READING, England -- Ryan "The Great" White (Pictures) was in a confident mood Friday as he looked forward to the clash with top UK competitor, Ryan Robinson, for the vacant FX3 light heavyweight title at "Fight Night 8" at the Rivermead Complex on Sunday.
"I've seen him fight loads (of times)," White said. "I think he's a top guy, really good. It's a great opportunity -- if you're going to test yourself, you might as well test yourself against the best.
"I think I might have the edge in the standup and in terms of aggression, because he's a really relaxed fighter. As they say, styles make fights. This should be a good one to watch."
Robinson was equally even-keel in his response.
"I wish I could be as respectful to him," the former Cage Rage heavyweight champion said. "I don't know much about him. He seems the kind of fighter who tries to match the other guy's style. So, I'm just going to go in there and try and fight my best fight.
"To be honest, I've only had two weeks' notice for this, so fitness was the first thing. I just went out like a maniac for one week and then tried to calm down for a week."
Hungry for a tough battle, Robinson added a footnote to his motivation.
"I f--kin' love belts," he said with a laugh. "If it was not for that belt I would not have taken it on two weeks notice."
K-1 Hero's veteran Brad Pickett (Pictures) made weight on his second attempt and appeared eager to get the job done quickly in his match with Milton Keynes fighter Simon Boulter.
"Just like always, I just want to get it over and done with now," said Pickett, a former boxer out of east London. "I can't wait to be honest. I know his work ethic is very good, but I (haven't) seen much footage on him. His first fight was in 2003, so I know he's been training longer than I have, but he hasn't been as active as I have, so hopefully my experience will prevail."
UK veteran and ZT Fight Skool head coach Sol Gilbert (Pictures) was in high spirits as he prepared for his first contest in 16 months against Lithuanian super-striker Marius Sukys (Pictures).
"I know he's dangerous," Gilbert said. "With most Lithuanians, you don't know what you're gonna get on the night. I've seen his two most recent fights. In the last one, he knocked out Richard Griffin (Pictures) with a spinning hook kick."
Local fighter Brendan Flanagan (Pictures) admitted that he has not seen a great deal of footage on his opponent, karate fighter and Cage Rage veteran Edgelson Lue. However, Flanagan seemed confident that Lue would fall back on his traditional striking skills once the fight begins.
"He comes from a karate background and I'm very happy with that," Flanagan said. "I think I'll be able to capitalize on it. Hopefully we'll see some kicks to the head and knees to the torso."
FX3 "Fight Night 8" Weigh-in Results
Matt Smith (149.4) vs. Mark Ferreira*
Ali Reccica (215.2) vs. Irvin Daniels (214.3)
Phil Else (148) vs. Davin Byfield (141.3)**
Greg Siwy (183.5) vs. Wojciech Jamrozik*
Brendan Flanagan (Pictures) (148) vs. Edgelson Lue (170.5)
Nick Osiczpak (170.3 pounds) vs. Kevin Porter (Pictures)*
Tim Radcliffe (Pictures) (154.9 pounds) vs. Sami Berik (Pictures) (154 pounds)
Jeff Hayes (184.6 pounds) vs. Lloyd Clarkson (Pictures) (184.8 pounds)
Dean Amasinger (Pictures) (170.5 pounds) vs. Stuart Rickman (170.5 pounds)
Jeremy Bailey (Pictures) (167.6 pounds) vs. Arunas Klicius*
Sol Gilbert (Pictures) (169.8 pounds) vs. Marius Sukys (Pictures)*
Brad Pickett (Pictures) (145.6 pounds) vs. Simon Boulter (146.5 pounds)
FX3 Light Heavyweight Championship
Ryan White (Pictures) (204.6 pounds) vs. Ryan Robinson (203.3 pounds)
* -- will weigh in tomorrow
**-- fighters agreed to a catch-weight of 148 pounds
