ufc
Moderator: Jennifer Wenk
07-28-09/1:00 pm CT
Confirmation # 3642578
Page 1
UFC
Moderator: Jennifer Wenk
July 28, 2009
1:00 pm CT
Operator: Good day and welcome to the Zuffa, LLC USC Global 101 conference call. Today’s conference is being recorded.
At this time for opening remarks and introductions, I’d like to turn the conference over to Ms. Jennifer Wenk. Please go ahead.
Jennifer Wenk: Hi. Good morning everyone. Thanks for your patience as we got this call started. Thanks for joining the UFC 101 Media conference call.
You know, this is the first ever event in Philadelphia. We’re so excited to be bringing the big fight back to Philly. You know we have two big blockbuster fights ((inaudible)) this event. We have UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva, who’s once again moving to 205 to take on former light heavyweight champion Forest Griffin, and then the championship main event, Kenny Florian, is getting his second title shot at the (165) ((inaudible)) taking on the prodigy B.J. Penn.
We have BJ, Kenny, Forest and Anderson on the line to answer all of your questions, and just a note that Anderson’s remarks will be translated by his manager, Ed Suarez. Also, at the end of this call, we will switch over to a WEC call to preview the Miguel Torres versus Brian Bowles event, which is taking place one day after this ((inaudible)) fight here in Vegas at the Hard Rock. So please remain on the line if you wish to speak (with) Miguel and Brian.
Let’s go ahead and get this started and open it up for questions.
Operator: Thank you. Today’s question-and-answer session will be conducted electronically. If you’d like to ask a question, why don’t you do so by pressing the star key followed by the digit 1 on your touchtone telephone. If you’re using a speakerphone, please make sure your mute function is turned off to allow your signal to reach our equipment. Once again, please press star 1 on your touchtone telephone to signal for a question.
We’ll go first to Beau Dure with USA Today.
Beau Dure: Hi. Thanks. My question is for Kenny, and I was wondering about balancing your fighting career with your broadcasting career. And I saw you running around at UFC 100 very busy for ESPN, and I wonder what you’ve learned from it, from broadcasting, and also how do you – how it affects your fighting and how you’ve had to juggle your schedule.
Kenny Florian: Yes you know I’ve had the experience now of doing that for a few fights, and for this particular fight I took a couple of months off from my weekly ((inaudible)) going over to ESPN and just did the UFC 100 show, and you know it wasn’t a big deal because I had ((inaudible)) UFC 100 anyway, so it was – it was fun. You know I’ve been training for a long time. I always fit in my schedule for training. That’s always my first priority, so that’s never been a problem.
Beau Dure: All right. Thanks very much.
Kenny Florian: Thank you.
Operator: Thank you. We’ll go next to Franklin McNeil with ESPN.com.
Franklin McNeil: OK, my question is for B.J. B.J., looking at Kenny Florian today, do you see a – do you see a better fighter than the one say Sean Sherk ((inaudible)) title?
B.J. Penn: Oh, yes. Without a doubt, I see a better fight. You know I see he improved in all areas, and you know he’s much more determined you know he’s in better shape, and he definitely – he has a lot more experience than the guy that fought Sean Sherk years ago. So yes, to answer your question, I definitely see a different fighter.
Franklin McNeil: And will we see a different B.J. Penn on August 8 than the fighter who ((inaudible)) St. Pierre? If Kenny – and is Kenny a better match-up for you than GSP?
B.J. Penn: I guess every fighter, they pose their own difficulty. You know everybody’s got a few specialties that you got to watch out for when you fight them. But as far as seeing a different fighter when I step in the ring, of course, I think that. You know but the thing I got to do is go out and show everybody else. So you’ll all find out on August 8 what B.J. Penn’s all about.
Franklin McNeil: And my last question is for Anderson Silva. You’re – this is going to be another fight ((inaudible)). Do you think the experience of having Forest (at) the weight relatively recently will help you, again, some relatively big light heavyweight in Forest Griffin, or do you think it’s a different approach than the one you took against James Irvin?
Ed Suarez: (speaking in foreign language).
Anderson Silva: (speaking in foreign language).
