Since that time, Masvidal has bounced between Tokyo and Miami, fighting wherever and whenever he can to earn paydays and stay active. This Saturday night, Masvidal will face the toughest test of his professional career when he takes on former UFC welterweight contender Paul Daley in a 170-pound battle on the main card of Shark Fights 13.

Tapology recently caught up with Masvidal ahead of his pivotal clash to discuss his motives for taking a fight above his natural weight class and how he compares to Daley in the striking department. Masvidal also revealed why he did not re-sign with Bellator for the 2010 lightweight tournament and spoke about some of his frustrations with the promoter.

Tapology: You have sort of dropped off the radar a bit since your participation in the 2009 Bellator Lightweight Tournament. Can you talk about your recent fights with Luis Palomino and Naoyuki Kotani?

Masvidal: What ended up happening was, I had four fights remaining with Bellator, but I didn’t re-sign for the seven-fight deal they wanted me to. I already wasn’t interested in the tournament because the original tournament was for $175,000 and the second season tournament it dropped to $100,000. I was going to lose a lot of money because my non-tournament fight money was going to drop too.

Regardless, whether I had signed or not, in Florida there is no non-compete agreement. Two or three months earlier I had signed to fight Palomino in Miami because I hadn’t heard from Bellator in months, and when I got back it was a Tuesday night and the weigh-ins were the next day. I’m looking to get a rematch with him now, but he didn’t want to do it obviously. I thought I won the fight, and now that he lost to Yves Edwards he wants to fight me all of a sudden.

He lost every single round against Edwards and the judges still gave him a round. That kid can’t lose in Florida, man.

Tapology: So it was ultimately the weight cut that affected your performance in that fight?

Masvidal: What happened was, my manager told me that Bellator did not want me competing against Palomino and that the fight was off. I was in New York on Sunday and Monday, and I got back on Tuesday night. From then until Wednesday I cut 16lbs, so I was drained. Usually I do about 14 or 15lbs in one week, not one day.

Tapology: Regardless of what happened in that fight, you recently bounced back with a Split Decision win over Kotani in April. With that and your upcoming fight against Paul Daley, do you think you’re getting back on track?

Masvidal: I’m starting to put a streak together. This Daley fight is not at 155, but it will be huge for me.

Tapology: What prompted your move up to 170lbs for this fight? Was it the lack of a weight cut or was it the opponent that attracted you?

Masvidal: It was a combination. I’m still a lightweight, I walk around at 174, but they offered me the fight against Daley, we negotiated, and then I signed. Size won’t matter in this one. Both of us can take good shots and give good shots. I’m not fighting a Fitch or a Koscheck who will try to take me down.

Tapology: Are you excited about the fact that he will most likely refrain from trying to take you down?

Masvidal: Yeah it’s pretty exciting. I’m going to punch him in the face, mix it up, and try to land some big shots.

Tapology: How do you approach this fight tactically because a lot of people would suggest that he has more knockout power than you?

Masvidal: I definitely think he has way more knockout power than me and he’s a lot bigger than me. Throughout my career, even fighting people who I had more knockout power than, I’ve never been the type of fighter to take one in order to give one back. I want to hit the guy as many times as I can without getting hit and that’s the same thing I’m going to do to Daley. I’m going to tag him and make him pay. It’s going to be fun.

Tapology: Has your relationship with Bellator been soured by your not signing with them again this year?

Masvidal: I don’t know how they feel about me, but I do have some sour feelings toward them because none of us fighters heard from them for a long time. I’m only going to be 24 or 25 years old once in my life, so to have eight or nine months of inactivity really upsets me. I know they are upset that I didn’t sign the seven-fight deal.

Tapology: After this Daley fight, are you going to look to sign with Strikeforce or the UFC, somewhere where you will be fighting fairly often?

Masvidal: That’s pretty much it, man. Whoever comes to me with the most activity and money, that’s where I’ll be.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

In his most recent title defense, a rematch against Japanese standout Kazuo Misaki on August 22, Santiago turned in an effort that rivals Leonard Garcia’s April war with “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung as Fight of the Year. Tapology recently caught up with Santiago the week after his fight to get the champion’s perspective as he reflected on one of the toughest fights of his career. In addition to discussing the recent attention his performance has garnered him, Santiago also made it known that he is looking to return to the United States in the near future, as he feels he is just now reaching his athletic prime.

Tapology: Your last four fights have been epic series with Mamed Khalidov and Kazuo Misaki. How do you compare your preparation and performance against both opponents in hindsight?

Santiago: It was a different situation against Khalidov because in the first fight we didn’t have time to see what he was going to bring to the table. Before the fight I was out for a long time with injuries and my camp did not go well. In the rematch, it was kind of still a new guy I was fighting, and in that second fight I saw his whole game because it was five rounds. He was a very tough opponent who comes from a good camp.

With Misaki, we had a war in 2009 and I knew he would come at me with all of his heart again like he usually does. I know he’s not going to be finished in the first round. With the Misaki rematch, I had to prepare more mentally than physically.

Everybody loves Misaki in Japan; he is the favorite, so I like to fight him in his hometown because everybody comes to see the fight and has big expectations. I just like to fight the best guys and in my opinion he is one of the best guys in the game.

Tapology: You mentioned that you got hurt pretty badly in the first fight against Misaki, but how are you feeling after this rematch?

Santiago: I didn’t hurt anything at all. Actually, I was already training the Wednesday after the fight in a Gi.

Tapology: You finished Misaki in the first fight with a choke in the fifth round. After that fight, did you ever think you would get another epic finish like that?

Santiago: The way I think is like this: nothing is going to be the same way all the time; everything can change every moment. If I am being punched or mounted, I know it will end soon, so I think my mental game is the strongest part of my fighting style. I always had in my mind that I was losing the fight in both fights, so in my mind I knew that I would win the fight. I didn’t know how but I knew I had to win.

