Royce Gracie Interview
In a highly anticipated grudge rematch, Royce Gracie will face Japan’s Kazushi Sakuraba in the semi-main event of the spectacular “SoftBank presents Dynamite!! USA’’ MMA event Saturday, June 2, at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. It is presented by FEG (Fighting Entertainment Group), ProElite and SHOWTIME Networks. Tickets, priced from $10 to $1000, are on sale via Ticketmaster locations, www.ticketmaster.com and the Coliseum box office. The live card starts at 5 p.m. PT. The highly anticipated Gracie-Sakuraba fight is one of six that will be produced and distributed live by SHOWTIME® Pay-Per-View (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).
Choi will face hugely popular former pro and NCAA wrestling champion Brock Lesnar, while former University of Southern California (USC) and NFL star Johnnie Morton will make his MMA debut. Contact your Pay-Per-View provider to order “Dynamite!! USA.”
The SHOWTIME® PPV fights will be preceded by a one-hour telecast on SHOWTIME® (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) that will feature three of ProElite’s EliteXC top performers, popular women’s superstar Gina Carano, Antonio “Big Foot” Silva and Jake Shields.
Shaw: It is going to be a great event. First time ever that SHOWTIME is doing an MMA Pay Per View and the first time that we are doing a live SHOWTIME show leading into a Pay Per View, which should be really exciting. On behalf of FEG, EliteXC and ProElite, I would like to welcome everyone to this call. On a personal note, (I would like to say) how lucky I am. This will be my second MMA event and I am with the first family of MMA, so I am a lucky promoter in that respect. We have some great fights on this card. (We are bringing back) Gina Carano back. Everybody was so excited (after her) first fight, and (Antonio) Silva. I want to see Brock Lesnar fight myself and, of course, the historical rematch of Gracie and Sakuraba.
Begin Press Questions
Question: How’s training been going and what are your thoughts entering this grudge rematch?
Gracie: First, I do not believe in luck. To be involved with the No. 1 family in the MMA business, he must know what he is doing. Grudge match? I do not think it is really a grudge match. He is just an opponent. (We will be fighting with) different rules than (we did when we fought) in Japan. I am training to win and we will see what happens.
Question: In the first fight, you fought 15-minute rounds. This fight will be five-minute rounds. How does that affect your strategy?
Gracie: I was training for (a fight that had) five-minute rounds. So I have not changed that much. The last time I fought 15-minute rounds was in 2000. What is my strategy? Just got to get used to it. That is pretty much it.
Question: Do you feel pressure on you to uphold the family name and finally beat this guy?
Gracie: If I look at the pressure, I would not walk out in the rain. I would stay home. So I try not to put any pressure (on myself).
Question: Do you still enjoy fighting? Do you still feel you have a lot of peak years left in you and that you can fight as well as you did before?
Gracie: I am still on the top. My name is still a draw, so yes. I still have a few years (left). I take care of my body. I do not drink or smoke. I live a very healthy life, eat a lot of fruits. I eat very healthy, and I am always in shape. So it is not like I totally get out of shape.
Question: This is like a home game for you since you live in Torrance, Calif., which is not too far from downtown Los Angeles. How does that help you?
Gracie: It is much easier. You are fighting at home, so I do not have to look for places to eat. (I do not have to worry about) not knowing the place or what kind of food is going to be served, or get used to jet lag. It is much easier that way.
Question: Gary, was there any truth to the rumors that Josh Barnett would be on the card?
Shaw: We were trying to get the very, very best fighters we could for this show and we did contact a lot of different fighters, both through my matchmakers and through the FEG portion.
Question: Royce, were there any other opponents discussed for this bout?
Gracie: No, Sakuraba was the first opponent they brought up to me.
Question: Royce, how is your mindset? You are used to venues in Japan, but now (you are back) in the U.S. and competing in place that holds 90,000 people. Also, how is your mindset in regard to trying to avenge a loss against Sakuraba in 2000?
Gracie: I fought in Japan with a crowd of 92,000 people, so the crowd does not really bother me. It does not matter if it is 1,000 or 90,000 people. I am only going to listen to my corner – my father, my brothers, my cousins. So it is select hearing. But pressure? I do not put myself under the pressure of having to come back from a loss. I understand losing, winning. If I lose, something went wrong so I go home and I figure out what happened. I know how to deal with pressure. I do not feel that I have to avenge my loss to Sakuraba. Every fight is different. Every approach is different. Every approach has its own strategy.
Question: Would you say this outcome would affect your future?
Gracie: My future is on the history book. No, that would not change a thing. Ali is the greatest boxer of all time. He lost his last few fights, but he is still the greatest.
Question: Can you go back to the first fight with Sakuraba and talk about your feelings and how it ended up?
Gracie: That fight was in a tournament. We were fighting no time limit, 15-minute rounds with two minute rests. We had to fight right after. Whoever wins would go on to fight again in the tournament one or two more times. So it was three fights in the same night. It got to the point that I think he thought the same thing: Forget the next fight. We have got to finish this one. We were both so exhausted. But he kicked me on the shin. There was a partial tear on the tendon, a crack on the shin. (After) six rounds, I sat down and told my brother and my father, ‘I can get up, but I cannot walk. There is no way I can walk. What should I do?’ They told me, ‘You cannot confuse being tough with being stupid. You have already proven to us you are tough by fighting six rounds for 15 minutes. To continue on would be (a stupid thing to do). If you cannot walk, you cannot walk. Let us throw the towel.’
Question: How important is it for the Gracie’s to get a win over Sakuraba, who has made a career out of fighting you guys.
Gracie: He made a career of fighting everybody. He never turns down an opponent. It does not matter what size. The guy is a good fighter. He made his career great not just by fighting the Gracie’s, but by fighting everybody and putting his blood on the mat.
Question: Gary, Sakuraba has a history of medical problems, and he is going to have to go through a rigorous physical to pass in California to be eligible for the fight. Is there a contingency plan in place if Sakuraba does not pass the physical?
Shaw: Very good question. No, not at this time. We do not have a second opponent lined up. I think that is bad karma for me and the way I deal in business. Hopefully, everybody we have is in top shape and is medically cleared to fight. Obviously, everybody knows my reputation. I would never put anybody in that is not medically cleared or has any injury. As of right now, I am told that he is in excellent health and there is no problem and he will clear the medical. So the direct answer: there is no contingency plan at this moment.
Question: Royce, how do you think the U.S. rules are going to affect this fight?
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