Ed Suarez: He says that of course every fight is a great experience for your next – for your next fight, and once again, moving up in weight that’s fighting with someone that’s such a great challenger like Forest Griffin you know all of the experience that I’ve had in my life is going to be – is going to help me in this particular fight, especially you know fighting the former light heavyweight champion. I’m very excited and very anxious to get this fight going.
Franklin McNeil: OK, thanks a lot, guys.
Operator: And we’ll go next to Tim Lemke with the Washington Times.
Tim Lemke: Hi. Thanks for the call. I was – I wanted to ask you guys about the decision by UFC to go several events here in a row away from Vegas. It was like five or six events. You won’t be back in Vegas until November, and Kenny, this is the first stop back in the Northeast in a couple of years. I’m curious about your thoughts on returning to that area of the country.
Kenny Florian: You know it’s awesome. I’ve had the opportunity of fighting a couple of different places; California, Colorado, Minnesota and now finally over here on the East Coast, and you know I know how much people are crazy for the UFC over here. So to get close to Boston or to have it on the East Coast, it’s definitely an honor to be fighting over here and to have the opportunity to have the (company) of family and friends there to support me, and you know there’s just a definite – a huge, a huge craving of everyone here on the East Coast to see more UFC events. So hopefully there will be more in the near future.
Tim Lemke: Thanks a lot.
Operator: And we’ll go next to Dan Duggan with the Boston Herald.
Dan Duggan: Hey. I know I’ll get to talk to you later in the week, Kenny, so I’m going to direct my questions to B.J. B.J., just ((inaudible)), can you talk about just Kenny’s approach and the – I mean the respect you might have for that same kind of approach in this as you know a mixed martial artist and not just a fighter?
B.J. Penn: OK, what was that again? I’m sorry, sir?
Dan Duggan: ((inaudible)) can you talk about Kenny’s approach, and I mean do you respect the way he approaches martial art as much as a fighter?
B.J. Penn: No, I mean I didn’t really – I really – as far as a martial arts and a person, I really didn’t enjoy when Kenny lied about ((inaudible)). But besides all of that stuff you know I think Kenny’s – you know he’s very serious about his martial arts in that aspect. So I got to be serious about that.
Dan Duggan: OK, and then can you just talk about the personal thing. I mean he kind of said ((inaudible)) changed when you ((inaudible)) that fight. What’s your reaction to that?
B.J. Penn: You know (Joe) was on my team for the fight. I actually – you know the sad thing was for (Joe) because my girlfriend got pregnant at the same time, and she really didn’t have a good ((inaudible)) at all, and I have to apologize to (Joe) for that. You know he ended up going home early to Boston, and at least training camp for that fight with Kenny really wasn’t – really wasn’t up to par for his standards, and I feel bad about that. But I mean I can understand I guess where Kenny’s coming from on that. You know maybe he didn’t like that I trained (Joe), but I knew (Joe) personally and I really couldn’t really turn him down. But in – but in the hindsight, I really didn’t get a chance to train (Joe) because I was so busy doing some other stuff.
Dan Duggan: Thanks a lot, B.J.
B.J. Penn: OK.
Operator: And we’ll go next to Steven Marrocco with MMA Weekly.
Steven Marrocco: Hey, a question for B.J. B.J., what’s the primary motivator for you in this fight? Is it the text message that Kenny sent, or is it the previous fight? What’s really been driving you these days?
B.J. Penn: It’s got to be the previous fight. You know it’s got to be getting my butt kicked and wanting to come back and get back to form and all. The text message that Kenny sent you know that was not it. The whole GSP fiasco and then Kenny going out and making me look like a liar was just – it was a double-whammy on me. It was like everything was just kind of building up on me and kind of irritating me a lot. But besides that you know I – you know I lost my last fight, and I want to get back in there, and I want to get back to form, and I want to – you know I’m itching, I’m anxious. You know I want to see – I want to get in the ring and I want to (take care of) business.
Steven Marrocco: I’ve been noticing that you’ve been doing a lot more posting specifically on your – on your personal Web site and less interviews with the media. Is there a specific reason for that, or something else?
