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[themmabooker]

Chuck Liddell Phone Interview, January 19, 2009.

Chuck discusses who he would like to fight, his plan against Rua, and who he would fight at UFC 100 if he was given a choice.

chuck, thanks for taking the time to do an interview, how are things going?

c: things are going well. i just heard who i will be facing in april, just getting ready for that, and doing some PR.. making some appearances..

so it was announced at ufc 94, what do you think of rua as a fighter?

c: he's a great fighter obviously. he was the champion of pride, won a few good fights over there, it's going to b a great fight for the fans and me especially.

looking back at his appearance, cardio seemed to be what was lacking of him, do you think he will come into better shape when he comes to fight you next?

c: i sure hope so. i know i will be ready. he didnt look that good when he fought coleman. i was a bit suprised. hopefully he comes into the fight in better shape.. i know i will

now looking past rua, who do you want next for your next fight? perhaps a fight with Anderson Silva?

c: right now, im focusing on rua. there was rumors about me fighting anderson, and all that has been false. it would be a fun fight for the fans like i have said, but i don't see it happening anytime soon.. he has fights for him at MW..

so your saying a fight with him couldnt happen after the rua fight?

c: yes. he's fighting in april, i think on the same card, and then hes going to fight the winner of henderson/bisping, so he's pretty busy for the early and middle part of 2009.

now looking back at your last performance, it clearly showed that you had a weakness in dropping your hands and especially your left hand, what are you working to stop that?

c: im always working on things to stop that. it could have happened to anyone, not just me. i believe the knockout was because i also stalled for a few seconds, if you would see in the replay, it happened, but im working on not doing that anymore.

back at ufc 92, you were seemed to be upset at the outcome of jackson/silva 3, were you upset?

c: i wasn't upset, i was just a little pissed. i was hoping to get a second fight with silva for a big fight down the line, obviously it isn't going to happen.

were you hoping to fight Silva sometime in the spring? Who did you want to fight the most in your first fight for 2009?

c: im not a fighter that calls out a fighter, i will take anyone. i was hoping to get maybe wanderlei silva, or even rashad evans again, but it happens in the sport, it doesn't matter.

you have and will be working with ATT for your next fight, what do you hope to accomplish there?

c: just looking to round out my skills. im coming here because i think i need to be here right now in my career. im just working on everything, and working with a bunch of different fighters and trainers helps, because they can see the weaknesses from me being new to the camp, than rather hackleman spotting them..

do you tend to work with ATT or go back to the pit for your next fight?

c: i havent thought about it. maybe ill go back, but i don't know. it's up to see how the fight goes.

what is your main goal going into the Rua fight, you look at his record, and you look at yours, what will be the thing that will make so intersting, and do you think he could take the punishment that you have unleashed on other fights over the past 4 years?

c: we both want the title again. he wants the title and i want the title. this fight will determine where we will go in the UFC. the winner will obviously be in the mix, and the looser will need to wonder what is going to happen. that is what makes it so intersted. he looks to be a great fighter. he beat rampage jackson, in great fashion. but the thing is, im going to be putting pressure on him the whole time. im going to be coming forward. im going to punch him until he falls down. i have a few tricks up my sleeve as well. it's going to be a very bad night if he comes to the fight in bad shape. i want my title, im hungry, and i think i can win.

now, i got a few more questions. did you ever thought about going up to the HW divison after your loss to Evans?

c: not really. it hasnt even been talked about. when i lost to rashad evans, i was upset for the most part, but that never came across my mind.

if you could pick anyone you would fight, who would it be?

c: it would be james irvin. he talks alot, and i think i could shut him up. he called out silva a couple weeks ago, and he looks to be a punk. i don't usually say that about fighters, but he's one that i don't like.

the rumor between you and couture fighting for the 4th time was indeed false. would you like to fight him again?

c: there is really no reason to. we have had our fights, and we need to leave it at that. if we both had some good wins, and he wanted to drop down, then i can see a reason to do that, but other than that, theres no reason.

