UFC 118 News: UFC Done W/ Boxers + Lots Of News
On whether more boxers would come to the UFC: "I thought we answered this question in 1993, but James came out and he picked a fight. We answered the question again in 2010. I don't think it needs to be answered again. I don't care if it's (Floyd) Mayweather or anybody else."
On why he's done with boxers: "It's unfair to bring a guy in with one discipline, no matter if he's trained for eight or nine months. I wasn't the guy going out there and trying to badmouth boxing and take boxing down and hurt the sport of boxing. James Toney picked a fight, and he got one. I don't see [other boxers] ever doing that, coming out and whatever. James Toney is the guy that's crazy enough to come out and do this. He picked a fight, he got one, and we won't be doing any more boxing."
On his thoughts going into the fight: "I didn't try to sell this thing as 'Tune in on Saturday night, and you're going to see the most spectacular battle or war.' I basically said what I was hoping would happen. Anything can happen in a fight. We're not after boxing. We're not trying to attack boxing. I love boxing, and I thought this question was answered back in 1993, but I've got to be honest. As we got closer to the fight, my stomach hurt, and I was a little dizzy. I was nervous. Mixed martial arts stepped in there against a boxer, but at the end of the day, it's a fight. Anything can happen in a fight."
On why he was nervous: "What was I nervous about? That I'd have to deal with James Toney for the next year. It's been a fun ride with James. It's been very interesting. He's a nutty guy. I was nervous for that fight."
On respecting James Toney: "He's a tough guy, and he's been around for a long time, and I love him. I have a lot of respect for James Toney. When you come in with one discipline, you can't expect the guy to come in and have great ground work. You know what? He stepped up. He wanted to do it, and he did it. He hung in there longer than I thought he would. I'm sure he was as prepared as he could be. Anybody that knows James Toney over the past few years knows that James isn't the most physically fit boxer on the planet. But let me tell you what, when I signed him in my office, he's lost a lot of weight since that day. He took it serious, he went out there, and he gave it a shot."
On whether the fight will happen: "I said if Gray beats Kenny, Gray gets his shot. He absolutely beat Kenny."
On whether the fight will sell: "People always have their opinions on what they think. Frankie, what does this kid have to do to get the respect? Frankie Edgar just dominated B.J. Penn. Dominated him. [Maynard] just beat Kenny Florian. That fight's going to be just fine."
On Frankie Edgar: "You've got to give credit where credit is due. He absolutely dominated B.J. Penn everywhere in the octagon tonight ? on his feet, on the ground, wrestling. The first couple of times he took him down, I couldn't believe it. Not only did he take him down, he took him down hard. He put on an incredibly dominant performance tonight against a guy who's been the best in the world for a long time. There were a lot of questions out there and a lot of people doubting Frankie Edgar. ... You've got to be a complete jackass not to give Edgar credit after what he did tonight. I thought it was a masterpiece. He looked unbelievable."
On whether the fight can happen: "They've got a couple of guys they've got to beat before we make that fight, but I'm not opposed to making it."
On what has to happen first: "Well, Georges St-Pierre is a coach on this season of The Ultimate Fighter. He's got to fight (Josh) Koscheck. Then, Jake Shields is here now, so he's got a couple guys before he cleans out the division. We're going to re-do Chael Sonnen-Anderson Silva. That rematch is going to happen, and Vitor Belfort is still in the mix."
On who he thinks is the best fighter in the world: "Anderson Silva hasn't lost a fight since 2006. Not only has he annihilated the 185-pound division, he also moved up a weight class and beat people there, too. There's no better fighter in the world than Anderson Silva right now. Listen, Georges St-Pierre is awesome. He's cute and everything else, I know. Anderson Silva is the man right now. There's just no denying it. They guy has done too much. Just think about this ? to go undefeated in the UFC since 2006 is crazy."