Maldonado celebrates at Bitetti Combat. Photo: Carlos Ozório

With an MMA record of 17 wins and three losses, as well as an extensive amateur and professional boxing record, Fabio Maldonado will make his UFC debut against James McSweeney on October 16 in London. In the GRACIEMAG.com interview with the Brazilian boxing specialist below, you will learn a bit more about the fighter promising UFC fans heaps of actions. So don’t be surprised if you see him asking his opponent to punch him in his face. That’s the way Maldonado likes it: brutal throwdowns.

You say you’re a specialist in boxing. How did you start out in the style?

I started the same year as Anderson Silva and the boxer Kelson Pinto, 1997 in Bragança Paulista. I did Olympic boxing up until 2001, with 45 wins, 40 losses and 27 knockouts. I participated in 19 tournaments and won 16 of them, having made it to the final of them all. The guy who would beat me the most was Claudio Aires, until I dropped down in weight because of him. I also lost once and then won against Chumbinho, who’s beaten Vitor Belfort in boxing in the past. Then I moved up in weight again and beat Claudio Aires, which was a breakthrough in my life. I’m also three-time champion of Brazil and I’ve won other important tournaments. I had a fight abroad once, but lost by decision.

In MMA, you tend to go for standup exchanges…

Boxing is my mainstay. Our hands are really skillful. You can bring in the most skillful guy in kicks around, but they won’t be better than my hands. Of course I believe in kicks, but I avoid them because I really don’t know how to kick well. Any fight I’m in, regardless of who I’m up against, I’ll keep it standing. I’m proud of that. Of course pure boxing won’t get you anywhere in MMA, as we saw with James Toney (Toney was dominated by Randy Couture), a fighter I’m a fan of. But I felt sorry for him in MMA. Boxing alone in MMA is lacking. We’re good with our hands, but we can’t let ourselves be limited in defending kicks and takedowns. I feel boxing and muay thai complete each other, as do the other styles.

Maldonado win his fight at Memorial Fight via submission. Photo: Carlos Ozório

Speaking of which, how is your ground game? Do you feel your Jiu-Jitsu is good enough for the UFC?

I’ve been a brown belt since December 2008, but I don’t consider myself a great brown belt. I’ve never competed in the gi, but I have eleven no-gi matches under my belt and I won ten of them. I believe that if I’d had more ground matches it would be better for me in MMA. I’d like to have competed more in JIu-Jitsu. I get even tenser in those matches than I do in MMA. Jiu-Jitsu is really hard. My training partner, Thiago Tavares, says I’m a good blue belt on the bottom, but on top I’m a good brown belt. But he’s my friend (laughs)!

And how do you feel the fight with James McSweeney will go?

I’ll go into the fight with good boxing. I know the guy’s a standup fighter, but I feel that, come fight time, he’ll turn into a grappler. He won’t want to stand with me. If he decides to keep it standing he’ll take a beating and change his plans. I want my debut fight to be entirely on the feet.

How did this big career move of signing with the UFC come about?

It all happened at once. I was bummed out about not having made it into a big MMA event yet and was about to return to boxing. I was going to do an international bout where I would have made double of what I’ll make at the UFC. I was going to face former world champion Jean Marc Mormeck, but now I’m happy. I’m in Florianopolis to brush up my ground game with Thiago Tavares and I have some good sparring partners to train standup with. I’ll be in shape for the 16^th. I am very thankful to the events in Brazil that gave me my opportunities. I am very thankful for the chance Amaury (Bitetti) game me at Bitetti Combat. I know those fights helped bolster my record to help me sign with the UFC.

Maldonado comemora no Bitetti Combat. Foto: Carlos Ozório

Com 17 vitórias e três derrotas no MMA, além de um extenso cartel em combates amadores e profissionais de boxe, Fabio Maldonado estreia no UFC contra James McSweeney, no dia 16 de outubro, em Londres. Nas linhas abaixo, em conversa com o GRACIEMAG.com, conheça um pouco mais dessa fera da trocação, que garante muita emoção aos fãs do Ultimate. Aliás, não se surpreenda em vê-lo pedindo para o adversário bater no rosto. É disso que Maldonado gosta: pancadaria pura.

Você se diz um representante do boxe. Como é a sua carreira nessa modalidade?