what about the keith jardine fight, would you ever want to have that fight again?

c: ofcourse. he's a guy that beat me, and i would like to fight him. i asked dana if we could have that again, and he said that was fine. i thought it was for the spring, but obviously not. it's was rua.

now we have ufc 100 coming up, have you thought about fighting on the card? who would you want to fight on the card?

c: i havent even thought about it. if the ufc wanted me too, i could do it, but i don't know. i'd pick either a rampage fight or a evans fight for that show.

chuck, sorry for the list of questions, i thank you for taking the time to talk, good luck with your next fight.

c: anytime.

[Sakara=Excitement]

Chuck wants demolish James, that would be fun to watch.

[Ramma]

Add a link to the article please, or this is getting labeled as sourceless and noob jacked.

[UFC-chef/Hughes-fan]

Originally Posted by Ramma

Add a link to the article please, or this is getting labeled as sourceless and noob jacked.

That's a lot of writing and info to be false but i understand.

[saftey26]

I'm exited to see Chuck again,I have a feeling he's going to start a pretty good winning streak soon. With his so called "tricks" I'm quessing chuck is going to add in some of his wrestling like back when he first started,and some more spinning back fists. I dont see chuck losing to Shogun, or Irvin. Irvins good,but Chuck better.

[jrcbk]

The Question for me is where he goes after the Shogun fight, regardless of the outcome. If he wins, he still won't deserve another shot at Evans IMO and the UFC had better not pair him up with Rampage ever again. I hate to say it, but it seems the most likely scenario is a fight with Forrest when he returns or Jardine if he beats Rampage. Chuck is in a horrible spot after Shogun's performance. If Shogun had dominated Coleman then Chuck beat him, the UFC could justify a title shot. All this, and Machida/Silva in the wings.

[Dr. MMA]

Has anyone ever got the MT plum on Chuck before? He may not know how to properly defend it if he gets trapped in it from Shogun.

[themmabooker]

I believe the Chuck Liddell vs. Shogun will be a repeat of Wanderlei Silva vs. Chuck Liddell back in December. This time, one of the fighters will be falling.

Chuck Liddell has been doing training in Muay Thai, especially for his fight with Wanderlei Silva, but we seen guys that have tried to put it on Chuck, with Wanderlei Silva, and Tito Ortiz, and we saw exactly what happened. He has vicious elbows he throws in the clinch, that can hurt you, and throw you off your game, with eventually Chuck chasing you down.

If there is a way of Chuck loosing in this fight, it will be by the Muay thai clinch from Shogun, but I am sure that he will be training, and has been training. It's going to be hard to put a 100 percent Liddell in a clinch, even if it gets there, we will see the same repeat of it, with what happened with Ortiz and Wanderlei Silva.

We seen some of the clinch with Liddell when he fought Rampage the first time, but I can only see Shogun winning in the clinch, is when a tired Liddell is very tired. I doubt that will happen. Shogun will get tired, before Chuck does. Chuck has been in some long wars, and has great, and better cardio than Rua for sure.

The fight is going to be a good fight, but it will be Chuck's punches vs. Rua's punches. And if we leave it at that, Chuck will have an easy win here. It will be up for Rua to use the other things to his game, to beat Chuck, which I don't even think he will have a chance to execute.

[saftey26]

I accully agree with the mmabooker...but I still think Chuck has a good run at the title in the long run...I mean if he wins and jardine wins then you know they'll give him Jardine...If Jardine loses then its tough...They could possibly give him Franklin(but dont see that happending until both are coming off wins),or Bonner if Bonner wins.

[x4jude4x]

I hate to tell you fellas, but Rua won't be the same guy we saw in Pride. He's off the good stuff if you know what i mean. He cant take his "vitamin" shots anymore. Look how much smaller his legs are and how he doesnt have near the explosion that he had in Pride. Rua will never be the same in the UFC.