Mark Hunt is Wolverine.
Well, not really, but after breaking bones against Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva in a fight many have labelled one of the greatest UFC battles of all time, "The Super Samoan" underwent surgery to rebuild his shattered left hand.
"I broke my hand, I thought I broke my leg and both my hands, but I only broke my left hand. I've got a railway track here, a couple of them. The metacarpal bones are both broken here, and I've just got plates and screws in there. I think about 16 all up... they are staying in here."
With a cult-like status among MMA fans across the globe, Hunt is known for his never-say-die attitude, iron chin and general toughness inside the combat arena. A veteran of both K-1 (kickboxing) and MMA (PRIDE and now the UFC) - he has seen more than his fair share of battles in his time. Many would have concluded that his most recent (and epic) five round draw against "Bigfoot" would have taken top spot on Hunt's "toughest" fights to date list - but the powerhouse striker has set the record straight.
"Well, not really - no. It was a tough fight (laughs), but it wasn't the toughest fight," he reflects.
MMA Kanvas reporter Adam Ireland caught up with Hunt at the unofficial launch of the new UFC game, which is on it's way to second generation consoles. As revealed earlier this week, gamers can play as Hunt when the much hyped MMA title is released later this year.
While Hunt was disappointed that he didn't get the "win" when his UFC Fight Night 33 opponent Silva turned in a positive drug test post fight, he was pleased that the UFC president Dana White gave him his props - especially after it was Hunt that was at one point in time, not wanted by the world's largest MMA promotion, the UFC.
"I would have rather had the win than the bonus money, it is what it is, it (Silva's positive test) sort of puts a downer on the fight, but he is a nice guy 'Bigfoot'," he said.
"It's good to get that kind of credit from the boss, it was an honour to fight in the main event, to headline here in Brisbane. It's good to get the credit from Dana (White). I feel happy that I get my credit for the hard work I've been putting in for all these years, it's finally coming my way for a change. Instead of; 'Hey man, we don't want you, get your fricken arse out of here!'"
"I'm happy, my performances have been pretty good," he continued.
Expecting to return to the UFC mid-year, Hunt (9-8-1) revealed for the first time who he would like to face in his next Octagon appearance - a rematch with Dutch striker and former Strikeforce champion Alistair Overeem (37-13-1), who defeated him via submission in 2008.
“Of course, rematches are always good. I’ve never lost a rematch with any fighter. I always like to avenge my losses too – I saw Alistair in Japan (and) we were talking, he’s a nice guy but as a fighter, he’s got it over me, I’ve got to get it over this guy. It’s a match I’d like to have... the outcome won’t be the same.”
When probed on how a fight with “The Reem” would play out differently a second time around, Hunt was jovial yet coy in his response.
“It won’t be the same as the last time. He won last time so… (laughs)”
According to the official UFC rankings, Hunt sits in at number nine in the promotion's heavyweight division, with Overeem, who defeated submission specialist Frank Mir earlier this month coming in at number seven. Such is the closeness of their respective positions on the ladder, this may very well be a match that the UFC puts together.
In our exclusive interview with Hunt above, the likable UFC heavyweight also details how he found out about "Bigfoots" failed test thanks to a tricky reporter and why he hasn't ruled out using testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) himself. Check it out above.
[/url]http://ift.tt/1gRTyDU]
Well, not really, but after breaking bones against Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva in a fight many have labelled one of the greatest UFC battles of all time, "The Super Samoan" underwent surgery to rebuild his shattered left hand.
"I broke my hand, I thought I broke my leg and both my hands, but I only broke my left hand. I've got a railway track here, a couple of them. The metacarpal bones are both broken here, and I've just got plates and screws in there. I think about 16 all up... they are staying in here."
With a cult-like status among MMA fans across the globe, Hunt is known for his never-say-die attitude, iron chin and general toughness inside the combat arena. A veteran of both K-1 (kickboxing) and MMA (PRIDE and now the UFC) - he has seen more than his fair share of battles in his time. Many would have concluded that his most recent (and epic) five round draw against "Bigfoot" would have taken top spot on Hunt's "toughest" fights to date list - but the powerhouse striker has set the record straight.
"Well, not really - no. It was a tough fight (laughs), but it wasn't the toughest fight," he reflects.
MMA Kanvas reporter Adam Ireland caught up with Hunt at the unofficial launch of the new UFC game, which is on it's way to second generation consoles. As revealed earlier this week, gamers can play as Hunt when the much hyped MMA title is released later this year.
While Hunt was disappointed that he didn't get the "win" when his UFC Fight Night 33 opponent Silva turned in a positive drug test post fight, he was pleased that the UFC president Dana White gave him his props - especially after it was Hunt that was at one point in time, not wanted by the world's largest MMA promotion, the UFC.
"I would have rather had the win than the bonus money, it is what it is, it (Silva's positive test) sort of puts a downer on the fight, but he is a nice guy 'Bigfoot'," he said.
"It's good to get that kind of credit from the boss, it was an honour to fight in the main event, to headline here in Brisbane. It's good to get the credit from Dana (White). I feel happy that I get my credit for the hard work I've been putting in for all these years, it's finally coming my way for a change. Instead of; 'Hey man, we don't want you, get your fricken arse out of here!'"
"I'm happy, my performances have been pretty good," he continued.
Expecting to return to the UFC mid-year, Hunt (9-8-1) revealed for the first time who he would like to face in his next Octagon appearance - a rematch with Dutch striker and former Strikeforce champion Alistair Overeem (37-13-1), who defeated him via submission in 2008.
“Of course, rematches are always good. I’ve never lost a rematch with any fighter. I always like to avenge my losses too – I saw Alistair in Japan (and) we were talking, he’s a nice guy but as a fighter, he’s got it over me, I’ve got to get it over this guy. It’s a match I’d like to have... the outcome won’t be the same.”
When probed on how a fight with “The Reem” would play out differently a second time around, Hunt was jovial yet coy in his response.
“It won’t be the same as the last time. He won last time so… (laughs)”
According to the official UFC rankings, Hunt sits in at number nine in the promotion's heavyweight division, with Overeem, who defeated submission specialist Frank Mir earlier this month coming in at number seven. Such is the closeness of their respective positions on the ladder, this may very well be a match that the UFC puts together.
In our exclusive interview with Hunt above, the likable UFC heavyweight also details how he found out about "Bigfoots" failed test thanks to a tricky reporter and why he hasn't ruled out using testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) himself. Check it out above.
[/url]http://ift.tt/1gRTyDU]
Statistics: Posted by I_need_a_ light — Feb 21. 2014, 10:13 — Replies 1 — Views 19
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