Rumble moving up to fight Belfort (UFC 142 Thread)

[Kris P Lettus]

http://mmajunkie.com/news/25904/vitor-belfort-vs-anthony-johnson-slated-for-ufc-142-in-brazil.mma

Have no idea why they are having him move up.. Besides the one loss to Koscheck his was primed and ready for the "big time".. Wish they had gave him the shot at Condit, making that the number one contender fight.. That will now prolly be Koscheck or Ellenberger ever though Condit already has a win over Jake..

[Kris P Lettus]

November 2 2011 Last updated at 01:51 PM ET
Anthony Johnson on Fighting Vitor Belfort: 'All I Know Is, I'm Going to Win'
By Mike Chiappetta
MMA Write

The call came as a surprise. Anthony Johnson was at home when his phone rang, with manager Glenn Robinson on the line. Since defeating Charlie Brenneman in early October, Johnson had been awaiting his next assignment, and he instinctively knew this was it.

"I knew it was something serious," he told MMA Fighting. "He doesn't just call to joke around."

But when Robinson passed along the UFC's fight offer, Johnson couldn't help but be a bit taken aback. After winning two straight as a welterweight, Johnson's services were being requested in the middleweight division. And if that wasn't enough, he was being asked to fight recent No. 1 contender Vitor Belfort. On his home soil.

"It surprised me," he said of the offer to face Belfort at UFC 142. "It really did. Just for a second. I said at first, 'Are you serious?' I really didn't believe it, but he's straight-up and honest so I knew he was being serious. I had no hesitation. I said, 'Alright, let's do this. Let's have fun with this.'"

Johnson (10-3) says that the time was going to eventually come to move up to 185 pounds. The move has been talked about for years by media and fans. But it was not something that he was thinking about when the call came. In each of his last two fights, he says he had no problem making the welterweight limit, and even after accepting this fight at middleweight, he's not committed to making it his permanent home.

The way Johnson views it, it's just a golden opportunity, one simply not worth passing up.

"This is a challenge, and what's life without challenges?" he said. "I hopped on this challenge and accepted it. Sometimes you have to go out of your comfort zone or your element just to see how you do."

The matchup between the two is fascinating in that they are both heavy strikers with one-punch knockout power. Johnson has a wrestling background and Belfort's takedown defense has rapidly improved over time.

Without question, Belfort presents Johnson's most intriguing challenge to date. In November 2009, he faced Josh Koscheck and lost via rear naked choke. But Belfort doesn't have Koscheck's wrestling acumen, and he probably won't look to take the fight to the ground.

That makes is possible that the two will test their proven standup skills against each other. And that suits Johnson.

"I feel just fine about the matchup," he said. "He can't do nothing that I can't do. Anything he thinks he can do, I think I can do better. I think it's a pretty even matchup. He's fast, I'm fast. He's powerful, I'm powerful. It's going to be a fight that really determines who's the man at the end of the day. Either one of us can get dropped, so it's going to see who has the most heart."

Johnson doesn't say that with any inflated sense of self-worth. When asked why he accepted the fight in the first place, he said simply, "it's Vitor," before outlining the Brazilian's many accomplishments as a former champion, top 10 contender and influence on him.

Johnson, who currently weighs 210 pounds, says he has no idea how his body will feel at his new weight class, but believes he'll be even faster and have more energy than normal. So in essence, this is a test, but it's coming against one of the most dangerous men in the division.

In Johnson's mind, he has nothing to lose. If he does fall to defeat, he can return to welterweight and continue his career there. If he happens to win, he'll be a hot commodity in two weight classes. But defining his weight class and winning a championship is not a priority. At least not right now.

"When it comes down to it, the belt is where it's at," he said. "That's everyone's goal. But right now I'm thinking about what's directly head of me. The belt is out of sight, out of mind."

Johnson has his marching orders, and that's to prepare for his fight on foreign turf. That alone is a scarier proposition than fighting Belfort, he says, noting that his "Blackzilians" teammate Danilo Villefort, a native Brazilian, told him that the local fans chanted "You're going to die" to several American fighters during August's UFC 134.

That won't change anything for him, not when there's so much to gain. Whether he's a welterweight, middleweight or somewhere in between will be an ongoing question. On January 14, we will at least learn a piece of that answer.

"All I know is I'm going to win," he said. "I'm going to go out and do my best, and give the fans what they want and deserve. This is my first fight in Brazil. I have so much energy and excitement built up in me for this. I'm ready to get in camp, get with the Blackzilians and do what we do: train hard and win fights."
Read More: UFC MMA Fighting Exclusive Anthony+Johnson, UFC+142, Vitor+Belfor

[Kris P Lettus]

rapidly improved over time

WHAT

[Next Big Thing]

Rumble at 185 does have advantages for him. If he goes out and decimates Belfort he could be one fight away from fighting Anderson if you think about the lack of depth in that division.

170 has a decent wait with Diaz, Condit, Ellenberger and Fitch probably ahead of him in terms of future title shots.

[Funky Fly]

He barely makes weight at 170. He'll be a monster at 185 if he's cutting down from around 210.

