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"I don't want to disrespect fighters at that level by giving them fights that fans can look at and say 'Okay, they are just throwing him another cupcake.' I won't do that to them. I think Urijah appreciates that. Truth be told, Urijah actually asked about Raphael first. I can't take credit for that 100 percent. I have to give credit to Urijah for that. I think that's a testament to what kind of fighter he is... My job is to find the best fighters in the world. Not only the best fighter, but the second best and the third best and the fourth best. The chips fall where they fall. That's my job. I'll let marketing and PR worry about the other stuff. It's pure sport."
-WEC matchmaker Sean Shelby talks to Heavy.com about his philosophy on putting fights together in the WEC in the context of Urijah Faber's difficult test tonight against Raphael Assuncao.
Penick's Analysis: Jonathan Snowden's entire piece over at Heavy.com is an excellent read. Faber is taking anything but the easy road in this fight after two losses to Mike Brown pushed him down the featherweight ladder a bit, and in a fight with a lot of downside for him compared to reward it is definitely a testament to his toughness and fighting spirit that he's not only taking this fight but that he requested it. And it's still absolutely a must win fight for him and the WEC in terms of his drawing power and their exposure, yet that's not the way anyone involved is taking it. It's an admirable move on their part, and for hardcore fans a great Faber performance will mean even more than it will to casual fans who may not know what Assuncao truly brings to the table.
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"There's still a large contingent of people, that they just want to see these guys almost die, or the other guy almost die and come back, and sometimes fights are like that. Certainly they are. But sometimes you get technical masterpieces too, and to hate a beautiful, technical fight - you're not really a fight fan...
Diaz has a granite chin, possesses perhaps the best recovery in the sport, his pace and conditioning are second to none and he sets records with the volume of his punches almost every time he steps into the cage. Nick Diaz is simply designed to fight the way he fights, and not many other fighters are...
"There was a lot of poison going on around there and I'm really disappointed because we had a good thing going. It was a good thing and I think people's egos got in the way. Well, not people just Javier, his ego got in the way, and too many cameras in the gym and him trying to build himself up and his brand, his AKA brand...
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