The first ever UFC fight card in Australia, and a big win on home soil – does it get any better?

Yes, it does get better than that. Let’s see what the future holds, but look, it was a great experience against a very experienced opponent who’s well respected in the division, and I’m glad I just got to showcase myself against a fighter of that calibre. It moves me along in the Lightweight Division to greater prospects.

We’ve seen here in the UK how MMA can take off, with big gates and sales leading to yearly events and bigger fights heading here. With record breaking figures achieved over that weekend what can this do for MMA in Australia?

It’ll definitely follow the same course as the USA and the UK. Australia is very similar to the UK in that it’s far away from the USA but also in the martial arts; the patterns and the styles of the fighters have many similarities. The blueprint that the UFC has left here in the USA and in the UK is the same as that in Australia in terms of the Ultimate Fighter reality show, PPV events, large venues, the large media campaigns – all that is going to contribute to the growth of the sport.

Of course in the UK Michael Bisping was our flagship fighter – it looks like that mantle in Australia belongs to you now?

I would say so. I only had one fight, you know, it was one fight so I don’t want to rest on my laurels and speak too soon but I would have to say I was definitely a fan favourite because the crowd was very vocal when I fought and I don’t think anybody received the reception I did. Not that I expected it but it came as a bit of a surprise that they were as supportive as they were. I loved every minute of it and I appreciated it, and I think more fighters will come out of Australia and anything’s possible – who knows what the future holds?

Joe Silva matched you up with a big name in Lightweight challenger Joe ‘Daddy’ Stevenson, you were obviously thought of very highly by the organisation’s hierarchy before the fight – have you had any indication as to where you stand in the division or whets next for you?

No, the only thing that I know is what Dana White said in the press conference after the fight, and he was pleased with the performance and thought it was a great fight – It got Fight of the Night – so that’s the only indicator I’ve got for where I stand in the division. Obviously I was in there fighting Joe Stevenson and taking on a fighter of as high a calibre as himself means there’s a bunch of names out there that can be thrown around, but I really don’t know what’s next. I’m hoping to fight as soon as possible – anywhere in June or July – that’s when I’m thinking will be next for me but no opponent has been named as yet.

With both Nate Diaz and Diego Sanchez moving back up a division this also gives a clearer run to those on the fringes of the title picture…

That’s possible, I think as long as my performances remain consistent and I continue to do well, I don’t see why that wouldn’t happen.

I think a lot of those in the know had you down as a dark horse for this fight. Were you surprised at all by how seemingly easily you dominated a top fighter of Stevenson’s stature?

Yes and no. Look, I know what my capabilities are and what I’m capable of so I knew I could beat him. I don’t want to sound conceited but I was confident in what I was capable of and like you said I was seen as a dark horse. I think I was overlooked and underestimated by a lot of people and that gave me a lot of motivation to train hard and fight to my abilities; but at the same time I was surprised in that first round at how much I dominated him. So I guess it’s a yes and no to your question.

Stevenson’s last performance was very impressive against a fighter in Spencer Fisher who was supposed to cause him problems with his stand up. Spending the majority of your training time in Vancouver with boxing trainer Leonard Gabriel, I assumed this would be the area you’d mainly look to initially attack – but you pretty much dominated everywhere the fight went. What was the gameplan heading in?

My gameplan was to fight wherever the fight was. I didn’t have a strategy to keep it standing, fight on the ground – the way I train, I train for everything and that’s the way I fight.

How did you find the preparation with such a big time difference between the US and Australia for the fight? Was it that much more difficult to get physically up to speed?

Well, when I flew out there for the Press Conference it really burnt me out. I flew straight to Australia and then straight into meetings and so on and I didn’t really get the time to rest so after a day or two in Australia I felt burnt out and when I flew back to the States I felt equally as exhausted as I didn’t have a chance to recover from the jetlag. But that was a good gauge and helped me prepare for when I returned for the fight. Before the fight I prepared well, I rested the day I travelled, and when I got to the hotel I just went straight to my room and rested all day and woke up the next day feeling great. I didn’t have any problems, I was able to recover and get up and train and I didn’t really show any of the effects of jetlag. I think I really prepared well and did everything right.

