Thread: UFC Conference Call Notes

Some of these topics have been mentioned elsewhere in the forums, but I figured I'd lay them all out here. Some interesting comments from today's UFC conference call including comments from CroCop and Dana White.

These are courtesy of my partners at MMAonTap, John and Scott.

Originally Posted by MMAonTap

UFC President Dana White and heavyweight title contender Mirko Cro Cop held a conference call with the media earlier today discussing this weekend’s event. Many topics were covered over the hour session including Cro Cop’s thoughts on Gabriel Gonzaga, the immediate plans for PRIDE’s future, the contract status of Mauricio Rua and Fedor Emelianenko, and much more.

Let’s just say that we have everything covered. Read and enjoy…

Cro Cop’s Thoughts on Gabriel Gonzaga:

Cro Cop was very straight forward in answering questions about Gonzaga. He stated that Gonzaga will not have an answer for everything that Cro Cop is going to bring to the Octagon on Saturday. He said that he is at full health for this weekend. He will not being using PRIDE’s theme music when he walks to the Octagon. Instead he will use his usual “Wild Boyz” song.

Cro Cop also said that he isn’t worried about Gonzaga’s ground skills and that it is his all-around game that presents the biggest problems matchup-wise:

“I have trained Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu a lot, have experts in my gym, I feel comfortable even on the ground. I am aware he (Gonzaga) is a jiu-jitsu world champion, but I am pretty versed in ground fighting now, of course my basis is stand up, but even if we go to the ground, I am not scared.

Gonzaga is a solid, good fighter. He is a tough guy. He won’t hesitate to fight toe to toe. He is a first class fighter. I will of course try to keep it in a stand up position. I don’t want to underestimate him.”

Cro Cop on Couture, Liddell, Fedor, and Big Nog:

Cro Cop said that he would love for to have a rematch with Fedor Emelianenko in the near future but he is currently focused on his fight with Gonzaga and then winning the UFC Heavyweight Title before that can happen. He said that Randy Couture’s age will not be a factor if and when they fight because he has already shown that it hasn’t been a factor in past fights. He stated that while he doesn’t have any preference on his opponents in the UFC, he has a feeling that he will be fighting Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira very soon.

Cro Cop also made it known that he will be unable to cut enough weight to make it down to the 205 lb weight class, meaning that if a dream match with Chuck Liddell is to happen, that Liddell will have to come up to heavyweight and fight…

“I have no space to go down, maybe if I chop off my hand or something. I definitely can’t go down” said Cro Cop.

Dana White on Big Nog, Fedor, Wanderlei Silva, Sakuraba, and Liddell:

White stated that Nogueira was signed by the UFC as a free agent and that talks began about a month ago. He also stated that there is currently no timetable for his first fight nor any ideas on who his first opponent may be.

White said that at the time he originally made that Wanderlei Silva-Chuck Liddell announcement for UFC 65, it was going to be the biggest fight in MMA history. He now says that it isn’t the case until Silva wins a few more fights to make up for his KO losses to Cro Cop and Dan Henderson. Silva currently has four fights left on his six fight contract to do so.

According to White, the UFC is currently trying to figure out the status of Fedor. Fedor’s contract isn’t exclusive to PRIDE and that Zuffa and PRIDE FC Worldwide will not accept non-exclusive contracts for their fighters. White did say however that Fedor is under contract to the company and that if another rival promotion tried to sign him, he would slap them with an injunction immediately.

Despite the heavy rumors that Mauricio Rua has signed a contract that will allow him two fights in PRIDE and two fights in the UFC, White says that the rumors are not true. Also Kazushi Sakuraba is not under contract with PRIDE and White isn’t aware of the reasoning behind him being brought out to address the crowd during PRIDE 34.

White Talks About Changes to PRIDE and the Lightweight Grand-Prix:

White has confirmed once again that PRIDE will be changing to the unified rules of mixed martial arts (the rule set that the UFC uses) as well as the same round structures and weight classes. PRIDE will continue to use a ring instead of a cage. Also fight cards will be announced weeks in advance of an event, just like the UFC does now. Does everyone recall the PRIDE 34 mess?

PRIDE will not have a super heavyweight division and the crazy matchups the promotion used to hold including Butterbean, Giant Silva, and Bob Sapp will not take place anymore. White stated that all employees currently with PRIDE will keep their jobs with the exception of Gary Millen and Frank Trigg. They have been fired and will be replaced with a completely new announce team.

White said that it is still undecided in terms of whether or not the Lightweight Grand-Prix will take place at 155 lbs or 170 lbs. White denied all rumors about Diego Sanchez and Matt Hughes taking place in the tourney as there will not be any UFC fighters participating:

“There will be no UFC fighters in the tournament. The UFC and PRIDE are completely separate companies. You won’t see UFC vs PRIDE until we do the big event.”

