Monday, June 30, 2008

UFC blog for latest news, videos, results, betting odds, fighter interviews and MMA rumors - UFCmania.com

UFC blog for latest news, videos, results, betting odds, fighter interviews and MMA rumors - UFCmania.com

Melvin Guillard prepares to give the UFC one more shot

Posted: 30 Jun 2008 09:04 AM CDT

melvin guillard
Props: UFC.com

Quoteworthy:

“Right now it's tough. You got guys like Spencer Fisher, Frankie Edgar, I can name so many. You even got Rich in there. It gets tougher and you just got to train harder, but right now I'm going to give it a shot and try to become UFC champion. But for future reference, if that doesn't work and I don't feel that I'm going to be a champion in the UFC then switch me over to the WEC because its about being a champion and I want to go somewhere where I can be a champion right now. I'm not going to be naive and a hypocrite but I don't see myself beating BJ Penn right now, he's a top guy. Anybody under him, yeah, I can go head to head with and I could give it a shot, but I'm not going to sit here and say that my skills are good enough to beat BJ Penn right now because his ground game is way off the charts. Guys like (WEC lightweight champion) Jamie Varner and (Rob) McCullough and guys like that — those guys are tailor made for me to fight. I'm gonna give it a shot and give it a run, but if I fall short again, I'll be looking forward to moving somewhere else so I can become a champion."

Melvin Guillard details his recent growth inside and outside the Octagon in a recent interview prior to his lightweight showdown with Dennis Siver at UFC 86: “Jackson vs Griffin” on July 5. “The Young Assassin” has back-to-back losses within the eight-sided cage and if it happens again he seems content to try his hand in another organization such as the WEC.

UFC 86 video: The wait is over … almost

Posted: 29 Jun 2008 09:14 PM CDT

Balls out: MMAmania exclusive sit down with Patrick Cote

Posted: 29 Jun 2008 07:54 PM CDT

patrick cote
On Saturday July 5, Patrick Cote will enter the cage at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas and will stare down one of his toughest opponents to date, Ricardo Almeida.

The Quebec native is starting to make his presence known in the UFC middleweight division. However, Cote is not taking his opponent, Almeida lightly.

"This guy is no joke. I respect him a lot, but this is my time now and I’ll do what I have to do to win this fight," Cote told MMAMania.com. "I’m so confident right now."

The fight will see a stand-up fighter in Cote against a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (or ground) fighter in Ricardo Almeida. Cote has confidence in his stand-up and believes he can keep the fight up.

"I train with the national wrestling team here. Some guy who’s going to the next Olympic games and I both do very well," Cote said. "But if the fight go on the ground I’ll fight, I’m not scared to go on the ground, it’s not a BJJ fight, it’s MMA battle."

A win over Almeida gives Cote a clear road to a middleweight title shot.

"We’ll see how I’ll beat him," Cote said in reference to Almeida and the title picture. "But I don’t think about that. It’s all about Almeida now."

Cote’s last fight went well. “The Predator” scored first round technical knockout victory over Drew McFedries. Cote was slated again to fight at UFC 83 against Alan Belcher, but bowed out because of a knee injury after it was reported that he slipped on some ice.

"My knee is 100 percent. Don’t worry I’ll sprawl on him like if I had bionic knees," Cote jokes.

With no injuries during training, Cote says that training has been perfect and that it has been one of his best training camps ever. Cote is eager to get back in the cage to face Almeida.

Cote has had the opportunity to work with such talents as Fabio Holanda at Brazilian Top Team Canada, as well as famed Muay Thai coach Mark DellaGrotte.

"I trust these guys so much and they work very well together," Cote said. "They believe in me so bad than I can’t disappoint them."

Cote has a 13-4 career MMA record. He’s won four straight fights (three of them in the UFC), since his he lost his last fight, which was against Travis Lutter in the middleweight final at the Ultimate Fighter season four finale.

Cote originally made his UFC debut in 2004 at UFC 50, fighting Tito Ortiz. Cote took the fight on short notice after Guy Mezger had to drop out of the fight. Despite the unanimous decision loss, Cote showed signs of promise by sticking it out with Ortiz.

"I made my name with this fight," Cote said. "You can’t refuse a opportunity like that if you have balls."

This Saturday night, we will see if Cote has what it takes to defeat Almeida and take one step closer to a UFC middleweight title shot. This is Cote’s greatest opportunity to shine on the Vegas stage.

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