In Jackson, Griffin faces a man that is riding an impressive six-fight winning streak, including a title-crowning win over Chuck Liddell and a subsequent five-round defense against former Pride light heavyweight and middleweight champ Dan Henderson.
But Jackson is also a man whose last defeat was a knockout at the hands of former Pride 205-Pound Grand Prix champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua… the same fighter that Griffin defeated last September by submission near the end of the third round. Shogun was widely regarded as the No. 1 light heavyweight in the world at the time.
The win propelled Griffin into the championship challenge of Jackson and landed both the stint as coaches on season seven of The Ultimate Fighter.
Now, it’s crunch time. Yet, despite training non-stop for this chance of a lifetime, Griffin offers little by way of predictions, not even how he sees the fight unfolding. “I don’t care where it goes as long as I win,” he said. Adding, “I’ll tell you one thing, the price of gas will continue to rise.”
According to many insiders, Wanderlei Silva – who also trains at Xtreme Couture and holds two crushing victories over Quinton Jackson while both were fighting for Pride – has been in Griffin’s ear and in his face for the Ultimate Fighter alum’s training camp for this bout. It’s something that Griffin readily confirms and has reaped tremendous confidence from.
“Wanderlei is just an animal… He’s not normal. You work out with him, see him in here; he’s on his own world man. You really got to be a specific guy with a specific skill set and specific cardio to fight like Wanderlei. I can’t emulate his style,” admitted Griffin, not giving any impression that he intends to fight Wanderlei’s fight against the champion.
He does appreciate the opportunity to train with the former Pride champion though. “I love him as a training partner. It’s that unchecked aggression,” said Griffin with a smile on his face.
He has acquired some fight advice from Wanderlei though. “The one thing he said was immediately grab the head and throw the knee instead of trying to set it up and make the perfect… bam! Grab and go, start throwing, don’t sit there and let him think about it.”
