411's Countdown to UFC 84 Report 05.20.08
Posted by Randy Harrison on 05.22.2008
Spike TV gets you pumped and ready for all the action of UFC 84 from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, this Saturday night!!
If it's the week before a UFC event that means it's time for us to start the countdown and THIS is the Countdown to UFC 84!!
BJ talks about living like a champion training for this fight, while Sherk feels like the belt belongs to him and that it was taken from him for something that he didn't do. Jardine talks about how beating people up is his art and that leads to Silva saying that he enjoys looking across the ring to see his opponent shaking. Machida says that he tries to live his life in the Samurai style and that ends up with Tito Ortiz saying that he's sacrificed a third of his life to his fans and to the UFC. The narrator comes over that saying that there are six indviduals who all have thier own stories, set to clash in three separate match-ups at UFC 84: Ill Will. Great opening sequence as usual since they've started this new slant on the Countdown shows.
Undisputed UFC Lightweight Championship:
Sean Sherk vs. BJ Penn (c)
BJ In Training
It's 7:30 in the morning in Hilo, HI and BJ is talking about how in years past, people have talked about how lazy he was and how he didn't take training seriously. Penn says that he finally realized that it was time to take training to a new level and to respect fighting because he felt like if you disrespect fighting it's going to disrespect you. He talks about how he disrespected it in the past and how it's hurt him before he talks about how he feels like he's a natural for fighting and that it's something he's good at. He feels like he has to prove that he's not just a streetfighter, but a world-class fighter. He says that he knows what a champion has to do to become a champion and BJ talks about how he might not even bring the belt with him to the cage because he's not about that anymore. He wants to kick everybody's ass and he's more about collecting belts than wearing them and claiming to be the best. He talks about how partying and things are fun but ultimately they're worthless and that he's going to leave that part behind so he can move forward to become the greatest. He talks about how good he feels and how confident he is and that BJ now and BJ then are two completely different people.
Sherk In Training
Sherk talks about how he's a hard-working, Midwestern kind of guy and that he's not going to let anything change who he is. He feels like he wants to be in the gym everyday and that a lot of the best fighters come from the Midwest because there's no other distractions and nothing to do other than train. He fights to push himself and find where his boundaries are so that he can challenge himself to get past them. He says that he won't quit because of how hard he's had to work and that it's all or nothing with him. He'll have to be killed because he won't quit, ever. He feels like this fight is about getting all of the things in his past behind him and getting the belt back as redemption. He says that he's pissed and he certainly looks frustrated, even in the training montages. We get to see Sherk with his young child and the narrator talks about how Sherk feels after having the belt taken away from him. Sherk says that BJ wants to legitimize the belt and he knows that to do so, he has to beat the champion. BJ talks about how Sherk has been broken before and promises that he'll do it again.
Sherk vs. Penn
BJ talks about the Hughes fight and how he came into it out of shape and lazy and that he was injured badly. That's when he realized that he had to change things and stop the partying and learn to respect fighting. BJ's boxing coach talks about how well BJ absorbs the information and that it's going to take two or three guys in the ring to stop BJ. He talks about how important the mental aspect is and that BJ is the sharpest he's ever seen mentally. We move over to Sherk who talks about how he's never had a fight with someone he's hated, but that this fight with BJ is personal. He talks about how BJ said all of the things he did in the media and Sherk talks about how he didn't take steroids and that it would be completely stupid of him to do so, even now. We go back to the UFC 73 defense against Hermes Franca and his positive steroid test which led to his six-month suspension. Sherk talks about how he knows what he did and didn't do and he says that the evidence is all there to say that he didn't do it and that's all he can say. He says that he can't wait to feel the belt being put around his waist again and says that he's not considered the champion because of what the commission did. He says that he wants to win to feel the belt again and he wants to win to shut BJ up because BJ talks a lot of shit. He feels like he has no respect for BJ and that Penn is only making a big deal out of the steroid thing to try and legitimize his title. He talks about how BJ is a quitter and that he's not going to lose because he'll never quit, before questioning BJ's heart. From there, we see BJ doing a little boxing training while screaming about the nandrolone and then he says that Sherk is mentally weak. Penn also questions whether he will or won't be on steroids come fight time but that it won't make a difference. He says that he feels like Sherk is weak in his heart and his mind. Sherk says that this should be a much more intense fight now because of all the things they've both said and that they're both going to be looking forward to hitting each other.
After a commercial, BJ talks about how he was thrust into a title match in his second fight and that it's been nothing but big fights since. He says that his dad talks about how everyone is going to get up to fight BJ Penn so whenever he fights, he's fighting everyone at their best. Sherk talks about how the thought of potentially getting beat is what gets him out to the gym, training twice a day and on his diet for 12 weeks before the fight. He questions Penn's heart and how he's going to quit because he's been handed everything. He says that he's going to get right into BJ's face and push the pace as much as he can and that he's going to bring a lot of pressure. BJ talks about how Sherk has been talking about what BJ is going to do on his back, but BJ says that the real question is what Sherk is going to do when he's on his back and BJ is elbowing and pounding his face, licking the blood off while he does it. That's some intense shit right there. The narrator talks about them coming from different worlds and fighting for different reasons, despite both men claiming to be a champion, but after the main event, only one will be on top.
