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Showing posts with label Hiromitsu Miura. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hiromitsu Miura. Show all posts

At virtually, every WEC post fight press conference that involved its Welterweight Champion Carlos "Natural Born Killer" Condit celebrating a win, the inevitable questions came from the media in attendance.

"When are you going to go to the UFC?" "How do you think you'd do against the welterweights there?"

The questions will finally be answered on April 1 as the WEC's final 170-pound champion makes his long awaited UFC debut against Martin Kampmann to headline UFC Fight Night 18 on Spike TV.

Condit has been a mainstay in the welterweight rankings for the past two years. After clearing out the WEC's 170-pound weight class, the New Mexico native will look to prove why there is so much hype around him.

UFC President Dana White commented recently in an interview that he is looking forward to Condit's move to the Octagon. He's excited to see what he can do against the best welterweights in the world.

"I think it's exciting, it's interesting," White said. "He's been so dominant over at the WEC in that weight division and it's going to be fun to see him come into the UFC and that's a free fight on Spike. I'm actually excited about that fight, a lot of people are pumped for that."

After winning the WEC title by defeating John Alessio, Condit went on to defend his title three times including wins over Brock Larson, Carlo Prater and Hiromitsu Miura.

Now training at Arizona Combat Sports, Condit looks to make the same impact in the UFC welterweight division. White believes that he could be in title contention very soon.

"Definitely," White responded when asked if Condit could get a title shot in his next few fights. "I think him coming over as the champ, we'll see how he looks in this fight here, and I'm excited about him. Excited to see how he does. He's a good kid and always exciting to watch, too."

First things first, Condit have to face Martin Kampmann at UFC Fight Night 18 on April 1 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Carlos "Natural Born Killer" Condit sees only one man on the horizon. And the man is Justify FullBrock Larson.

Condit defeated the Minnesota Mixed Martial Arts Academy standout in convincing fashion at World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) 29, another blip on his submission radar. Larson didn't see an armbar coming off a scramble, and it was game over.

But as the top dog of a thin division, the WEC Welterweight Champion has to shrug his shoulders. He doesn't have many choices, and the ones he has are not camera ready to face him.

"It's not ideal, because I have everything to lose, and he has everything to gain," Condit told. "The pool of contenders is a bit shallow. There's not a whole lot of guys for me to fight."

Condit has been inactive since August 2008, when he triumphed over the tough Hiromitsu Miura in his first title defense to go past the third round. Rumored returns in December and January have not materialized, so he's used the time off for a change of scenery.

In November, Condit traded one desert for another, moving from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Tempe, Arizona. He had spent his entire fighting life in New Mexico, and had reached a plateau in his development. He was burnt out.

"To the point where I wasn't motivated to train," Condit explained. "I felt like I'd pretty much done everything there was to do. The only thing that really got me motivated out there was running in the mountains and spending time outside. Other than that, well, I've already done all the clubs. I've already sparred with everybody there is to spar with. I needed something new to do."

Training at the city's other big gym, Jackson's MMA, was not really on the table. Condit's trainer, Tom Vaughn, had made a name for himself after earning a black belt with Greg Jackson, opening Fit NHB, the place Condit would call home. Though Condit would stop in to Jackson's from time to time, he couldn't see himself there, or in Albuquerque, for the rest of his career.

Through the WEC, Condit befriended Jamie Varner, the WEC Lightweight Champion, and the two talked about training together. Condit had friends in Tempe, where Varner's gym, Arizona Combat Sports, was located, and he knew of the gym's pedigree. They had a room of Division I wrestlers who liked all out wars in the gym. Like a lot of jiu-jitsu experts, Condit felt wrestling was his weak point. It didn't take long for him to see the benefit of moving.

"Over there, they've got a bunch of really talented wrestlers; wrestlers who like to fight, who are becoming or are very good mixed martial artists," he said.

In that way, the layoff has treated Condit well. He's had the chance to plug holes in his game. The wrestling's a work in progress.

"It's not come as far as it needs to, but it's been improving for sure," he said.

For the most part, wrestling was the unanswered question of Condit's fight with Larson. Most saw Larson's mat expertise as the key to beating Condit's jiu-jitsu. But he made a mistake early, and in the absence of sweat, Condit capitalized.

Should they fight again, Condit sees as much danger as he saw before.

"He's a very tough guy, and just because I beat him before doesn't mean anything," he said. "I'm going to have to be on my toes. I'm very motivated to fight him, and I'm looking forward to a very tough training camp."

Condit would also jump at a rematch with his old foe Jake Shields, who defeated him in a Rumble on the Rock tournament in 2006.

"I'd definitely like to rematch Jake," he said. "I would welcome that fight for sure."

That said; nothing is set in stone for his return. Right now he's helping Varner prepare for his upcoming fight with Donald Cerrone -- a former training partner -- at WEC 38.

"It is a bit awkward," he comments. "I wouldn't want to let the cat out of the bag and give Jamie all the secrets or anything, but on the other hand, I want Jamie to be ready for this fight. So it's a bit of a fine line to walk."

He expects to return to the WEC in March, where a fight with Larson seems inevitable if the promotion is not able to import a recognizable candidate.

"I'd like to fight more often, but I'm still going to be really sharp when I come back," Condit said.

World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) announced that three world titles will be on the line when WEC Welterweight Champion Carlos "The Natural Born Killer" Condit, WEC Light Heavyweight Champion "All American" Brian Stann, and WEC Lightweight Champion Jamie Varner all return to action at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on Sunday, August 3.

One of the best 170 pound fighters on the planet, Carlos Condit will defend his title after dominating his last three opponents in the WEC cage. Following his first round submission win over Carlos Prater in February, Condit is eager to get back to work.

The Albuquerque native's take no prisoners style has propelled him to the top of the rankings in the MMA world, and he looks to continue on his march to greatness this summer. In order to do that he will have to get past Japan's Hiromitsu Miura. Miura's last outing in the WEC Cage was a KO victory over Blas Avena in March, and he will be bringing his power and world class skills with him to Las Vegas as he looks to take Condit's crown.

A Captain of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) who was awarded the Silver Star for his bravery in battle during the Iraq War, "All American" Brian Stann has made a significant impact in and out of the WEC cage. Inside of it, the 27 years old Pennsylvanian captured the WEC Light Heavyweight Title in March with an impressive first round TKO victory over Doug "The Rhino" Marshall. Stann will look to hold onto his newly crowned title when he returns to the cage against Steve Cantwell.

Las Vegas' Cantwell (5-1) isn't just in search of a title on August 3rd, but he is after redemption after a 2007 defeat to Stann. Winner of bouts over Justin McElfresh and Tim McKenzie that lasted just a combined three minutes, Cantwell has worked his way back to the top of the 205 pound weight class and he is coming to take the belt on August 3rd.

Jamie Varner announced his arrival on the world stage in February when he captured the lightweight title with a hard fought KO victory over veteran "Razor" Rob McCullough in February. Now Varner looks to show the MMA world that he is a legitimate champion in the 155 lbs division and he is eager to prove that he has what it takes to be on top of the MMA food chain, he will have his hands full when he takes on Marcus Hicks.

Hicks has tore through his last three opponents in the WEC, defeating all three by submission. Will he keep his spotless record intact on August 3rd? He will have to walk through fire against Varner to do so.

The WEC is expected to announce more bouts for the August 3 fight card in the near future.

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