Interviews

Tom Atencio is the vice-president of Affliction Clothing and the man responsible for bringing its MMA wing Affliction Entertainment to fruition. In this interview, he talks about the fallout from the company's second show and what 2009 holds. Fighters Only: Can you give us an approximate date for the next Affliction show?I still don’t have a date right now, I...

Clay Guida took a split-decision win over TUF winner Nate Diaz at UFC 94 on Saturday. It earned him his second Fight of the Night bonus and means he is now on a three-fight win streak, with an overall record of 25-9.There was a lot of tension between you and Diaz at the weigh-in staredown. Did that bad blood transfer into the fight? None of my fights are pretty....

Rickson Gracie, who along with Royce is the most famous of the Brazilian fighting family, was at a BJJ tournament in Portugal with his son Kron when it emerged that his father Helio Gracie, Grandmaster of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, had died. Here he reveals how he felt when he heard the news, and what he believes his father’s legacy will be.How did you react to the...

American Kickboxing Academy product Paul Buentello beat Kirril Sidelnikov, protégé of Fedor Emelianenko, at Affliction 2: Day of Reckoning last weekend. Observers were impressed with Buentello’s use of the jab to outpoint, demoralise and eventually hurt his Russian opponent.Fighters Only: Paul that was some great jab work. Is that something you...

Melvin Manhoef became the first fighter to KO solid New Zealander and former K-1 champion Mark Hunt under MMA rules. Today he spoke with Brasil Combate, the Brazilian MMA media partner of Fighters Only, about that impressive win at K-1 Dynamite on New Year’s Eve. Brasil Combate is very...

Mark Coleman faces Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua this weekend in a grudge rematch stemming from their first fight at Pride 31 in 2006. Shogun dislocated his elbow after a takedown from Coleman and then the ring erupted in a mass brawl between Chute Boxe and Hammer House. Fighters Only: Shogun has wanted this rematch for some time and so have the fans. Was it equally...

Russian heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko will defend his WAMMA title belt against Andrei Arlovski at Affliction 2: Day of Reckoning on the 24th of this month. The former PRIDE FC champion has lost just once in 30 bouts as a professional, and that was a controversial cut stoppage that was ruled a loss only because it occurred in a tournament. He avenged it shortly...

Rich Franklin faces Dan Henderson at UFC 93 in Dublin, Ireland on Saturday, January 17th. The two are both former champions - Henderson held the middleweight and light-heavyweight belts in Pride FC, while Franklin held the UFC middleweight belt before Anderson Silva.   In this interview, Franklin talks about his preparations for fighting Henderson in a...

Dan Henderson faces Rich Franklin at UFC 93 in Dublin, Ireland on Saturday January 17th. The two are both former champions - Henderson held the middleweight and light-heavyweight belts in Pride FC, while Franklin held the UFC middleweight belt before Anderson Silva.In this interview, Henderson talks about his preparations for fighting Franklin in a match that fans...

Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson conducted a video interview with Rodney Hunt a few hours after knocking out Wanderlei Silva in their third meeting. The video is available at Strictly Fighting (click here) and excerpts are transcribed below: On his feelings prior to the fight: I was nervous, but the first two times I...