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from http://www.mmaringreport.com/
MMARR: Hello Mr. Liddell how do you do?
Iceman: I am doing good.
MMARR: You recently had a fight with Renato Babalu” Sobral, You knew you had a title shot in the bag, what goes into your thinking when you want to take a fight when you know that if you lose you are not going to get your title shot anymore?
Iceman: The first thing is I am not thinking about losing a fight. If I lost the bout I didn't deserve the title shot in the first place. I mean then he would obviously deserve the title shot. I am a fighter, the belt is just kind of a thing there, just a symbol of being the best. That is the only reason I want the belt. I gonna, I want to beat Tito for the belt. He is the best guy out there right now in everybody's mind, and that is the guy I want to beat.
MMARR: You mentioned in everybody's mind. Lorenzo Fertitta ( The owner of the UFC) was at the Post fight press conference for UFC 40. After Tito's fight with ken he said in his own worlds he felt that Tito was the best fighter at 205 in the world. I saw you there, and you didn't look too happy about that. What were you thinking when he said that?
Iceman: At the press conference and stuff they said he was unstoppable. There was nobody that could beat him at 205, while I am sitting there. At UFC 33 they said that nobody was willing to take the fight so Vladamir stepped up. I was the first guy they talked to and I said "yes!" No more money, no extra money, I just wanted to fight. So I just wanted my title shot, I mean it bothers me I am sitting right there and they talk like I am not even there, like I am not even a threat to him.
MMARR: Did that make you upset at all?
Iceman: You know, not really, it gets me a little bit...it just makes me train harder. Other then that it is not a big deal. People are going to say what they are going to say.
MMARR: If the fight does not happen in April as planned, Is there any chance that you will take another fight in between like you did last time with Renato "Babalu" Sobral?
Iceman: Yes I will take a fight. If they can't get him to sign April 25th, I will demand a fight. Because I am a fighter, I am not going to sit around and wait forever. I mean if he doesn't take it April 25th, what says he is going to take it June 25th, or even December 25th of next year. I am not going to wait around till he decides he wants to fight. I want to fight. I will really petition for them to let me go fight Vanderlei (Silva).
I want to put pressure on Pride to put that on. Do whatever they need to put on a fight with me and Vanderlei.
MMARR: If you beat Vanderlei and become the Champion of Pride does that mean that you would be sticking with Pride and no longer be a UFC fighter?
Iceman: I want to be a UFC fighter, I am not looking at being, I just want to be a fighter and I want to be the best fighter in the world in whichever way I got to go about that. If the fight works with Tito and I beat Tito, and I will beat Tito, I would still want to fight Vanderlei next, if they can work it out. I think the two organizations need to get together and work it out, have one champion against the other one, who cares, let the fans have the fight that they want to see.
MMARR: You said that you "will" beat Tito, is there any iota in your mind that you will lose?
Iceman: Well there is always the chance that he will get lucky, but the thing is that is the way a fighter should think. That is the way I think, and I am sure that is the way that he thinks. When eventually he decides to take the fight, that is the way that he’ll be thinking by the time the fight comes, that he is going to win. You shouldn't be in there if you don't think that you are going to win.
MMARR: You used to train with Tito, you used to be good training partners, and good friends at that time. How was your training together?
Iceman: I still like Tito, Tito is a great guy, We kinda took the difference a little bit because we knew we were eventually going to have to fight. If both of us kept winning there would be no one left to fight us but each other. Honestly we have only trained together ten times in the last two years. None in the last year. It has been a long time, he has changed, he has improved a lot, I have changed I have been improving, so after training for a while, here and there for a while, we got to get back in there and face each other again.
MMARR: You said "if Tito gets lucky" that he could win. When you are in the ring do you think that there is any possibility that you are going to lose? Does that run through your mind at all?
Iceman: Not at all. Not when I am fighting not at all. I walk into a fight I am not worried about losing. If you are worried about losing, that is your first step to losing. You can't go out there to not lose, you gotta go out there to win a fight.
MMARR: People have been accusing you saying "Chuck isn't quite as exciting as he used to be". They have been saying that same thing, that Chuck has been fighting lately not to lose, like against Amar Suloev, and Bustamante. You are taking them to decisions a little bit, how do you answer critics who say things like that to you?
Iceman: I went after Amar. I expected a different fight from Amar. I expected him to come at me more, I hurt him early and he backed off most of the fight, so I expected a different fight from him. I won the first two rounds easy, and I was going after him, I went after him enough, he would just take a punch and then run, I can't do everything I threw an overhand right in that round, that is the round that they are complaining about, but I was in kickboxing mode, I was kicking his legs and expecting to get that head kick sooner or later. It just didn't come before the bell. Maybe I could have pressed the fight harder but that was just one of those things. I was just out there in control, just throwing my punches, throwing my attacks in if he came at me a little bit, maybe I could have landed it, it is really hard to knock a guy out if he is running away from you.