Comecei no mesmo ano que o Anderson Silva e o boxeador Kelson Pinto, em 1997, em Bragança Paulista. Lutei no boxe olímpico até 2001, com 45 lutas, 40 vitórias e 27 nocautes. Participei de 19 torneios e venci 16 deles, tendo chegado à final em todos. O cara que mais me venceu foi o Claudio Aires, até desci de categoria por causa dele. Perdi também uma vez e depois venci o Chumbinho, que já derrotou o Vitor Belfort no boxe. Depois subi de peso novamente e venci o Claudio Aires, o que foi uma superação na minha vida. Também sou tricampeão brasileiro e de outros torneios importantes. Fiz uma luta no exterior, mas perdi por decisão.

No MMA, você costuma sempre partir para a trocação…

O boxe é o meu carro chefe. As nossas mãos são muito habilidosas. Pode pegar o cara mais habilidoso com chutes, que não vai ser mais que as minhas mãos. Claro que acredito nos chutes, mas eu os evito, porque realmente não sei chutar bem. Qualquer luta que fizer, contra quem for, vou manter em pé. Sou orgulhoso com isso. Claro que o boxe puro não adianta no MMA, como vimos com o James Toney (Toney foi dominado por Randy Couture), lutador que sou fã. Mas fiquei com pena dele no MMA. O boxe sozinho no vale-tudo é muito carente. Somos muito bons com as mãos, mas não podemos ser limitados na defesa de chutes e quedas. Acho que o boxe e o muay thai se completam, assim como os outros estilos.

Maldonado finalizou no Memorial Fight. Foto: Carlos Ozório

Falando nisso, como é o seu chão? Acredita ter bom Jiu-Jitsu para o UFC?

Sou faixa-marrom desde dezembro de 2008, mas não me considero um grande faixa-marrom. Nunca lutei de kimono, mas tenho 11 lutas sem kimono e venci dez. Acredito que, se tivesse feito mais lutas de chão, seria bom para mim no MMA. Queria ter competido mais no Jiu-Jitsu. Nessas lutas, fico até mais tenso que no MMA. O Jiu-Jitsu é muito difícil. Meu parceiro de treinos, o Thiago Tavares, diz que eu sou um bom faixa-azul por baixo, mas, por cima, sou um bom faixa-marrom. Mas ele é meu amigo (risos)!

E como acha que vai ser a luta contra o James McSweeney?

Vou entrar para esta luta com o boxe bom. Sei que o cara é trocador, mas acho que, na hora da luta, ele vai virar um lutador de grappling. Ele não vai aceitar trocar comigo. Se quiser lutar em pé, vai apanhar e mudar de ideia. Eu quero manter essa estreia totalmente em pé.

Como foi essa reviravolta na carreira, assinar com o UFC?

Aconteceu tudo de uma vez na minha vida. Estava triste por ainda não ter entrado num grande evento de MMA e ia voltar ao boxe. Ia fazer uma luta internacional que ganharia mais que o dobro que vou receber no Ultimate. Ia enfrentar o ex-campeão mundial Jean Marc Mormeck, mas estou muito feliz agora. Estou em Floripa para me afiar com o Thiago Tavares no chão e vou arrumar bons sparrings para treinar em pé. Vou estar em forma para o dia 16. Agradeço muito aos eventos no Brasil que me deram oportunidade. Agradeço muito pela chance que o Amaury (Bitetti) me deu no Bitetti Combat. Tenho certeza que essas lutas ajudaram no meu cartel para fechar com o Ultimate.

Tonight, I decided to sit down and watch “Ultimate Gracie” on Spike TV.

This documentary tells a story that if you train martial arts and especially Jiu-Jitsu, you should have heard, read or seen many times over. About 25 minutes into the documentary, it gets to Royce Gracie’s first fight at UFC I vs. the champion boxer, Art Jimmerson.

Royce against Art Jimmerson, UFC 1. Photo: Susumu Nagao.

As I was watching the story unfold, I saw and then heard something that in my opinion explains a lot. I saw Art Jimmerson in the exact same position that James Toney found himself in against Randy Couture a few weeks back in the same Octagon – the Mount. In both situations, the boxer had absolutely no idea what to do.

In the James Toney fight, you could see the legs flat to the mat, which is an obvious sign that the person has no experience escaping the mount. So the question arises, if the world was introduced to Jiu-Jitsu back in 1993 when Royce mounted a boxer and won a fight without a single punch being thrown by the boxer, why are there still people, more specifically fighters, that do not train Jiu-Jitsu?

