Awesome!!!
Feb 15, 2007 11:15:24 GMT -5
Post by Darth Turkish on Feb 15, 2007 11:15:24 GMT -5
Thanks to UFCjunkie for this:
UFCjunkie.com Exclusive: Nate Marquardt Granted Title Shot With Anderson Silva
Posted by UFC Junkie on February 15, 2007 at 5:30 am ET
UFC president Dana White has made good on a promise. Undefeated middleweight contender Nate Marquardt (25-6-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) has been granted a title shot with current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (17-4, MMA, 3-0 UFC), according to a very reliable UFCjunkie.com source close to one of the fighters.
The title shot is expected to take place in June — possibly at UFC 72 — on a card that might also feature the much-anticipated rubber match of Georges St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes (assuming St. Pierre successfully defends his title against Matt Serra at UFC 69).
In a post-UFC Fight Night 8 press conference, White promised that Marquardt would get a title shot sometime in 2007. The announcement came after Marquardt’s dominating unanimous-decision victory over Dean Lister. The bout was originally billed as the night’s main event but didn’t even end up making the televised portion of the broadcast. (At the time, a UFCjunkie.com source told us the decision was Spike TV’s and not the UFC’s.)
The 27-year-old Marquardt, who trains with both the Team Jackson and High Altitude camps, is a seven-time King of Pancrase champion who joined the UFC in 2005. In his UFC debut, he posted a unanimous-decision victory over Ivan Salaverry at UFC Fight Night 1. He followed up that win with another unanimous-decision victory over Joe Doerksen (UFC 58) and a second-round submission victory over Crafton Wallace at the “Ortiz vs. Shamrock III” Spike TV special.
Although Marquardt likely earned the title shot on merit alone, he had the added benefit of being scheduled perfectly. Marquardt fought on Jan. 25, and Silva on Feb. 3. The other top middleweight contenders — Rich Franklin, Mike Swick and Jason MacDonald, for example — will all be tied up with bouts in March and April. That would leave them little time to recover for a June fight with Silva.
Regardless, this bout will surely be the toughest test that Marquardt has faced to date in the UFC.
Silva, who defeated Chris Leben with a first-round KO in his UFC debut (UFC Fight Night 5), went on to defeat Rich Franklin at UFC 64 to win the middleweight belt. The victory — a first-round TKO — was shocking to many UFC fans, who seemed to consider Franklin largely invincible.
In his most recent fight, Silva easily defeated Travis Lutter with a second-round submission at UFC 67.
If there were one lesson future opponents could have learned from the fight, it’s that fighters should be careful not to disrespect Silva. Lutter, after all, failed to make weight for the fight (which forced the UFC to change it to a non-title bout), and immediately afterward, Silva said that Lutter had disrespected himself, the UFC, and perhaps most importantly, Silva himself.
Silva appeared to vent his anger quite clearly in the next day’s fight.
In any manner, UFCjunkie.com will report additional information about this bout as it becomes known.
I like Nate a lot. Should be a good fight. Not easy for either guy.
UFCjunkie.com Exclusive: Nate Marquardt Granted Title Shot With Anderson Silva
Posted by UFC Junkie on February 15, 2007 at 5:30 am ET
UFC president Dana White has made good on a promise. Undefeated middleweight contender Nate Marquardt (25-6-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) has been granted a title shot with current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (17-4, MMA, 3-0 UFC), according to a very reliable UFCjunkie.com source close to one of the fighters.
The title shot is expected to take place in June — possibly at UFC 72 — on a card that might also feature the much-anticipated rubber match of Georges St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes (assuming St. Pierre successfully defends his title against Matt Serra at UFC 69).
In a post-UFC Fight Night 8 press conference, White promised that Marquardt would get a title shot sometime in 2007. The announcement came after Marquardt’s dominating unanimous-decision victory over Dean Lister. The bout was originally billed as the night’s main event but didn’t even end up making the televised portion of the broadcast. (At the time, a UFCjunkie.com source told us the decision was Spike TV’s and not the UFC’s.)
The 27-year-old Marquardt, who trains with both the Team Jackson and High Altitude camps, is a seven-time King of Pancrase champion who joined the UFC in 2005. In his UFC debut, he posted a unanimous-decision victory over Ivan Salaverry at UFC Fight Night 1. He followed up that win with another unanimous-decision victory over Joe Doerksen (UFC 58) and a second-round submission victory over Crafton Wallace at the “Ortiz vs. Shamrock III” Spike TV special.
Although Marquardt likely earned the title shot on merit alone, he had the added benefit of being scheduled perfectly. Marquardt fought on Jan. 25, and Silva on Feb. 3. The other top middleweight contenders — Rich Franklin, Mike Swick and Jason MacDonald, for example — will all be tied up with bouts in March and April. That would leave them little time to recover for a June fight with Silva.
Regardless, this bout will surely be the toughest test that Marquardt has faced to date in the UFC.
Silva, who defeated Chris Leben with a first-round KO in his UFC debut (UFC Fight Night 5), went on to defeat Rich Franklin at UFC 64 to win the middleweight belt. The victory — a first-round TKO — was shocking to many UFC fans, who seemed to consider Franklin largely invincible.
In his most recent fight, Silva easily defeated Travis Lutter with a second-round submission at UFC 67.
If there were one lesson future opponents could have learned from the fight, it’s that fighters should be careful not to disrespect Silva. Lutter, after all, failed to make weight for the fight (which forced the UFC to change it to a non-title bout), and immediately afterward, Silva said that Lutter had disrespected himself, the UFC, and perhaps most importantly, Silva himself.
Silva appeared to vent his anger quite clearly in the next day’s fight.
In any manner, UFCjunkie.com will report additional information about this bout as it becomes known.
I like Nate a lot. Should be a good fight. Not easy for either guy.
IPPON!!
