UFC
Lyoto Machida says UFC on Fox 4 opponent Ryan Bader "not a ground expert," but still dangerous
May 7, 2012 - 10:30:56 AM Lyoto Machida says UFC on Fox 4 opponent Ryan Bader "not a ground expert," but still dangerous

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Lyoto Machida went 16 fights into his career without losing a fight, but after reaching the pinnacle of the UFC's light heavyweight division and capturing the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, he's lost three of his last four fights.

Following his most recent loss, a second round technical submission to Jon Jones last December, Machida will attempt to bounce back against Ryan Bader at UFC on Fox 4, who comes in on a two-fight winning streak. In a recent interview with Tatame.com, Machida talked about how he's preparing for the fight, as well as his thoughts on Bader.

"I was thinking about half on the United States, at Black House, and half in Brazil," Machida said of his training camp plans. "Since he's a wrestler, I guess it's important to go over there and learn some things and I guess it'll help me a lot. I'm bringing Wrestling coaches to help me out. Of course I thought about training to defend myself from his game. My goal is to strengthen my wrestling so I can play my game easily."

"We trained together once at TUF's house when Minotauro [Nogueira] was a coach there. We trained together and we got to know each other, but it was only one day. As a person, he's very cool, a strong fighter, he has heart. At striking he's been getting better and he's a great wrestler. I don't see him as a ground expert, but of course he's dangerous."

Should Machida defeat Bader, and should Mauricio "Shogun" Rua defeat Thiago Silva this summer, the two of them would be feasible names as coaches for a second season of "The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil." Nothing's been officially said to either fighter on the subject, but Machida was very open to the idea and a third fight with Rua.

"It would be a hell of a conquer for me and for Shogun," he said. "I really respect him. Of course there's this rivalry, but only inside the Octagon. We say hello to each other and actually we're co-workers, so we gotta respect each other. It's going to be good, really good. If really there's this chance of being part of TUF, I guess it can only bring good things for us and for the sport."

Penick's Analysis: This is going to be a very good matchup for this UFC on Fox 4 card in August. Despite his string of losses, Machida remains a top tier light heavyweight, and Bader's trying to get himself back into that conversation after his consecutive 2011 losses to Jon Jones and Tito Ortiz. If the UFC has another season of TUF Brazil in the fall, or even next spring, Machida and Rua would make for a very good coaching combination. Though not many are clamoring for a third fight between the two, even though they're technically 1-1 against each other, it would certainly still be a solid matchup.

[Lyoto Machida art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]