UFC 138: Main Card’s Chris Leben, Mark Munoz Meet Under The Radar
BY DAVE DEIBERT
If Chris Leben and Mark Munoz are hearing the criticisms about UFC 138, they aren’t letting on. Besides, each insists that when the night is over, no one will be complaining.
The middleweight main event isn’t for an Ultimate Fighting Championship title. There’s no declaration of the match determining a future No. 1 contender, either. There are no former champions in the UFC 138 line-up. Heck, the undercard is filled with fighters making their UFC debuts.
Those are things they can’t control, say Leben and Munoz. What they can control, they’ll deliver.
“When they offered up Mark, and said ‘Hey, main event,’ I said ‘You know what? That’s great. That’s a great idea.’ Why? We both throw bombs. You guys are going to have a main event you’re not going to have to worry about,” said Leben (22-7), leading up to UFC’s return on Saturday to the United Kingdom.
UFC 138 takes place at LG Arena in Birmingham, England, in front of an expected sell-out crowd that – according to UFC director of international development Marshall Zelaznik – has set a new live gate record for the facility.
Munoz says his first-ever UFC main event will be one to remember, even if it’s been lost in the shuffle between two of the year’s most intriguing cards. At UFC 137 last week, Nick Diaz beat BJ Penn and was awarded a title shot versus welterweight king George St-Pierre, while next Saturday heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez meets Junior dos Santos at UFC on Fox, the company’s first-ever network broadcast.
“This is what we work for. This is why we’re here in the UFC. We want to be the best. I definitely want to be the best. I’m getting closer and closer. This is one of the steps to get there,” said Munoz (11-2).
“He throws bombs. I throw bombs, too. So bombs away. It’s going to be an exciting fight, for sure. He brings it and I bring it.”
Munoz, who has gone 6-1 since dropping down a weight class to middleweight, has a wrestling base from his days as an NCAA champion at Oklahoma State. But he isn’t afraid to stand and bang – witness his five knockout victories, including a 54-second finish versus C.B. Dollaway earlier this year.
How much he wants to show off his stand-up skills will be a question, though, considering Leben is one of the hardest punchers in the sport. He’s also someone who never stops moving forward; of his 29 professional fights, only six have gone to the judges.
“He’s different because he brings the fight, he comes to fight and he’s a natural born fighter. I bring the fight too. That’s why (UFC matchmaker) Joe Silva and (UFC president) Dana (White) put this matchup together, because we both bring it,” said Munoz.
Leben, who has been awarded either a fight of the night or knockout of the night bonus cheque from UFC in five of his last 10 bouts, says it’s the only way he knows to do things inside the cage.
“I’ve been watching a lot of fights lately where the champs they seem to – maybe it’s just me – it seems they’re fighting not to lose. For myself, I’d quit if that’s what I start doing,” he said.
“I fight to win. I fight to finish my opponent. I don’t fight to not lose. That’s what you’re going to see.”
• In other broadcast matches at UFC 138:
• Brad Pickett (21-4) squares off against Renan Barao (28-1, 1 NC) in a bantamweight co-main event.
• Former No. 1 contender Thiago Alves (23-7) takes on Papy Abedi (8-0) in a welterweight bout.
• Terry Etim (14-3) meets Edward Faaloloto (5-2) in a lightweight contest.
• Anthony Perosh (11-6) battles Cyrille Diabate (18-7-3) in a light heavyweight match.
FIGHT NOTES: UFC 138 airs live in Canada on Rogers Sportsnet (1 p.m. Pacific time). The events airs via tape delay in the United States and Canada on Spike TV (6 p.m. PT).
ddeibert@thestarphoenix.com
Twitter.com/davedeibert
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Category: UFC News
Tags: Birmingham, Chris Leben, DAVE DEIBERT, England, LG Arena, Mark Munoz, UFC 138