MMARR: How about your fight with Bustamante, many people felt that coming into that fight that you would destroy Bustamante because you just came off a huge K.O over Guy Mezger?
Iceman: I think we may have underestimated Bustamante. The other thing too I was out of shape coming into the fight, my fault, my training. I cut a lot of weight for that fight, I would never let that happen again but people underestimated him when they thought I would roll through him like that. I would love another shot at him but he is down at 185, so if he comes back up I would love another shot at him.
MMARR: Do you think that you won that fight?
Iceman: Yes I do, I watched it a couple times, I think I won the fight, it was close but I still think that I won.
MMARR: We talked about you training together with Tito, a lot of reports have said that Tito had a lot of trouble and a lot of times couldn't take you down, do you feel that in your training that you dominated Tito?
Iceman: Well the thing is that training is training. A fight is a fight, two different things. You are working on different things, you are working on stuff in training, you are doing different stuff. So to judge whether or you someone could do something in training as compared to a fight, it is two different things. Tito is a gamer, he is going to show up to fight. Training is training I try and work on a lot of different things when I am in training too. So you never know.
MMARR: So the reports that you dominated him in practice were not accurate?
Iceman: Like I said practice is practice. You know, you are working on stuff and doing different things so, I don't’ really comment on practices with people. I work out with a lot of people and you are just working out, it is not really a public thing as far as I am concerned.
MMARR: what do you think about Tito's standup?
Iceman: It is much improved, he looks a lot better in his fights.
MMARR: At the press conference after UFC 40 Tito talked about renegotiating, he talked about friendship, he talked about a lot of things, he didn't talk about "I want Chuck". Chuck, you have been really vocal recently about saying you are very much in need of a fight with Tito. Do you think that Tito is dodging you?
Iceman: You make up your own mind. When he came in the ring after UFC 37.5 he talked about me and him have to fight after he fights Ken, and that I was going to lose. Go back and look at his interview right when he jumped in the ring. He said that I was going to get in his home and that I was going to have to lose, and I was going to get a loss. After our fights (at UFC 40) when it is time for us to fight, he talks about
" Oh uh..you know I am going to have to get paid more", I mean that was not the reaction I was expecting from him. When five months earlier he was talking about how he was going to beat me. So..it surprised me yes.
MMARR: Do you think he is hiding behind his friendship
MMARR: Hello Mr. Liddell how do you do?
Iceman: I am doing good.
MMARR: You recently had a fight with Renato Babalu” Sobral, You knew you had a title shot in the bag, what goes into your thinking when you want to take a fight when you know that if you lose you are not going to get your title shot anymore?
Iceman: The first thing is I am not thinking about losing a fight. If I lost the bout I didn't deserve the title shot in the first place. I mean then he would obviously deserve the title shot. I am a fighter, the belt is just kind of a thing there, just a symbol of being the best. That is the only reason I want the belt. I gonna, I want to beat Tito for the belt. He is the best guy out there right now in everybody's mind, and that is the guy I want to beat.
MMARR: You mentioned in everybody's mind. Lorenzo Fertitta ( The owner of the UFC) was at the Post fight press conference for UFC 40. After Tito's fight with ken he said in his own worlds he felt that Tito was the best fighter at 205 in the world. I saw you there, and you didn't look too happy about that. What were you thinking when he said that?
Iceman: At the press conference and stuff they said he was unstoppable. There was nobody that could beat him at 205, while I am sitting there. At UFC 33 they said that nobody was willing to take the fight so Vladamir stepped up. I was the first guy they talked to and I said "yes!" No more money, no extra money, I just wanted to fight. So I just wanted my title shot, I mean it bothers me I am sitting right there and they talk like I am not even there, like I am not even a threat to him.
MMARR: Did that make you upset at all?
Iceman: You know, not really, it gets me a little bit...it just makes me train harder. Other then that it is not a big deal. People are going to say what they are going to say.
MMARR: If the fight does not happen in April as planned, Is there any chance that you will take another fight in between like you did last time with Renato "Babalu" Sobral?
Iceman: Yes I will take a fight. If they can't get him to sign April 25th, I will demand a fight. Because I am a fighter, I am not going to sit around and wait forever. I mean if he doesn't take it April 25th, what says he is going to take it June 25th, or even December 25th of next year. I am not going to wait around till he decides he wants to fight. I want to fight. I will really petition for them to let me go fight Vanderlei (Silva).
I want to put pressure on Pride to put that on. Do whatever they need to put on a fight with me and Vanderlei.
MMARR: If you beat Vanderlei and become the Champion of Pride does that mean that you would be sticking with Pride and no longer be a UFC fighter?
