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Pedro Rizzo talks about Pride GP
Submitted by: Team TATAME
Posted On 08/09/2003
Text and pictures by Gleidson Venga
After a bad year in 2002, it looks like the Ruas Vale-Tudo Team is finally finding the path back to the victory. The team's top representative Pedro Rizzo defeated Tra Telligman at the last UFC, and other team members Gustavo Ximú, Alexandre Baixinho, Renato Babalú, Antoine Jaude and Eduardo Simões all got wins in their last vale-tudo events. During the last Heat Fighting Championship, Pedro Rizzo talked to us about Pride GP, his future in UFC and about the new era of Ruas Vale-Tudo Team.
Speak a little about your last fight versus Tra Telligman... 'The fight happened as I thought it would, it developed the way I wanted. In the 1st round I tried some different things, to ty to throw him off balance. In the 2nd round I changed a little bit and I took him to the ground to try and tire him a little, because he was sharp with his boxing. I brought the fight again to the feet to go for a KO. I didn`t connect with his chin, I hit his forehead and it cut. The doctor stopped the fight, but if it didn't stop there he would have been knocked out any way'
What is your opinion on the fight between Gan Mcgee and Tim Sylvia? 'I don't have an opinion formed regarding that fight, it is a difficult fight to speak about. Gan Mcgee is improving a lot, but I think Tim Sylvia is a little better than he, I don't know. But who win will have to hold this belt with everything they have because I want that belt again'
What your opinion on the fight between Rodrigo Minotauro and Ricco Rodrigues? 'Minotauro has all the tools to win, he has 100% of a chance at winning. Minotauro is a better striker than Ricco, better grappler, and better fighter than him. I don´t see how Ricco can beat Minotauro, only if he has bad luck. But a fight is fight.'
When will you return to the octagon? I will fight in november, I still don't know with who the fight will be. I am waiting for the guys at the Ultimate to announce against who I will fight.'
Do you prefer to fight in ring or octagon? 'I like Ultimate, I like fighting there. OTher rules, like not being able to knee on the ground (in UFC) - it takes away a lot from the striker and it gives an advantage to the grappler. Because if he shoots and you 'sprawl', he does not have to worry about taking a kick to the face, or a knee when he is underneath.
You are a striker and another feared striker is having a lot of success now, Mirko Cro Cop. What do you think of him? 'I think he is doing well in his fights, he doesn't give easily in the stand up game, but I think he still has not faced a great wrestler. The only one that he faced was Fujita, and he hit that knee on him, but he didn't fight a top guy like Couture or Coleman. He also never faced a good guy at ground submissions like Rodrigo (Minotauro), a fighter that will demand more from him than just a stand up fight.
What do you think about Cro Cop and Vovchanchin? 'I think it won't be an easy fight, I think it will be a hard fight.
Emelianenko Fedor is the top fighter in the heavyweight division at the moment, how would you fight him? 'Fedor is a tough guy, he has heavy hands, but he is not a great boxer. But he has heavy hands! He is a tough fight, because he is good at wrstling, he wants to stay on top, even against a Jiu Jitsu guy, he is OK on top and does dmage becaue he hits so hard. I think the way to fight him is to exchange blows with him, to avoid the takedowns. I don't think it will be too difficult to avoid his takedowns, although he is good at wrestling, I already wrestled with Couture, Matyushenko and I learned. I guarantee I am better on the feet - with my experience and everything.
Is there any Heavyweight that you would like to fight? 'I want to fight with the fighterswho have beaten me, and I want to fight my way back to the top - whatever it takes.'
What happened in your fight with Gan Mcgee. 'I lost that fight in one second, I had not taken a punch the whole fight, I took that punch in the nose and I could not continue in the fight. I have been here beside myself, I want to fight hi****in to prove that it was only an accident and that on a normal day I would beat him.
After a bad year, the Ruas Vale Tudo Team are back on top. Talk a little about that. 'I think the 'Ruas Vale Tudo' put an end to that string of bad luck, I don't know what was happening. But recently, Babalú won, Ximú, I am coming off a win. Everybody winning motivates us, I think we learned a lot with our defeats and we will return better, because everything that we passed thru we used to gain inner strength.' -
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