Former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida is getting ready to take on Derek Brunson in the main event of UFC Fight Night 119 in Sao Paulo, Brazil and who better to discuss a bit of strategy with than UFC legend Anderson Silva?
Machida and Silva have been friends and training partners for much of their careers and will be sharing another similar opponent when Machida meets Brunson on October 28th.
Lyoto spoke to MMAfighting.com and said he actually just spoke to Anderson about the fight, but wouldn’t reveal exactly what was discussed.
“I talked to Anderson last week,” said Lyoto. “He obviously said a few little things, he said ‘Lyoto, do this and do that,’ showed some paths to go, but I won’t talk too much about it (laughter).”
“We had a pretty informal chat,” Machida said. “We discussed strategies, he gave his opinion, said ‘you’ll have big chances if you do this,’ It was a pretty open, informal chat.
“We didn’t get to train together because he’s busy right now, but I want to talk more, set up a few things,” he added. “Sometimes when you chat about something a few ideas come up, you go this way or that way in training.”
Brunson is known for being a fast starter and coming out strong, but Machida says he’s prepared for whatever Derek Brunson shows up in Sao Paulo.
“It’s hard to predict something,” Machida stated, “But all I can say is that I’m studying his fights and being ready for both scenarios. If he’s too aggressive, that’s good for my style. If he’s not, I’m trained for that as well, to be more aggressive on my own.”
“It all depends on how I win,” Machida said. “I’m sure that I will quickly come back (to the top). After this fight, I’ll be in the top 5, but first I have to think about this one and work hard to put on my best performance.
“I see this as a great challenge because he is a great fighter. He has defeated some names and has done great fights. He’s aggressive and well ranked. I know what a win means for me, so that’s all I’m thinking right now.”
Machida is ready to get back in the win column and isn’t concerned where the fight takes place.
“I don’t want to make any predictions and put it in my mind, but I’m focused on finishing the fight,” said the Brazilian, who has earned stoppages in seven of his 14 UFC victories. “It doesn’t matter if the fight goes to the ground or if we stay standing, I’m sure I will connect a blow or advance to a position and finish this fight.”