Couture finishes Toney. Photo: Al Bello/Zuffa LLC

Then Art answered the question for me. “It was a sort of phobia.” He tapped out because there was a 170-pound kid on top of him that he could not get off. It was just scary. Panic sets in and there is nothing left to do.

Luckily, his life did not depend on it and he had the ability to tap out! Despite MMA and Jiu-Jitsu becoming vastly popular around the world, there are still millions of people who have no idea how to handle themselves in a fight, and even more so on the ground. I firmly believe that one of the primary reasons is this phobia that was mentioned tonight on Spike TV.

I have witnessed in my time teaching Jiu-Jitsu, grown men submit because of this panic that sets in when one realizes that they cannot escape, even when no one is punching them! I will always remember my teacher, Pedro Brandao Lacerda, telling me that he was going to “think heavy,” and all of a sudden his side control literally felt like one hundred kilos!

I have tried my hardest to pass this on to our students at PMA, because I think this sort of claustrophobia is a very important obstacle to overcome in your Jiu-Jitsu training. My students luckily have recognized the benefits of continuing to train and overcoming this panic by learning to relax and escape.

Hopefully with time, more people will take the plunge and start training martial arts. If someone can overcome the phobia and fear of stepping out onto the mat, they will experience one of the most rewarding journeys of a lifetime. Have you started your journey yet?

An experienced boxer, Belfort in the lead-up to his knockout over Matt Lindland, at now-defunct Affliction. Photo: publicity.

Over Twitter, Vitor Belfort asked Dana White to let him face James Toney, the forty-year-old boxer ravaged by Randy Couture at UFC 118. The unusual request @vitorbelfort sent the promotional top dog was a courageous suggestion, perhaps risky, maybe crazy, but could turn out to be a big move: to face Toney standing, under boxing rules, in the octagon.

“Dana, make a six-round bout of boxing for me against Toney. I believe I can take him because of my speed. It would be the first boxing match in UFC history, and I promise he’ll feel my powers. With this fight we can prove UFC fighters are better (than boxers),” said Vitor, who has one professional boxing match on his record: a first-round technical knockout in April 2006 in Brazil.

How does that idea sound to you, reader?

Experiente no boxe amador, Belfort explode rumo ao nocaute em Matt Lindland, no extinto Affliction. Foto: Divulgação.

Via Twitter, Vitor Belfort pediu a Dana White para enfrentar o quarentão James Toney, boxeador arrasado por Randy Couture no UFC 118. O inusitado foi que @vitorbelfort deu ao cartola uma sugestão corajosa, talvez arriscada, quem sabe doida, mas que pode ser uma grande cartada: enfrentar Toney apenas em pé, nas regras do boxe, no Octagon.

“Dana, me faça lutar com James Toney numa luta de boxe com seis rounds. Acredito que posso pegá-lo graças à minha velocidade. Seria a primeira luta de boxe da história do UFC, e eu prometo que ele iria sentir meus poderes. Com essa luta poderíamos provar que os lutadores de UFC são melhores (que boxeadores)”, disparou Vitor, que tem uma luta de boxe profissional no cartel. Vitória por nocaute técnico no primeiro assalto, em abril de 2006, no Brasil.

Que tal parece a ideia, amigo leitor?

Toney put through the wringer by Couture. Photo: Josh Hedges

At UFC 118, which took place last Saturday in Boston, the main event was between Frank Edgar and BJ Penn, in a lightweight title dispute. Nevertheless, the biggest payout didn’t go to the participants in that bout.

Nor did the heftiest paycheck go to Randy Couture, a hall-of-famer and one of the biggest idol of the sport in the USA. The fattest check was James Toney’s, the boxing champion who made his first appearance in MMA. Just three minutes and nineteen seconds in the octagon, during which time the fighter succumbed to a snug arm-triangle choke by Couture – read, not much work –, was enough for the pugilist to pocket five hundred thousand dollars.