B.J. Penn: Yes, I just – you know I’ll do any media that I’m contracted under with the UFC you know that they’re my boss and this and that. But I just didn’t like how the – how the media portrayed me. After the GSP fight, I didn’t like how MMA Weekly portrayed me after the GSP fight, and I don’t know as far as that goes, and that’s just it. And I don’t like how ((inaudible)), how MMA Weekly, how (MMA Junkie), how all you guys portrayed me after the GSP fight, and I’m done doing – you know I’m done working with you guys.
Steven Marrocco: How do you feel we portrayed you?
B.J. Penn: You know (Ralphie), he said you guys – he said you – my complaint to him about the athletic commissioner, (Ralphie’s) a pretty high-strung guy, and he went in and he added in that – of course it wasn’t my doing. I’d never even heard of a pill that could make could make someone greasy. (Ralphie) went and added that in, and that’s all you guys wanted to report, Penn files a complaint, says GSP took a pill that made him greasy.
You guys didn’t want to report on anything else, that we won the commission before the fight. You never want to report on anything. You guys got to remember, when Ryan Bennett died, our family, my family donated how much stuff for you for MMA Weekly. We kept doing stuff, we kept doing things for MMA Weekly because of our love for Ryan Bennett, and that’s how you go and treat us, but whatever. I’m done with you guys.
Steven Marrocco: OK, fair enough. The next question is for Brian Bowles. Brian, what do you feel you have …
Jennifer Wenk: No, no. The WEC guys are not on the line just yet. They’ll be joining us later on, and I will make an announcement when we switch over.
Steven Marrocco: Oh, OK, my apologies. I’m done. Thanks.
Jennifer Wenk: No problem.
Operator: And we’ll go next to Tom Gerbasi with UFC.
Tom Gerbasi: Hey, guys. I couple of questions for Anderson; Anderson, you would think that when a guy is fighting for a title, you would fight a certain way, be aggressive in a certain way. What went through your mind when Cote and then Thales both weighed back and waited for you to make the fight?
Ed Suarez: Can you repeat the question, Tom?
Tom Gerbasi: When Anderson went in there with Cote and Thales, what was going through his head when both guys you know weren’t engaging with him? You know was he shocked by this?
Ed Suarez: Right. (speaking in foreign language).
Anderson Silva: (speaking in foreign language).
Ed Suarez: He said you know nothing really went through his head. You know he went up there to do his job to defend the title, and you know he can’t really control what the other fighter’s going to do. He has to be prepared for every situation, and it’s just unfortunate that those guys came in with that strategy.
Tom Gerbasi: Now you know I spoke to (Vangali Silf) in the past, and he said ((inaudible)) when he hears the crowd booing, it’s like that’s his you know charge to get moving. How does Anderson keep his discipline and stick to the game plan when the fans did not be you know too pleased with what’s going on?
Ed Suarez: (speaking in foreign language).
Anderson Silva: (speaking in foreign language).
Ed Suarez: He says that you know sometimes when you’re standing outside of the octagon it’s a lot different than when you're inside the octagon. You know he went in there to do – to do his job, and he’s got his strategy. At the end of the day, yes, he’s there for the fans, but you know he’s in there – he’s the one that’s putting his body and his – and his life in danger every time he steps into the octagon. So a lot of times, when people aren’t as educated in this sport, it’s really hard for them to understand. But he feels he went in there and did his job, and if people are booing, it’s from a lack of understanding of the sport because he went out there and executed a good game plan. It was just unfortunate that his opponents didn’t fight back.
Tom Gerbasi: Right. Right. Now, it’s been said that you know Anderson won’t fight Lyoto for the title at 205. But there’s still a lot of great fights for him in that division. If he should win against Forest, does he see himself staying at 205, or does he still see challenges at 185?
Ed Suarez: Well, I mean I’m sure there’s challenges. I mean I’m not even going to ask him because I know the answer because I’ve just answered this so many times. Basically, what he wants to be involved is he wants to fight in the biggest fights possible. You know he wants to be in the history-making (titlel) fights. Whether they’re at 205 or whether they’re at 185 doesn’t make a difference. He just wants to fight in the biggest fights possible. So it doesn’t really make a difference. He’s there to defend his title when a valid contender steps up, but he wants to fight in big fights, and if it’s at 205, great; if it’s at 185, that’s great too.