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CORMIER ON HOW ROUSEY SHOULD FIGHT HOLM: “SHE NEEDS TO CLOSE THE DISTANCE, TAKE HER DOWN AND MAKE IT A SHORT FIGHT.”
Florian on Holm: “She’s good at creating distance. She has more weapons than Rousey.”
VanZant on fighting Namajunas: “I’m the more aggressive fighter. I go out there to finish.”
LOS ANGELES – UFC TONIGHT hosts Daniel Cormier and Kenny Florian are joined by guest host Paige VanZant to break down the UFC 193 title fights. Karyn Bryant and Ariel Helwani add reports.
UFC TONIGHT host Daniel Cormier on what Holly Holm needs to against Ronda Rousey: “First and foremost she has to believe in herself and in her team preparing for championship fights. She has to maintain distance. She can’t be close to Ronda. She needs to jab and move, make Ronda feel uncomfortable and look for her to make mistakes.”
UFC TONIGHT guest host Paige VanZant on what Holm needs to do to win: “She needs to keep the distance, not close in and rush Ronda. Ronda really capitalizes and uses her judo when she gets rushed.”
UFC TONIGHT host Kenny Florian on Holm vs. Rousey: “This is the fight Holly has been expecting for a long time. She’s been working with an Olympic teammate of Ronda’s sharpening up her judo for a long time. She needs to keep it standing, stick and move, and outpoint Ronda for the win.”
Cormier on Holm training for Ronda’s weapons: “At Jackson’s, they always make sure their people are prepared for the belt. We know Ronda’s weapon of choice is the arm bar, but Ronda has knockouts now, with knees and big right hands, as we saw in the last fight. She’s a well-rounded fighter. She’s not just a grappler anymore. She can do everything. For Ronda, she needs to close the distance, take Holly down and make it a short fight.”
Florian on Rousey countering Holm’s strengths: “Ronda has to pressure Holm a lot. The thing about Holm, she’s good at creating distance. You can’t give her space to work with. She throws a lot of different weapons, and has more weapons than Rousey. Rousey leans on her hands and clinch fighting. She’s got to pressure Holm up against the cage.”
Cormier on Holm making it a long fight: “The longer she can make the fight go, the better the chance Holly has because she’s gone long many times in her career.”
Cormier on Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s striking skill: “She’s an incredible striker. She has confidence and she goes into the fights without a doubt that she’ll get her hand raised. She has a killer mentality. When she gets people hurt, she goes for the kill.”
Florian on Valerie Letourneau’s key to fighting Jedrzejczyk: “Her key is to keep the fight standing. Valerie has been working with Hector Lombard, who’s been essentially her head coach. He’s an aggressive fighter. Valerie might go and trade punches with Joanna.”
Cormier on which underdog has a better chance to pull the upset: “Valerie has a better chance because it’s a stand-up fight. If Ronda is in trouble, she’ll throw Holly down and get the submission.”
Paige VanZant on which underdog could win: “I think Holly has a better chance to get the upset. Ronda hasn’t faced anyone like Holly yet. Holly is undefeated and she’ll be able to do things that others haven’t been able to do against Ronda.”
VIDEO: Strikezone Predictions: Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Florian on Dan Henderson’s recent loss: “I don’t think there’s any shame in losing to a guy like Vitor Belfort. Dan Henderson has to start thinking about retiring at this point. He’s taken a lot of damage in the last several fights. He’s been fighting tough guys. I’d like to see him transition and maybe take a job with the UFC.”
Paige VanZant on her upcoming fight vs. Rose Namajunas: “It’s a great matchup. She’s well rounded, has a great striking game and has pulled off a few tricky submissions. I’m the more aggressive fighter. I go out there to finish and push the pace.”
VanZant on needing time to develop and fight for championship: “I think I’m going to improve immensely over the next few years. I’m new in the sport. I’m going to continue to grow. I’m an athlete and have done a lot in other sports. I’m not lacking experience. I have a long way to go to become great. I’m going to keep changing as a fighter.”
VanZant on Claudia Gadelha saying Paige gets preferential treatment from the UFC: “I don’t believe that. I’m 3-0 in the UFC for a reason. I don’t think Claudia is wrong in saying that it is an entertainment industry. Of course the UFC wants to make money and they want things that sell.”
VIDEO: Paige VanZant Interview
http://www.foxsports.com/
Gegard Mousasi on his loss to Urijah Hall: “I wanted to finish him badly. The only mistake I made was I was too aggressive. I believe I would beat him in a rematch. I respect the guy, I didn’t take the fight lightly. I was in shape.”
Mousasi on who he picks in the middleweight title fight between Chris Weidman and Luke Rockhold: “I think it’s very evenly matched. It’s 50-50 if you ask me.”
Mousasi on what’s next for him: “I’d like to fight as fast as possible. Anderson Silva would be a good fight for me. I don’t have anything to lose.”
VIDEO: Gegard Mousasi Interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
UFC TONIGHT Insider Ariel Helwani on if Khabib Nurmagomedov will retire: “I spoke to him. He’s decided against retirement. His time wasn’t now. His father is the boss. He said, ‘once you get the gold, you can decide.’ Khabib said fighting is in my blood. He’s going to relax for a while then hopefully get back for the Super Bowl fight.”
Helwani on Al Iaquinta opting for knee surgery: “Al Iaquinta has decided to get knee surgery. He’s going to get cartilage from a cadaver and put it into the back of his knee cap. He’ll be out six to eight months.”
VIDEO: Inside The Octagon with Ariel Helwani
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
For notes, coverage, bios, photography and more, visit the FOX UFC page on FOX Sports Press Pass.
UFC TONIGHT
UFC TONIGHT is the official weekly news and information show of the Ultimate Fighting Championship on FS1. Veteran UFC fighter and multiple title contender Kenny Florian, light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, veteran combat sports journalist Karyn Bryant and five-time World MMA Awards Journalist of the Year Ariel Helwani bring you all the news and analysis.
Follow on Twitter at: @KennyFlorian @DC_MMA @KarynBryant; @ArielHelwani; @UFCTonight; @FS1
