricardo Arona, Murilo Bustamante, Matt Lindland, and several others. But in his last 15 bouts, only Wanderlei and Shogun have cracked to the code to the current UFC light heavyweight champ.
It’s a promising portent for the typically aggressive Forrest Griffin, but Wanderlei Silva won’t be in the ring with him on Saturday night at UFC 86 (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/rumors.asp?articleid=5822&zoneid=14). It will just be him against the champ; the way Griffin likes it.
http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/articlefiles/6606-headline.jpg
Four years ago, Forrest Griffin nearly walked away from mixed martial arts. Despite a 9-2 professional record at the time, he had pretty much decided it was time to forego the low pay, long hours in the gym, and battle scars.
Just then, he got the call to join the cast of the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter… and the rest is history. He and Stephan Bonnar made it to the light heavyweight final that season on put on an epic battle that helped to change the course of the entire sport.
That was April 9, 2005. Now, three years and change later, Griffin readies himself to step into the Octagon at UFC 86 at Mandalay Bay (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/rumors.asp?articleid=5822&zoneid=14) to face the greatest challenge of his career. He will attempt to wrest the UFC light heavyweight championship away from fellow Ultimate Fighter Season 7 coach and No. 1 ranked 205-pounder in the world (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/topten.asp?articleid=15&zoneid=15), Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.
He’s not the first Ultimate Fighter alum to get a shot at a title, but that’s not anything that worries the laid back Xtreme Couture fighter. “I was very fortunate with The Ultimate Fighter. A lot of guys have done it now, but I’m glad it took as long as it did,” said Griffin in an exclusive interview with MMAWeekly.com.
Of his transformation from competitor to coach on the television series that helped to launch the current rise in success that mixed martial arts has received, Griffin delivered in his brutally honest style that always makes you wonder if he is dead serious or dripping with sarcasm.
“It’s easier to tell people what to do than do it. But actually I’m a selfish bastard. I care about me primarily. So I’d rather be getting trained than training people,” he said.
“I don’t lead nothing man. If we were all on a deserted island, lost, I would not be Jack.”
In Jackson, Griffin faces a man that is riding an impressive six-fight winning streak, including a title-crowning win over Chuck Liddell and a subsequent five-round defense against former Pride light heavyweight and middleweight champ Dan Henderson.
But Jackson is also a man whose last defeat was a knockout at the hands of former Pride 205-Pound Grand Prix champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua… the same fighter that Griffin defeated last September by submission near the end of the third round. Shogun was widely regarded as the No. 1 light heavyweight in the world at the time.
The win propelled Griffin into the championship challenge of Jackson and landed both the stint as coaches on season seven of The Ultimate Fighter.
Now, it’s crunch time. Yet, despite training non-stop for this chance of a lifetime, Griffin offers little by way of predictions, not even how he sees the fight unfolding. “I don’t care where it goes as long as I win,” he said. Adding, “I’ll tell you one thing, the price of gas will continue to rise.”
According to many insiders, Wanderlei Silva – who also trains at Xtreme Couture and holds two crushing victories over Quinton Jackson while both were fighting for Pride – has been in Griffin’s ear and in his face for the Ultimate Fighter alum’s training camp for this bout. It’s something that Griffin readily confirms and has reaped tremendous confidence from.
“Wanderlei is just an animal… He’s not normal. You work out with him, see him in here; he’s on his own world man. You really got to be a specific guy with a specific skill set and specific cardio to fight like Wanderlei. I can’t emulate his style,” admitted Griffin, not giving any impression that he intends to fight Wanderlei’s fight against the champion.
He does appreciate the opportunity to train with the former Pride champion though. “I love him as a training partner. It’s that unchecked aggression,” said Griffin with a smile on his face.
He has acquired some fight advice from Wanderlei though. “The one thing he said was immediately grab the head and throw the knee instead of trying to set it up and make the perfect… bam! Grab and go, start throwing, don’t sit there and let him think about it.”
That aggressive, in your face style, patented by Wanderlei and Shogun’s former team, Chute Boxe, has been quite successful against Jackson. Over the past several years, Jackson has racked up wins over Liddell, Henderson, Ricardo Arona, Murilo Bustamante, Matt Lindland, and several others. But in his last 15 bouts, only Wanderlei and Shogun have cracked to the code to the current UFC light heavyweight champ.
It’s a promising portent for the typically aggressive Forrest Griffin, but Wanderlei Silva won’t be in the ring with him on Saturday night at UFC 86 (http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/templates/rumors.asp?articleid=5822&zoneid=14). It will just be him against the champ; the way Griffin likes it.