Liddell dishes out Angle warning

Hemdoz · 03-20-2008, 05:11 PM

Chuck Liddell warned former Olympic champion Kurt Angle in an exclusive interview with Setanta Sports News that he is living in a dream world if he thinks he can make any impact in The UFC with wrestling alone.

Angle, who is a former Olympic and world wrestling champion, has previously made several grandiose claims about what he would do if he ever stepped inside The Octagon.
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UFC president Dana White offered the WWE star a year-long contract to train in Mixed Martial Arts, in a similar route taken by fellow wrestler Brock Lesnar.

However, Angle never took up the offer - preferring instead to let his words do the talking, and Liddell did not mince his words in belittling his claims.

Liddell and the rest of The UFC world witnessed Lesnar’s promising debut, which ultimately highlighted his lack of Mixed Martial Arts as Frank Mir submitted him, and the former two-time UFC light-heavyweight champion is adamant Angle would face the same fate.

“He talks about it all the time, but he hasn’t made any movements towards doing it, to my knowledge he hasn’t done any training or cross-training,” Liddell told Setanta Sports News.

“If he’s just gonna come in and wrestle, he’s going to get beat, you can’t just be a one-dimensional fighter in The UFC.

“I don’t care how good you are, it’s not gonna work.”

Angle needs to stop talking on how good he would be in the UFC.

T-Bone · 03-20-2008, 05:20 PM

Stuff like this makes me pull for Chuck more!

giguer · 03-20-2008, 05:25 PM

Let's make happen. Angle vs Liddell. So Angle will know what is mma.

subgenius · 03-20-2008, 08:25 PM

I've said it before: Angle is just using MMA to promote pro-wrestling. Angle has a HUGE contract with TNA "Impact Zone" Pro-Wrestling.

TNA has tried to bring back the old-school Mid-Atlantic and NWA style "authenticity" to pro-wrestling. (Those quotes around authenticity needed to be six feet tall to be more appropriate to that misleading term as TNA has applied it.) What that means is that TNA tries to go for a more realistic pseudo-sport style than maybe the WWE has done. So, you will see more partial-contact matches.

Angle is locked down in TNA. He's the highest paid guy on the roster. He gets the gold titles. All of that handed to him. He literally has it all.

But, it came at a price. He has a damaged neck from all the way back in his real wrestling days. Since then, he has broken many other bones, pulled muscles, and all sorts of physical injuries related to the really real world of (fake) professional wrestling.

Chuck Liddell has every right to say what he said. After all, Liddell's sport is being used to promote events that Liddell has not, AFAIK, approved of in any way. I don't know of any MMA promotions outside of Japan that want to allow pro-wrestling to use MMA to promote pro-wrestling.

But, Liddell will never fight Angle. Well, not outside of a TNA six-sided pro-wrestling ring. But, pro-wrestling is a smart industry. If they can get Floyd Mayweather to fight the Big Show at Wrestlemania, then who knows what else they can do out there? Liddell-Angle at a TNA PPV? I would pay to see it, and I have not watched a pro-wrestling PPV in over 10 years. I watch the TV stuff for a good laugh.

subgenius · 03-21-2008, 12:17 AM

Marcus Davis was just on TNA Impact pro-wrestling.

Yep, that Marcus Davis; from TUF and that has been on a roll in the UFC.

He was on TNA promoting the match between Angle and Samoa Joe.

I **** you not!

AND...

Frank Trigg will be on TNA Impact next Thursday!!!

I am not joking...

Frank Trigg has been training Samoa Joe.

Jenkins83 · 03-21-2008, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by subgenius

Marcus Davis was just on TNA Impact pro-wrestling.

Yep, that Marcus Davis; from TUF and that has been on a roll in the UFC.

Interesting. I wonder if he had Dana's permission to do that. I remember hearing the WWE wanted to do something with Chuck Liddell in the past but the UFC turned them down because they didn't want their fighters associated with pro-wrestling.

subgenius · 03-21-2008, 12:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jenkins83

Interesting. I wonder if he had Dana's permission to do that. I remember hearing the WWE wanted to do something with Chuck Liddell in the past but the UFC turned them down because they didn't want their fighters associated with pro-wrestling.

I think that the UFC sees a chance to market MMA to pro-wrestling fans. That's about all I can think of as a reason. Otherwise, Trigg and Davis have completely contradicted Liddell. Dana White may have no control over what the fighters promote on their own time outside of MMA. I mean, technically speaking, pro-wrestling is entertainment. Supposedly they do not compete against each other.