Iceman: I want to be a UFC fighter, I am not looking at being, I just want to be a fighter and I want to be the best fighter in the world in whichever way I got to go about that. If the fight works with Tito and I beat Tito, and I will beat Tito, I would still want to fight Vanderlei next, if they can work it out. I think the two organizations need to get together and work it out, have one champion against the other one, who cares, let the fans have the fight that they want to see.
MMARR: You said that you "will" beat Tito, is there any iota in your mind that you will lose?
Iceman: Well there is always the chance that he will get lucky, but the thing is that is the way a fighter should think. That is the way I think, and I am sure that is the way that he thinks. When eventually he decides to take the fight, that is the way that he’ll be thinking by the time the fight comes, that he is going to win. You shouldn't be in there if you don't think that you are going to win.
MMARR: You used to train with Tito, you used to be good training partners, and good friends at that time. How was your training together?
Iceman: I still like Tito, Tito is a great guy, We kinda took the difference a little bit because we knew we were eventually going to have to fight. If both of us kept winning there would be no one left to fight us but each other. Honestly we have only trained together ten times in the last two years. None in the last year. It has been a long time, he has changed, he has improved a lot, I have changed I have been improving, so after training for a while, here and there for a while, we got to get back in there and face each other again.
MMARR: You said "if Tito gets lucky" that he could win. When you are in the ring do you think that there is any possibility that you are going to lose? Does that run through your mind at all?
Iceman: Not at all. Not when I am fighting not at all. I walk into a fight I am not worried about losing. If you are worried about losing, that is your first step to losing. You can't go out there to not lose, you gotta go out there to win a fight.
MMARR: People have been accusing you saying "Chuck isn't quite as exciting as he used to be". They have been saying that same thing, that Chuck has been fighting lately not to lose, like against Amar Suloev, and Bustamante. You are taking them to decisions a little bit, how do you answer critics who say things like that to you?
Iceman: I went after Amar. I expected a different fight from Amar. I expected him to come at me more, I hurt him early and he backed off most of the fight, so I expected a different fight from him. I won the first two rounds easy, and I was going after him, I went after him enough, he would just take a punch and then run, I can't do everything I threw an overhand right in that round, that is the round that they are complaining about, but I was in kickboxing mode, I was kicking his legs and expecting to get that head kick sooner or later. It just didn't come before the bell. Maybe I could have pressed the fight harder but that was just one of those things. I was just out there in control, just throwing my punches, throwing my attacks in if he came at me a little bit, maybe I could have landed it, it is really hard to knock a guy out if he is running away from you.
MMARR: How about your fight with Bustamante, many people felt that coming into that fight that you would destroy Bustamante because you just came off a huge K.O over Guy Mezger?
Iceman: I think we may have underestimated Bustamante. The other thing too I was out of shape coming into the fight, my fault, my training. I cut a lot of weight for that fight, I would never let that happen again but people underestimated him when they thought I would roll through him like that. I would love another shot at him but he is down at 185, so if he comes back up I would love another shot at him.
MMARR: Do you think that you won that fight?
Iceman: Yes I do, I watched it a couple times, I think I won the fight, it was close but I still think that I won.
MMARR: We talked about you training together with Tito, a lot of reports have said that Tito had a lot of trouble and a lot of times couldn't take you down, do you feel that in your training that you dominated Tito?
Iceman: Well the thing is that training is training. A fight is a fight, two different things. You are working on different things, you are working on stuff in training, you are doing different stuff. So to judge whether or you someone could do something in training as compared to a fight, it is two different things. Tito is a gamer, he is going to show up to fight. Training is training I try and work on a lot of different things when I am in training too. So you never know.
MMARR: So the reports that you dominated him in practice were not accurate?
Iceman: Like I said practice is practice. You know, you are working on stuff and doing different things so, I don't’ really comment on practices with people. I work out with a lot of people and you are just working out, it is not really a public thing as far as I am concerned.
MMARR: what do you think about Tito's standup?
Iceman: It is much improved, he looks a lot better in his fights.
MMARR: At the press conference after UFC 40 Tito talked about renegotiating, he talked about friendship, he talked about a lot of things, he didn't talk about "I want Chuck". Chuck, you have been really vocal recently about saying you are very much in need of a fight with Tito. Do you think that Tito is dodging you?
Iceman: You make up your own mind. When he came in the ring after UFC 37.5 he talked about me and him have to fight after he fights Ken, and that I was going to lose. Go back and look at his interview right when he jumped in the ring. He said that I was going to get in his home and that I was going to have to lose, and I was going to get a loss. After our fights (at UFC 40) when it is time for us to fight, he talks about
" Oh uh..you know I am going to have to get paid more", I mean that was not the reaction I was expecting from him. When five months earlier he was talking about how he was going to beat me. So..it surprised me yes.
MMARR: Do you think he is hiding behind his friendship
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