Interviews
11/11/08 - Exclusive: Wanderlei Silva
Wanderlei Silva is a legend in mixed martial arts and is known as one of the most ferocious fighters in the sport. Fighters Only caught up with him to talk about his forthcoming fight with Rampage, a potential title shot and his thoughts on how the UFC differs from Pride FC.
Fighters Only: You are fighting Rampage in the third match of what looks set to be one of the great trilogies in MMA. What are your thoughts on this third fight?
This is a great match, everybody wants to see this rematch. I beat him two times already but now we are in a different event, he was the last champion, so the circumstances are different. It is a great moment for me and for him. I think it is a very interesting fight for the fans. I want to have the Fight of the Night again and I want to score a knockout of him again.
Fighters Only: As you say, you have beaten Rampage twice, is there a danger you will be overconfident for this third fight?
No, fighting Rampage is never easy, he was a great champion. He beat Henderson, he had a very good fight with Forrest... he is a tough guy. Very strong, good wrestling, good boxing. I’m training very hard for this fight, I know I am going to need to be [at] my best for this fight.
Rampage is top three in the world and this means I need to train a lot.
Fighters Only: The first two fights took place in Pride FC, which used a ring. What is different about fighting in the cage and under different rules? Will it require a change of tactics?
Here in the UFC, the fight does not stop. You do not have corners and the gloves are a little bit smaller and also you can use elbows. Also the rules are different, it is not possible to kick an opponent who is on the ground, which means I have to change my strategy a little bit.
But a fight is a fight. I think it is a very, very good opportunity for me for me to fight for the title. I think after I beat Rampage, it may be possible I fight with the champion.
Fighters Only: Forrest Griffin is the current LHW champion and you train with him sometimes at Xtreme Couture. Would it be a problem to fight with him?
I train and spar with Forrest, I am his best sparring partner and he is mine. It is a sad situation, to train with some guys it is possible I will have to fight in the future, but it is no problem.
Everybody knows my game, I know his game. I am a professional and he is a professional. I like him, he is a very nice guy. Outside the Octagon, I am his friend, but inside the Octagon it is a business, a job.
Fighters Only: Your last fight was a quick stoppage of Keith Jardine, and before that you had a war with Chuck Liddell which, even though you lost by decision, really impressed UFC fans that had not seen you before. Which of those two fights was the most important in your opinion?
Your next fight is always the most important. My next fight will be my biggest fight because Rampage is a big name here in the United States and it will be a great opportunity for me to fight with him again. It is a different situation because he is very, very famous here.
Fighters Only: You mentioned earlier that you have had to change strategies a little to account for the downed opponent rule. What has been the biggest problem in transitioning to the UFC?
In Japan I was big, here I am small for this weight division, everyone is taller and heavier than me! (laughs).
The problem here is that American guys are so tall and so strong, they are good wrestlers and very hard to takedown. Plus everybody is training Muay Thai and boxing, so year after year the fighters are becoming more complete, so there are no easy fights.
But it is a good situation, it makes me train hard and it means I always have good opponents.
Fighters Only: Does the size issue ever make you think about dropping to middleweight?
Maybe. I have thought about it, but I don’t know, if I am going to go down or not. I walk around at 220lb, 100 kilos, and to get down to 185lbs, 83 kilos is too much I think.
Look at Paulo Filho (vs. Sonnen), he was so bad, he was not fighting. I don’t think it is good for him to cut so much weight. And I don’t want the same situation for me. I like to eat and I like to have muscles, and you need to stay very skinny to fight at 185.
Filho he did one single leg, one double leg and then he just stopped. And the other guy was a good wrestler, he could not be taken down and he would not go to the ground.
Fighters Only: Cardio never really seems to be an issue for you and you’re know for using cutting-edge techniques.
Recently we have seen you running on a treadmill while wearing a snorkel. What is going on there?
It is called Hypoxia training. I begin to study about Hypoxia for my match with Chuck. You have not so much oxygen while you train, it is very hard. After you take out the snorkel your body is able to carry more oxygen, your blood changes to carry more oxygen which means more cardio.
Fighters Only: Do you discover these things yourself or do you have a team you work with?
Rafael Alejarra my physical conditioning coach, he studies hard all the latest techniques and the latest equipment. Rafael has worked with me for about five years.
The guy is incredible, every day he studies for three hours. All the time it is books, books, books to get the latest techniques and the new information, which will all be in my new gym.
Fighters Only: How is the gym coming along?
I’m going to open the gym in December, but I am training there already sometimes. I am going to have the official Octagon, it is 32 feet, so big! And I have good mats and now I need the good teachers. I want my students to have the best coaches in wrestling, Muay Thai boxing and jiu jitsu.
Fighters Only: Has Rafael come up with any interesting features for the gym?
I’m going to have a room in the gym that is like training in the mountains, at high-altitude. The room will have low oxygen, it’s very good training.
Fighters Only: Are we going to see a Wand fight team? Any guys you are working with already?
Yeah, there will be a fight team. I don’t know a name yet.
Demian Maia is training in my gym for his next fight and there will be a lot of other professional guys coming too. The gym will be good for everybody to use, fighters and the public.
Fighters Only: What is Demian like to work with?
I have many good guys, every day I am training with new guys and they are more complete. But I am thinking of one guy in particular who I think is a future champion and that is Damian Maia.
He is a great surprise because he has incredible jiu jitsu, and he is training so much in his stand-up. Any guy who goes to the ground with him is in trouble.
Fighters Only: Some people have claimed recently that the referees are too quick to stand guys up these days, which is hurting the ground guys. What do you think?
Well, it is hard for the guys who aren’t good on the ground (laughs). But for a guy like Damien, he doesn’t stop on the ground. He improves his position and he goes to submit the guy the so fast. I train with him and... sheesh! Incredible jiu jitsu, none better.
Fighters Only: OK, last question. Apart from your fight with Rampage later this month, can you tell us another fight you are really looking forward to?
I think Shogun vs. Coleman is a very interesting match for the fans. Shogun is a great fighter and Mark Coleman is a legend in this sport.
I think Shogun is going to have a good victory over Coleman. I don’t know... a fight is a fight, but it is very hard for Coleman to beat Shogun I think.
John Joe O’Regan
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