AikaImmortal · 03-21-2008, 01:30 AM

TNA and UFC do a fair deal of cross-promotion lately.

Scarecrow · 03-21-2008, 09:49 AM

Despite who is training who, I still feel that Liddell is right on with this one. With minimal training, I could easily see many MMA fighters making the transition to professional wrestling. All you need is athleticism and showmanship. It's not quite the same thing for professional wrestlers trying to make it in MMA.

As for the cross-promotions between the UFC and TNA, I think it's perfectly fine and probably a good idea all around. Both organizations are growing their fan base at a decent rate, but together they can probably succeed more than going at it alone. I do not see the WWE getting too involved in this mess due to two reasons: their competition with TNA, and also that Vince and Dana would bash heads too much trying to figure out who's "on top".

In any case, my heart lies with the UFC and anything that helps promote it is fine with me.

raconteur8 · 03-21-2008, 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by subgenius

Marcus Davis was just on TNA Impact pro-wrestling.

Yep, that Marcus Davis; from TUF and that has been on a roll in the UFC.

He was on TNA promoting the match between Angle and Samoa Joe.

I **** you not!

AND...

Frank Trigg will be on TNA Impact next Thursday!!!

I am not joking...

Frank Trigg has been training Samoa Joe.

Hah..im soo gonna watch this.

rdowney19 · 03-22-2008, 08:03 AM

I think the TNA-UFC thing has alot to do behind the scenes with SPIKE TV. They're both trying to attract the same age group of people. As for Angle, Liddell said it best last year on Bubba The Love Sponge, the extra six inches you have to stand away from your opponent in MMA(to avoid getting your head knocked off) is all Chuck needs to neutralize Angles wrestling. Then it becomes a fist fight. Who do you take, the guy who's landed some of the best punches the sport has seen, or the guy who throws fake punches for a living.

Daniel · 03-22-2008, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by giguer

Let's make happen. Angle vs Liddell. So Angle will know what is mma.

Well said.

subgenius · 03-22-2008, 12:08 PM

Liddell versus Angle @ TNA ¡Impact! PPV Lock Down LIVE April 12th!

LOL. PSYCHE! It's not going to happen.

I don't think that Liddell could perform well at pro-wrestling.

fullonshred · 03-22-2008, 03:45 PM

Liddell sure is talking it up a lot lately. He happens to be right in this particular case. Neither Chuck nor his houseboy have been doing all that well fighting lately though. Maybe they should focus more on training, and less on interviews and other outside issues. Or maybe not.

el rudo · 03-22-2008, 07:52 PM

If a Liddell v.s. Angle fight ever happens, I could imagine some wrestlers jumping into the cage with steel chairs the moment Liddell takes down Angle. But seriously, Chuck is right when he says a fighter can not be one-dimensional in the UFC or MMA in general.

Did anybody see Kurt Angle on Pros vs Joes on Spike about a month or so ago? Kurt was pretty intense during that show, he looked kind of scary at times.

ultraviolet · 03-22-2008, 09:58 PM

Chuck is very one dimensional, all he does is stand and punch.

It works for him most of the time, I guess.

Gooner · 03-23-2008, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ultraviolet

Chuck is very one dimensional, all he does is stand and punch.

It works for him most of the time, I guess.

No. He's not one dimensional.
If he was, everyone he's ever beaten would have just taken him down and beat his ass.

Clearly he's at least two dimensional.

subgenius · 03-23-2008, 09:26 AM

Have you guys heard that Floyd Mayweather has a $20 million contract with the WWE to fight The Big Show at Wrestlemania? The largest man in pro-wrestling! The WWE can afford to toss around serious cash like that to promote a match and to bring ins special talent for a big event. I would not be terribly surprised, if Liddell did end up in a pro-wrestling match with Angle. LOL. It would be classic.

Jenkins83 · 03-23-2008, 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gooner

No. He's not one dimensional.
If he was, everyone he's ever beaten would have just taken him down and beat his ass.

Clearly he's at least two dimensional.

You are right. A lot of people assume Chuck is one-dimensional because he's always standing up and striking. People either forget or just don't know that he has a wrestling background and that's what gives him his great takedown defense. Like you said, if he didn't have that everyone would just take him down and either submit or ground and pound him.

MTKrav911 · 03-23-2008, 05:43 PM

Angle looks like Wanderlei.

Maybe he has a shot.