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RICH
FRANKLIN Still Some Aces up His Sleeve
Page 2 - part 6 - 7
©
Marc Wickert January
6, 2008 All
photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC It’s
Sunday morning and Rich is casually sitting back at home in Cincinnati
having had knee surgery in Las Vegas two days ago. “I always take
Sundays off...even when I have a healthy knee,” says Franklin. Prior
to the operation, Rich celebrated a traditional Christmas at home. His
wife Beth’s family was in town and her parents stayed with them. For
New Year’s Eve, Rich’s uncle had a party at his house and the whole
family welcomed in 2008 in a low-key manner. This
down-to-earth lifestyle is in contrast to that of the elite full-contact
athlete who transforms into a superhero when he enters the Octagon
before millions of p-p-v fans, and who has helped attract some of the
biggest crowds to UFC events in the last few years. Following his latest bout against Anderson Silva, Rich ducked down to the Bahamas with buddies Jorge Gurgel and Chad (see photos at www.richfranklin.com) to chill out for a few days. But then Franklin cranked up the hectic pace, and traveled to Canada for the filming of Weapon. “After I finished the movie, I had to go to LA to film a DVD for the UFC. I am not sure when they are releasing the video.” Rich
has long been good friends with Matt Hughes, but says he was not
involved in Matt’s preparation for UFC 79. “I was in Canada filming
for the movie, but would have done anything I could to help if he would
have asked me.” And due to Franklin’s spending Christmas and the New
Year with family in Cincinnati, he was unable to attend the Vegas UFC,
so he watched it from home. Also
on that card was Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva. Rich,
what did you think of Chuck vs. Wanderlei? “What an excellent fight!”
Who
are you mainly training with now? “I
still have my camp in Ohio...Jorge Gurgel (BJJ black belt, New
Generation Martial Arts), Rob Radford (boxing instructor, Boxing 4
Fitness), and Neal Rowe (Muay Thai instructor, Sacan Martial Arts) are
my coaches. Mike Ferguson still does my strength and conditioning. For
the Silva fight, I began working with Matt Hume and that is something I
would like to continue during my career. I have learned a lot from him
in just a few short weeks, and wish we had more time to work together
before the Silva fight.” Do
you still train with Joe Doerksen? “The
last time I trained with Joe was for the McDonald fight. I asked him to
come to Wyoming to help me train for the Silva fight, but scheduling was
a problem. He is a great friend, and I would use him to train in the
future, schedules permitting.” Was
there anything you felt let you down in your fight against Anderson
Silva? “Anytime
you lose, you are let down!” Do
you work with weights as much as you used to? “Yes and no: I lift twice a week. My routine has drifted away from traditional weight lifting to flipping tires, pushing wheelbarrows and much more functional exercises. We still do circuits that I feel are better suited for fighting.”
Do
you believe you can beat Anderson? “I
do believe I can beat him; I just need to make some adjustments. He is a
great champion and a very intelligent fighter.” How
do you think Dan Henderson will go against Anderson? “I
believe stylistically Henderson is troublesome for Anderson, but both of
these fighters are smart men.” When
do we see you compete again? “Not
sure yet: I have to see how my knee heals.” Your
sponsors? “I
am working with American Fighter, Tapout, a tool company from the same
home town as I am in called Campbell Hausfeld, and Capitol Payments
Processing.” Rich,
is there anything you'd like to add? “I run into tons of fans who have heard rumors that I am retiring...That is not my plan at this point.”
For more on Rich Franklin: www.richfranklin.com. For more on UFC: www.ufc.tv.
RICH
FRANKLIN Coming up Aces
©
Marc Wickert All
photos copyright 2004 Zuffa LLC On
April 19, 2008, fight fans witnessed a showdown between two of MMA’s
best middleweights when Rich ‘Ace’ Franklin faced off against Travis
Lutter in the co-main event of UFC 83: Serra vs. St-Pierre 2. And
at just over three minutes into round two, Franklin proved in diabolical
fashion that he is still a very serious contender to regain his UFC
title. At
the time of this interview, Rich is at home in Cincinnati, Ohio, where
he says, “ It
feels good to win every once in a while and not require a hospital
visit.” Although
Rich was fighting before a Canadian crowd of over 21,000 fans, the
audience clearly showed they were in his corner when he entered the
Octagon, and they treated him as a local hero. Their loyalty was
appreciated by Ace. “The
Canadian fans are very supportive of me. I would return to Canada
to fight anytime,” says Franklin. Prior
to Rich’s bout with Travis, there were no secrets regarding the
strategy of either fighter: Rich would be looking to keep the fight
standing, and Travis would be hell-bent on taking it to the ground. Not
surprisingly, twenty seconds into the fight, Lutter attempted his first
shoot on Franklin. Then
just under three minutes into the round, Travis had Rich from behind.
