Things get a little hairy for Brock Lesnar at the pre-fight press conference in Cali.
Thus far, it's been a fruitful couple of days in the Golden State area, as covering UFC 121 has seen the MMA Connected crew travel from Anaheim through Los Angeles to Rosemead and back.
At each one of these locations, something new was learned from many of the sport's biggest names.
Leaving our hotel in Orange County, we drove an hour (courtesy of the epic traffic) to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, in downtown L.A. to the site of the UFC 121: Lesnar vs Velasquez pre-fight press conference.
Even though each fighter was focused on saying the right things, every so often there were a few comments or statements that stick out and are worthy of sharing with those who missed the presser.
Right off the bat, I asked Brock Lesnar if Cain Velasquez was his toughest test to date, to which the champion simply shook his head, and made it clear that the Mexican-American was not on the level of his past opponents.
I for one, disagree.
Lesnar was also quite jovial, making several remarks regarding his current growth of facial hair, stating that he is prepping for a hunting trip in Alberta and that it's time to prep his face for the cold weather.
For his part, Velasquez was cool, calm and collected. He said little, unlike those who came to support him. He was backed by an army of latino fans, who showed up in droves, confirming their faith that the AKA heavyweight gem will become the first ever Mexican Combat Sports Heavyweight Champion.
Programming note: Tune in to Sportsnet ONE on Saturday, Oct. 23 for live coverage of the preliminary card from UFC 121 beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. The prelims will feature Canadian Patrick (The Predator) Cote taking on (Filthy) Tom Lawlor as well as Ultimate Fighter Season 11 winner Court McGee versus Ryan Jensen. Also, watch a replay of the pre-fight press conference and catch Friday's weigh-ins and the post-fight press conference Saturday here at sportsnet.ca.
Co-main event headliners Jake Shields and Martin Kampmann were all business, neither fighter said anything that was eyebrow raising, but there was an obvious theme that was shared amongst those in media row.
Shields, one of the sport's best pound-for-pound fighters, is going to be a dangerous foe inside the octagon, now that he will be allowed to use elbows (something that he was unable to do during his stint with Strikeforce).
As for Kampmann, there is an ever growing movement that points to "The Hitman" as the man to crash Sheild's welcoming party, and derail the hype train.
Tito Ortiz and Matt Hamill were also in attendance, with "The Huntington Beach Bad Boy" dressed to impress, and ever grateful to be able to fight again.
Often injured over the past seven years, Ortiz is stating that he is healthy for the first time during that dreaded time span and come Saturday night, "The Hammer" will be just another victim.
As for the Utica, New York native, he was reserved, enjoyed the press conference and made it clear that the mistakes he made fighting Rich Franklin, will not happen against Ortiz.
On Thursday, we made the trek to the UFC Gym in Rosemead, California. It’s an incredible facility that felt more like a tourist attraction, than a facility to learn and ply the trade of Mixed Martial Arts.
The venue played host to the open workouts, which were something Ortiz refused to participate in.
Truth be told, he still had a fair amount of weight to lose and does so via a specific schedule. Instead, he chose to jump right into doing interviews, then signing autographs and taking pictures with fans.
Shields barely worked out as well, but did break a sweat.
The same can be said for Velasquez, Marquardt, Hammil, and Lesnar not participating. The UFC instead, added "The Nightmare" Diego Sanchez (who will be facing off against Paulo Thiago).
For his part, Sanchez worked out for a full hour (maybe more), and went through the full motions of stretching, yoga, striking, ground and pound, and visualization.
It was a wonderful glimpse into one of the sport's most charismatic characters, and one who stated that he has learned so much from his recent loss to the other "Hitman" John Hathaway.
Focusing on Saturday night, his ideology is a myriad of lessons in growth and his development and maturation as not only a fighter, but as a man.
In terms of teachings, he plans on making sure that Thiago understands the difference between being an elite police officer in Brazil and being a top notch fighter inside the octagon.
Event night cannot come soon enough.
