Interview With Kenny Florian
3/26/08 - By Jonathan Brown for SPRAWL Fight Short Company.
Kenny Florian will find himself in familiar territory on April 2nd when he meets Joe Lauzon in the center of the octagon in the main event of the 3-hour UFC Fight Night. The TUF 1 veteran was not happy with some of the brash comments made by his fellow Bostonian. In this must read interview Kenny responds to Joe, or little B.J, as he now calls him. He gives us his predictions on some of the biggest upcoming MMA fights, and tells who he thinks is MMA’s pound for pound best. All of this and much more in this must read SPRAWL exclusive. Read more...
JB: How’s training camp going?
KF: Phenomenal, I’m training with some great guys. Everything is coming together. Never felt better, never trained harder.
JB: Are you excited to be in the main event again?
KF: Yeah I feel honored that I get to do another UFC main event. I haven’t fought in awhile, and I feel like I’m getting my prize on April 2nd.
JB: Who are you training with for this fight?
KF: I’m training with a lot of the usual suspects: boxing conditioning coach; Peter Welch, My strength and conditioning coach; Kevin Kearns. As far as sparing partners goes I have been training with: Wilson Reis, Alberto Crane, Ninja Rua, Patrick Cote, Marcus Davis, Jorge Rivera, and all the other guys at Nexus Martial Arts.
JB: Have you prepared yourself for the altitude in Colorado?
KF: Yeah, I’m actually here now getting used to the altitude. I feel good. I really don’t feel much of a difference here.
JB: A lot of people are saying your experience gives you an edge in this fight. Do you see it that way?
KF: Um possibly, the funny thing is Joe actually has more fights then me, but I have more experience in the UFC for sure. At the end of the day, it is going to come down to who has the most skill and who can execute.
JB: With your extensive Muy Thai training and your black belt in Brazilian jujitsu you are probably the more skilled fighter on the feet and on the ground. Where do you think Joe will present you with the most danger in this fight?
KF: I think he poses a problem everywhere. I have to be ready for everything. I think where he is the most dangerous is probably on the ground. He moves fast. It’s up to me to capitalize when he makes mistakes.
JB: I interviewed Joe Lauzon right before I interviewed you, and he was very critical about the way you conducted yourself after the Din Thomas fight. Do you think you were out of line, or is Joe just being too sensitive?
KF: Actually I think Joe is being pretty stupid. I had no idea at first that Din Thomas was injured, and I don’t think the announcers even knew until they saw the replay. I had no idea he was injured, and you can see that in my interview with Joe Rogan. I had just finished him. I think anyone in that position would have been excited. When I did find out I said I hoped he was ok. The thing is in a fight anything can happen. I suffered a herniated disk in that fight, and at that point, if I would have stopped do you think Din Thomas would have been excited? So for Joe Lauzon to try to pick on that either he is trying to criticize something he knows nothing about, or he’s just stupid and has no common sense.
JB: (laughing) Ok, well he also said he’d put his white belt against your black belt, and that your black belt in BJJ and Muy Thai would not help you much when he’s got your head against the cage and he’s punching and elbowing you. Any response?
KF: Well it sounds like he has a lot to back up. My response will be in the octagon on April 2nd, and if he thinks that, I think he is taking me lightly. If he is taking me lightly he is going to be in for a beating. As the fight goes on, it’s going to get worse and worse for him, and he is going to be begging for a way out. He can talk and talk as much as he wants, but at the end of the day it’s the truth that’s going to find you.
JB: You have gone on record saying Sherk was your toughest opponent. Joe also likes to ground and pound. What did you learn from that fight? What would you do different if you found yourself in that position against Joe?
KF: The first thing is I wasn’t healthy before the Sherk fight. I was dealing with a back injury for a long time, so I couldn’t train jujitsu or wrestling before that fight. If he thinks he’s going to do what Sherk did he’s crazy, and I hope he does think that because he is going to be in for a rude awakening. I’m just ready. I can’t wait to go in there and fight him. You know the more interviews I read from this kid, and the more I hear about him being disrespectful the more I’m going to disrespect him with elbows, kicks, and knees. They are going to have to rip me off of him!
JB: Who do you like in the B.J Penn vs. Sean Sherk fight?
KF: I don’t think I have a real different opinion then anyone else. I think early on B.J will have the advantage, and if it goes into the deeper rounds Sherk will have the advantage. B.J needs to stop the takedown, beat him up, and try to stop it early. Otherwise, I think Sherk has got the advantage as the fight goes on.
JB: Give me your thoughts on Anderson Silva’s win over Dan Henderson?
KF: I was really impressed with it. I always thought if there’s one guy that can beat Silva it was Dan. In a fight it comes down to taking advantage of those little opportunities, and I think Anderson Silva did that. Anderson is on top of his game right now, and I still believe Henderson is the only guy that can beat him.
JB: Do you think he is number #1 pound for pound in the world right now?
KF: I thought Dan was one of the best pound for pound, so yeah right now I think he’s the best.
JB: The new Pride organization “Dream” just had its first round of its lightweight grand prix. Some of the stand out fighters in the tournament are: JZ, Aoki, Alvarez, Kawajiri, and Ishida. Who do you think is going to win the tournament? How do these fighters compare to the UFC lightweight division?
KF: I think a lot of those guys are really good, and it would be great to have them in the UFC. As far as guys that are real impressive to me: I would say JZ. I think he is the most impressive of the bunch. Ishida is kind of like another Sherk type fighter. JZ is one of the best lightweights in the world and one of the top pound for pound as well.
JB: Do you think it’s ridiculous that a lot of websites keep ranking Takanori Gomi the number 1 lightweight despite the fact that he hasn’t fought any top competition in awhile, and he was recently defeated by Nick Diaz?
KF: Yeah, I have a problem with Gomi being ranked number 1. Week after week, month after month, they keep him number 1. It’s ridiculous. There is no way he is still number 1. In my eyes there are a lot of people more deserving of that ranking. He is a great fighter and deserves to be in the top ten but, number 1 is way off.
JB: Matt Serra or GSP?
KF: A lot of people think GSP is going to go in there and tear Serra apart and that may happen. I think Serra is a tough match-up for GSP. I think he will do a lot better than people think. I think Matt Serra will be able to defend himself on the ground much better than Matt Hughes was able to do. In mixed martial arts a lot of times guys mature late. Guys like Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell found what works best for them late in their careers. Who knows Serra could be that next guy.
JB: Speaking of Chuck Liddell who do you like in his fight with Rashad Evans?
KF: That’s an interesting fight. I actually thought back in the day when Chuck was smashing everybody that Rashad would be a good match-up for him. However, based on his recent performances I’m not so sure anymore. Chuck is kind of rejuvenated now. Those losses kind of motivated him again. It will be interesting to see how Rashad handles the pressure against arguably the biggest MMA star right now. It’s going to be an exciting fight, and I can’t wait to see it.
JB: How has SPRAWL improved your MMA career?
KF: SPRAWL’s a great company that has been supporting me from the beginning. I just really appreciate them. For my training, I know the gear is not going to tear during hard sessions. The shorts are comfortable, and the best out there in my opinion. I am happy to be sponsored by them.
JB: Anything you would like to say in closing?
KF: I want to thank all my sponsors and all my fans for their support. I am really looking forward to April 2nd. I get my opportunity to beat another quality opponent. I’m just really looking forward to fighting him. I think he has been very disrespectful. I think Joe has been hanging out with B.J to much, and now he thinks he’s little B.J. Well little B.J is going to get taken care of on April 2nd.