[Kris P Lettus]

Featherweight Championship: José Aldo (c) vs. Chad Mendes [1]

Middleweight bout: Vitor Belfort vs. AnthonyJohnson [1]

Middleweight bout: Rousimar Palhares vs. Mike Massenzio [1]

Welterweight bout: Erick Silva vs. Carlo Prater [1]

Lightweight bout: Edson Barboza vs. Terry Etim [1]

Preliminary card (FX)

Lightweight bout: Thiago Tavares vs. Sam Stout [1]

Heavyweight bout: Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Ednaldo Oliveira [1]

Featherweight bout: Yuri Alcantara vs. Michihiro Omigawa [1]

Welterweight bout: Ricardo Funch vs. Mike Pyle [1]

Preliminary card (Facebook)

Featherweight bout: Felipe Arantes vs. Antonio Carvalho [1]

[MoFo]

He looks fucking massive.

[Kris P Lettus]

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/397581/johnson-arlovski.jpg

[MoFo]

http://cdn3.sbnation.com/fan_shot_images/234077/AiKz8g5CEAAdzsh.jpg


Whatttttt.

[Next Big Thing]

I hope Rumble whoops Belfort's ass just because I'm intrigued by a Silva/ Johnson match up at the end of the year. Hell Johnson vs. Bisping would be a hell of a fight in my opinion.

[Kris P Lettus]

Rumble would put Bisping on his ass at will..

He has only lost three times as a pro, one being the eye pokes by Kevin Burns and the other two both coming from Rear Naked Chokes by Kos and Clementi..

Johnson can wrestling and stand and bang.. with some submission d he'll be a ref threat at any weight.class..

[Kris P Lettus]

I.would like to see Johnson vs Sonnen.. that's got fight of.the year written all over it..

[Next Big Thing]

I feel like Chael's wrestling is on another level than Johnson's though. I don't think that fight would be entertaining.

[Funky Fly]

I feel like Chael's wrestling is on another level than Johnson's though. I don't think that fight would be entertaining.

And honestly, Rumble would kill him on the feet. It's Lesnar/Overeem middleweight style.

[CSL]

holy fuckkkk, apparently Rumble wasn't even under 205 at the weigh in, Vitor says he'll still fight him if he's no more than 205 by tomorrow. You know Dana is gonna rip the fucking shit out of him

[MoFo]

Supposed to be middleweight right?

Fucking knew he looked way too big.

How the hell did he manage to drop to 170 for so many years.

[CSL]

yeah middleweight, he's literally just this second weighed in at 197, and fight has been changed to LHW despite Vitor coming in on-weight

surely there's no way Rumble gets another fight after this no matter what at anything other than 205

[Funky Fly]

He should just be 205 anyway. He'll have to cut no more than 15 pounds max that way.

[Next Big Thing]

Holy shit. 12 pounds over is a bit ridiculous. I hope Dana doesn't do something stupid and reactionary like cut him though.

[NoJabbaNoBogRoll]

Rumble is gonna have to be fired for this, unless he has a damn good excuse.

[Mr. C]

How could he miss 185 by so much? Won’t be shocked if Dana cuts Rumble.

[Crimson]

Probably depends on how the fight goes. If he wins impressivley I can't see him being cut. But if he gets owned I can see him cut, or to Strikeforce?

[Krimzon7]

Strike force just acquired Rumble Johnson...197 for middleweight come the fuck on son

[Hanso Amore]

Jesus - reading reports that he clocked in at like 187, but was forced to hydrate and tht is what blew him up to that weight.

Man, the way these guys cut water weight is disgusting.

[Next Big Thing]

RIO DE JANEIRO – Dana White today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that he's "beyond pissed" at Anthony Johnson (10-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) after the fighter came in 11 pounds overweight for a bout with Vitor Belfort (20-9 MMA, 9-4 UFC) at UFC 142.

The UFC president said Johnson came within a pound-and-a-half of the 186-pound limit allowed for non-title middleweight fights but was forced by a doctor to rehydrate because "he couldn't make it."

Now, Johnson is fighting for his job, regardless of whether he wins or loses the co-main event fight, which takes place Saturday at HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.

"His job is on the line," White said. "His job is absolutely on the line, win or lose."

White's explanation for Johnson's miss differed sharply from the fighter's representative. Johnson's manager, Glenn Robinson, today told Yahoo! Sports that the fighter fell ill three hours before weigh-ins and was instructed by UFC doctor Jeff Davidson to put fluids back into his body. Those fluids pushed Johnson to 197 pounds. (Robinson declined comment to MMAjunkie.com.)

"Complete and absolute unprofessionalism – that's what happened," White said. "There's no other way it can be explained.

Johnson was fined 20 percent of his "show" purse. It's the third time he's come in over weight in the UFC: At UFC 76, he fought Rich Clementi at a catchweight of 177.5, and at UFC 104, he fought Yoshiyuki Yoshida at 176 pounds. Against Yoshida, he was also fined 20 percent of his "show" purse.