When we reach a certain level, this sport is more mental than physical. When you have two guys at the same skill level and conditioning level, the mental part is huge. Anytime something isn’t going my way in the fight, I have to put it out of my mind and just continue to fight and do the things I want to do.

Tapology: How did it feel emotionally when you finished Misaki in the rematch with 30 seconds remaining in the fight?

Santiago: I don’t know what I was feeling. I was like, ‘I can’t stop; I won’t stop.’ My muscles were burning. We went for five rounds and all the rounds were very explosive. I just had to keep going, keep going, keep going, and win. I think that’s the kind of mentality I have all the time.

Tapology: Have you had a chance to watch the fight yet?

Santiago: Not really. My friend showed me like one round, but I wanted some time to rest and then I will look at it and see what mistakes I made.

Tapology: You really need to watch that. Just make some popcorn and enjoy that fight as soon as you can. Now that you have reflected on it a bit, do you think that was the biggest moment of your career to date?

Santiago: I don’t know. I’ve done so many things before but not many people have been watching. After this one, it seems to me that everyone is putting their eyes on me. To me, I didn’t do anything different than I always do.

I’ve been asking my friends like, ‘Was the fight really that good? Because I am getting texts and emails all the time.’ It’s just funny because I have been fighting the same way for the past three years.

Tapology: I wanted to ask before I delve into that more, did you know that Misaki had injected painkillers into his ankle before the fight and how do you feel about that?

Santiago: No I didn’t know about that. I don’t care about it. All of us fighters have been through big injuries before fights. I fought Misaki the first time with a broken hand, but we all know how it works. He shouldn’t do that for his health, but I knew Misaki would fight even if he is not at 100%.

Tapology: Back to all of the attention you have been getting; does is frustrate you that, even though you just put on the best fight of the year, most American and Brazilian fans don’t watch Sengoku and haven’t seen the fight?

Santiago: Kind of. Unfortunately, after I won the middleweight tournament in Strikeforce I had to go to Japan and basically start all over again. The market in Japan is not as good as it used to be, but I’m still getting to my top game. I think I’m going to be at my prime time from now on. From now on it’s going to get better than before.

I used to view myself as a fighter with my own style, but now I know how to approach each of my fights separately. I think it’s just a matter of time before I have attention in America and come back to fight here again.

Tapology: What is your current relationship like with Sengoku? Are you making enough money with them and do you want to come back to the U.S. soon?

Santiago: I’d like to come back to the U.S. in the future, of course. That is where most of my fans are. As for Sengoku, I am making fair money, I like the way they treat me and I like fighting for them. I am thinking about fighting here in America because I think they will allow me to. I have to defend my title one more time in six months, but I’d like to fight in America before then. Hopefully in the next two or three months something comes up.

Tapology: Have you spoken with Strikeforce at all?

Santiago: Yes we have been speaking with them off and on. We have a good relationship and we might be able to work out a fair deal. If it becomes possible, I could be fighting in the U.S. with them again. I’d like to fight in the UFC again and beat some of the guys I lost to. Like I said to you, I’m hitting my prime now and I will come back and fight with those guys again, but I don’t know where or when. We just have to talk to everyone and see where the best deal is.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

Tapology recently caught up with Soto on the eve of his first title defense to discuss his opponent and how he sees their title bout going. While Soto gives opponent Joe Warren all the credit in the world, he made it clear that he expects this one to be a one-sided affair from bell to bell.

Soto defends his title against Warren tonight from the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas.

Tapology: I wanted to start by talking about your last victory over Diego Saraiva. He was probably the most experienced fighter you have faced to date, so how did it feel to get the finish over him?

Soto: Yeah he was definitely a tough guy. Wilson Reis was tough, but this guy could have finished me. I was kind of nervous going into that fight, but I felt all right during the fight. I finally got through with the elbow, so it felt good beating him. He had almost 30 fights and he fought some tough dudes that couldn’t finish him.

Tapology: Since winning the Bellator Featherweight Championship in 2009, you have been relatively inactive in 2010. Was that a tough adjustment for you?

Soto: Yeah definitely. I’m the type of guy, coming from a wrestling background, who likes to compete a lot. I wanted to get some more fights in there, but it let me focus more on technique and getting a little bit better, so I can’t complain.

I’ve been trying to focus more on stand-up. Coming from a wrestling background, I adapted pretty well to Jiu-Jitsu, so I’m trying to focus on my boxing.

Tapology: Joe Warren is going to be gunning for your belt in your first title defense. He talks a big game, but do you think he has the potential to back it up?

Soto: He says he’s the “Baddest Man on the Planet,” but tell that to Brock Lesnar. He’s great at what he does; he takes you down and works the ground-and-pound, but he doesn’t go in there and kill people and finish people. He hasn’t really impressed me too much.

Tapology: Like you said, he is good at what he does, but is it a stretch to consider him a threat to finish you?

Soto: Definitely. I’m not worried about being finished at all. I just have to worry about being taken down and grinded on. There’s always a chance you can get caught with a punch, but I just don’t see him finishing me.

Tapology: I know that you come from a freestyle wrestling background where Warren comes from a Greco-Roman background. Can you talk about the differences between those styles and how the two match up?

Soto: They are totally different. They do a lot of clinch work and stay away from double leg takedowns. It’s different, so it will be interesting to see how our styles of wrestling match up against each other.

Tapology: Does it give you an added comfort zone, that you have five rounds to try to get the finish in this one?

Soto: Yes definitely. I have 25 minutes and that’s a pretty long time to get a knockout or a submission. It’s a blessing to be in a five-round fight with this type of fighter. I’m pretty confident that I can get a finish, but I might take him down and grind him out, you never know.

Tapology: Warren deservedly won the Finals of the Season 2 Tournament, but Patricio Pit-bull lit him up on the feet and almost finished him on the ground in the first round. Have you looked at that fight to try to discern some of his weaknesses?