Check out the payouts for the last UFC event:

Frankie Edgar: US$96,000
B.J. Penn: US$150,000

Randy Couture: US$250,000
def. James Toney: US$500,000

Demian Maia: US$68,000
Mario Miranda: US$8,000

Gray Maynard: US$46,000
Kenny Florian: US$65,000

Nate Diaz: US$60,000 + US$60, 00 (best fight)
Marcus Davis: US$31,000 + US$60, 00 (best fight)

Joe Lauzon: US$24,000 + US$60, 00 (best submission)
Gabe Ruediger: US$8,000

Nik Lentz: US$22,000
Andre Winner: US $10,000

Dan Miller: US$30,000
John Salter: US $8,000

Greg Soto: US$12,000
Nick Osipczak: US$10,000

Mike Pierce: US$24,000
Amilcar Alves: US$6,000

There was no best knockout prize, as there were no knockouts at the event.

Toney no sufoco contra Couture. Foto: Josh Hedges

No UFC 118, que aconteceu no ultimo sábado, em Boston, a luta principal foi entre Frankie Edgar e BJ Penn, a disputa pelo cinturão de leves. Entretanto, nem por isso o salário mais alto foi destinado aos protagonistas de tal combate. 

A bolada também não foi para Randy Couture, membro do hall da fama da organização e um dos maiores ídolos da modalidade nos EUA. O maior salário foi para James Toney, fera do boxe que jamais havia se apresentado no MMA. Apenas 3min19s no octagon, tempo em que o lutador sucumbiu diante de um justo katagatame aplicado por Couture – diga-se, sem muito trabalho -, foram suficientes para o pugilista faturar 500 mil dólares. 

Confira as bolsas pagas na edição:   

Frankie Edgar: US$96,000
B.J. Penn: US$150,000

Randy Couture: US$250,000
def. James Toney: US$500,000

Demian Maia: US$68,000
Mario Miranda: US$8,000

Gray Maynard: US$46,000
Kenny Florian: US$65,000

Nate Diaz: US$60,000 + US$60, 00 (melhor luta)
Marcus Davis: US$31,000 + US$60, 00 (melhor luta)

Joe Lauzon: US$24,000 + US$60, 00 (melhor finalização)
Gabe Ruediger: US$8,000

Nik Lentz: US$22,000
Andre Winner: US $10,000

Dan Miller: US$30,000
John Salter: US $8,000

Greg Soto: US$12,000
Nick Osipczak: US$10,000

Mike Pierce: US$24,000
Amilcar Alves: US$6,000 

Não houve prêmio pelo melhor nocaute, pois não houve nocautes na edição.

Check out the photos taken by Josh Hedges:

[flickr set=72157624708549771]

Photo: Josh Hedges

The so-called MMA-vs.-boxing challenge ended with Randy Couture easily overcoming top pugilist James Toney at UFC 118 this Saturday in Boston. Following a takedown, an arm-triangle ended the contest in just 3:19 minutes of fighting.

“It was exactly what I trained to do. I knew that, with Toney’s boxing, the single-leg would be a good option. Beyond that, I’ve been working on that arm-triangle for more than a year,” said the 47-year-old veteran.

“I think that, despite his training nine months for this fight, there’s a lot to learn in so little time,” adds Randy.

Despite all the pre-fight taunting from his opponent, “Captain America” has praise for him.

“I’m give him credit for being here.”

Now Toney changed his tone, but with a slightly erroneous assessment of his MMA skills.

“He caught me, put me on the ground and I couldn’t get up again. My ground game is good, I just fought a great fighter. I’ll be back,” he declared.

UFC defined the organization’s next lightweight title challenger this Saturday in Boston. With his second win over BJ Penn, Frankie Edgar will now face off against Gray Maynard, who overcame Kenny Florian. Randy Couture, Demian Maia and Nate Diaz also did well. Check out the results:

Frankie Edgar vs BJ Penn

Frankie Edgar dispelled all doubts regarding his UFC lightweight title. In the rematch with Penn, this time the Ricardo Cachorrão purple belt won in undeniable fashion. He dominated the five rounds, landing the better strikes, takedowns and using his ground-and-pound to effect. At the end of the dispute against an apathetic BJ, a unanimous decision yielded Frankie his first successful title defense. Now he will have a shot at the only person ever to have beat him in his professional career, Gray Maynard, who overcame Kenny Florian on the same evening.

Randy Couture vs James Toney

In the bout pitting a champion MMA fighter against a boxing one, Randy Couture came out on top. The former champion of two divisions in the UFC (heavyweight and light heavyweight) at forty seven years of age didn’t make things easy on the pugilist James Toney. He avoided all risky standup and went straight for the takedown. After getting the mount he landed strikes and sunk an arm-triangle that left first-time MMA fighter Toney with no choice but to tap out.