Were you able to catch any of the other fights that night or were you still caught up in the elation of your own victory?

A bit of both, I was watching the fights before my fight back in the training room and then wasn’t paying much attention when I was warming up for my fight. After my fight I was trying to watch the other fights but there was a lot of media back there so I couldn’t give it a hundred percent of my focus, but I was in and out of paying attention to the screen. Since then I’ve caught up with all the other fights.

Many saw that event as a ‘changing of the guard’ where Cain Velasquez dominated Nogueira, likewise yourself with Joe Stevenson, and Ryan Bader defeating Keith Jardine. I’m sure you see many of those fighters as still relevant, but are you of the opinion that a new breed of fighter is coming through due to the sports increasing popularity, that is a more accomplished and more well rounded athlete?

I understand what you’re saying – I don’t think it’s a new breed of fighters I just think that there’s a lot of talent around, and it just proves that you don’t have to have a big name to succeed in this sport or any sport. Y’now I just think hard work pays off and anyone can get in there and give anybody a run for their money. Just because, like myself, I was the underdog in this fight, I was the dark horse; I think people give experience too much credit. I think he had a little too much confidence, and he underestimated me a little too much. I think people favoured Stevenson a lot because it was like a popularity contest. They based their decision on his popularity because he had more UFC fights than me and basically more UFC fights means more coverage from the press. The UFC is a marketing machine, so y’now just because they’re a marketing machine doesn’t mean that other fighters in the UFC aren’t dangerous. I know there are a lot of dangerous guys out there that aren’t fighting in the UFC, and there’s a lot of guys out there who could be fighting in the UFC. There are a lot of dangerous guys out there and I’ve come across them in the gym, in training and so on; but that’s basically how people make their decisions – based on what they see on TV.

So what have you been doing since the Australian event? I’m sure there was plenty of PR over there, then back to the U.S to return to training?

Yeah there has been a lot of PR, and y’now I got a bit of a break to see my family, I’m back in the States now and I’m back in training.

There’s already talk of yourself being the type of fighter who can threaten BJ Penn, how do you see the fight against Frankie Edgar going? Any chance of an upset?

I think an upset is very possible. Frankie Edgar has the speed, he has the agility and the athleticism to give BJ Penn a lot of problems; but I really think that BJ Penn is fundamentally strong on the ground, with his wrestling, and his boxing, and he has the experience to handle Frankie Edgar.

We’ve also recently seen the arrival of James Toney in the UFC. As someone with a strong boxing background yourself, how do you feel he will adapt to the sport and do you see him threatening the fighters at the top level?

It all depends on how good his ground game and his wrestling is, without those aspects and elements I really can’t tell you. If we’re basing it just on his boxing, he won’t do well at all because you need – it’s mixed martial arts – you need to handle yourself on the ground with your wrestling so I don’t know if he’s prepared for those areas but if he has, he could be very dangerous. Boxing is very important – but then every aspect of mixed martial arts is very important.

The new series of TUF is due to hit our screens soon and as a former cast member will you be watching? Apparently with a former opponent of yours will be on the show this time around?

That’s right. I try to watch it when I can but I’m usually training, I train a lot, I train every day, so if I get home in time and if I don’t have any work to take care of then I’ll definitely watch it.

Should we expect big things from Kyle Noke?

I think Noke will do well; he’s got a lot of heart. I don’t see why he wouldn’t do well.

Thanks again for the interview. Is there anyone you’d like to thank?

I’d really like to thank Leonard Gabriel my boxing trainer at Fisticuffs Boxing Gym, Vancouver, Washington. I’d also like to thank Eddie Bravo at Tenth Planet Jiu Jitsu in Los Angeles and I’d like to thank the guys at Impact Jiu Jitsu in Beaverton, Oregon. I’d also like to thank Team Quest in Portland, Oregon for the sparring.