Light Heavyweight Showdown:
Keith Jardine vs. Wanderlei Silva
From there we move to UFC 79 and the highlights of the slugfest between Wanderlei Silva and Chuck Liddell, interspersed with clips of Keith Jardine training and he says that it's the best fight he's ever seen. He says that both guys knew they couldn't lose and that they fought like their careers depended on it. Jardine says that this fight is establishing himself in the history of MMA because no one has ever beaten both Chuck and Wanderlei. He wants to be that guy and he wants to make history. All of this is mixed with clips of Jardine knocking down Liddell and him winning that fight. He talks about how the UFC doesn't really know what to do with him and that he's not thinking big picture, just that he wants to win this fight. We see clips of Silva as the narrator talks about how losing breeds doubt in the mind of a fighter, and that three losses in a row have put Silva at a crossroads. He's using newer training techniques to try to get back to his past glories and he talks about how he loves fighting but he needs to win. He says that he's been training every day and that he's working harder for this fight than any other. Jardine says that he's not doing anything different and that the only thing he's doing is that he tries to get into better shape for every fight than he was in the fight before. He feels like he hasn't fought above 60% yet and that he's hoping to get to that 100% level someday. The narrator talks about how Jardine has reached the highest highs, as well as suffered crushing defeats. Jardine says that by the time he fights Silva, after his training comes together and his gameplan comes together, that he will have fought him a hundred times already, all of the times he was nearly broken in training. Silva talks about how he needs this victory and that he's going to give his best and give his fans a knockout. Jardine talks about how scary it is to fight someone who is at this kind of crossroads and that he can't listen to the people who are thinking this fight is easy for him.
LIght Heavyweight Showdown
Lyoto Machida vs. Tito Ortiz
Tito says that he has the "It" factor and that every fight people either love him or hate him. He says that he's had it since he was a kid. From there we see Machida on a beach, talking about how each day when he wakes up he has to be Samurai-style but that it's difficult because you have to be honest, disciplined and real every day. They show Machida and how he's moved with himself and his wife to San Jose to try and augment his striking style with other skills. He talks about how his karate style is different and his wrestling coach actually thinks that it's an advantage for him because of how unknown it is and how unorthodox it is. He also says that Machida is training with wrestlers who are fighters and that he can transition his wrestling to the fight very easily. Machida talks about how people feel like he doesn't have power or solid striking and he doesn't care what they say because he knows his style and he knows he can knock people out. He believes in his training and his team and he doesn't worry about the other things. He knows that he's prepared for any situation when he gets into the cage and that he'll fight anywhere and any situation in the cage. Ortiz talks about growing up when he was younger and that he and his friends were into drugs and that he had no self-worth. He talks about guys like Hulk Hogan and Muhammad Ali and how he wanted that ability to be a superstar and that he lives for it. Tito feels like his nature is to excel and be the best that he possibly can be. He talks about starting to fight and how he matured through his title reign and that the smack talking is one thing but that he's no different than anyone else. He says that people either love him or hate him and the narrator moves to say that Ortiz has seen it all in his decade in the UFC. Tito talks about how he's an entertainer and that he wants to draw it out and punish his opponent, taking the full three rounds to get it done. He doesn't understand why someone would want to look for a quick submission or things like that, but this all sounds a lot like him trying to make excuses for why he doesn't finish fights.
Tito says that this fight means more to him than anything and that right now it's all about winning for him. He feels like he speaks from his heart and that it bites him in the ass sometimes but he's never going to be fake or say things that other people want him to say. He says that it's a tougher sport now than when he started and that all of the guys are much more well-rounded now. He says that Machida's speed is what makes him the most dangerous, but he doesn't feel like Machida has ever fought anyone who can fight like him. Machida says that he goes into every fight feeling like it's his last fight and that he gives everything he has to the fight. Tito talks about how he's not concerned with Machida's punching power because he's been in with Liddell and that he didn't get knocked out. Machida says that he's a lot different than Ortiz because he doesn't talk before his fights. Ortiz says that Machida is in for a world of trouble, while Machida says that he doesn't worry about what Ortiz is doing or not doing when it comes to training. This leads in to Tito running at nearly midnight before talking about how much he's given to Zuffa, the UFC and the sport and that he feels like he has three years of competitiveness left in the sport. Ortiz says that he's been challenged by Dana White, who said that he wants to see Ortiz lose, and that he's taking it very personally. Ortiz says that Dana should have kept his mouth shut because Machida is going to end up hurt because of it. We see Tito and his skank getting ready to go somewhere and how he looks like a bit of a tool answering questions about her purse. Dana White pops up and says that he wishes Tito no ill will and that he hopes that Ortiz becomes the biggest actor in the history of the world because he feels like fighting isn't in his heart. Ouch, yeah that's not ill will at all. Ortiz says that the best way to end it would be for him to beat Machida in a round or two, look at the Fertitta brothers and thank them and look at Dana White and tell him to "fuck off."
The Wrap-Up
One of the most anticipated cards in UFC history with three fights all capable of headlining. The narrator talks about how they're the "Original Six" and that all of them have their own reasons for fighting in the cage. BJ Penn was "The Prodigy" but now he looks to prove himself as a champion. Sean Sherk is looking for redemption above all else and to shed the controversy of the past to regain his title. Wanderlei Silva is looking to win and keep himself away from possible retirement, in an attempt to prove that he can still be at the top. Keith Jardine is sometimes his own worst enemy but that a win will drive his destiny. Lyoto Machida will keep his samurai spirit strong and that the stakes have been raised for him because he's going to face his biggest test yet. Tito Ortiz is at the point where every fight could be his last after a storied career, but that he's also at a point where every fight is now his biggest. Six men converging from six different paths, on one night, in one venue.