Demian Maia and Mario Miranda

From his opponent’s corner Demian Maia could hear shouts from his former rival Anderson Silva, adding some extra seasoning to the matchup. But the Jiu-Jitsu champion had no difficulty in catching Mario Miranda off guard, despite the instructions from his disaffected former opponent. With his wrestling up to speed, he took the fight to the ground on multiple occasions and worked well on the ground. He took his opponent’s back and managed to mount a few times, but the submission eluded him, as his slippery opponent defended well.

Kenny Florian vs Gray Maynard

Cold, calculating and also bureaucratic, Gray Maynard is the new challenger to the UFC lightweight belt. His seventh decision win in a row came by way of his main characteristic: wrestling. Maynard took Kenny Florian down for three rounds and worked well on top. He controlled the fight with precision, but with no emotion; nothing that diminishes the perfect campaign of the fighter, who is undefeated in eleven fights, nine of which were in the UFC, though. Maynard’s found out who his next opponent will be soon thereafter, with the outcome of the title fight between Frankie Edgar and BJ Penn.

Nate Diaz vs Marcus Davis

The bout started out fast-paced, with a lot of striking and Nate Diaz provoking his opponent. Still in the first round, Diaz managed to open a cut over Marcus Davis’s right eye, an injury that worsened in the rounds that followed. In the third stanza, with his eye very swollen, Davis suffered a takedown. From the top, Diaz squeezed out a guillotine that left his opponent unconscious.

In the first fight of the event Mike Pierce and Amilcar Alves fought for all of three rounds, but Pierce ended up winning by armbar.

Check out the complete results:

UFC 118

Boston, Massachusetts, EUA

August 28, 2010

Frankie Edgar defeated BJ Penn via unanimous decision
Randy Couture submitted James Toney via arm triangle at 3:19 min of R1
Demian Maia defeated Mario Miranda via unanimous decision
Gray Maynard defeated Kenny Florian via unanimous decision
Nate Diaz submitted Marcus Davis via guillotine at 4:02 min of R3
Joe Lauzon submitted Gabe Ruediger via armbar at 2:01 min of R2
Nik Lentz defeated Andre Winner via unanimous decision
Dan Miller submitted John Salter via arm triangle at 1:53 min of R2
Greg Soto defeated Nick Osipczak via unanimous decision
Mike Pierce submitted Almicar Alves via armbar at 3:11 min of R3

UFC 118

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

August 28th 2010

Frankie Edgar defeated BJ Penn by unanimous decision after R5
Randy Couture submitted James Toney with a katagatami at 3min19s, R1
Demian Maia defeated Mario Miranda by unanimous decision
Gray Maynard defeated Kenny Florian by unanimous decision
Nate Diaz submitted Marcus Davis with a guillotine at 4min2s, R3
Joe Lauzon submitted Gabe Ruediger with an armbar at 2min01s, R2
Nik Lentz defeated Andre Winner by unanimous decision
Dan Miller submitted John Salter with an arm-triangle choke at 1min53s, R2
Greg Soto defeated Nick Osipczak by unanimous decision
Mike Pierce submitted Almicar Alves with an armbar at 3min11s, R3

Foto: Josh Hedges

No chamado desafio MMA x boxe, Randy Couture derrotou com facilidade a pedreira do pugilismo James Toney no UFC 118, neste sábado, em Boston. Depois de quedar, um katagatami justo definiu tudo em apenas 3min19s de luta.

“Foi exatamente o que eu treinei para fazer. Eu sabia que, com o boxe do Toney, o single leg seria uma boa opção. Além disso, tenho trabalhado esse triângulo de braço por mais de um ano”, comenta o veterano, de 47 anos.

“Eu acho que, apesar de ele ter treinando nove meses para esta luta, são muitas coisas para aprender em tão pouco tempo”, completa Randy.

Apesar de ter recebido muitas provocações do oponente, o “Capitão América” elogia o oponente:

“Eu lhe dou crédito por ter estado aqui.”

Já Toney mudou o tom da prosa, apesar de ter uma análise um tanto equivocada das habilidades no vale-tudo.

“Ele me pegou, ele me jogou no chão e eu não pude me levantar novamente. Meu jogo de chão é bom, só enfrentei um grande lutador. Estarei de volta, não sou molenga”, declara.