"When I think of Cristiane Cyborg, I think of an athlete where you could see her in Shape Magazine. I could see her in Muscle and Fitness. There's a whole different promotional angle you can take with her. You could say she's one of the fittest women in the world. She's an amazing athlete, and that's how we're going to try and promote her. She's obviously the best female fighter in MMA." -- Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker to SI.com on the promotional tact he'll take with Cyborg atop the female division.
“She got in a couple firefights there that she really didn’t need to get into; she got overwhelmed a couple times . . . I think we needed to stick and move a little more and make Cristiane chase her a little more -- which is what we trained to do -- but it’s hard when somebody hits you, especially Gina, she wants to hit them back." -- Carano cornerman Randy Couture to Sherdog.com on her performance.
“We’re three events in with Strikeforce and I think we’ve made amazing progress that we’re even in this conversation about UFC and counter-programming and all that silliness. They have a 100-event head start on us and I think that we’re doing pretty damn well.” -- Showtime Vice President of Sports Programming Ken Hershman to the Sherdog Radio Network's "Beatdown" show on the Aug. 15 programming war between Strikeforce and the UFC.
“He does need (marijuana). He has ADHD and he’s had a prescription for Ritalin since he was a kid. He doesn’t want to take that. That’s worse than pot.” -- Nick Diaz's trainer, Cesar Gracie, on Diaz seeking a therapeutic exemption for marijuana use.
“I’m gonna go out, be myself, and show what kind of people we do have in this sport. I’m sure the reaction will be mixed (among fight fans). My friends are gonna be excited and I’ll never hear the end of it because they’ll make fun of me, but it should be fun and I think everyone will like it.” -- Chuck Liddell to UFC.com on participating in Dancing With The Stars.
“We already expelled drug dealers from four important slums (pacified communities), but to expel is not enough. We have to provide citizenship to the local population and martial arts are one of our ways to make it happen. With the support of all the martial arts teachers and fighting idols, besides producing champions, we will be able to keep children from entering into the criminal life.” -- Rio de Janeiro Governor Sérgio Cabral during press conference announcing Bitetti Combat 4 card in the city on Sept. 12, featuring Pedro Rizzo, Paulo Filho and Ricardo Arona.
“I started wrestling at age four. Around the same time, I saw MMA,” recounts the shy Ryuto of his formative first impression of the sport, and how it pushed him toward wrestling. “It was when I saw [Kazushi] Sakuraba versus Royce Gracie in Pride. It was then that I decided I wanted to do MMA someday . . . I don’t want to debut in the UFC, but I want to fight there eventually, after I fight in Dream.” -- 14-year-old Ryuto Sawada, one of several aspiring wrestling and fighting pupils at Hiroyuki Abe's Abe-Ani Combat Club in Tokyo, to Sherdog.com.
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The Week Ahead
All the final buildup to the UFC’s premiere event in Oregon, UFC 102 on Aug. 29, headlined by Randy Couture vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.