White Discusses UFC’s status with HBO and ESPN:

The UFC will debut on HBO as soon as this summer according to White. The deal actually isn’t complete but is in the final stages of being finalized. White didn’t say much about things but did mention that the HBO will be doing their own production and announcing of events rather than having the UFC do things along with Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan. White said that it wasn’t easy for him to agree to that…

The UFC will still broadcast shows on HBO, Spike TV, and PPV. Spike TV will be made up mostly of guys from The Ultimate Fighter television shows. Shows on HBO will be mixture of TUF guys, international stars, and other UFC fighters. PPV shows would then have the best of the best.

ESPN will now be covering the UFC on a regular basis according to White. The coverage will include both weigh-in and fight results…

White Talks About Possible UFC Fights and Events in the Near Future:

White said that UFC 72 will either be on PPV or Spike TV. He mentioned Chicago, Washington DC, Boston, Atlanta, and Philadelphia all as possible sites that may hold future UFC events. Florida will also hold another UFC event in the near future according to White.

White said that the “Inside the UFC” TV show wasn’t scrapped and that the company is currently working on a date to bring the show back to the air.

White announced a slew of possible matchups - If Andrei Arlovski defeats Fabricio Werdum on Saturday, he will most likely fight the winner of Mirko Cro Cop and Randy Couture should Cro Cop get poast Gabriel Gonzaga as well. Sean Sherk will defend his lightweight title in Sacramento, California against Hermes Franca. Tito Ortiz vs Rashad Evans and Anderson Silva vs Nate Marquardt will also take place on that card. Georges St. Pierre will most likely be fighting next in August against an opponent that has yet to be determined…

White on Tito Ortiz:

White’s comments were short and sweet when asked about the current situation between himself and Tito Ortiz:

“Tito is living in a ****ing bubble right now. You saw what happened. I showed up, he didn’t. He’s not afraid of me, but he has people around him telling him it was a bad idea. He is out there making himself look like a jackass. He should shut his face and worry about Rashad Evans.”

Of special note to Aika, Gary Millen has been fired.

looks like trigg will have to stick to eliteXC or whatever its called.

Can't believe they fired Twinkle Toes.

all employees currently with PRIDE will keep their jobs with the exception of Gary Millen and Frank Trigg

yesyesyesyesyesssss

Goldie and Rogan gone?!?!? ****ing kidding me? omg

edit: I officially hate Dana now

Rogan and Goldie will still be doing the regular PPV's though right?
That would really suck if they were jousted.

Yeah it sounds like they will still do the PPV's but when its on HBO someone else will do it.

Never liked Trigg as a commentator.

Wow, that was a whole lot of news. Dana seems to be far less secretive these days. He just laid to rest 90% of what the rumour mill's been chewing on. Good stuff, please keep it up Zuffa.

Originally Posted by opsy

Goldie and Rogan gone?!?!? ****ing kidding me? omg

edit: I officially hate Dana now

They won't be doing the fights on HBO. The UFC (Goldie and Rogan) will still do the PPV's and Spike announcing, and Inside the UFC will continue with Rogan.

This is fine AFAIC. Get a fresh eye on things, different pace and style. Competition is always good, even in commentating.

Originally Posted by Bomber

They won't be doing the fights on HBO. The UFC (Goldie and Rogan) will still do the PPV's and Spike announcing, and Inside the UFC will continue with Rogan.

This is fine AFAIC. Get a fresh eye on things, different pace and style. Competition is always good, even in commentating.

what will be on hbo then? New non-ppv fight cards, with the "best of the "best?" Wouldn't the best of the best be on ppv?

I also believe that Goldie and Rogan are an integral part of the UFC imo. For me they are part of the whole experience.

Originally Posted by opsy

what will be on hbo then? New non-ppv fight cards, with the "best of the "best?" Wouldn't the best of the best be on ppv?

I also believe that Goldie and Rogan are an integral part of the UFC imo. For me they are part of the whole experience.

Think about it this way. The current UFC Fight Nights on SpikeTV are like the boxing on Friday nights on ESPN. The HBO UFC would be similar to the championship boxing they currently have, while the biggest cards will be the PPV, just like HBO's PPV. You could also end up seeing WEC and/or Pride Events on HBO.

I can almost guarantee you won't see the HBO boxing announcers like Lampley or Merchant doing MMA. Likely, it means HBO will hire its own announcers with advice on who it might be from Zuffa. Don't be suprised to see Mauro Ranallo or even Stephen Quadros as the lead announcers if HBO has their way.

Originally Posted by I8URV8

"Sean Sherk will defend his lightweight title in Sacramento, California against Hermes Franca. Tito Ortiz vs Rashad Evans and Anderson Silva vs Nate Marquardt will also take place on that card."


Thats some good news...Sherk gets to defend the belt and it should be a very stacked card.

No kidding. Remember just a year ago, there was no LW, and all the divisions were weak except for WW. Now they're all deep with talent, and Pride crossovers are on the doorstep. Great times.