Manager: Barboza Staying Grounded, Eying February UFC Return
Chris Nelson Nov 27, 2010
Edson
Barboza entered UFC 123 amidst plenty of hype and high
expectations. He left with his first big show win and a
still-unblemished record. His prelim fight was aired on the
pay-per-view broadcast, leading to amplified chatter from fans and
media alike. Some have jumped at the chance to dub Barboza
(Pictured) the 155-pound Jose Aldo,
while others are already calling for a showdown with fellow
unbeaten lightweight Charles “do
Bronx” Oliveira.
None of this, according to his manager, is having much effect on the 24-year-old.
“Edson is just a grounded human being. He and I have chatted on
numerous occasions about this. His life’s gonna change, but he’s
not gonna change. We don’t expect him to change who he is as a
carbon-based person,” says Joe Mullings, owner of The Armory, the
Jupiter, Fla., gym where Barboza trains. “He was a muay Thai
champion in Brazil, so he’s sort of used to the public
accolades.”
However, even an experienced fighter like Barboza wasn’t immune to the infamous “Octagon jitters.”
Whatever nervousness the fighter was feeling must have dissipated during the walk to the cage, as Barboza put on a cool, calm performance against late replacement Mike Lullo. The Brazilian used his go-to low kicks to batter Lullo’s left leg and score a third-round technical knockout. Between frames, Barboza barely seemed to tire.
“You watch the tape, and 30 seconds into the break on the round, the kid wasn’t even breathing anymore. He loves to do strength and conditioning, which is really different from most athletes,” says Mullings.
This is not to say that Barboza didn’t find himself in any danger during the match. Lullo used rubber guard and hunted for gogoplatas in both the first and second rounds.
“Junior’s never really actively defended against a gogoplata, so when that first one came over and he defended it, his instincts were spot on. That was something he learned on the run,” Mullings says.
“The wrestling, I think he answered some nice questions there. His takedown defense is pretty solid. I think Edson’s sprawl and strength were pretty evident in that fight. He needs some bolstering on his ground game, but that comes out of the front room of the Museum of the Obvious, quite honestly,” jokes Mullings of his standup-based fighter. “You’re always gonna be better at something and worse at something. To be honest, I’m hoping people underestimate his wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills.”
Luckily for Barboza, great ground specialists aren’t hard to come by in his neck of the woods -- decorated jiu-jitsu players Pablo Popovitch and Rodrigo Cavaca are just a few of his training partners.
“Literally, five days a week, twice a day, he’s training with top-level jiu-jitsu guys and top-level grapplers,” Mullings says. “It’s important to remember that jiu-jitsu for MMA is tremendously different from grappling with a gi on. We’re shortening the rope on Edson’s grappling and BJJ in a kimono to make it a lot more applicable for MMA.”
So, when can we expect to see “The Nova Friburgo Phenomenon” return to test his expanding skill set?
“My partner, Alex Davis, and I, we’ve been in touch with the UFC and we’re hoping to get him on a February card. Edson’s ready to go earlier than that. Other than a little bruise on his foot, he came out of that fight with no damage,” says Mullings. While no opponents have been floated yet, he has an idea of what kind of fight Barboza might get.
“I’m gonna guess that the UFC is probably gonna give him another banger,” Mullings speculates. “Mike Lullo was a stand-up guy for taking the fight on short notice, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they put another banger in there for a nice, good standup war.”
In the meantime, Mullings says, it’s back to work as usual.
“Whoever they put in front of us in February, it’s really not gonna change our camp at all. That’s how Edson thinks, and I like that thinking, because you never have to think about who’s gonna walk into that cage.”
None of this, according to his manager, is having much effect on the 24-year-old.
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However, even an experienced fighter like Barboza wasn’t immune to the infamous “Octagon jitters.”
“He did say, when we were standing backstage, when the curtains
went up, he said that he could feel his heart beating and he held
his arms against his chest.”
Whatever nervousness the fighter was feeling must have dissipated during the walk to the cage, as Barboza put on a cool, calm performance against late replacement Mike Lullo. The Brazilian used his go-to low kicks to batter Lullo’s left leg and score a third-round technical knockout. Between frames, Barboza barely seemed to tire.
“You watch the tape, and 30 seconds into the break on the round, the kid wasn’t even breathing anymore. He loves to do strength and conditioning, which is really different from most athletes,” says Mullings.
This is not to say that Barboza didn’t find himself in any danger during the match. Lullo used rubber guard and hunted for gogoplatas in both the first and second rounds.
“Junior’s never really actively defended against a gogoplata, so when that first one came over and he defended it, his instincts were spot on. That was something he learned on the run,” Mullings says.
“The wrestling, I think he answered some nice questions there. His takedown defense is pretty solid. I think Edson’s sprawl and strength were pretty evident in that fight. He needs some bolstering on his ground game, but that comes out of the front room of the Museum of the Obvious, quite honestly,” jokes Mullings of his standup-based fighter. “You’re always gonna be better at something and worse at something. To be honest, I’m hoping people underestimate his wrestling and jiu-jitsu skills.”
Luckily for Barboza, great ground specialists aren’t hard to come by in his neck of the woods -- decorated jiu-jitsu players Pablo Popovitch and Rodrigo Cavaca are just a few of his training partners.
“Literally, five days a week, twice a day, he’s training with top-level jiu-jitsu guys and top-level grapplers,” Mullings says. “It’s important to remember that jiu-jitsu for MMA is tremendously different from grappling with a gi on. We’re shortening the rope on Edson’s grappling and BJJ in a kimono to make it a lot more applicable for MMA.”
So, when can we expect to see “The Nova Friburgo Phenomenon” return to test his expanding skill set?
“My partner, Alex Davis, and I, we’ve been in touch with the UFC and we’re hoping to get him on a February card. Edson’s ready to go earlier than that. Other than a little bruise on his foot, he came out of that fight with no damage,” says Mullings. While no opponents have been floated yet, he has an idea of what kind of fight Barboza might get.
“I’m gonna guess that the UFC is probably gonna give him another banger,” Mullings speculates. “Mike Lullo was a stand-up guy for taking the fight on short notice, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they put another banger in there for a nice, good standup war.”
In the meantime, Mullings says, it’s back to work as usual.
“Whoever they put in front of us in February, it’s really not gonna change our camp at all. That’s how Edson thinks, and I like that thinking, because you never have to think about who’s gonna walk into that cage.”
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