However, the penalty for this infraction could be much worse.

http://mmajunkie.com/news/26970/win-or-lose-anthony-johnsons-job-is-on-the-line-at-ufc-142.mma

According to Dana, he was within a pound and a half of making weight but a doctor forced him to rehydrate. If that's the case, I'm not sure it's as egregious, but yeah, the way they shed water weight to cut down is frightening.

[Mr. C]

http://mmajunkie.com/news/26975/anthony-johnson-weighs-204-2-pounds-ufc-142-co-main-event-is-on.mma

The fight is still on. This will be interesting.

WAR VITOR!

[CSL]

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pretty "fascinating" seeing Vitor find out about the weight fuck up

[Next Big Thing]

I want to know what Anthony Johnson was talking about when he said did you hear about my leg" at the end of the video. Seems like there might be more to the story.

[CSL]

lol the first prelim fight is like 13 seconds in and the crowd is great already

[CSL]

I want to know what Anthony Johnson was talking about when he said did you hear about my leg" at the end of the video. Seems like there might be more to the story.

probably just to do with the dehydration, pretty sure it can fuck with your body/cause pain/cramps/spasms etc

[CSL]

this crowd is going to blow the roof off for the main event Brazilians

[CSL]

https://twimg0-a.akamaihd.net/profile_images/1125952203/IMG00163-20100917-1819_normal.jpg
danawhite (https://twitter.com/#!/danawhite) Dana White



Vitor just weighed-in at 205.6 and Rumble Johnson just weighed-in at 211.

1 minute ago (https://twitter.com/#!/danawhite/status/158365990260977666)Favorite (https://twitter.com/#) Retweet (https://twitter.com/#) Reply (https://twitter.com/#)

[Jura]

Very interesting to see the weigh-ins from the other point of view.

[CSL]

Terry Etim is dead

[CSL]

holy fucking shit that was amazing, that's the KO of the year on the first show

[Innovator]

Spinning heel kick, Chuck Norris is envious of that.

[Corndad]

Holy shit that Knockout

[CSL]

wow Erick Silva DQ'd

[CSL]

I'd have rather seen him DQ'd for still throwing a bunch of shots about an hour after Mario jumped in

[Corndad]

Can't believe that DQ.

[CSL]

lol Joe Rogan knowing the fight was over the second Rouismar got the takedown

[CSL]

excellent outcome

[CSL]

holy fucking shittttt, that could be the 2nd place for KO of the year already

[CSL]

lol running straight into the crowd

[AJ]

HOLY SHIT! José fucking Aldo!

[CSL]

http://d3j5vwomefv46c.cloudfront.net/photos/full/496250330.gif?Expires=1326604712&Key-Pair-Id=APKAIYVGSUJFNRFZBBTA&Signature=ygu9msXsfMkfaQ3B9NBAvppJXQZ0IZxERZZ~L3JFdOuA8LjtgK3zHm-vuH4tJOwgx9DvtFCWZV5ajsj~MZyTIxIzxRyGPzMDfqoLqCWPAEfMdmuGGkChuXOFfx0SkR~ea9-uFkNG~TA79tpeOgIktt7eNoejXAbkLZOY0ig4GNY_

[owenbrown]

saw the video of that earlier on Deadspin... HOLY SHIT!

[AJ]

http://px9.funformobile.com/d/169/61/1fjdcjav7c/aldomendes.gif

[owenbrown]

http://deadspin.com/5876194/

Barboza KOing Etim

http://deadspin.com/5876201/

Aldo KO of Mendes

[owenbrown]

where's the gif of Aldo running into the crowd? lol

[Kris P Lettus]

What happened in the Rumble/Vitor fight??

[CSL]

Vitor choked him the fuck out

[CSL]

and he's probably getting cut, from a post-fight interview:

“Rumble Johnson did the damage to himself. To be that unprofessional to not come in on weight and that far off when you used to fight at 170, now you went to 185 pounds so you wouldn’t have trouble making weight and this is your worst weight cut ever? It’s a detriment to himself.


To be honest with you we are probably going to cut him after this event. Three strikes and you are out. This is his third time that he hasn’t made weight. He’s the co-main event in a huge fight down here in Brazil and this one was a bad one.”

[NoJabbaNoBogRoll]

I'd cut him, if I was in Dana's position, unless there's more information to come out.

[Krimzon7]

Strike force heavyweight champion.....Anthony rumble Johnson

[CSL]

A loss is a loss. My legs just got really tired. I didn’t get beat up in there and he really didn’t hurt me with what he hit me with. I just got tired. I’ve got to figure this thing out.

...fight at the right weight genius?

[Mr. C]

I don't care if he is a jiu-jitsu blackbelt. You might wear that blackbelt during training, but when we fighting, dude, you're in shorts.

FAIL

[Next Big Thing]

Two sick KOs in one night plus Joe Rogan putting Mario Yamasaki on blast for that shitty DQ call. Not a bad card all in all.

[Next Big Thing]

Rumble got cut. That sucks. He'll be back though.

http://mmajunkie.com/news/26982/anthony-johnson-released-from-ufc.mma

[Kris P Lettus]

I was always a big fan of his.. he is a beast and was super classy after the eye poke debacle..

He def needs to work on his sub defense though..

[Krimzon7]

He needs the dolce diet bad bro