by Raymond » Fri Mar 23, 2007 12:00:00 AM
Looks like I walked into that one like Mirko walked into Randleman's left hand during their first match.
It was simply an attempted off the cuff, humorous, deadpan remark that I made to Monty, in no way made to be taken literally or seriously. I had no idea anyone on this site would even know who those guys were; otherwise, I would have taken care to be accurate and careful of people's feelings.
I follow Pride a lot and the only fight I watched with Liddell was his match with Quinton Jackson (12-5-0) where he was thoroughly outclassed. Still, he did manage to defeat the very tough Kevin Randleman who outweighs him by 25 pounds. Nonetheless, he was forced to return to the UFC after only 3 fights with a record of 2 wins and 1 loss. I think Liddell's record in the UFC is 23-3-0; I'm not sure.
I hope I don't make you mad (although I probably will) but I don't regard the UFC as being on a par with Pride when it comes to the top fighters. When Cro-cop moved over to the UFC after his recent defeat by Fedor, he had no trouble at all with Sanchez who was 8-0. And the Pride appearances I saw with Shamrock were just plain embarrassing.
Again, I'm sorry I inadvertantly insulted one of your heroes. I know how I would have felt if someone made a remark against my boyhood idol, Bobby Hull when I was young.
Having said all this, I don't feel that Liddell, in spite of his interview remarks, really believes he could compete with Cro-cop or Fedor, especially with the weight disadvantage.
This is supposed to a be a financial forum blog and so I don't want it to turn into one of those WWF type dis-athons.
Ray