Soto: I was there watching it live and I’ve seen it a couple of times. I thought Pit-bull looked awesome in the first round, but he definitely gassed. I just think Pit-bull was a better fighter. It was all him in the first round and he gassed out, but it wasn’t anything Joe did to him. All Warren did was take him down.

It gives me confidence because that is what Pit-bull did at his best for one round. I know I can be at my best for all five rounds.

Tapology: How do you see the fight playing out and if you remain champion when the dust settles, how will you have gotten it done?

Soto: I could see it going a few ways. Let’s say he’s a great wrestler and does take me down; I see me getting up anyways or submitting him. Another possibility is that I’m a better MMA wrestler than him, I take him down, and when I get on top, I feel so comfortable on top that I think I’ll finish him. If our wrestling cancels each other out, I am confident that I have much better stand-up than him. I’m better in every aspect of the game than he is.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

When Tapology caught up with Warren leading up to the biggest fight of his career so far, the outspoken fighter was characteristically brazen. In addition to asserting that he was going to “whoop [Soto],” come fight night, Warren let us in on his future plans, which could see him attain three MMA championships within a year and an Olympic medal in 2012.

Warren will take on Soto for the Bellator Featherweight Championship tomorrow night from the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas.

Tapology: Can you talk about your experiences over the last year fighting in the Bellator Featherweight Tournament? You definitely got some ring time over the past few months.

Warren: Yeah that was the reason we got into this tournament. I’m a brand new fighter and it’s really hard to simulate competition fights in the practice room. We jumped into those tournament aspects and it’s really hard on the athlete but I learned a lot real fast. I think I’m a better fighter now than I was joining these tournaments.

Tapology: You told me prior to the tournament that you thought your experience competing in wrestling tournaments would help you to compete often. Do you still think that was the case?

Warren: Wrestling was a lot different because those tournaments took place in one day. Fighting is a little harder on your body than a wrestling match. I was ready for it, but it was still hard on my body. My body is used to competing in those tough matches, but my technique is not where I’d like it to be. Every one of my fights in the tournament ended up being a throw-down war.

Tapology: How do you feel physically for this next fight?

Warren: I feel good. I was never injured in the tournament aside from a cut on my head against Georgi Karakhanyan. I’m a little lighter because of the training I’ve been doing, so I don’t see myself competing at 145 lbs in the future. I’ll fight in Dream on September 25 against Michihiro Omigawa and on New Years at 138 lbs. Omigawa is a tough fighter. He’s top four or five in the world, so it will be a good warm-up for that New Years fight.

Tapology: I know Bibiano Fernandes pulled out of his Dream 16 fight on September 25 because he hasn’t been paid. Was that fight supposed to be against you?

Warren: No. I was hoping it was against me, but they really want me to get in there and beat this Omigawa guy up.

Tapology: So needless to say, you haven’t been having any trouble getting paid by Dream.

Warren: Well everybody has some trouble getting paid by Dream. When I won, I got paid within a month, but when they did that early stoppage against Bibiano, I didn’t get paid for three months, which is bullshit. So make sure you win over there. The thing is, I signed with FEG, but I signed with Shinoto’s group now, so hopefully it will be a quicker payday.

I enjoy fighting in Japan. I love the crowd and the fans, so it’s something I’d like to keep doing. I know Bibiano did have that problem, and I think I probably would have held off fighting also.

Tapology: Do you have any idea if they will offer you a fight with Fernandes on New Years?

Warren: That’s what I want. That’s what I’m hoping for. First things first; I’ll win this belt, beat Omigawa, and then hopefully I’ll get another chance at that Dream belt.

Tapology: Your Bellator Finals fight against Patricio Pitbull was very tough. You were rocked and almost submitted in the first round. How difficult was that experience during the fight and what have you learned from it?

Warren: Patricio Pitbull is a great fighter, a tough boxer. I had a rough day going into that fight—not to make excuses—but I ate some bad food and was real sick that whole day. I’m a professional athlete so I understand that you’re never going to feel 100% the day of the fight, so I just stayed focused. I went out there and was a little sluggish. He was explosive, had a great game plan, and landed the shots he needed to land. I really don’t remember a lot of that last 30 seconds of the first round.

After that round, I knew this guy’s confidence was up and that I had to break it. He did a good job of underhook defense and defending Greco attacks, so I had to switch to freestyle attacks on the legs and body. I worked a lot of Jiu-Jitsu for that fight and I felt like I controlled his hips and had good posture. I wanted to put that young kid in a war and see who he really was.

I’m comfortable in a war. I’m comfortable when it’s just me and you. With this young kid Soto, as long as I can avoid the submissions and things like that at the beginning I’m just going to break him.

Tapology: Overall, why do you think you’re going to be the first one to put a loss on his record?

Warren: Undefeated doesn’t mean shit to me. I eat undefeated guys for breakfast. Soto is a young, upcoming great fighter. I take nothing from him and this is not an opponent I’m looking past, but we’ll see what happens. I’ve fought bigger, better guys, but this one is an opportunity to win a belt. I understand that it’s going to be a war and that it might take five rounds. I’d like to be in a position to actually finish the fight this time.

The bottom line is, I’d beat him in wrestling with one hand tied behind my back. I just need to focus and not get caught in anything stupid. I think if I fight that way then I’m unstoppable.

Tapology: A lot of people bring up the fact that you are not known as a finisher, while Soto is heading into this fight.

Warren: Yeah he’s a finisher, but he’s also fought guys he can finish. I’ve fought lots of undefeated warriors and guys who are used to being on top, so those guys don’t break very easy and I broke all of them. I don’t take away the things that Joe Soto has done so far, but he has not fought a warrior like me or a man like me. I don’t give a shit if I win a five-round fight. That doesn’t bother me.