Guest commentator Kenny Florian said, “This is probably the worst
possible position to be in: Lutter trying to take your back.” Seconds
later, Travis got the mount, then he seized Rich’s right arm and
wrapped on an arm bar. For a split second it appeared this would be
curtains for Franklin. But Rich spun out of the hold. “Wow!
What an escape by Franklin. That is a high-level counter right there. He
(Rich) was in big trouble… Lutter transitions beautifully into arm
bar, his (Rich’s) arm was locked out. Franklin really impressed me
with that counter,” said Florian. Rich,
was your spin out from the arm bar something you’d practiced with
Jorge Gurgel? “It
is something we have practiced in the past, but we did not practice that
in particular for this fight.” Was
that the turning point in the fight? “I
think the first lead hook I landed was the turning point of the
fight.” What
was it like winning in front of the 21,000 fans? “The
energy in a crowd the first time you fight in a new place is
indescribable. It doesn't matter whether you are in front of 2100
or 21,000.” Did
you dedicate the win to your dad? “Not
really...I have never understood dedicating an event or performance I
should say to someone else. His absence did affect me, and you can
read about that in the ‘Franklin Equation’ on my webpage.” What
did Matt Hume say to you before the fight? “Matt,
Rob, Neal and Jorge told me to just go out there and have fun...all the
preparation was finished.” Were
you happy with the way you fought the fight? “I am my own worst critic. There were things I liked about the fight and things I did not. I can't say I was pleased with my performance, but I wasn't necessarily disappointed either.”
During
the media conference, you said you didn’t like competing in front of
your home crowd. Is that because of the pressure it puts on you? “No,
I said fighting in my home town is a two-edged sword. There is
extra pressure to perform and extra media work. However, you always
have the fan support and do not have to travel far.” You
came out to ‘For Those About To Rock
(We Salute You)’ again for this fight. Are you an AC/DC fan?
Have you seen them Live? “I
have never seen them live, but I am a fan of their music. Oddly
enough, Dana initially chose that song for me to walk out to, and it
just stuck with me.” From
the opening seconds, Travis Lutter’s corner was calling for him to get
his hands up. Were you surprised that Travis still maintained a low
guard? “Not
really because he was looking to close the distance and take me down.” Most
of the opening round was fought in Travis’s backyard. Did you feel
confident the whole time, or were there moments when you thought things
weren’t going the way you wanted them to? “If
things had completely gone my way, I wouldn't have been on the ground in
the first place. With that in mind, I was very calm and confident
while I was on the ground.” Do
you think a certain amount of Travis’s gassing was due to frustration
rather than lack of cardio? “I
believe some of his ‘gassing’ may have been due to frustration. I
also landed a few knees at the beginning of the fight that may have
taken something out of him.” Do
you feel you’ve lodged a strong case for a rematch with Anderson? “Not
really. I am not sure the fans would want to see that yet anyway. I
will just take this process one fight at a time.” Is
Matt Hume confident you can take Anderson? “Matt
believes I could beat Anderson. However, he is a great champ and I
would have many things to change.” Last
time we spoke, you said you wanted to let fans know the rumors were
incorrect about your retiring. That’s obviously no longer an issue. “You
can just let the fans know I am not leaving yet.” Rich,
is there anything you'd like to add? “Let
the fans know they can go to RichFranklin.com or AmericanFighter.com to
sign up for my ‘Franklin Equation.’ It is a weekly or
semi-weekly writing about random thoughts. We have been
getting great positive feedback from our recipients.”
Your
sponsors? “American Fighter, Global Payments, and Campbell Hausfeld.”
For
more on Rich Franklin: www.richfranklin.com. Franklin
vs. Lutter: http://www.knucklepit.com/mixed-martial-arts-ufc83.htm For
more on UFC: www.ufc.tv.
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