Faber Won’t Force Takedowns Against Dangerous Wineland
Sherdog.com Staff Mar 15, 2011
Although Eddie
Wineland’s greatest strength is his striking, Urijah Faber
says he’s willing to engage him on the feet when they fight
Saturday at UFC
128.
In fact, Faber believes it would be a mistake not to.
“I’m more than happy to play his game, but it’s my game too,” Faber
(Pictured) said recently during a “Savage
Dog Show” interview on the Sherdog Radio Network. “If the
opportunity is there to put him in a position where I’m stronger
than he is, with that being on the ground, I’ll take it for sure,
but I’m not trying to force anything. That’s the way you get rocked
-- being desperate for things.”
The bantamweight contest is scheduled for the main card. Wineland, a former WEC 135-pound champion, has won four in a row. Most recently he knocked out Ken Stone with a devastating slam at in December.
Despite Wineland’s status as a former champ and his success of late, he remains somewhat unknown to casual fans of the sport. Faber knows he’s a gamer, though.
“I don’t know why Eddie doesn’t have more recognition,” he said. “I guess when he was a champion, it was really at the infant stages of the WEC and so there wasn’t as much hype and notoriety behind him. He’s a tough dude. He’s one of the toughest guys I’ve faced.”
That’s saying something considering Faber’s resume. The former WEC featherweight champion has gone the distance with Jose Aldo, fought Mike Thomas Brown twice and also submitted current bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.
A win over Wineland could even set up a rematch with Cruz for the UFC title. The two have been trading words for a while now, though Faber said he hasn’t yet grown tired of their back and forth.
“I don’t let things bother me,” he explained. “The bottom line is, I’m just an honest guy. People are like, ‘We never see you dislike anyone or say anything bad about anyone.’ That’s because most of the time I don’t feel that way about people. I’m just being honest and people keep asking. Yeah, I don’t like the guy very much. I’m sure we’re going to fight soon. I look forward to it. I’m his only loss, so he wants to get that back. He’s got a UFC title, which I want to get. It’s inevitable. I just have to keep doing my thing.”
That includes a victory over Wineland on Saturday.
“I think I just have to do my game plan,” Faber said. “He’s got heavy hands and good kickboxing and he’s pretty good at everything else. I think his goal is going to be to keep it standing and try to knock me out. I’m going to try to knock him out and try to finish him wherever I can.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 1:35:26).
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
In fact, Faber believes it would be a mistake not to.
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The bantamweight contest is scheduled for the main card. Wineland, a former WEC 135-pound champion, has won four in a row. Most recently he knocked out Ken Stone with a devastating slam at in December.
“That was a brutal slam for sure,” said Faber, who saw it in
person. “I can’t believe Stone held on that long in that terrible
position and allowed [Wineland] to do that. I will not be making
the same mistake.”
Despite Wineland’s status as a former champ and his success of late, he remains somewhat unknown to casual fans of the sport. Faber knows he’s a gamer, though.
“I don’t know why Eddie doesn’t have more recognition,” he said. “I guess when he was a champion, it was really at the infant stages of the WEC and so there wasn’t as much hype and notoriety behind him. He’s a tough dude. He’s one of the toughest guys I’ve faced.”
That’s saying something considering Faber’s resume. The former WEC featherweight champion has gone the distance with Jose Aldo, fought Mike Thomas Brown twice and also submitted current bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.
A win over Wineland could even set up a rematch with Cruz for the UFC title. The two have been trading words for a while now, though Faber said he hasn’t yet grown tired of their back and forth.
“I don’t let things bother me,” he explained. “The bottom line is, I’m just an honest guy. People are like, ‘We never see you dislike anyone or say anything bad about anyone.’ That’s because most of the time I don’t feel that way about people. I’m just being honest and people keep asking. Yeah, I don’t like the guy very much. I’m sure we’re going to fight soon. I look forward to it. I’m his only loss, so he wants to get that back. He’s got a UFC title, which I want to get. It’s inevitable. I just have to keep doing my thing.”
That includes a victory over Wineland on Saturday.
“I think I just have to do my game plan,” Faber said. “He’s got heavy hands and good kickboxing and he’s pretty good at everything else. I think his goal is going to be to keep it standing and try to knock me out. I’m going to try to knock him out and try to finish him wherever I can.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 1:35:26).
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
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