This is my seventh fight in a year, so I’m learning. I would like to submit guys, I would like to finish them, but right now, let’s be realistic, I’m a wrestler so that’s what I’m going to do. My coaches are telling me it’s muscle memory. I’m moving better and seeing things better, so hopefully the chokes and submissions will come.

Tapology: I think a lot of fans find you refreshing because you fight so often, unlike the majority of fighters in the UFC and Strikeforce.

Warren: Well that’s why I’m not in the WEC right now. That doesn’t give me the opportunity to fight as much as I want. There’s not 20 years left in me. I’m taking the quickest route to be the best, but I’ve learned a lot from these fights. A lot of people don’t fight out of the things I’ve fought out of and continue to win.

Tapology: I saw you and Soto on Inside MMA recently and it was definitely a little uncomfortable. Was that a play by you to try to get into his head?

Warren: Well you know me; I’m the older, smarter person than all of these guys. The bottom line is, if you’re a wrestler and you are fighting me, then you have to be worried. If you’re a wrestler, I’m better than you, and that’s running through his mind constantly. I’m just being honest and letting him know that I’m going to crush him. I’m going to whoop his ass.

Joe Soto is a champion, and I have no dislike toward him. It was not disrespectful for me to tell him, but I was just letting him know exactly what’s going to happen. I respect all of the fighters out there, and if I talk a little shit, it’s because I’m extremely confident.

Tapology: What does the future look like for you? Will you continue to compete for Dream and Bellator?

Warren: Yes, that was part of my agreement with Bellator, that I am allowed to fight for Dream and win that belt as well. The only problem I have is that I’d much rather be fighting at 135 lbs. I’ll fight at whatever weight I need to, but I would personally like to drop back down and fight some of these studs at 135. I walk around at 146 lbs, so it’s not a safe weight class for me. Ten pounds is a big difference at my weight, so the reason I’m not finishing guys is that I’m having to control these beasts.

I wanted to fight in the Bantamweight Tournament this year also, and that didn’t work out because of timing, but I would like to hold both belts. That’s up to Bellator and my management. I’d like to win this belt, win the Dream belt on New Years, and then win the Olympics.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

Lauzon spoke with Tapology to give his thoughts on Inception and to dissect his loss to Stout and his upcoming fight against Ruediger. He also shed some light on the bad blood that has cropped up between the two fighters in the weeks leading up to the fight and revealed where it all began.

UFC 118 takes place this Saturday night from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The main card airs live on Pay Per View, while Lauzon’s fight will air on the Spike Prelims special prior to the Pay Per View broadcast.

Tapology: First thing’s first, have you seen Inception?

Lauzon: Yeah it was good, but it wasn’t the greatest movie ever. Maybe the most complex; I’d hate to be the one to produce the storyboards with that one.

Tapology: I figured I’d get your opinion on it since you’re something of a movie buff.

Lauzon: I love movies, even ones that other people don’t. I’m genuinely entertained by all of the Iron Man, Batman, and other movies like that. I don’t care about plot holes and things like that. I won’t watch Twilight though. My girlfriend’s been trying to get me to do that and I said, ‘No way.’ But even Army of Darkness is a godawful movie, but it’s still amazing.

Tapology: I can respect that. Can you talk about your loss to Sam Stout? It seemed like halfway through the fight he really took over. Did you get discouraged during the fight or did you think there was still a chance for you to win?

Lauzon: There was never a point in the fight where I knew I would lose, but the fight was going perfect in the beginning so it was disappointing. I attacked him and wound up on top and went for a great submission attempt that would have ended the fight. In my eyes, in terms of my preparation, that was the end of the fight, but he gutted it out and worked his way out of it. It deflated my sails a little bit, but I was still confident.

Tapology: What did you take away from that loss to ensure that it wouldn’t happen again in a rematch?

Lauzon: I think mainly it was just a series of things. I don’t think it was a good idea to fight on the same night as Danny, but Stout was tough and he was the better man that night.

Tapology: You said prior to the fight that you thought the long layoff might be good for you. How did you feel physically?

Lauzon: I felt good, but my overall shape wasn’t where it needed to be. I thought I was in much better shape than I was because there had been such a low spot in the middle of my training camps.

This loss kind of lit a fire under my ass just as far as going out there and shaking things up. I hadn’t been complacent in my training, but I thought I had a really good system in place and I’ve changed things up quite a bit and there’s been a huge difference.

Tapology: You are fighting Gabe Ruediger this weekend in Boston at UFC 118. What are your general thoughts on him?

Lauzon: Gabe lived in the house with me on TUF. He’s a very different fighter than the one I was getting ready for, but I think it’s an easier fight to get ready for. Terry Etim presented a lot of unique challenges, being so tall and lanky, whereas Gabe has more of a standard fighter body type. It’s definitely a tough fight, but not one that I would need as much time to plan for.

Tapology: With Ruediger, do you think you can go in there as aggressively as always without worrying as much about his power and finishing ability?

Lauzon: I think he’s a lot like I am. He’s a good Jiu-Jitsu guy. I don’t have crazy power in my hands, but I don’t think Gabe does either. With Terry Etim, he is much more dangerous on his feet so I think this is a much easier fight style wise. It was going to be a lot of work to get around Terry’s reach, but it will be much more straight forward with Gabe.

Tapology: You two have gone back and forth a little bit in the past week or so. Can you talk about that?

Lauzon: When we were on the show we got along pretty well, mainly because I was pretty determined that I was going to get along with everyone. After the show, Gabe did not come off very well because he didn’t act very well. He was claiming that it wasn’t really true and that it was all the editing and stuff like that, and I was doing the online blogs and I basically told people that that was exactly how it happened. It was actually worse in some places.

Those blogs were getting a lot of traffic. Gabe started coming back at me for that, but I wasn’t talking shit about him. If you’re an asshole, I’m going to call you an asshole. I was just calling it as I saw it and he didn’t like that. It was stupid, petty stuff like that. I generally don’t start arguments with people, but I’ll always call it like I see it and if people want to attack me I’m more than willing to defend myself.

