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WEC 51 TITLE CHALLENGER MANNY GAMBURYAN READY TO PROVE UNDERDOG STATUS WRONG
John Morgan and Steven Marrocco
http://mmajunkie.com/news/20859/wec-51-title-challenger-manny-gamburyan-ready-to-prove-underdog-status-wrong.mma
Sep 30, 2010 at 4:30 pm ET
Manny Gamburyan is not happy about his underdog status.
The former UFC lightweight and newly revitalized featherweight
tonight meets reigning champ Jose Aldo (17-1 MMA, 7-0 WEC) at WEC 51
in Broomfield, Colo.
And he's out to prove the world made a mistake in pegging him to lose.
"Anybody can lose any given day," Gamburyan (11-4 MMA, 3-0 WEC) told
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "I believe in myself that I can
do it. I've got the power. I've got the technique. So that's all that
matters. I don't care if he's Anderson Silva or Jose Aldo. We'll see."
That's not to say Gamburyan lacks respect for Aldo's achievements. The
Brazilian has torn through the WEC featherweight division with seven
consecutive wins, including a title grab against former champion Mike
Brown and a beatdown of promotional posterboy Urijah Faber.
And though many pundits see Aldo's hands and knees as his primary
weapons, Gamburyan knows there's more than that to keep him on
his toes.
"He's a big puzzle," Gamburyan said. "The guy's a phenomenal fighter.
I can see his jiu-jitsu game is there. I mean, we haven't seen it,
but he's a black belt under (Antonio Rodrigo and Antonio Rogerio)
Nogueira, so that's no joke."
Still, the Armenian-American fighter is supremely confident he has
the tools to defeat the champion.
"I don't care what [Aldo] does," Gamburyan said. "He brings to the
table a big puzzle. We solved it. I passed my homework, and everything
is done. Now, it's test time. Let's see if I'm going to pass the test."
Aldo has said he's most concerned about Gamburyan's wrestling and
Judo background and has devised a specific strategy to keep himself
off the mat.
Gamburyan, meanwhile, said he's brought in additional fighters to
assist with his standup skills, particularly ones who are adept at
throwing leg kicks.
In his most recent fight, Aldo hobbled Faber's left leg with kick
after brutal kick in the WEC's first pay-per-view event, WEC 48. Faber
documented the damage to the limb on his official Twitter account
and showed a vast purple bruise that seemed to get a whole lot worse
before it got better.
It's not hard to imagine Aldo will try to take the spring out of
Gamburyan's step with the same attacks. That might give many fighters
pause, but "The Pitbull" said he's charging forward.
"I know Jose Aldo's a phenom," Gamburyan said. "I can say he's one of
the pound-for-pound best fighters in the world, but I'm ready. If I
have to go 25 minutes, I guarantee you I'll go 25 minutes in his face."
He hopes that a victory over Aldo, who's a huge favorite in the fight,
will open some eyes in the MMA community.
"I've got to go out there and prove everyone wrong," he said. "I
should get more respect."
From: A. Papazian
John Morgan and Steven Marrocco
http://mmajunkie.com/news/20859/wec-51-title-challenger-manny-gamburyan-ready-to-prove-underdog-status-wrong.mma
Sep 30, 2010 at 4:30 pm ET
Manny Gamburyan is not happy about his underdog status.
The former UFC lightweight and newly revitalized featherweight
tonight meets reigning champ Jose Aldo (17-1 MMA, 7-0 WEC) at WEC 51
in Broomfield, Colo.
And he's out to prove the world made a mistake in pegging him to lose.
"Anybody can lose any given day," Gamburyan (11-4 MMA, 3-0 WEC) told
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "I believe in myself that I can
do it. I've got the power. I've got the technique. So that's all that
matters. I don't care if he's Anderson Silva or Jose Aldo. We'll see."
That's not to say Gamburyan lacks respect for Aldo's achievements. The
Brazilian has torn through the WEC featherweight division with seven
consecutive wins, including a title grab against former champion Mike
Brown and a beatdown of promotional posterboy Urijah Faber.
And though many pundits see Aldo's hands and knees as his primary
weapons, Gamburyan knows there's more than that to keep him on
his toes.
"He's a big puzzle," Gamburyan said. "The guy's a phenomenal fighter.
I can see his jiu-jitsu game is there. I mean, we haven't seen it,
but he's a black belt under (Antonio Rodrigo and Antonio Rogerio)
Nogueira, so that's no joke."
Still, the Armenian-American fighter is supremely confident he has
the tools to defeat the champion.
"I don't care what [Aldo] does," Gamburyan said. "He brings to the
table a big puzzle. We solved it. I passed my homework, and everything
is done. Now, it's test time. Let's see if I'm going to pass the test."
Aldo has said he's most concerned about Gamburyan's wrestling and
Judo background and has devised a specific strategy to keep himself
off the mat.
Gamburyan, meanwhile, said he's brought in additional fighters to
assist with his standup skills, particularly ones who are adept at
throwing leg kicks.
In his most recent fight, Aldo hobbled Faber's left leg with kick
after brutal kick in the WEC's first pay-per-view event, WEC 48. Faber
documented the damage to the limb on his official Twitter account
and showed a vast purple bruise that seemed to get a whole lot worse
before it got better.
It's not hard to imagine Aldo will try to take the spring out of
Gamburyan's step with the same attacks. That might give many fighters
pause, but "The Pitbull" said he's charging forward.
"I know Jose Aldo's a phenom," Gamburyan said. "I can say he's one of
the pound-for-pound best fighters in the world, but I'm ready. If I
have to go 25 minutes, I guarantee you I'll go 25 minutes in his face."
He hopes that a victory over Aldo, who's a huge favorite in the fight,
will open some eyes in the MMA community.
"I've got to go out there and prove everyone wrong," he said. "I
should get more respect."
From: A. Papazian