Tapology: Do you think this is going to be a quick one?

Lauzon: I’m not going to put pressure on myself. Whether I take him out in the first minute of the first round or drag him into the second and finish him then, I’m going to be happy the whole time.

Tapology’s Steven Kelliher learned of the match-up from Warren earlier today.

Dream 16 takes place September 25 from the Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya, Japan. Check back at Tapology early next week for an exclusive interview with Warren prior to his title clash with Soto.

Davis recently spoke with Tapology’s Steven Kelliher to discuss a myriad of topics, including his loss to Saunders, his recent victory, and his future in mixed martial arts. Davis also dropped a few hints about his game plan heading in against one of Stockton, California’s best and brightest.

UFC 117 takes place this Saturday, August 28 from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The main card airs live on Pay Per View.

Tapology: Before we get to the positive, I wanted to touch on the negative a bit. Can you talk about your loss to Ben Saunders and why you had difficulty dealing with his clinch?

Davis: I think there were a lot of things that went wrong. The things that I worked on in training were probably not the things that I should have focused on. I hadn’t been cut in two years since I got that surgery and in the fight, in the very first ten seconds my eye opened wide. It got into my head and I panicked. I said, ‘I need to stand flat-footed and try to win this fight so it doesn’t get stopped.’

When he started clinching me, my mindset wasn’t on working to get out of the clinch, it was working for ways to try to hit him and get the fight stopped. It was the wrong idea. Right when I got cut I should have used my best assets, which is footwork and fighting in and out, in and out. I made some mistakes and paid for them.

It was a learning experience. It’s the first time that has happened to me and I’ve grown from it. I got about a round and a minute in there against Jonathan [Goulet] and now I’m right back in the cage. I’ve been going back and forth between home, Mark DellaGrotte’s, and Jorge Gurgel’s gym for this camp.

Tapology: After those back-to-back losses to Dan Hardy and Saunders, it had to feel good to come back the way you did against Goulet.

Davis: I had trained with Goulet right before he fought Mike Swick, and I went in there against him and kind of made the same mistake of thinking that he was going to come out and try to fight me like he did in the gym when we sparred. The fact of the matter is, when he came to the gym to go with us, we never even got to go for more than a round because I kept stuffing him, submitting him, just rolled right over him. Mark DellaGrotte said, ‘No, you guys can’t work together.’

I had kind of gone in there thinking about that and he had a good game plan of pushing me against the cage and taking me down. Instead of going in front of the face and using my wrestling, I was going around the head looking for that Guillotine again and again. Then in the next round, all that happened is Mark said, ‘No more Guillotines. Sit down on your punches.’ I hit him with a right hand and dropped him, ground-and-pounded him a little bit, then knocked him out.

Tapology: Like you already said, this fight against Nate Diaz is a quick turnaround for you. Was that a combination of you wanting to remain active and wanting to fight on the Boston card?

Davis: It was both, yeah. I wanted to make sure I got another fight very soon, but I really needed to get on that card. At my age, it might be the last chance I ever get to fight this close to home.

Tapology: What are your thoughts on Diaz overall?

Davis: I think the kid’s an animal. I say this in all my interviews: how tough do you have to be to be the little brother of Nick Diaz? On top of that, he’s the winner of The Ultimate Fighter, he’s got ridiculous Jiu-Jitsu, good boxing, and he’s a Southpaw, so that presents lots of problems. He’s got reach, he’s got everything; this is going to be a difficult fight for me.

I’m doing all the right things right now and just trying to keep the mindset that it doesn’t matter what you do in training, all that matters is what you do in the fight.

Tapology: About the mental aspect of the fight, Diaz is a guy who talks a lot of smack during fights. Is that something you are prepared to deal with?

Davis: Absolutely. In boxing, I fought a lot of guys who used to talk to me and carry on a conversation to try to distract me. If you’re hearing and understanding what they’re saying, then you’re not reacting. For him, he’s not really thinking about the words he’s saying, so it does give him an edge for a guy to be able to do that stuff. I’m definitely taking that into consideration and having my sparring partners help me out with all of that stuff.

Tapology: In a general sense, how do you defeat a Nate Diaz? Do you look at the Clay Guida approach and try to stay in close and stifle his submission game?

Davis: Yeah, I think, very similar to that, that my key things are going to be, don’t be against the cage, control the center of the ring; it’s going to be an in-and-out game and I need to be prepared to stuff some takedowns and keep the fight standing. Those are pretty obvious things that I would want to do and then there is game plan stuff that I can’t really talk about.

Tapology: Diaz is a tough guy to finish. If you are able to keep the fight standing and establish your range, do you think you have the ability to knock him out?

Davis: I think I’ve got the ability to knock anybody out. If you stand there and let me hit you in the chin, I’m going to knock you out. I’ve knocked out heavyweights in the gym with 14oz. gloves on, so I have that kind of power.

Sometimes you can’t sit down on your punches and throw power, especially when you have to stay on the move. An example would be the Chris Lytle fight, where I had to stay on my bicycle. In this fight I plan on standing and banging at times and at other times moving a lot, so it’s going to be a fight at different speeds and levels.

Tapology: Should you win this fight, do you think that would place you back in the contenders’ pack in the welterweight division, and would you then ask for rematches with either Hardy or Saunders?

Davis: For right now I’m going to let the UFC decide what to do with me, but at some point in the future I will be asking for those fights, especially the Hardy fight; it’s not just because I want it and the fans want it, but he has said he wants it as well.

Tapology: You are 37 years old now. You can look at a guy like Randy Couture, fighting at 47, and try to follow that path, but he started fighting at a very late age. At your age, how much longer do you think you have in this sport?

Davis: I’m a realist, and you already pointed out that Randy started late in his career taking punches and kicks to the head, but when I was 14 I had my first amateur boxing match. At age 8 until I was 14 I was doing partial contact martial arts competition, so I’ve been taking punches to the head for 23 years, and that’s a long time to be doing this.

In certain areas I think I’ve gotten better with age, just with maturity and experience, but in many ways I’ve definitely taken a few steps back. These young guys coming up right now have a big jump on me because I was doing single martial arts, not mixed martial arts. They’re not wasting time on techniques that aren’t applicable anymore.

Realistically, I’d like to say that I can fight for another three years. When I was coming up, it was my dream to be a fighter and make money. I had no aspirations to win a world title, and I’ve already surpassed my own dreams and expectations that I had as a child. Before I got into the UFC I lived in a barn with an old army sniper. I didn’t own a car, I didn’t have anything, and then I sent the audition tape in and now I have a beautiful home, I have custody of all of my children, and I have a great IRA retirement plan set up.

I already fought in Ireland, so I’ve achieved my dreams and I’m very happy with my life, but if I could have one chance to say I fought for a UFC world title, regardless of what happened, that would be an accomplishment on top of what I’ve already done. Who knows, it could happen.

In addition to being a Sgt. in the Boston Police Dept. skilled in hand-to-hand combat and defensive tactics, Eblan is a martial artist with over 40 years of training experience. Having been involved in the local MMA scene for the last ten years, Eblan jumped on an opportunity to assist the MA Athletic Commission this year by lending his knowledge and experience to the state’s new referees and judges.

Tapology’s Steven Kelliher recently spoke with Eblan to get the details on his clinics for local officials-in-training. Eblan also discussed some of the problems with today’s MMA officiating and what is being done in MA to attempt to avoid incompetence and inject professionalism into the sport on both the professional and amateur levels.

Tapology: My overall goal in speaking with you is to get your thoughts on the current state of judging and refereeing in MMA nationwide. There has been a lot of criticism and controversy surrounding both judges and referees as of late, and even concerning the 10-point must system of scoring bouts. What are your thoughts on the current state of MMA regulation in the U.S.?

Eblan: I think that the sport is young. I think the sport is growing every day in many ways. Right now there are pretty unified rules across the country, but there are slight variations in each state. You mentioned the 10-point must system, which I think is actually a pretty good system right now to keep consistency; each state is supposed to abide by judging fights based on effective grappling, striking, aggression, etc., but like I said, the sport is still young and it’s still growing, so there is a lot of room for improvement.

Tapology: You run judging and refereeing clinics in Massachusetts. How did you attain that position?

Eblan: I had been refereeing for the state of Massachusetts back in 2000 under the boxing commission. In 2004 the state decided that they would not be sanctioning MMA for whatever reason, so it was almost like the sport regulated itself. I have to be honest with you, for the several years when the sport regulated itself it went pretty well. There were some issues, but not a lot of them.

When the state decided to sanction MMA beginning in March of this year I did kind of lobby to say, ‘Here’s my experience, I’d like to be involved in this,’ and then it happened.

Tapology: As you said, the criteria for judging MMA across the board is pretty unified, but judges’ interpretations of those criteria are not. How do you approach the teaching process in terms of judging in order to try to limit this problem?

Eblan: In terms of judging, there has to be a clear understanding of what the criteria is. In addition, as a judge-in-training, you have to be able to identify and recognize the criteria in action. It’s not just on a multiple choice question on a test—that’s not what I’m looking for—I’m looking for someone who knows it when they see it and who can pinpoint it. To do this, there is an analysis factor.

As a judge-in-training, you will have to analyze fights round-by-round and turn in your scores. I want these judges to be able to apply the criteria under the unified rules and articulate why they scored it the way they did.

Tapology: Do you know how many other athletic commissions in various states are running these clinics to train referees and judges?

Eblan: I don’t actually know how many are. I know there are a few organizations and individuals who are running clinics. If they are not doing it, I’m sure they will be doing it soon enough.

Tapology: You spoke about judging, so do you take a similar approach to the training of new referees?

Eblan: I take a similar approach, but with the reffing, I get a few different perspectives. Part of the way I teach is to get different people that are involved in the industry—trainers, fighters, promoters—and I’ll get their perspective. I have a segment where I go out and interview trainers and ask them, “What are the characteristics of a good referee? How does a good referee act?”

Conversely, nobody remembers the good decisions. You could do 100 fights and do very well on 99 of them but mess up on one. As a referee, nobody is as close to the fight as you are. Nobody can see the eyes of the fighter if they’re rolling back in their head, so one thing I tell the refs is that if you’re going to make a call, err on the side of caution because you’re dealing with people’s lives. If somebody suffers a serious bodily injury, that’s going to come back on you. It’s very easy to criticize a referee from the outside, but we’re talking about somebody making a split-second decision based on what they’re observing and also based on their experience in that ring.

We have a shadowing or mentoring program, where if you are a judge-in-training, you will go to fights and sit cage-side. This way they can get the experience, ask questions, and get exposed without being thrown into the lion’s den. We’re not going to have you take this class and go into a cage and expect you to be 100%, which is why we have them go to live fights.

Tapology: You said that the sport was being run pretty well here before being sanctioned, but since it has been officially sanctioned, have you seen a concerted effort by the MA Athletic Commission to bring in knowledgeable officials to regulate the sport or are they taking a hands-off approach?

Eblan: We’re talking about a state government agency, and nothing in state government moves quickly, but they have been able to put together some big cards here in a very short period of time. In addition to that, they were able to get an amateur sanctioning body together to get the amateurs up and running.

We have to consider that the amateurs are the staple of the MMA community. If we don’t have any amateurs, nobody is feeding the larger organizations. I don’t think it’s a wise thing to do to come into the sport as a pro right away.

The MA commission has reached out to various parties for advice and assistance, and I think they’re doing a pretty good job so far.

Tapology: If the UFC and larger MMA shows in general are successful here, do you think we’re going to see even more development of the sport in MA?

Eblan: Honestly I think the sport is young and I think it’s going to grow by leaps and bounds. When I was a kid growing up, everybody knew who the boxing heavyweight champion was, whether it was Muhammad Ali or Joe Louis. Now when you ask people, nobody even knows. MMA is kind of filling that void. When all of these states get on board, you’re going to have an influx of fighters and promoters, and I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon.

Tapology: Before I let you go, can you give a final statement on why you think it is so important for states to devote the time and resources to properly train judges and referees going forward?

Eblan: For any organization or commission to not train their officials, I think they are taking a huge and unnecessary liability. With coordinated training and lesson planning, I think it’s going to make the sport more professional. Even in the amateur ranks, that’s what you want to do, is to professionalize it. If you want this done professionally, you have to train the officials professionally.

(Disclaimer: Eblan does not officially speak for the MA Athletic Commission, so any views he expresses he does so on his own behalf.)

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

When Tapology’s Steven Kelliher caught up with Hornbuckle this week, the outspoken welterweight discussed his acceptance of his recent failure. Although he takes nothing away from Askren, Hornbuckle is searching for answers following the first decision loss of his career, and he plans to get back on track tomorrow night with a dominant win over UFC cast-off Brad Blackburn.

Bellator 25 takes place Thursday, August 19 from the Chicago Theatre in Chicago, Illinois. Check your local listings for TV broadcast information.

Tapology: Obviously you were disappointed with your performance against Ben Askren in the Season 2 Welterweight Finals, but what overall went wrong for you?

Hornbuckle: What went wrong was that Ben was a very good wrestler and used those attributes to nullify my game. He had good submission defense on the Triangle and the Kimura. He was on top of his game that night and that’s what it takes to beat me. It’s nothing to hang my head about, and I’m very proud of Ben for bringing an A+ game because that’s what it takes to beat “The Handler.”

Tapology: Do you think it came down to Askren being the better wrestler, or do you think you went in there with a faulty game plan?

Hornbuckle: I’m not making excuses, but my knees felt like jello going into the fight. I couldn’t get my knees to lock up to get any sort of movement at all while standing. I was completely flat-footed and I don’t do that. I’ve got four pages of notes that I’m trying to figure out what it is; it could be nutrition, maybe fighting outside with the humidity—there was even one doctor who told me that rubber knees was a sign of dehydration and heat stroke, which I wasn’t experiencing any of those, but he was saying those are signs leading up to that.

It wasn’t nerves, man. I’m not scared of anyone. I’ve been doing this for five years now and I’m not afraid to be kicked or punched. Plus I’m not saying that Ben wasn’t a threat, but he was by no means a knockout artist. Like I said at first, Ben showed up and fought a good fight, but I’m just looking for some contributing factors.

Tapology: Is it your aim to work toward a rematch with Askren, or are you not concerned with that fight now?

Hornbuckle: I’m not thinking about that right now. I know that Ben’s not going anywhere for a while and I’m focused on Big Bad Brad.

Tapology: Do you think that Askren will defeat Lyman Good?

Hornbuckle: No. Lyman called me and bitched me out. He said, ‘dam, Dan. Now I’m going to have to beat the hell out of him and it’s not going to do anything for me. Beating you would have been better. It would have been a great fight.’ I tried to talk him into coming down to ATT and he wants to, but that’s kind of a conflict of interest right now.

Tapology: You’re going to be fighting Brad Blackburn tomorrow night. What are your thoughts on him?

Hornbuckle: Man, this fight’s going to match up well. He’s definitely going to want to stand and trade with me, which I’m very excited about. I’m taking all of the precautions necessary to prevent my knees from turning to rubber again, plus it’s in Chicago, so it’s in my backyard.

Tapology: Yeah it has to feel good that you shouldn’t have to worry too much about the takedown in this one.

Hornbuckle: Well the panic’s going to set into him once my punches start to land and he’s going to try to take me down. Thanks to Ben Askren, you’d never think that I was in a wrestling match before, but I’m actually a very good wrestler.

Tapology: Do you have a prediction on whether you will finish the fight with strikes or by way of submission?

Hornbuckle: I’m going to go with ending the fight with strikes.

Tapology: Should you win this fight, are you going to stick with Bellator right now? How does your contract look?

Hornbuckle: I’m definitely going to stay with Bellator. They’re making all of the right moves in the right direction. I got a lot of exposure in the tournament and we’re going to continue to let that fly high.

Tapology: Do you know if they will be doing another Welterweight Tournament in Season 4?

Hornbuckle: That’s what I heard. They haven’t told me anything, but I think that Yoshida, if he wins his fight in October, that will earn him his way into the tournament. I think that after I beat Brad, I’ll have to fight Yoshida for his spot in the tournament. That’s exactly what I’d be wanting.

In my next fight, “The Handler’s” going to be starting off a new win streak with a bang.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher

In a recent interview conducted by Tapology’s Steven Kelliher, Lawal discussed everything from Gegard Mousasi and Raphael Cavalcante, to Bruce Lee and the modern MMA fan’s ignorance of the origins of the sport they profess to love. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Tapology: Can you start by talking about your fight with Gegard Mousasi?

Lawal: I’ve got to be honest, there was a lot of pressure on me in that fight; it was basically the second half of my professional career to date because of how long it went. When I went for the first takedown, he was punching me with a reverse hammer fist in the eye, and I just remember him sticking things in my eye, a finger here and there, throughout the fight.

To me, he just did whatever he had to do throughout the fight, and some of it was dirty and some of it wasn’t. I didn’t get the finish because it was hard to get the fight to the ground and he covered up well when we were there. I got a lot of hate for that, but the bottom line is that they’re just mad that Mousasi lost and I won. I had to fight smart.

Tapology: You seem to have gotten a bit better at not listening to the fans’ opinions. Some fans even hate GSP now because he has been winning decisions lately.

Lawal: Yeah those guys are idiots. You don’t see people booing Cro Cop in fights. People want to see sloppy slugfests, because in MMA the striking is far behind what you see in boxing or K-1. If people want to see those kinds of slugfests then they should watch boxing and K-1.

Tapology: Did you see the fight between Garcia and “The Korean Zombie?”

Lawal: Yeah, come on man. People think that’s how MMA is going to be, but I don’t want any part of that.

Tapology: Since you went five rounds with Mousasi, do you feel like you’ve grown a lot as a fighter just from that one experience?

Lawal: Yeah that is something people don’t experience very much. I went out there and had an adrenaline dump and didn’t use my cardio wisely. People want to say I don’t have cardio, but if I wasn’t in condition then how the hell did I go five rounds?

Tapology: You are defending your title against Raphael Cavalcante this weekend. What are your thoughts on him overall?

Lawal: He’s an exciting fighter, heavy handed, and he’s a tough guy, but I’m a different type of fighter than he’s ever fought, so we’ll see what happens.

Tapology: Obviously you are aware of a lot of what fans say. Most people believe that you should win this fight. How hard is it for you to convince yourself that Cavalcante is a real threat?

Lawal: No, it can be a hard if you don’t follow your game plan, but it becomes easier when you do. There are a lot of people that want to see me lose, but that’s just motivation. When you think about it, Raphael has more MMA experience and has been fighting a lot longer than me. There is no true favorite in MMA.

Tapology: Along the same line, there has been a lot of criticism launched toward fighters such as you, GSP, and Rashad Evans. Can you talk about the difference between fighting to win and fighting to entertain?

Lawal: Here’s the thing: if Strikeforce ever has a Fight of the Night bonus, my goal would be to never win it. They need to invent something new called Domination of the Night. I’m not out there to give the crowd a back-and-forth battle because that will give me a very short career.

In any combat sport, the smarter fighter with more skill will win. A lot of fans don’t understand the sport like that. In basketball, if a team is down by one point, do they shoot a bunch of threes? No, because it doesn’t make sense.

Tapology: At this level of the sport, how do you make sure that you are consistently getting better with each training session?

Lawal: When you do the same drills over and over and then pull them off in live sparring, then you go on to a different drill. I don’t move on to another technique until I master the one I’m on. When it comes to fight time, I will drill specific moves for that opponent over and over along with the ones I’m already drilling. I drill techniques that make sense for my style. You will never see me throw a spinning heel kick because it doesn’t work well with my style.

Tapology: With that being said, do you still think those types of traditional martial arts techniques have a place in MMA under the right circumstances? There are a lot of gyms in the Boston area where I’m from that have adopted an ignorant stance on traditional martial arts.

Lawal: Yes, you should do whatever you need to do to win. If you’re a great Judo guy, you should stick with the Judo. I’m a wrestler, so I’m going to stick to my strength. You need to base new techniques around your skill set.

Bruce Lee was really the first mixed martial artist, because he trained in boxing, Jiu-Jitsu, Jeet Kune Do, and he was the first martial artist to truly train in plyometrics.

Tapology: What do you think about that breed of MMA fan who thinks that MMA itself is a fighting style you can train in? I know a lot of fighters around here who train at MMA gyms that have no background in traditional martial arts.

Lawal: Those guys are going to kill the sport, because they’re going to make the sport a fad. They’re trying to be cool, that’s what it comes down to. To me, it makes no sense either to say you train in MMA. A lot of MMA fans really don’t do their research. The MMA media calls guys world-class Jiu-Jitsu practitioners, world-class wrestlers, or world-class Karate fighters, and I can tell you who is and who isn’t, but they just eat it up.

If you competed in Abu Dhabi, the Mundials, or something like that and did great, then I’ll call you world-class. The bottom line is, if you have the intelligence and the skill to implement your style, it will be effective. If you told people 20 years ago that a Karate guy like Lyoto Machida would come along and be one of the best fighters in the world, they would laugh at you.

Tapology: I know you don’t like the idea of pound-for-pound lists, but who are some of the guys that you like to watch and learn from the most?

Lawal: I learn from everybody. I’ll go to Youtube and watch random fights to see what I can learn. In boxing, you can say pound-for-pound, but in MMA it’s harder because there isn’t a lot of weight class jumping.

Tapology: What separates an all-time great martial artist from a great martial artist?

Lawal: An all-time great martial artist is somebody who can adapt for the most part. Also guys like Sugar Ray Robinson are all-time greats because they are ahead of the curve. It’s hard to say because it’s impossible to compare fighters of today to fighters 20 years from now.

Tapology: Do you think that you could ever reach your full potential or do you think it’s impossible?

Lawal: That’s a good question. I guess we’ll find out. I’d like to think that I could help somebody else reach their potential by teaching them what I’ve learned throughout my life and career, but for myself, I don’t know. I try to stay hungry and humble, but it’s tough because different styles have different rules in their respective sports, so it’s hard to implement it into your style all of the time.

Tapology: Taking a step back, do you think it is amazing that in today’s age of modern technology martial arts has made such a big comeback?

Lawal: Yeah to a certain extent, but I just think some fans are just into MMA as a fad, and aren’t into martial arts. If you asked a lot of them who the best Judo practitioner in the world is, a lot of them would mention Karo Parisyan, but I would say it’s Kimura. If you know the history of the sport, you can get an idea of what the trends are going to be. You look at the great fighters and see what they have in common.

If fans bothered to learn the history of these martial arts, they would understand what is going on a lot better.

Tapology: Before I let you go, I know you take some fans’ comments and opinions personally, but do you think it is getting better for you now that you are getting more exposure and more popularity?

Lawal: I know I have fans, but I’m kind of like Bernard Hopkins; I like the “me against the world” mentality. It keeps me hungry and it keeps me motivated.

Interview Conducted by Steven Kelliher